Ginjer Clarke, a longtime volunteer with The Gallery at First UU, prepares for the 2022 event, Sept. 28-Oct. 2. (Photo by Jay Paul)
The Gallery at First UU started with about 20 artists in 1966 and has since grown into a yearly juried art gallery and sale. From Sept. 28-Oct. 2 this year, the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Richmond will transform the first floor of its block-long building into a gallery and showcase the work of over 160 local artists.
The exhibition and sale comes after a two-year hiatus during the pandemic as social distancing guidelines affected church gatherings. The feeling of disconnect was amplified by other losses.
“Our dear reverend, Jeanne Pupke, passed away from an accident in February of this year, so our congregation is grieving that loss quite a bit,” church member and volunteer Rachel Lawrence says. She adds that the church is also missing the presence of Kathleen Van Paasschen and Peter Ericson, two church members and gallery volunteers who died in 2020 and 2021, respectively.
Rev. Jeanne Pupke (Photo courtesy First Unitarian Universalist Church of Richmond)
“We’ve got some big holes in our community that we’re trying to overcome … and trying to create a thing of beauty,” Lawrence says.
This year, the gallery will feature a variety of works including paintings, handbound books, jewelry and pottery; all were submitted by artists to the six gallery directors who act as jurors. A third of the profits go to the church.
Susan Singer has been a returning artist for about 10 years. She will showcase her pastel paintings, jewelry and a pattern game she invented called “Triangle Play” at this year’s gallery.
“The fact that I can just drop my work off and know that it will be treated beautifully and then I come back to pick it up and I get a paycheck, that is very compelling,” Singer says. “It’s a beautiful show. It’s fantastically done, and the atmosphere is really great; the people are kind, and it’s so well organized.”
Volunteer Ginjer Clarke is feeling various emotions about coming back to put together the gallery after two years filled with loss. While she is joyful about having the gallery again, she’s anxious about filling all of the volunteer shifts to run a smooth event, she says.
“A lot of people became disconnected for various reasons, and we are still working on getting people back in,” Clarke says. “We lost people, so we’re anxious about whether we can pull it off and whether people will come.”
Artwork on display during a previous Gallery at First UU (Photo courtesy First Unitarian Universalist Church of Richmond)
Clarke is helping run the gallery as director of the boutique by designing and working at the retail shop. During her first year, she was a setup and design volunteer who was in charge of decorating one wall with art. “I loved it,” she says. “I had no idea this was something I wanted to do so badly.” One weekend session of being a volunteer turned into more than 15 years of volunteering.
“It was actually [Kathleen Van Paasschen’s] husband who predeceased her, Ian Finlayson, who gave me that very first wall to work on,” Clarke says.
Van Paasschen was in charge of checking in artists, processing the inventory and helping the artists check out before she died in early 2020. “She was one of our most cheerful, energetic and welcoming front-of-the-house people to interface with the artists,” Clarke says. “She would always wear these hats that look like [those worn by] court jesters, with the bell.”
While Van Paasschen had been volunteering at the gallery for more than 20 years, Peter Ericson was newer to the First UU community but is still dearly missed. Ericson and his wife, Linda, became involved in the gallery after moving to Richmond to be closer to family.
“Peter was one of those rock-solid guys,” Clarke says. “He volunteered for everything in the church, and anything Reverend Jeanne asked him to do, he would step up and do it.”
Jeanne Pupke, who had served as senior minister since 2006, was beloved by many, Clarke says. Pupke had planned to leave First UU prior to the pandemic to help other churches, but she decided to stay and help her community get through the rise of COVID-19. She planned to work through May of this year before leaving Richmond to travel with her wife, Regina Largent. Pupke was unable to realize her plans due to her sudden death.
“She showed up for all kinds of social justice actions and protests,” Clarke says. “She showed up for everybody, and she was always on the front line putting herself at risk.
“I just think we kind of have lost our rudder,” Clarke adds. “We’re just floating around.”
The return of the gallery offers an opportunity for church members and Richmonders to come together and strengthen bonds after two years of loss.
“Every show is a little bit different, but this one has a lot of new pieces, a lot of new people and a lot of missing pieces,” Clarke says. “I’m more excited than ever before because we need it back.”
Never miss a Sunday Story: Sign up for the newsletter, and we’ll drop a fresh read into your inbox at the start of each week. To keep up with the latest posts, search for the hashtag #SundayStory on Twitter and Facebook.
