Pictured: Miniature acrylics of Sarasota Jungle Gardens, Little Lake Como, and Little Sarasota Bay by Emily Baar. Photo by Barbara Gerdeman.

The walls at Creative Liberties are perhaps fuller this week than they’ve ever been before, with the opening of the gallery’s latest exhibition, Small Works, Big Impact, on display through September 28.

Celebrating the jam-packed potential of the pint-sized production, contributing artists were given free rein in terms of medium and subject matter but required to keep all submissions within 12 inches in any dimension—and the result was the largest outpouring of art from the community that Creative Liberties has ever seen. “In two-and-a-half years of exhibitions,” says Creative Liberties Co-Owner Barbara Gerdeman, “this is the most incredible response we’ve gotten.”

Strung in tight columns along the white walls of the gallery like a procession of kite tails snipped from their sails, the exhibition totals nearly 240 original works of art and represents roughly 35 artists in the community. With a wide variety of mediums on display as well, audiences will find everything from small-scale oils by Emily Baar, painted on tiny canvases in exquisite detail for open display or to be placed like cameos in lockets, to the whimsical sculptures of Kris Meigs, who crafts her oddball creations from gourds and found objects. A full accounting includes watercolors and acrylics, mixed-media projects, handmade jewelry, fabric art, and even photographs by Gerdeman, capturing her travels to New Zealand, South Africa and more in 8x8. And the exhibition itself becomes something of a snapshot of the artistic community growing around Creative Liberties.

“We really wanted to attract a wide audience of artists from all stages of their career,” Gerdeman says, “whether just starting out and looking for a place to show their work or if they’ve been exhibiting for a long time.” And with this latest exhibition, she’s finding they all have something in common. “Artists in the community are creating smaller works but not having a place to show them,” she says. Some galleries aren’t interested and some artists self-censor, taking advantage of the rare gallery opportunity to show something bigger and bolder, rather than risk a smaller piece getting lost in the shuffle. With Small Works, Gerdeman hopes that not only can Creative Liberties create a space for artists to show these small works but spur gallerygoers to see what they’ve been missing.

“I hope they walk away knowing you can create something small but mighty,” Gerdeman says. “That sounds corny, but art doesn’t have to be big to have an impact.”

Currently on display at Creative Liberties Artist Studios, Gallery & Creative Academy, Small Works, Big Impact runs through September 28. Open Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 10am-3pm, the gallery is located at 927 N. Lime Avenue, Sarasota.

Pictured: Miniature acrylics of Sarasota Jungle Gardens, Little Lake Como, and Little Sarasota Bay by Emily Baar. Photo by Barbara Gerdeman.

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