Submitted Photos Pictured is artwork by Kimberly Turner and Ruby Andromeda Miller,.

WESTFIELD — The Octagon Gallery at the Patterson Library invites the public to meet artists Kimberly Turner and Ruby Andromeda Miller at the opening reception for their art installation, Wave/Length, on Saturday, Nov. 20, from 1-3:30 p.m. The artists will present a short talk for guests starting at 2 p.m.

Wave/Length is a collaborative multimedia installation from artists Kimberly Turner of Warren, PA and Ruby Andromeda Miller of Deerton, MI. This project began with exploring measurement as a method of knowing and evolved into an exploration of friendship at a distance.

Beginning with thread as a marker, Turner and Miller collected data from predetermined points along the shores of Lake Erie (where Turner grew up) and Lake Superior (where Miller currently resides) to correspond with the physical distance between the artists. The work that grew out of this experiment is a large-scale multimedia installation including space-filling yards of indigo dyed cloth spilling down the walls and onto the floor; ghostly, human scale cyanotypes; and a curated set of found objects that were improvisationally used during the data collection. The viewer is engulfed in a very embodied measurement and experience of the lakes that points to the distances between themselves and the people and places they love, while also encouraging exploration of their own horizons.

Kimberly Turner is based in Warren, PA. Originally from Dunkirk, NY she grew up along the shores of Lake Erie where she found solace in the sandy beaches and sunsets of Wright Park. Turner earned her MFA in Photography from Indiana University Bloomington and a BFA in Photography and Illustration from SUNY Fredonia. Ruby Andromeda Miller is based in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, along the coast of the majestic Lake Superior. Originally from Mid-Michigan, she grew up in the Lansing area and earned her BFA in Sculpture at Grand Valley State University and an Associates in Welding Technology at Grand Rapids Community College. Kim and Ruby met six years ago and quickly discovered an artistic kinship in both concept and technique.

In the convergence of their often parallel ideas and methods, Ruby and Kim have found areas of deeper curiosity and play within their individual bodies of work that they carried into this collaborative installation. Both artists work in a range of media and explore concepts of narrative, relationships with the natural world and the complexity of human impact and interaction with it. They began working alongside each other on individual projects, meeting weekly, until Ruby moved back to Michigan in late 2018. They have mutually influenced each other’s artistic journey since they began working together. This ambitious exhibition at a distance is their first deliberate collaboration.

The exhibition runs through Dec. 31. Gallery hours, after the opening, are the same as the library’s hours, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesday and Thursday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Saturday noon to 4 p.m. Admission is always free.

The Octagon Gallery is located in the basement of the Patterson Library at 40 S Portage Street in downtown Westfield. The goal of the art gallery is to enhance the cultural and intellectual life of the community by providing exhibitions and services that highlight the visual and performing arts as well as other areas of cultural interest. More information about the Octagon Gallery can be found at pattersonlib.org.