Merrimack Chamber Of Commerce: LaBelle Winery Announces The “The Gratitude Collection”: An Art Installation By Emily Otterman

Press release from the Merrimack Chamber of Commerce:

May 26, 2021

Derry, New Hampshire—LaBelle Winery and Emily Otterman, an artist based in Merrimack, New Hampshire, present the "The Gratitude Collection." The installation will run from May 20 through August 31, 2021 at The Gallery at LaBelle Winery Derry. An opening reception for the exhibition will be held on June 30 beginning at 5:30 p.m. There is no charge to attend the reception, but guests are required to pre-register for the event on LaBelle Winery’s website. Wine and light hors d'oeuvres will be served. 

“The Gratitude Collection" celebrates the liberation of the Netherlands by Canadian armed forces in the spring of 1945, and the appreciation the Dutch felt toward the Canadian soldiers who risked their lives to free their country from Nazi occupation. Otterman was inspired to create the works that comprise the exhibition after she and her father, Robert Otterman—a veteran of Canada’s Highland Light Infantry—attended an event marking the 70th anniversary of the Netherlands’ liberation, in 2015.

"What I witnessed [at the 70th anniversary event] was extraordinary, “Emily Otterman says. “The veterans had lived out an indelible time in their lives as strapping young soldiers in this beautiful land bordering the North Sea. Suppressed memories bubbled forth as if the war were yesterday. For some it brought pain; for others it brought joy; for most it brought both.

“The experience deeply affected me, and it became my mission to translate what I saw and felt [during our time there] into art that celebrates our human connection, embraces the power of gratitude, and provides a lasting legacy for the veterans," she says. 

“The Gratitude Collection” took three years to complete. It is made up of eight photo encaustic panels with each veteran from the 2015 anniversary event represented within them. 

Otterman poured through thousands of photographs, many taken by Dutch photographers, to create the works, which are titled: “Beholding Touch;” “Marching in Formation;” “Allied Force;” “Last Salute; Remember;” “Touch 1;” “Touch 2;” and “Touch 3.” In all the works, photographic composites were printed on fine art paper, using archival inks, and embedded into encaustic pigments on birch panels. 

Each piece emphasizes the power of touch and connection; the past, present and

the pull of time; mutual respect and caring; tribute and remembrance; hope and gratitude; freedom and sacrifice.

An additional panel was created to accompany The Gratitude Collection, specifically

for this exhibit, entitled “One”. The images within it emphasize hands and touch, affecting our wellbeing and sense of belonging, and symbolizes a metaphysical link to one another across space and time. All of the artwork shown in the exhibition, including “One,” will be available for purchase.

“Beholding Touch” inspired the entire collection, according to Otterman. The piece depicts her father and a Dutch child sharing a fixed gaze. The cherub figure above

them symbolically represents the children who died during the war, while witnessing the present day and the resilience of those who survived.

Otterman says, "The collection invites you to remember those you've loved and lost, and those precious and memorable moments in time, and to think about the sacrifices we willingly make for one another, and how much we long to hold each other when we can't.”

To learn more about Emily Otterman and her work, visit her website at emilyotterman.com.

About LaBelle Winery:

After working as a corporate attorney in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, Amy LaBelle founded LaBelle Winery in 2005 at Alyson's Orchard in Walpole, New Hampshire. In 2008, she and husband Cesar Arboleda moved the winemaking operation to a barn behind their home in order to expand production. LaBelle made award-winning wines at this location until late 2012 when the operation was moved to its current location in Amherst. In addition to the winery, LaBelle's Amherst location includes a restaurant, a wedding and event venue, an art gallery, a retail store and tasting room, and an on-site vineyard.

LaBelle Winery's Portsmouth tasting room and retail store opened in September 2017.

LaBelle Winery Derry opened its event center and golf course in April 2021.

Americus restaurant and The Gallery at LaBelle Winery, Derry opened in May

2021. LaBelle Market is slated to open on June 2, 2021. The Tasting Room will open in August 2021.

LaBelle Winery Amherst is located at 345 Route 101 in Amherst, New Hampshire.

LaBelle Winery Portsmouth is located at 104 Congress St. Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

LaBelle Winery Derry is located at 14 Route 111, Derry, New Hampshire.

Visit LaBelleWinery.com for directions and hours of operation.

For questions regarding LaBelle Winery Derry, email info@labellewinerynh.com.

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CONTACT:
Michelle Thornton
Director of Marketing
LaBelle Winery
345 Route 101
Amherst, NH 03031
(603) 672-9898
michelle@labellewinerynh.com
LaBelleWineryNH.com
 

This press release was produced by the Merrimack Chamber of Commerce. The views expressed here are the author’s own.