The Red Brick Gallery in Foxburg opens its 2025 season on Friday, April 11 with an exhibit of photographs and poems by Greg Clary from his latest book, “The Vandalia in Me,” as he takes us wandering on gravel back-roads through the hollers of down-home Appalachia where he lived on his family’s homestead in southern West Virginia and then for 40 years in the northwestern Pennsylvania Wilds.
Clary’s poems and photographs are rooted in his personal experiences and observations of the Appalachia he loves and the people and events he has encountered along the way. He writes, “These images and words share the common theme of seeking beauty among the ordinary and infusing them with respect and significance.”
Plan to view the exhibit more than once and to take your time. Linger with the poetry as it tumbles off the walls with his images that honor the dreams and hopes of your neighbors around the bend.
In the Introduction to Clary’s book, Dave Newman writes of his Vandalia, “It’s a wild place filled with love and dreams. His world is… filled with deer hunting, rivers, and family. Biscuits and fried green tomatoes. It is hospital visits and rough bars and demolition derby. I’ve never seen poor and working-class folks and the places they go to save themselves photographed with such honesty. The shots of even the most rundown bars are filled with the brightness of dreams and possibility”
Poet Phil Terman writes of his book, “Clary wears his heart on his sleeve, and puts it smack on the page. Clary’s sensitive vision profoundly understands the miracle in each moment, the hero in each soul. He’s a poet of passion and compassion. His photographic eye notices the bearded man sitting yoga under the Dollar General sign and his tuned ear can distinguish the conversations in the checkout line. It’s a relief to encounter a poet that speaks in his own accent, chronicle the gestures in the hospital waiting room, in the corner bar… honoring the laborers, the precious encounters, the deeper wisdoms. He understands intimately that life itself is poetry.”
Greg Clary’s photographs were featured with Byron Hoot’s poems in the 2021 RBG exhibit based on their book, “Piercing the Veil: Appalachian Visions” and in last year’s RBG Ekphrasis poetry and visual art exhibit, Clary’s “Bashful Cow” photograph was accompanied by a poem that his work inspired by John Miller.
Rare, however, is the artist that distills their observations in both poetry and photographs. Greg Clary wrote, “Poets and photographers seek to authentically frame their own perspectives. Poetry is a portal into my identity… My poems serve as a catalyst for self-reflection and when it is working, I may discover hidden truths, unresolved emotions, and a newfound perspective on past events. A means by which emotions, thoughts, and experiences may be distilled into subtle, sometimes enlightened, expressions of my life. That captures the essence of my approach as a poet: an observer gazing out trying to make sense of it all.”
Even more rare is an artist whose artistic voice came to fruition late in life and after a successful career of administrative writing as Greg did – not unlike the never-too-late Grandma Moses – or the composer Charles Ives whose Americana melodies tumbled out with actuarial numbers from his successful insurance business. Greg Clary began writing poetry only after he had retired as a college professor, a career characterized by a steady stream of academic writing such as analytical reports, critical evaluations, course syllabi, research documents, and persuasive grant proposals.
Soon after retiring, he participated in an incredible 6-week Creative Nonfiction workshop in Pittsburgh that inspired him to continue writing creatively for my own enjoyment. He then became involved with the Watershed Journal Literary Group in Brookville and began writing poetry for the first time. He interacted with many talented writers and poets in our region who, in turn, have been tremendous sources of encouragement and guidance for him.
Clary has a Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Marshall University and graduated with the Ph.D. from Kent State University. He currently is Clarion University Professor Emeritus of Rehabilitation and Human Services. His photographs have appeared in many numerous publications, his writing and poetry have been widely published, and he is co-author of the ekphrastic photography/poetry book, Piercing the Veil: Appalachian Visions (2020).
Listen to Greg Clry read his poetry during the Exhibit Opening wine/cheese reception on Sunday, May 4, from 4 to 6 PM following the 2 PM Beethoven Chamber Music concert of pianist David Allen Wehr and Pittsburgh Symphony cellist, Anne Martindale Williams. Take his book home with you, for sale at the Red Brick Gallery.
The exhibit running weekends in the Upstairs Gallery from Friday, April 11 through Sunday, May 25. Hours are Friday 1 to 6 PM, Saturday 11 to 7 PM, and Sunday noon to 5 PM at 17 Main Street, Foxburg 10036.
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