Gloria Cachion Art Gallery

Sarah Jane Thornington July & August 2024 “Ebb the {plastic} Tide” Exhibit at Southbury Public Library

Tuesday, July 2, - Thursday, August 29, 2024

The Gloria Cachion Gallery at the Southbury Public Library will showcase the art of  Sarah Jane Thornington.

Cape Cod artivist, Sarah Jane Thornington is passionate about this beautiful planet of ours. Picking up trash and doing beach cleanups have been a constant in her life. Over five years ago, Sarah started thinking about the sheer quantity of marine debris she was collecting, and then either recycling or discarding, and realized she needed to start documenting her finds. She decided to do a beach or litter pick up every day for a year and pick up at least 3 pieces of plastic each day; aiming for 1,095 pieces of plastic for the year. After 9 days she’d surpassed that goal and realized how crucial awareness of the marine litter issue was. By the end of the year, she found about 21,000 pieces of plastic. She counted every piece of plastic she picked up, most was cleaned and sorted and along the way became a marine-debris, or conservation artist because she had to do something with all of the stuff she found. She still photographs and creates with that original year’s stash (and with the new art supplies added regularly with every cleanup).

Ebb the {plastic} Tide art includes a variety of explorations using marine-debris found including photographs, assemblages, rust printing, fibre art, and cyanotypes, among others.

Sarah uses her art to highlight various challenges facing our beautiful planet; from climate change to plastic pollution to endangered species to rising oceans. She’s taking some enormous problems and allowing them to be viewed in an often light-hearted and humorous way.

A recipient of the national volunteer award, a Daily Point of Light for her clean-ups and artwork. She has also been named Steward of the Year by CARE for the Cape & Islands. Her work has been shown in exhibitions across the country and is in collections around the world.

The exhibit will be open during regular library hours which are Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 9:30am to 5:30pm, Tuesday and Thursday 9:30am to 9:00pm, Saturdays 9:30am to 4:00pm, and Sundays 12:00pm to 5:00pm.

Please visit us at www.southburylibrary.org to view this exhibit virtually and for any updated hours and information. Or you may call us at 203-262-0626.

The Gloria Cachion Art Gallery, adjacent to the lobby, is an open two-story area along with the Brown Conference Room that showcases in-house and online exhibitions. It is available principally for local artists on a monthly rotation to present their work.

The Gallery was dedicated in May 2011 featuring the "Uncle John" Ludorf Collection photographed by Georgia Sheron.  This collection donated by Connie and Jack Hume is on display throughout the library as part of its permanent collection.