Small Assemblages Tell Big Stories in New Cafe Dez Artz Exhibit

In a series of tiny boxes, stark eyes stare ahead, compartmentalized, next to small, forgotten figures of newborn babies.

“In those days, God was looking elsewhere,” can be read above the boxes below.

The assemblage work of art, created by Kirsti Adkins of Squirrel Hill, tells a story of the genocide in Rwanda – of eyes that refused to see the truth, of families, mothers and children tossed aside in senseless acts of hatred, ignorance and death.

It is one of several pieces of art now displayed at that can be described as small boxes filled with big stories.

“It’s expressing the idea that I wanted express -- that God was looking elsewhere – but so was everyone else,” Adkins said. “In Rwanda, our country and many countries ignored what was happening.”

Adkins has a series of paintings and assemblages on display through the end of March, along with paintings by her daughter, Erika Adkins, who lives in California.

Adkins met Café Dez Artz Owner Dave Green as they are both members of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Pittsburgh. Not only are they friends through a shared congregation, but Green made Erika’s wedding cake in 2001.

“We all support Dave’s whole idea of having a community café where people can be featured and can be comfortable coming and just hanging out,” Adkins said of displaying her art there.

People gathered Sunday afternoon between 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. for the art opening where food, wine, snacks and dessert were served.

While Adkins is focused on creating small worlds and telling powerful stories through art made of objects contained in any kind of box, large or small, she also creates traditional paintings, in addition to her work with a new medium called ecaustic painting, which uses hot wax.

In an assemblage piece called, “Occupied Land,” there is an aerial view of a map she found in National Geographic magazine. Carefully placed within a cigar box, Adkins took images from Israel and Palestine to create a work of art depicting the ancient conflict there.

“It’s telling a story,” she said.

In Erika’s paintings, pictures of California weather take shape in vibrant shades of scarlet and orange flames inspired by the devastation of recent wildfires there. Another shows a dark tornado whipping across an empty piece of land.

said he was sharply moved by Adkins’ piece about the Rwandan genocide.

“I remember being disturbed by it – it just hits you over the head,” Green said. “It makes you stop and think, which is a good deal of what art should do.”

He also said he loves the idea of the assemblage medium that Adkins uses, in addition to her paintings.

“I saw a few paintings of hers that I enjoyed a lot but when I saw the assemblages, I thought they were marvelous – they are like little worlds,” he said.

For more information about the display and the hours at Cafe Dez Artz, visit http://garyritchie.com/cafedezartz/.