Dotzauer sparks memories with ‘What We Take’ exhibit – wenatcheeworld.com

A recipe, a smell, a sound or a roofline can act as talismans of memories, triggering the senses and conjuring the delight of play.

Wenatchee Valley College Professor Natalie Dotzauer has filled the MAC Gallery with sculptural objects, or fragments of them, designed to do just that.

The interactive exhibit, What We Take, opened Feb. 18 and runs through March 20.

Natalie Dotazuer's "Sweet Spot"features molasses-stained paper with sugar lumps and royal icing.

This installation is generated to trigger the senses and thoughts of nostalgia, as the act of play and sugar sensations are pulled together in unusual combinations, she said. I am attempting to unfurl the physical nature of each material, the visceral act of understanding and conjuring the delight of play.

Memories can take many forms.

I feel as though memories have some kind of personhood with eternal feelings, traces of lessons, survival instincts, reminders, sweet, nave, forever caught in a pageant of my deepest regrets or fondest regards. But where can I find a memory? Where do they exist? When do they exist? she said. At times, a name or an old photo can trigger a thought. A smell, a walk through an old neighborhood can bring back such vivid memories. Its as if we pass our younger selves in the same space. I exist both as the thought and the person remembering.

Dotzauer said she is struck by the impermanent nature of remembering.

Some of the strongest moments of my life and memories of these times are not pure joy or sadness; they are a wild combination of bliss and fear, sweetness and sorrow. I want to hold onto the places of these moments, visit them like monuments and hold them like relics, she said. However, this physicality is a mere talisman of the memory I am left with a memory and a desire, a recipe or a roofline.

Am Having a Good Time- (Detail), 2008. Found wood, sawdust and wiring assembled with hand printed wallpaper and postcard.

Am Having a Good Time- (Detail), 2008. Found wood, sawdust and wiring assembled with hand printed wallpaper and postcard.

Dotzauer teaches sculpture, drawing, art appreciation and more at WVC. Her multifaceted works are often interactive installations that engage viewer participation in multi-sensory experiences.

An artist reception is planned for 5-7 p.m. March 6, part of the First Friday ArtWalk events.

The MAC Gallery is open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday. For information go to wwrld.us/2N4SRuG.

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Dotzauer sparks memories with 'What We Take' exhibit - wenatcheeworld.com