There is something so intriguing about an artist who chooses to focus on drawings on paper. It seems like such an introspective type of expression. Today in my Artist Watch on Escape Into Life, I’m featuring artist Joe Sinness, whose quiet works scream for your careful attention..
Shinola, colored pencil on paper, 28×22
I’m going to kind of tell my age with this post.. I’m a child of the 80s. There, my secret is out. I remember all too well the punk movement– the mixing of Victorian-inspired lace with torn fishnets and combat boots. The latest work of Los Angeles artist Susan Carter Hall reminds me of those bad-a$$ chicks this good girl could never be, like totally.
Circus, oil on canvas, 32×36
Her soft palette and supple forms are punctuated with areas of darkness, lending a little hard-edge to what otherwise might feel overtly feminine.
Earth No. 1, oil on canvas, 24×24
Bridge, oil on gessoed paper, 25×40
Those punches of black and the slash-dash expression of color make Hall’s work bodaciously rad. Ok, enough of the bad 80s lingo. Her work just rocks. Period.
Earth No. 2, oil on canvas
To see more of Susan Carter Hall’s work, please check out her website and to keep up with her latest work & shows, be sure to like her Facebook page.
All images are via the artist’s website.
I’ve never been one of those horse-crazy girls. You know the ones. Oh, I read my share of Black Beauty and The Black Stallion when I was young, but I just never caught the equestrian obsession. But we have been knee-deep in horse country here in Idaho and after seeing these creatures everyday, I can now understand the fascination. In her paintings, artist Karen Keene Day perfectly captures the untamed beauty and spirit of American wild horses.
Moments with Wild Horses 79, 24×24
Powerful yet gentle and graceful, the horse often serves dutifully yet you can see in their eyes the longing to run free.
Moments with Wild Horses 81, 12×12
Moments with Wild Horses 116, 48×60
Through her use of simple painted line drawing juxtaposed with slashes of vibrant color, Day translates into her work the innate wildness of the animals and unique personality each one displays.
Moments with Wild Horses 84, 8×8
To see more of Karen Keene Day’s work, please visit her website. The artist supports the work being done to keep wild horses safe by donating 3% of her commission on each sale to the National Mustang Association branch in Cortez, CO.
PS– If you’ve never seen the documentary Wild Horses & Renegades, I highly recommend it!
Artist found via Michael Mitchell Gallery. All images are via the artist’s website.
These last four months of living on a lake in Northern Idaho has had its advantages, wildlife spotting being chief among them. A favorite post-dinner activity of Mr. Forager & I is to take a long walk in the hopes of spotting a few deer, osprey, rabbits and lately, turkeys(!). While Mr. F loves to fantasize about how awesome it would be to be a bird of prey, I tend to humanize the animals we see. I like to think they are more like us than we realize. Today, I’m featuring a few artists who seem to also love blending the line between humanity and the animal.
To Fall for Flattery by Nate Frizell
Beyond the Menagerie by Kareena Zerefos
Renard by Charlotte Caron
Sabrina Hornung
Nate Frizzel | Kareena Zerefos | Charlotte Caron | Sabrina Hornung
I would love to commission Charlotte Caron to create a portrait of Mr. Forager as a grizzly bear– it would be his ultimate dream come true! What animal do you see yourself as?
Charlotte Caron found via The Jealous Curator, Sabrina Hornung found via Lost at E Minor. All images are from the artist’s websites, linked above.
Few places in the US hold our fascination like New Orleans does. It’s heady dose of hard partying, spirituality and historic charm completely enchants us. Chicago artist Grant Schexnider ‘s work addresses the iconography of New Orleans and the bayou with bold strokes and a seemingly carefree style, much like NOLA itself.
Sazaerac, oil on canvas, 36×36
Old Fashioned, oil on canvas, 36×36
You can practically hear the jazz horns, taste the andouille, feel the misquitos’ sting. His palette is rich and warm, like the colors of the city’s weathered buildings and vibrant characters.
Blue Heron, oil on canvas, 20×20
Deliberately messy layers remind us of a city that doesn’t take itself too seriously in spite of its history of hardship. The cheerful resilience of the people of New Orleans may be captured in the warmth of Schexnider’s palette.
Blue Shotgun, oil on canvas, 18×36
Shotgun 2b, oil on canvas
To see more of Grant Schexnider’s work, please visit his website.
All images are via the artist’s website and the website of his representing NOLA gallery, Gallery Orange.
I am so taken with the way artists take common materials and lead us to think of them in a more abstract way. San Francisco artist Mary Button Durell uses simple tracing paper to create beautifully simple yet amazing sculptures.
The Piles, tracing paper, wheat paste and acrylic, 17x18x16
The Piles ( detail )
Using the tracing paper and wheat paste, Durell hand shapes the forms, resulting in light, organic arrangements that seem to be suspended in a fragile state.
Empty, tracing paper and wheat paste, 16x12x4
3 Cloud Blue, tracing paper, wheat paste and acrylic, 17x24x1.75
The cell-like shapes and translucency call to mind shells or bubbles, ever changing and fleeting.
60 ( detail ), tracing paper, wheat paste and acetate, 43x29x1.25
To see more work from Mary Button Durell, please check out her website.
Artist found via Anthology Magazine. All images are via the artist’s website.
Lush color and luminosity? What could be better! Head over to Escape Into Life to check out this week’s Artist Watch on New York artist Kristine Moran.
Slow Wave 2 by Kristine Moran, oil on canvas, 54×60
The advent of photography has really shaped us into an incredibly visual society. While having a portrait painted was a luxury usually afforded to the most privileged, photographs were soon accessible to people of all classes and incomes. Photography became a common experience, faces of us all, captured forever. Charleston artist Greg Hart takes his inspiration from historical portraits, concentrating on the emotional expression of the sitter.
Bandage, charcoal, graphite, coffee, acrylic, oil and gesso on wood panel, 11×14
Hart pours through historical archives, searching for a face that grabs him. He strives to remain ignorant of the details of each person’s background, preferring instead, to give us new portraits, carrying the same emotional intensity made even more impassioned by color blocking and dramatic rendering against isolated backgrounds.
Firebrand, graphite, acrylic and coffee on paper, 15×22
Bygone, mixed media on paper, 22×30
Serious, stern faces are rendered more warmly, softly reminding us that behind these steely facades are real people who lived and loved, just as we do.
Forward March, mixed media on wood panel, 9×12
To see more of Greg Hart’s work, please visit his website and be sure to check out his shop at Big Cartel to make one of these intriguing portraits your own!
Featured image is Firebrand ( cropped ). All images are via the artist’s website and Big Cartel shop.
If you’ve been reading Artsy Forager long, you’ve seen me gush about the work of this month’s Facebook Featured Artist, Christina Foard. Christina is an artist whose work is as much about her mental and spiritual journey of creating as it is about the physical result of paint on canvas.
Urban Falling, oil on board, 36×34
Each canvas is a labor of intense devotion, worked and reworked until the artist is satisfied with her destination.
Lovers Behind the Wall, oil on canvas, 24×24
Grey Land, oil on canvas, 24×24
As she works the canvas, adding layer upon layer or excavating what lies beneath, the resulting textures become a large part of the story, until the composition she is longing for emerges.
Pink Wall Two, oil on canvas, 40×30
To see more of Christina Foard’s work, please visit her website and be sure to check out her album on the Artsy Forager Facebook page! If you’re near the Jacksonville, FL area, you can still catch Christina’s show with July Featured Artist Thomas Hager at the Jacksonville International Airport, but only until the end of September. She’s currently working on a special long-term collaborative project I hope to share with you once she’s ready. Stay tuned.
All images are via the artist’s website.
This whole economic mess has contributed to the loss of countless galleries around the US. I know first hand what it is like to put blood, sweat and tears into one. OK, maybe not blood, but plenty of sweat and tears, I assure you! 😉 I’ve heard some folks say that the old gallery model is a thing of the past, gasping for air, dead in the water. But I believe in galleries! And today, I’m featuring some brick & mortar galleries that are out there, doing it right. These folks are hustling, marketing, selling and making magic happen for their artists and communities. Put ’em on your list to check out, whether you can do so in person or online!
Diehl Gallery, Jackson Hole, Wyoming
Florida Mining Gallery, Jacksonville, Florida
Foster/White Gallery, Seattle, WA
Gallery Orange, New Orleans, Louisiana
Taylor de Cordoba, Culver City, California
**I’m so excited to finally get a chance to visit Taylor de Cordoba and all the other LA area galleries when Mr. Forager & I hit SoCal in October! Can’t wait to drag him all over Los Angeles.
Diehl Gallery | Florida Mining | Foster/White | Gallery Orange | Taylor de Cordoba
I hope you’ll check out these galleries when you’re in their respective cities– well worth the trip! You can see more of my favorite artsy spots on my Pinterest board, Artsy’s Guide to Galleries. Do you have a favorite gallery? Let me know in the comments below!
