Living in places with so many wild areas, whenever we go out hiking, we’re still very aware of man’s impact on the landscape. Salt Lake City artist Thomas D. Aaron brings attention to the natural landscape and the effect of man’s hand upon it.
20, mixed media, 48×48Bend, mixed media,66×72
Aaron uses PLSS ( Public Land Survey System ) imagery as the jumping off point of his mixed media works. Focusing on manmade grids imposed upon the landscape and the paradigms they create with the natural order of the terrain.
Two Canyons, mixed media, 24×24 each
The painterly textures mimic the natural terrain and in some, dominating brushwork overpowers the landscape, just our infrastructure has done the same to natural wild spaces.
New Blue New, mixed media, 68×60Like the Sea, mixed media, 68×60
To see more of Thomas D. Aaron’s work, please visit his website. To learn more about the motivation and ideology behind his work, check out his interview with Ellen Caldwell on the New American Paintings blog.
A huge part of what drew George & I to the Northwest was the mountainous terrain. When the weather is good, every weekend is spent hiking and exploring the mountains around wherever we happen to be. We’re gearing up for the ultimate mountain adventure this June, when we’ll take some time off to camp and explore Glacier National Park, the Tetons and Yellowstone. So it’s only natural that I’ve got mountains on the brain these days. Hope you enjoy these artist’s takes on the peak life!
Kate ShawPeace and Love by Casey Roberts, cyanotype with gouache, 60×69Colorado Electricity by Christina Foard, oil on canvas, 36×36Pile of Nipples by Marian Brunn Smith, oil on canvas, 24×18One After Another, mixed media on panel, 30×24
A gallery that takes advantage of a beautiful space, displays a wide range of interesting work in a well-designed and thoughtful way AND feels comfortable and unpretentious? These kind of galleries are my happy places. Foster/White Gallery in Seattle definitely qualifies for a spot on that list. Thanks to our time in Seattle being super limited and the tiny brain melt in which I somehow forgot that almost all galleries are closed on Monday, our only full day there and the day I’d planned to do lots of gallery hopping, I had to narrow down my galleries to visit to A) shows I really wanted to see and B) galleries that were close together. So we took a few hours before leaving on Tuesday to visit Greg Kucera Gallery, Grover Thurston Gallery ( more on that show next week ) and Foster/White Gallery, which was by far our favorite overall gallery experience.
Casey McGlynn: Manchild and Rachel Denny: Works of Nature at Foster/White
Foster/White has been on my list of galleries to visit for quite a while and when I saw that they were showing Rachel Denny’swork, it quickly went to the top of the list for our time in Seattle. But I’m one of those people that saves the best for last, so while I saw Rachel’s work out of the corner of my eye upon entering the space, there were so many other wonderful works around each corner that I made my way around the whole gallery before I spent some time with Rachel’s amazing sculptures.
Sculptures by Paul Vexler at Foster/White
Speaking of amazing sculptures, these bent wood pieces by Paul Vexler were exquisite. The way the grain of the wood caught the light from the window drew attention to those beautiful curves. As impressive as his work was ( and there is a large hanging piece in the F/W lobby that is to die for ), Cookie the elephant by Shay Church both delighted me and drew me in.
Cookie ( Asian Elephant ) by Shay Church
Cookie is part of Church’s Wet Clay series, site specific installations consisting of a wooden armatur covered with clay and sand. In this series, Church focuses on elephants and whales, gentle yet imposing creatures who must survive long migrations. With each passing year, those migrations grow more and more dangerous and daunting for these animals. Cookie leans into the wall for support, seeming to struggle to stand. As the clay has dried, it has begun to crack and fall, adding to the emotional impact of the piece. We are watching Cookie deteriorate before our eyes.
Bone Yard by Evan Blackwell at Foster/White GalleryBone Yard ( detail ) by Evan Blackwell
Another installation that caught our eye was Bone Yard by Evan Blackwell. The white clay pieces, pinned to the way may appear to be fragments of bone, but upon closer inspection, we see that they are actually broken pieces of model jets. Perhaps a commentary on our military policies? Or our desensitization to such destruction?
Staccato Surface by David Alexander
The abstract, colorful reflection of Staccato Surface by David Alexander had unbelievably lovely gestural movement and a gorgeous palette. Photos do not do it justice! Finally we made our way over to Rachel Denny’s work. I’ve been a huge fan of her work since the very first time I saw one of her Domestic Trophies online and have been looking forward to finally seeing her sculptures in person. I was blown away by just how intricately constructed they are, their palettes & construction perfectly designed to catch and direct the viewer’s eye. I was just as delighted by her work as I’d hoped to be.
Rachel Denny: Works of NatureSweet Tooth ( detail ) by Rachel Denny
To see more of each artist’s work and more of the amazing work on display, please visit the Foster/White Gallery website. If you’re in Seattle, Rachel Denny & Casey McGlynn’s current shows will be up until April 28, 2012. I highly recommend a visit!
I love work that speaks to me on several levels. ( Yes, I can hear the artwork talking to me! ) The work of Philadelphia artist Jackie Tileston seems to communicate to us from several worlds at once.
No Matter Where ( Not Pictured Here ), oil and mixed media on linen, 72×60
Atmospheric foundations hint at other-worldly landscapes filled with mystery, while pops of graphic color and pattern create a layer of modern visual language.
Untitled ( Green ), oil and mixed media on linen, 48×60
Linear color leads the eye to dance across each composition against backgrounds of painterly texture. Tileston’s surfaces fairly crackle with excitement and visual energy.
The Transcendent Who Superintends Reality, oil and mixed media on linen, 60×72Phenomorama, oil and mixed media on linen, 72×60
To see more of Jackie Tileston’s work, please visit her website.
Featured image is Auspicious Circling of Mad Utopias, oil and mixed media on linen, 72×60. All images are via the artist’s website.
When I launched the Artsy Forager Facebook Featured Artist program this month, I was thrilled when Steve Williams agreed to be my inaugural artist. Like me, Steve is a native of our hometown, Jacksonville, Florida and has long been a fixture on the art scene there. Steve, along with his then gallery partner, Jim Draper, encouraged a young Artsy Forager to continue painting just out of college. Even though I allowed myself to get sidetracked, I never forgot their kindness.
Marco Polo, mixed media
As he splits his time between being president of his family’s successful sign business, Harbinger Sign, the gallery he has created at the business’s headquarters, Florida Mining, his own work as an artist AND being a devoted father of three, Steve is a busy soul. Which makes it all the more amazing to see the quality of thoughtful work he creates.
Jackson, mixed media
His experience in the sign business is evident in the strong graphic quality and balance evident in his compositions. His most recent Money series ( images above ) explores currency as symbolic of all that we strive for as a society yet ensnares and imprisons us.
Into the Goodly Land, mixed media on panel, 60×72
While I love this current direction, my personal favorite works of Steve’s are those that incorporate layers of texture and color in which graphic signs and images are enshrouded. These works, as well as the Money series, invite us in, asking us to look more closely at not only the world around us, but the motives and desires within us.
TV Exploration of Mars II, mixed media, 12×12Revolutionary Exploration: Shallow Discovery, mixed media, 11×19
I hope you’ll check out more of Steve Williams‘ work on his website. And do yourself a favor– don’t miss his blog, Making Cheddar, or his Twitter feed. He’s as hilarious as he is insightful.
Featured image is Grant, mixed media, 60×36. All images are via the artist’s website.
If you’ve been reading Artsy Forager for a while, you may have noticed me mention the love my hubby & I have for Seattle. He was living there when we began dating and although we’d known each other a long time before, it was in the Emerald City that we truly fell in love. Exactly 2 years from this Sunday, I flew to Seattle to celebrate my birthday ( the 15th ) and George’s birthday ( the 11th ) and to truly test the waters after 12 years of friendship, 1year of online flirting and 1 month of long distance dating. Not only did I fall madly in love with George, I fell hard for the city of Seattle. So we’re heading there on Sunday to spend a few days soaking in the delights of our favorite city. Needless to say, I’m pretty Seattle obsessed today. Hope you enjoy these artists’ renditions of our city of love!
Snow White by Deborah Scott, oil and mixed media on canvas, 36×6065th and Roosevelt by Julia Hensley, gouache collage on Bristol board, 9×12
Parallel Bars #1 by Michael Prince, mixed media, 40×30From the Explorations of the Viaduct series by Marie GagnonFamily Trio, Seattle by Robin Weiss, oil, 12×12
Have a fantastic weekend! Posts will be going up as normal for the next few days, but I’ll only be online sporadically to answer questions and approve/respond to comments. See you on Wednesday!
Featured image is The Original Starbucks at Pike Place Market, Seattle by Marsha Glaziere. All images are via the artists’ websites.
Abstract painters like Wright know that these happy accidents contribute to the rhythm and spontaneity so many of us love about abstract work.
Fragments for Sappho
Her work has wonderful little punctuations of color that keep the eye moving across the surface. But it’s the unintentional drips and marks that really make each piece soar and create tiny little compositions waiting to be discovered.
Tropicalia, acrylic on rice paper, 72×39
Even in her quieter compositions, such as the watercolor & mixed media below, the accidents are more subtle. The way the colors are delicately placed and soak into each other create soft, exquisite transitions.
Longing Floats, watercolor, ink, acrylic and graphite on paper, 24×18Dog House, acrylic, watercolor, ink & pencil on handmade watercolor paper, 30×22
To see more of Caroline Wright’s work, please visit her website.
Featured image is Rain Poncho, acrylic, watercolor and pencil on handmade watercolor paper, 30×22. All images are via the artist’s website.
I’ve found myself thinking a lot about the beauty of the natural world lately. As the weather warms, the hubby and I are getting out and doing more hiking ( we may actually be hiking when you read this! ). I love the natural, microcosmic beauty of Laura Gurton’s work being featured over on Escape Into Life today.
From the Unknown Species series #56, oil & alkyd on panel, 24×36
If you get out exploring, take a close look at the small worlds happening around you!
