By Koy Flores
ArtPrize 2023 has become a spectacle and passionate tradition for Grand Rapids occupants for over a decade now, and it seems most everyone in West Michigan has ventured downtown to revel in the passion at some point.
As for the artists, this provides a chance to display their artistic vitality freely. However, not many people have braved the chasms of loss to immortalize their loved ones quite like Mitch Eilers has.
Eilers, 32, lives in Byron Center and has submitted his piece titled “Forget Me Not” for this year’s ArtPrize competition in Grand Rapids.
In the description of Eiler’s art, which can be found on the artist page (“Forget Me Not” on artprize.org), it is described as a tribute to his late grandfather who suffered through Alzheimer’s Disease.
Upon talking with Eilers, I was informed that after his grandfather had been diagnosed with the disease, he sought to help other victims of Alzheimer’s. He did this by working in Assisted living/Memory care for a few years.
Eilers said that all photos used in the artwork were taken from his grandfather’s life experiences in both the Korean War and at home with his family and wife.
These photos were affixed to the canvas using an adhesive called Mod Podge. Both the image and mysterious emanation were crafted using charcoal and pastels.
When asked about his take on the value of human-made art in a world dominated by artificial intelligence (AI), Eilers had this to say, “I think there is a lot more emotion, because there is an actual story behind it (human-made art), it’s not something that is just generated,” he said. “AI creates it just to create, whereas people create it for a purpose and a reason.”
Eiler’s artwork may be a tribute to his grandfather, but that doesn’t revoke the piece of its irresistible and evocative appeal. He further spoke on the process of art for catharsis.
“It’s grieving, but also an outlet for their (artists) creativity,” he said. “The good times, bad times. It’s the whole gamut of the human experience you can show through your art.”
Eilers’s art can be viewed from now until Oct. 1. at the Homewood Suites: Water Center located in downtown Grand Rapids, at 161 Ottawa Avenue N.W.
