Artwork inspired by folklore on display

A painting exhibit by artist Ryan Woods recently debuted at Boxcar Books, a not-for-profit bookstore at 310A S. Washington St. in Bloomington.\nWoods is a recent graduate of the Art Academy of Cincinnati who is now a self-employed artist and musician.\n"The pieces are kind of somber, kind of really heavy," said IU sociology professor Fabio Rojas. "One has a skull and crossbones, which reminds me of death."\nWoods said his work is inspired by ghost stories and folklore, and many of the paintings contain characters from myths in abstract settings. He currently has paintings on display, but most of his past shows have been multimedia with a focus on video and video installation.\n"In a lot of the shows, everything works together to be more about one story idea in the show," Woods said. "But these are just individual paintings that tell stories." \nHe became familiar with Bloomington and Boxcar Books while playing upright bass with various touring bands, such as Defiance, Ohio.\n"Even before I moved here, I always respected the things that they were doing (at Boxcar Books)," Woods said. "So that's the main reason that I wanted to do this show." \nBoxcar Books was founded by Ali Haimson and Matthew Turissini in early 2002. It has a volunteer staff which sells literature about social issues and "'zines" -- independently published booklets of personal narratives, fiction, poetry and artwork. \nTurissini said he and Haimson opened the store to provide a forum for local artwork and community meetings. Turissini said the artwork on display changes once a month and is usually done by local artists. \n"We are always looking for other artists," said Turissini, who encouraged anyone interested in a show to contact him, although they currently have shows booked for the next eight months.\nWoods' artwork will be on display until Oct. 9 at Boxcar Books. Those interested in volunteering or joining one of the community forums that meet there are encouraged to stop by.