Russellville artist to exhibit works in 2 galleries

David Rackley works from his home studio in Russellville. He has two shows opening this weekend in the Little Rock-North Little Rock area.
David Rackley works from his home studio in Russellville. He has two shows opening this weekend in the Little Rock-North Little Rock area.

RUSSELLVILLE — Russellville artist David Rackley has two shows opening this weekend in the Little Rock area — one at the Argenta Branch of the William F. Laman Public Library System in North Little Rock, and the second at Gallery 26 in Little Rock.

“It’s crazy to have two openings so close together, but how can an artist turn down a show?” Rackley said, laughing.

“I had talked to the folks at Gallery 26 about a year ago and never heard back from them,” he said. “In the meantime, I talked with Rachel Trusty (gallery coordinator for the William F. Laman Public Library) at the Argenta Branch, and we set up a show there. Then, just by chance, I called Gallery 26 a few weeks ago, and they said, ‘By the way, you have a show opening here.’ I said, ‘OK.’ … Here I am with two shows opening on the same weekend.”

The first show will open Friday at the Argenta Branch Library during the Third Friday Argenta Artwalk, set for 5-8 p.m.

The second show, which is shared with two other artists, will open Saturday at Gallery 26. The hours are 7-10 p.m.

The public is invited to both openings. There is no admission charge to either show. Rackley will attend both openings.

Rackley is primarily a photographer but often paints his printed images with oils to create what he calls mixed-media art.

The show opening at the Argenta Library is a one-man show titled 30 Stories.

“It is a collection of 30 images I have created over several years, each with a narrative quality that is open-ended, open to interpretation,” Rackley said. “At times, this narrative is captured in candid, almost photojournalistic depictions and, at other times, in a deliberate arrangement designed to convey a specific mood and sense of story.

“In my stories, much is left to the imagination. I offer images that are open to interpretation, that invite the observer to engage in crafting meaning.”

Rackley said all of his work is created with a film camera in black and white.

“After darkroom processing, the black-and-white print is painted with oils and pencils in a way that can never be perfectly replicated; thus each piece is a unique, archival work of art,” he said.

Rackley said the exhibit at Gallery 26 includes 17 pieces of recent work. He titled this exhibit Aftermath.

He said the idea behind these pieces of art comes from several visits he made to a former amusement park in New

Orleans that was abandoned after Hurricane Katrina.

“The carnival was once home to many,” he said, relating the story he has created to accompany these pieces. “There was a troupe … from the opera. There were acrobats and jugglers, gypsies and misfits, and those of unusual talents. Together, they created an illusion of reality, … and after closing time, when the public had drifted away, they continued to live in that illusion.

“In the aftermath of the great hurricane, the carnival was abandoned. Some continued to live in the ruins. Others left to wander among us. This is the imaginary chronicle of their lives.”

Rackley was born in Russellville but grew up in Alaska, where, he said, he “was inspired by the majestic beauty of the untamed wilderness.”

It was not until he left Alaska and enrolled at Arizona State University that he became interested in photography and began to photograph in the Southwest and in Alaska. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in anthropology from Arizona State and has traveled extensively, photographing in Mexico, Guatemala, South America, Southeast Asia and Europe. He later received a master’s degree in education from the University of South Carolina.

Rackley said his “camera of choice” is a large 4 by 5 view camera.

“I shoot black and white film exclusively and print this on a silver gelatin paper using traditional darkroom techniques,” Rackley said. “Once a print has been produced and dried, it can be painted using photo oils and, for fine details, oil pencils. The application of the oils is a reductive process: The oils are liberally applied to cover appropriate areas and then carefully removed to reveal various degrees of underlying detail.”

Rackley’s show 30 Stories will be on display at the Argenta Branch Library, 420 Main St. in North Little Rock, until Aug. 13. Regular hours are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday. The library is closed on Sunday. For more information, call (501) 687-1061.

Rackley’s exhibit Aftermath, at Gallery 26, 2601 Kavanaugh Blvd., Suite 1, in Little Rock, will close Sept. 10. Normal gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. For more information, call (501) 664-8996.

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