Image from "redhanded: a songe forre the loste"

It is said that art imitates life. But in an upcoming exhibition at UNC Asheville, life imitates art. The show, entitled "redhanded: a songe forre the loste," is an exhibition of 13 prints and poems by Yancey County artist Kore Loy Wildrekinde-McWhirter. The exhibition provides a glimpse into the artist's unconventional childhood in a religious sect plagued by violence. The exhibition will be on view from February 5-March 2 at UNC Asheville’s S. Tucker Cooke Gallery. An opening reception will be held from 6-8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 5, in the gallery. The Wildrekinde-McWhirter will give a talk at 7 p.m. in the gallery on opening night. The content of this exhibition may not be suitable for younger audiences. The events are free and open to the public.

"redhanded: a songe forre the loste" was inspired by Wildrekinde-McWhirter's childhood in the jungles of Paraguay, where she and her family lived in a community based on medieval Anabaptist societies. Wildrekinde-McWhirter and the other children experienced violent physical, mental and spiritual abuse from the adults in the community. The women, made to be totally subservient to the men, did not protect their children. Wildrekinde-McWhirter lived there until she was 10, when her family returned to the United States and settled in North Carolina. Wildrekinde-McWhirter now lives in Yancey County with her partner Bruce Greene.

"'redhanded: a songe forre the loste' serves as an enduring record and reminder of not only the children in the Paraguay group but of all children who are forced into a life of horrific nightmares that are only too real to them," said Marilyn Satin Kushner, curator and head of the department of prints, photographs and architectural collections at the New-York Historical Society. "We are left with some of the most arresting and fearsome images that have been produced in recent years… But they are also beautiful, not only in their technical perfection, but in their attestation to what has occurred and the bravery it took to document it."

Located on the first floor of Owen Hall, the S. Tucker Cooke Gallery is free and open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays. For more information, call UNC Asheville's Art Department at 828/251-6559.