Rosalynn Gingerich and Waubonsee students touching “Luna” outside of Dickson Center. Gingerich invites all students and staff to interact with “Luna.”

By: L Underwood, Editor

On Feb. 20, 2025, Waubonsee’s art department had the pleasure of hosting Chicago artist Rosalynn Gingerich for an artist talk in the Arrowhead Room. Gingerich has her piece titled “Luna” on display in the window of Dickson Center until Mar. 7, 2025.

Gingerich grew up in Iowa without a television in the home, forcing her to use her imagination for entertainment.

“I had a sandbox, my mom made me homemade playdough and sewed doll clothes,” Gingerich said.

Gingerich’s childhood consisted of hand sewn clothes from her mother and crochet clothes from her grandmother.

“I, at a very early age, came to think of sewing as a very utilitarian part of life. I did not think of it as an artistic practice,” Gingerich said. This mindset led her to begin her career with woodworking and traditional painting.

In 2017, Gingerich paired up with artist Lindsey French to create an installation piece titled, the “Undersphere.”

“It was the first piece in my practice where I started using sewing in my work,” Gingerich said, realizing that she could now fold up her work and pack it away easily instead of the heavy wood pieces.

Gingerich was pleasantly surprised by the interaction with the “Undersphere.” 

“People laid on the floor and didn’t seem to want to leave. The world was crazy and busy outside and you could come into this world, and it was completely different. It was very calming, very soothing. It was a very sensory rich experience for folks,” Gingerich said.

Gingerich’s piece, “(Pink) Squish I”, made an appearance in the “Terrain Biannual”, an outdoor art exhibit. The “Terrain Biannual” aims to make art exhibitions affordable and accessible to everyone. 

This was Gingerich’s first outdoor work, forcing her to work with the unpredictable weather and animals.

“I think I’m pretty routinely and blindly optimistic. I think that’s necessary to make the things that I do,” Gingerich said. 

“(Pink) Squish I” was site-specific, meaning the piece could only be considered complete in the location it was made for. When Gingerich was contacted to bring “(Pink) Squish I” to other places, they were considered new works.

“I brought ‘(Pink) Squish II’ with me to New Buffalo, Michigan to play around. I realized ‘(Pink) Squish’ could have a life outside of what I could ever imagine,” she said.

“(Pink) Squish III” was a response to the pandemic and made an appearance in the “Art-In-Place” exhibit. “Art-In-Place” put art pieces outdoors so people could appreciate art even when we weren’t allowed to go to museums and indoor exhibits.

When contacted by a curator in LA, Gingerich had a new dilemma. How would one make a site-responsive piece for a place you can’t go to? Gingerich utilized a computer program to simulate where “(Pink) Squish IV” would go outside the curator’s home in California.

When “(Pink) Squish IV” was put on the front porch of the curator’s home, the light carried the color into the home.

“I loved how light transforms an environment and how color affects your mood. But, the sunshine in California faded the fabric,” Gingerich said.

Being mindful of the new COVID pandemic, Gingerich’s piece titled “Marengo” was created. 

“I was thinking about how we can’t touch anyone, and giving someone a hug was an impossible thing to do. I wanted to create hug pods that people could sit in outside in a safe space to feel a caress from something outdoors,” Gingerich said.

With “Marengo”, Gingerich noticed that people weren’t interacting with the piece like she wanted. 

“We’ve all been trained not to touch the artwork so I had to hang out and invite interaction,” Gingerich said.

In an old papermill in Vicksburg, Michigan, Gingerich’s piece, “Gelsomina”, was created and was paired with “Marengo” to make one big piece.

“‘Gelsomina’ was also conceived during the pandemic. I made it large enough for two people to be inside of it. This piece isn’t considered complete unless someone is inside of it,” Gingerich said.

After being contacted by people in Wisconsin, Gingerich was faced with the project of making a piece the size of a barn. “Baraboo”, quite a bit taller than the average person, was made to bridge the divide between rural and urban life.

“For me the success of a work is in the stories,” Gingerich said, noting that the feel of the grass, the smell of the air is all part of the completed work.

For “Luna”, Gingerich spent a lot of time in the window of Dickson, bringing swatches of fabric colors and figuring out the shape to use.

“I wanted to understand the space here. I am interested in pushing boundaries outside of expectations. The first thing I try to understand about a space is what color needs to be there. Trying to envision what would be energizing in January,” Gingerich said.

Gingerich also wanted to capture the feeling of being part of the in or out group or being included or excluded. The work ended up being half outside and half inside to symbolize this. 

“I am excited to hear all of your stories about “Luna”,” Gingerich said.