For the past several years, Revelry Boutique + Gallery in Louisville has mounted an ornament show in which artists are challenged to create holiday baubles to decorate trees.
And all the ornament artwork is available for purchase.
For this year’s theme, Revelry curator and visual director, Jacob Grant, chose “Deck the Holler.”
“I wanted to make it kind of surround the idea of traditions,” Grant said. “Especially with Kentucky, I wanted to keep in mind that a lot of traditions look very different, but a lot come from eastern Kentucky, Appalachian backgrounds.”
Grant said the works of Kentucky artist Helen LaFrance particularly inspired him when curating the show.
“There were some pieces that focused on winter time and Christmas traditions and aesthetics, and I really wanted to implement that into this show,” Grant said. “I feel like we really attach ourselves to that part of Christmas nostalgia where it's these very niche almost kind of vintage appearing aesthetics, but that still feel like Christmas today.”
The different participating artists all took their own approach to the brief.
Sam Gardner runs Little Haunted Dream-House and designed ornaments for the show.
“I wanted to make mine fun and colorful,” Gardner said. “I have three kids, if they looked at it, they would know exactly what it was right off the bat.”
Her designs include a Christmas tree cupcake, a la Little Debbie’s holiday snack cake, and pickle-themed ornaments, which are a nod to a tradition in Gardner’s home.
“I use pickle chips instead,” Gardner said. “I've seen a lot of pickles. Like, we have a regular little dill pickle on our tree, but my kids, they really like the dill pickle chips. So I wanted to try to make something with those.”
Gretchen Leachman wove in holiday habits with her children in her ornaments.
She created intricately detailed, miniature gingerbread houses for her works in “Deck the Holler.”
“I used to build them with my girls when they were little. We always did them,” Leachman said. “They would take up the entire kitchen table, and they would turn into villages.”
Leachman’s designs take inspiration from kitschy, mid-century modern homes.
“I always like to hide things in my miniature pieces, so that people will find stuff later as they go,” Leachman said. “So maybe when they get home things that they didn't see they'll see when they're hanging in on their tree.”
Bringing a little piece of their own holiday spirit into the homes of people who purchase their ornaments is an exciting prospect for show participants.
“That's very heartwarming,” said artist Needa Hameed. “When anyone buys anything that I make, or is interested in anything that I've created, enough to buy it and put it in their house and make it a part of their life. I'm just honored.”
Hameed’s ornaments are made from pyrography, or wood burnings. She has engraved the wood with images of woodland animals.
“My family doesn't really celebrate Christmas, but I always enjoyed the whimsical little parts of it, because I grew up here, so even if I didn't do all the celebrations, I always enjoyed going to school and hearing the little stories and little characters,” Hameed said.
Despite not having a specific holiday celebration tied to this time of year, the holiday spirit in the air still fills her with nostalgia.
“I always enjoyed just the cute little sentimental things, like Frosty the Snowman, those types of holiday movies,” Hameed said. “You know those, like little fairy tale things and those kinds of warm memories are what I associate with winter holidays. I thought, ‘If I'm gonna make ornaments, let's put that spin on it.’”
“Deck the Holler” is on at Revelry Boutique + Gallery through Dec. 30.
