Brian Schorn's 'Comstock Wabi-Sabi' art show during Silver Palooza will knock your socks off

SILVER CITY — Brian Schorn’s popular exhibition “Comstock Wabi-Sabi” will be on view at the Silver City School House on Sunday July 3 from noon to 6pm during the Silver Palooza, a music and art festival featuring live music, food, beverages, a cake walk, and more.

Schorn, a Michigan-based artist visiting the local Resident Artist Program, will be on hand to discuss his work with visitors. This is the final showing in Nevada of Comstock Wabi-Sabi, which includes two dozen assemblages that Schorn created using natural and found materials while he was an artist-in-residence in Silver City back in 2015.

A multi-disciplinary artist with four MFA degrees (fine art photography, graphic design, creative writing and electronic music), Brian Schorn’s art has been displayed nationally and internationally in dozens of solo exhibitions and more than 70 group exhibitions. Other recent solo exhibitions include “Lost and Found” in New York and “Magnum Opus: A 25 Year Retrospective” in Michigan. He has been awarded artist residencies throughout the U.S. and operates the the Alpena Community College Fine Arts Center where he teaches art and design courses.

REVIEW: When the Comstock Wabi-Sabi exhibition debuted at St. Mary’s Art Center in 2015, Erich Obermayr, owner of Historic Insight, a research, design and publishing firm specializing in historical and archaeological materials, declared that the show “knocked his socks off.”

In a review, Obermayr wrote that it "is the high-level work of an artist and craftsman who knows what he is doing...The show is comprised of 'found objects,' which is a risky kind of art since his medium is the same stuff any of us could find, stick together, and put up on the wall. Brian takes on the challenge and quietly, but effectively, shows us how it’s done ... Silver City’s 150-years plus history has given Brian much to work with, and his practiced eye has picked out quite a selection — everything from oyster shells imported during the 1860’s to pieces of desiccated garden hose, and in between a broken comb, fragments of plates, bowls, and bottles, wood honeycombed with dry-rot, a spoon, and fork, the lost head of a plastic toy cowboy.”

ABOUT THE SHOW TITLE: When he was collecting materials around Silver City, Schorn recalls that he “realized that the Japanese aesthetic of ‘wabi-sabi’ was abundantly present in the landscape. This aesthetic recognizes the beauty in objects that are faded, worn and rusted, while embracing their impermanence and imperfection. This series celebrates the wabi-sabi aesthetic and acknowledges the region’s history, culture and environment.”

Locals see clear signs in the Comstock Wabi-Sabi artwork that Schorn devoted considerable time to learning about the national historic landmark Silver City is located within, and to exploring and understanding many of the region’s historic sites that are "off the beaten path." Much of that exploration of the Comstock “outback” was in the company of artisan and octogenarian Fred Swanson, who lived next to McCormick House, the housing for visiting artists with the Resident Artist Program. Schorn noted that the “kindness and generosity” of “Fred Swanson, my desert companion and guide...helped bring this work to life.”

PREVIOUS DISPLAYS OF COMSTOCK WABI-SABI: The two dozen pieces in the series were first on view in Virginia City in September of 2015. Shortly afterward, Sierra Arts Foundation saw the artwork and thought it was perfect for their “Galleries at Work” program. Through Sierra Arts, Comstock Wabi-Sabi was featured in 7 solo shows from 2015 to 2021 at venues such as Truckee Meadows Community College in Reno, the City of Sparks Depot Gallery, and the Microsoft campus.

Schorn later donated two of the assemblages from Comstock Wabi-Sabi to the permanent collection of the Resident Artist Program in Silver City. One of those pieces, “Sunrise: A Portrait of the Artist in Silver City,” was selected to be in the Nevada First Lady Kathy Sisolak’s inaugural “First Lady Presents” art show at the Governor’s Mansion in 2021.

LAST CHANCE TO SEE THE SHOW IN NEVADA: Schorn said he wants to make sure the Comstock Wabi-Sabi artwork has a chance to be seen in the town where it was created. After his second residency in Silver City ends this summer, he will be taking the collection back to his home in Michigan.

WHAT IS THE RESIDENT ARTIST PROGRAM IN SILVER CITY? The Program is sponsoring the Comstock Wabi-Sabi exhibition during the Silver Palooza festival. The artist-in-residence program in the small but vibrant community of Silver City provides a way for those from other parts of the U.S. and the world to engage with the community and the region through the arts. Selected applicants creating in the performing, visual, or literary arts reside for up to 3 months at McCormick House, a geodesic dome designed in the 1970s by Nevada artist and professor Jim McCormick. As part of the residency, visiting artists offer free public performances, exhibitions, readings, workshops, etc.Silver City is located on the Comstock, within one of the nation's largest federally designated historic landmarks. Recently declared an "Arts and Culture Resources Production Center,” Silver City is already home to a number of Nevada's artists, musicians, photographers, writers, artisans, and academics.

JULY 3 SILVER PALOOZA MUSIC AND ART FESTIVAL: In addition to Schorn’s art show, the July 3rd Silver Palooza Music and Art Festival features music with Reno Latin Funk band Drinking with Clowns, Tahoe singer/songwriter Darren Senn, local musicians “Betty and James” and Smilin’ Bob, plus food, beer, wine and other beverages, a poster coloring contest, lawn games, a laser engraving booth, and more. The festival is presented by the Silver City Preservation Society (SCPS) and the Silver City Arts group, and is a fundraiser for the nonprofit SCPS. Donations are encouraged; proceeds will benefit the Silver City Schoolhouse Community Center and arts and culture programming to benefit the public.

The festival takes place at the Silver City park, outdoor stage and School House at 385 High Street, Silver City, Nev.