Margot Datz embraces ‘Flower Power’ at the Grange Hall

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'Nightingale' by Margot Datz

Each year Margot Datz, a well-known Island muralist, painter, author, and illustrator, hosts a one-evening-only show in August, painting “what is closest to [her] heart.” Ms. Datz’s large-scale work can be seen in murals at Edgartown’s Old Whaling Church and the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. This year, she has taken her work to the other extreme, with her exquisitely intricate fantasy florals. “Flower Power,” the theme of this year’s show, which will take place at West Tisbury’s Grange Hall on August 6, consists of work Ms. Datz calls “metaflorical paintings about life.”

The Grange Hall’s rustic interior posts will provide stations for 12 floral paintings accompanied by brief writings. “I love watching people take in the show,” Ms. Datz said. “There is kind of dance that goes on as the viewers circle the posts, some reading first, some viewing first. It is lyrical in a way.”

While the artwork is the focal point, each writing deepens the experience for the audience. “The writing is a way for me to create an intimate bond with my guests,” Ms. Datz said. “I love thinking about historical art and literature as ‘fusions of Illuminations.’ I feel like I am an illuminator.”

Ms. Datz chose flowers as her theme this year, explaining that plants and flowers seemed to be distinct individuals with needs, gifts, intentions, and dramas, just like people. “I gardened a lot this spring and summer, creating these little communities of plants, and they all had their issues,” Ms. Datz said. “I am certainly not the first to see the abundance of metaphors a garden provides the creative mind. I aspired to present these metaphors in a fresh way. It is very joyful for me to connect with my viewers. Some artists don’t care about that, but I care deeply. That connection, that union is a delicious reward for all those endless hours I spend in solitude.”

Margot Datz opening reception: Saturday, August 6, 4 to 8 pm, at the Grange Hall, West Tisbury. One evening only. For more information, contact margotdatz@verizon.net or call 508-627-4219.