Timelines: The Art of the Calendar

Riverbank Arts

The University of Michigan

April 14 - August 30, 2023

The calendar is a popular form that unites art and functionality, and it also addresses time and the future.  While calendars occupy many graphical genres today, from collages of family photos to promotional swag, this exhibition shines a light primarily on the work of creatives who produce calendars as an extension of their studio practice, independent of institutional sponsors and large-run commercial distribution. By gathering together the works of ‘calendar artists’ this show invites audiences to take a closer look at this ‘indy’ subculture. What do these ephemeral documents mean to users, and how do they differ from digital calendar apps that have begun to supplant the printed calendar?

The artists included in this exhibition are as local as U of M-Flint’s Art faculty, and as international as Sweden, Panama, Italy, the United Kingdom, and Singapore. An additional roster of US nationals and Michiganders round out this group of calendar artists who use the calendar form in diverse ways – helping us to understand the mysterious arrow of time, appreciate the beauty around us, comment on environmental change, and combat gender stereotypes. 

This project is the inaugural exhibition of a new Print Art and Design series at Flint’s Riverbank Arts gallery. The focus of the series is contemporary art and design that explores the medium of print, from a variety of perspectives. Riverbank Arts is an initiative of the Arts+Culture Research Cluster at The University of Michigan - Flint, and is supported by the Office of Research and Economic Development.

Join us! The public is invited to a calendar-making participatory event on the 14th of April (5:30-7:30pm) during the exhibition opening reception. Several of the artists included in the exhibition will be present and participating in this live, interactive, art-making event. 

ARTISTS: Martina Addabbo, LookBabeStudio (Athene), Nicole Broughton-Adams, Faith Butler, Heman Chong, Andy Deck, Dolphin Studio, Kerith Gardner, Gene Gort, Kalamazoo Calendar Project (2023 edition participants: Peter Brakeman, Meg Tang, Jamie McKinney-Brown, Grace Spink, Kim Shaw, Heidi Fahrenbacher, Stewart Fritz, Jill Terwilliger, Mark Andrew Morris, Mike Klok, Jaakan Page-Wood, Ryan Brown), Linea Designs (Linnea Asplind Riley and Johanna Riley), Risotto Studio (Gabriella Marcella), Jia Sung, Phoebe Wahl & Co., and Lauryn Welch.

CREDITS: Co-curators Andy Deck and Christian Gerstheimer would like to thank Ben Gaydos, Audrey Banks, Nalani Duarte, Marie Jeffrey, as well as Joanne DeVore, and Tricia McDonald, for their contributions to the development and production of Timelines. Additionally, thanks to the Office of Research and Economic Development, which has been instrumental in supporting the Riverbank Arts space.

Opening reception Friday, April 14th 5:30 - 7:30 PM simultaneously with ARTWALK FLINT.