Join us for First Friday; our gallery and studio spaces will be open to the public!

Celestine’s Post Apocalyptic Dreams

“…And Celestine jumped, accepting her fragile vulnerability as her core strength, leaping into the abyss that would be her now and forever existence.”

A reflection on the end of a world and the search for alternatives from collage artist Michelle L Miller. 

This exhibit reflects five years of exploration.  It begins with the last human, Celestine, and her daring jump to another existence. The works are influenced by personal realities of social isolation, loneliness, life transitions, pandemics and a self-destructing world.  It draws inspiration from sources as varied as Mary Shelley’s 1826 novel The Last Man, the art of Max Ernst, failed moon exploration, dream imagery, dieselpunk, transrealism, dark cyberpunk lo-fi, and the video game Fallout. It encompasses themes of creation, survival, dying, innovation, and rebirth through the lens of its main character, single female survivor Celestine. 

Enter Celestine’s journey through the travails of Homo sapiens’ and Terra firma’s guaranteed demise.  Hopelessness verifies abandonment, then leads to innovation and possibilities infinitely vast. As the biologically gifted/condemned only survivor of her globe, her losses are as boundless as any galaxy. Visions, through the eyes of many former selves, are her precious gems, packed carefully inside her being. Taking the leap forward is her first task.

Opening on March 1st, from 6-9pm at The Yards Art Collective, this immersive installation created by Michelle L Miller features artistic contributions from Rivkah Simcha, sound design from Paul and Drew Wood and has been facilitated in part by Hungwell Art Services.

First Friday is a monthly citywide gallery night that encourages collaboration between art venues in Rochester, NY. This initiative showcases area artists and smaller arts institutions by promoting the First Friday evening of each month from 6-9pm as a community night for experiencing art. First Friday ensures a healthy art scene and a healthy city through regular exchange between venues, artists and patrons.