Clockwise from Top Left: Elena Stamberg, Kimberley Bursic, Jennifer Duncan, Steven Marks, William Bowser, and Alan Lipton.
Perspectives: 20/20
William Bowser - Kimberley Bursic - Jennifer Duncan - Alan Lipton - Steven Marks - Elena Stamberg
Perspectives 20/20 focuses on the varying perspectives of six artists, Jennifer Duncan, Al Lipton, Steven Marks, Elena Stamberg, Kimberley Bursic, and William Bowser. This show explores the artists’ personal exploration and reflection of the times, human existence, and fleeting, unique moments in nature. Using a variety of media, the participating artists express powerful emotion through bold colors and symbolism which serve to heighten the viewer’s perception of reality.
Opening Reception: Saturday February 1, 4-6pm
First Friday: Friday February 7, 6-8pm
Closing Reception: Saturday February 22, 4-6pm
IN THE DOWNSTAIRS GALLERY
Louise’s Journey
Miriam Keeler
“I have been to hell and back and let me tell you, it was wonderful,” said well-known sculptor Louise Bourgeois. The paintings in this exhibition elucidate her journey using the iconography and imagery she explored in the many drawings, paintings and sculptures she produced throughout her long career. The exhibition paintings focus on her breakdown, her emergence from a period of Freudian analysis, her concerns with “motherhood,” and her metaphorical efforts to restore strained relationships. It is possible to do homage to her uniqueness in this way because her work was so autobiographical.
Opening Reception: Saturday February 1, 4-6pm
First Friday: Friday February 7, 6-8pm
Closing Reception: Saturday February 22, 4-6pm
Thinking Out Loud
Jean Jinho Kim
I use components that are repurposed and remade into dynamic forms that extend the meaning of art and diminish predictable boundaries. By removing everyday elements from their original context, I drive the static into the transitional. I intentionally use unconventional and inorganic materials to create new and surprising forms that convey life, movement and change. Using objects, such as downspouts and auto parts, that are not traditionally used in art allows me to imagine their potential to tell a story or create a scene that challenges the viewer to give equal importance to different types of materials. The identifiable objects create a constant interaction between the separate pieces of the work and the final work itself. Not only are the physical elements of each piece important, but also the space they encompass is intentional. The challenge and fulfillment comes from figuring out how to put unconnected pieces together in a way that is relatable, relevant and surprising.
Opening Reception: Saturday February 1, 4-6pm
First Friday: Friday February 7, 6-8pm
Closing Reception: Saturday February 22, 4-6pm
IN THE GARDEN GALLERY
Guanajuato
Susan Raines
I visited Guanajuato, Mexico last July. It is a beautiful place and I was compelled to take many photographs. I am exhibiting eight of them in the Garden Gallery this month. I hope viewers enjoy this trip to a very unusual and visually amazing city.
Guanajuato, the capital of the state of the same name, is one of the oldest colonial cities in Mexico. Founded by the Spanish in the mid 16th century to take advantage of the rich mineral deposits in the area, Guanajuato’s mines produced the majority of the world’s silver through the beginning of the 19th century. This wealth funded the elaborate churches and impressive public buildings which anchor the city today.
Its mountain location near the geographic center of Mexico, northwest of Mexico City, is a key to its uniqueness. Sited in a narrow valley, its public buildings and plazas lie at the bottom, and brightly painted cubic houses terrace up either side, creating arresting views. The houses are accessed by narrow winding alleys and staircases which give Guanajuato a medieval European feel. Only a few streets can accommodate cars, and much of the traffic is routed underground through an impressive system of tunnels, another happy result of the city’s mining tradition.
Guanajuato is important to Mexican history as the site of the first victory of the insurgents in the War of Independence in 1810. Every October the city hosts the Festival International Cervantino, the most important cultural festival in Latin America. In 1988, Guanajuato was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site for Culture.
New Sculpture by Lisa Battle
My hand-built sculptures explore organic form, line and an undulating movement that is reminiscent of the sensual curvilinear grace of natural objects and landscapes.
I am inspired by the patterns created by the forces of nature, found in walks along the seashore observing shifting sand patterns created by winds and receding waves; in my travels through the American southwest among desert cliffs, canyons and formations of weathered rock eroded by wind and water; and in the shapes of plants and the human body. I also have a life-long love of dance, and often find that my work evokes the gestures and arching movements of a dancer. In my exploration of form, I pare down these natural shapes to their essence, accentuating smooth clean lines to achieve simplicity and elegance. Sometimes I feel that I am capturing a close-up, intimate view of something larger. The resulting forms evoke aspects of the natural world without specifically representing them, leading to a sense of ambiguity that I find is central to human experience.
I love the sensory experience of working with clay, and the expressive possibilities created through this malleable material. The forces of nature are also essential to the creation of my work, as my sculptures are exposed to the transformative powers of wind and fire in the wood kiln. The wood firing process leads to surfaces that have depth and subtle variations of texture and color, imparted by the movement of wind and fire through the kiln. The result is both a visual and tactile experience in which the surface is inherently integrated with the form.