50 Artists: 50 Years of Art in Springfield: Carol Plaia: Revealing Beauty Within the Frightening

Writer's Notes: When I opened the door to her studio located behind a retail store in downtown Springfield, Carol Plaia greeted me warmly and told me about finding the studio space for her mask-making. I took photos of masks hanging on the walls and sitting on tops of cabinets. One wall was filled with stacks of file boxes containing textiles and other mask-making materials. On the back of the door were posters from Carol's art exhibitions and gallery shows. In the center of the room was a large work table with a textile-cutting surface on its top.

Carol had a mask in progress on the work bench which covered half of one wall of the studio. As she worked the clay on the mask, I took a few more photos before we sat down to discuss Carol's life and work as an artist. Carol is a storyteller with an infectious laugh. Her stories made it hard for me to interrupt her with my questions (amidst my own laughter!).

Along with our discussion of art, Carol told of her learning that she had cancer at the age of 50 -- getting the diagnosis just after returning from China where she attended the "4th World Conference on the Status of Women". During treatment, Carol had kept doing her art while cutting back on other things in her life. She said she made the decision then to do "no more whining", recognizing that she'd lived a longer life than most everyone who had ever lived (and much longer than her own mother who had died at age 39 from cancer treatment -- when Carol was 12 years old.).

I look forward to more conversations with Carol Plaia about arts and culture in Springfield and to seeing the new masks that emerge from her heart, mind, spirit, and hands in the future.

More examples of Carol's work follow the newspaper article.

Featured in the Springfield Beacon (June 7, 2007)

50 Artists: 50 Years of Art in Springfield
Celebrating arts and culture in our community

By Todd Peterson
For The Beacon

Carol Plaia
Revealing Beauty Within the Frightening

For the past 20 years, artist Carol Plaia has created masks that intensely mix the frightening and the beautiful. Today, the walls of her studio in downtown Springfield are a menagerie of masks with images from the ancient to the angelic, from the grotesque to the gorgeous.

Carol became involved with the arts in Springfield even before moving here in 2006. On a house-hunting trip, she visited the Emerald Arts Center, loved what she learned about it, and joined that same day. She has been active in the organization ever since and became a member of the Springfield Arts Commission this year as well.

In a personal statement written about her mask-making, Carol said "I get to use every material imaginable. I can start with an idea or message and build the piece to fit. Or, I can just start building, letting the face and character emerge from the particular materials. Magically, it often turns out that the medium has its own message, waiting to get out."

Since moving to Springfield, Carol Plaia has been championing the arts in our community while creating her masks which will sometimes scare you, oftentimes make you smile, and always startle your psyche. In her own words:

Inspiration To Begin: "My grandmother -- a teacher and painter in the early 1900's -- who had stopped making art when she got married and regretted it -- told me 'not to live this way' and become the artist I wanted to be. My aunties and mother taught me to sew which evolved into making clothes and, in the 1960's, I created wearable art. My mother who died at age 39 ... when I was 12 years old ... encouraged me the most."

Important Mentors: "I took a six-month class in 1987 from Judy Slattum, who wrote 'Balinese Masks.' She taught me the history of mask-making and performance with masks. I made my first four masks in that class. We exhibited our masks and did a performance called "Remarkable Women of Santa Cruz". Another mentor is Ralph Bennett, a 6th generation Haida wood carver and mask-maker, who freed me to be able to say ''I am a mask-maker."

Value of Art in Life: "I couldn't live without it. I need to communicate with my art, making something new -- an essence -- out of the chaos of thoughts in my mind. Being able to express myself in writing is very important too. I feel a responsibility to communicate about art because I'm comfortable doing it, unlike many other visual artists."

Her Artist's Legacy: "I hope that I will have communicated to everyone who sees my work -- to artists and would-be artists -- that art is necessary in life, that whatever they create is okay ... and that being an artist is not about making money or 'showing' art. It's about doing it!"

For more information about Carol Plaia and to see additional photos of her art, visit the blog: www.emeraldartcenter.blogspot.com and the art center's website: www.emeraldartcenter.org.

"Anguish" by Carol Plaia

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About The Artist

Birthplace: Granite City, Illinois

Arts Education: Self-taught

Media of Choice: Masks and Costumes

Favorite Place to Do Art: Wherever she is at the time

Favorite Things to Create: Three-dimensional masks and sculpture;
loves working with textiles and writing

Favorite Award: Puffin Foundation Grant for creating "Seven by Seven" Exhibition (Seattle, 2000)

Arts Organizations: Emerald Empire Arts Association; Springfield Arts Commission

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All art images and photos of the art are copyright of the artist.