Face time: Gray matters

Last weekend, the Chambers Hotel was all about gray and ice, but the event was anything but dreary.

The hotel hosted the opening of David Bartley's exhibit "The Grey Area" and, in the nearby courtyard, the "Twisted Wonderland," featuring St. Paul Technical College students carving ice sculptures.

The sculptures were expected to be the opposite of the Sunday brunch variety, and a skeleton with a sword through it definitely fit that bill. They make ideal frozen decor next to the Ice Chamber bar, which is made from 12,000 pounds of ice.

As for Bartley's art exhibit, which will be on display until April 4: Works are mostly gray with a few punches of color and combine two- and three-dimensional media. Bartley referred to historical pieces such as Goya's "The Great He-Goat" and Jacques-Louis David's the "Death of Marat." The "Emaciated Painting" showcases the back of a canvas.

The concept provided an endless source of material for the artist. "It means that nothing is definite," he said.

Luckily, Deborah Boudewyns, art and architecture librarian at the University of Minnesota, was able to further interpret. "There's a convergence of the spiritual and reality," she said. "It's almost wrestling with what we ascend to and what keeps us grounded."

Sara Glassman • 612-673-7177