“Stone Soup” is an exhibition of varied tastes at Work Detroit, a gallery in Midtown Detroit facilitated and operated by the University of Michigan School of Art & Design. “Stone Soup” is a folk story about a group of strangers that convince a town to cook with them a feast by adding bits of sustenance little by little. The strangers start with a pot of boiling water and a large stone, as each villager walks by and asks what they are doing, the strangers explain they are making delicious stone soup that only needs a little something for garnish. One by one villagers agreed to the requests, adding carrots, potatoes, onions and so on until the boiling water became a nutritious meal that is enjoyed by all. The work in “Stone Soup” shares this variety, as many different mediums and subjects fill the space, creating a feast for the eyes. A common thread running through the show is that all of the work feels very personal. It is as if the curator asked the artists to use their most dear mediums and ideas.The pieces exude a certain contentedness, a feeling that the creators thoroughly enjoy their process. “Soup” artist Mary Fortuna seems to describe it best when she says, “Playing with the things that made me happy when I was a kid is pretty much the whole reason I’m an artist.”

“‘Signature’ Scars” from That Evil Mess; successful 18th-19th century cataract surgeries 001-020;  commercially reproduced objects.