There are certain artist’s work I seriously dream about owning. And if I can’t own one myself, why not daydream about how one might look in someone else’s home? Which brings me to the latest edition of Insert the Artsy. I’ve mentioned before how much I would love to own one of Susan Hall‘s paintings.. This piece, Veil of the Sky is particularly lovely and lyrical. Don’t you think it would be the perfect complement to this modern traditional room? It would add just the right amount of delicate visual interest and texture without competing with the beautiful architecture.
I know today is a holiday for most folks here in the US, so you’ve probably out picnicking, enjoying your last bit of summer beach time or barbecuing with the fam. But I just couldn’t wait to share with you our new Featured Artist for September! I am an enormous fan of this artist’s work. Seriously, I fall more in love with the work of Susan Hall every time I see it.
Wing, oil on panel, 35×40
Every painting transports me to such a calm and peaceful place– it’s like a visual dip into a cool spring on a hot day. Each figure, whether human or animal, seems lit from within and the canvases radiate with serenity.
Devotion, oil on panel, 43×51Morning Light, oil on panel, 35×40
And I’m sure you’ve noticed her use of texture– each piece has subtle textural patterns overlaying the composition, lending to the ethereal, gossamer-like quality.
Listen, oil on panel, 43×48Harmony, oil on panel, 43×51
Owning one of Susan’s pieces would be like having your own personal serenity portal. Just a few moments’ gazing and my stress levels plummet!
Hubby and I have been going through major winter cabin fever. Every weekend lately, it’s been either snowing or raining. We miss getting our hiking on and are ready to see some wildlife actually in the wild ( the diaorama at the local Cabellas doesn’t count ). There’s just something so magical about coming across creatures in the woods. Are you experiencing the itch to get outdoors and do some animal watching? Maybe these will help..
Guardian Lineage by Duy Huynh, acrylic on wood, 32×32Passage by Susan Hall, oil on panel, 43×51Yellow Stag by Rachel Denny, wool, polyurethane foam, wood, plastic & steel, 40x19x21Stout by Scott Belcastro, acrylic on panel, 20×20Bauxite Rose From Her Lifeless Sleep by Deedee Cheriel
‘Tis a new year and with that comes all sorts of lists documenting the good, the bad and the ugly from the past 12 months. While there’s certainly no bad or ugly here at Artsy Forager, I thought it would be a kick to award our featured art some high schoolish superlatives. Put your mittens on your kittens and away we go!
It seems that the hipster craft craze has given birds a bad name in the art world. If you’ve seen the “Put a Bird On it” sketch from IFC’s hilarious Portlandia, you know what I’m talkin’ about. Bird “art” is everywhere. It’s those mixed-media collagey things that you see at outdoor art festivals and markets, it’s the ubiquitous black bird on a bare branch. Now don’t get me wrong, some of this bird art is lovely and fun. But after a while, it all begins to look the same.
I want to set the record straight. Restore the good name of bird art. Here’s a round up of my favorite pieces featuring our fine feathered friends…
Barn Owl by Mary Alayne ThomasTrespasser by Camille EngelClover by Jim DraperGolden Light by Diane FarrisBeginnings by Susan HallCaeli by Vicki Sawyer
Think we may be doing a bit of bird watching this weekend. If you’d like to do some online birding, check out the featured artists’ websites for more ornithological goodies.
Coco Chanel once said, “I consider lace to be one of the prettiest imitations ever made of the fantasy of nature; lace always evokes for me those incomparable designs which the branches and leaves of trees embroider across the sky..”
Shoreline, oil on panel, 48×43
I came upon Susan Hall’s paintings as we ascended the stairs up to Butters Gallery in Portland, our last gallery stop of a long day spent in that art mecca. Through the glass doors, I spied beautiful tone-on-tone figures, peaceful in their exquisite solitude.
Vision, oil on panel, 60×48
As they drew me in, I realized that I was viewing these figures through a veil, not one over my own eyes but through the intricate patterns in which Chicago artist Susan Hall ensconces each of her subjects.
Companion, oil on panel, 35×40
Veils may have both negative and positive connotations– The view through the veil of a bride is lovely and full of hope, while the view through the veil of a burqa may be considered by some as the prospect of a prisoner, someone not allowed to view the world through naked eyes.
Reverie, oil on panel. 27×27
Hall’s work also has a bit of a voyeuristic quality, as if we were gazing through lace covered windows, intruding upon a private moment or catching a glimpse of a ghostly deer’s visit before he disappears into the dark night.
Arrival, oil on panel, 43×48Clearing, oil on panel, 48×43
We see him but does he see us through our gossamer covering? Or perhaps he is merely an apparition of our imagination? Either way, I am enthralled.
Please visit Susan Hall’s website to see more of her breathtaking work. If you are in the Northwest, a visit to Butters Gallery to see her work in person will be a delight for your eyes, pinky promise.
PDX is slang for Portland, apparently. I kept seeing it everywhere in Portland this weekend and being from Florida, of course had no idea what it meant. Was it some sort of secret code? Some inside joke only super-hip Portlandians knew about? Nope, just Portland’s airport code, which has become short for Portland, just like JAX is short for my hometown of Jacksonville. I must admit, I was a bit disappointed that there wasn’t some sort of subversive meaning to PDX, at least not one I could find on Google.
After a month in the Northwest, George & I finally made the 2 1/2 hour drive from Aberdeen, WA to Portland last Saturday. We’ve already hit a couple of smaller artsy destinations nearby ( Olympia, WA & Astoria, OR ), but finally worked our way up to the mac-daddy of them all, Portland. The home of hip. We were only in Portland for the day, so decided it would be best to limit ourselves to one section of the city. So we chose The Pearl District, for its galleries for me and its proximity to Powell’s Books, Stumptown Coffee & Rogue Brewery for George. I try to make sure that when I drag him gallery-hopping, there is always the promise of beer. This makes for a much happier husband.
Work by David Slader at Gallery 903
Gallery 903 was filled with contemporary painting, sculpture and mixed-media work. I can usually tell the minute I walk into a gallery whether or not I’m going to enjoy my visit and find artists to blog about. As soon as I saw wonderfully textured abstracts and thoughtfully placed sculpture, I knew Gallery 903 was a good stop. The work of the artist above, David Slader, got George’s attention before than mine. Slader is a former high-powered attorney turned artist and after reading his tongue-in-cheek artist statement, I had a better appreciation for him. His work has deep texture , a powerful palette and expression. Here’s an even better shot of “You Want to Dance”, that gallerist Herschel was nice enough to email me..
You Want to Dance, Oil on canvas, 24×24
This was just the first of the delights to be found at 903. While George continued to admire the Sladers, I rounded the corner and happily came across a little niche and what was to be found there? Some thrilling little Salvador Dali prints!
Salvador Dali prints at Gallery 903
Complimenting the Dalis in the same little space were two epoxy-resing pieces by Alan Fulle. One of my favorite things about working in a gallery was designing & creating tableaus of artwork that coordinate together in unexpected ways. Virtual congrats to whomever hung the work in this gallery.
I absolutely loved this bronze geese sculpture! George wasn’t quite as enamored. What’s not to love about lovey-dovey, fat bronze geese? I mean, really, how could you not love them?! Oh well, moving on..
Augen Gallery had two interesting exhibitions showing, the first, work by Wendy Franklund Miller– I am a sucker for encaustics. There is just something about that waxy texture that I adore.
Artist: Wendy Franklund Miller, Augen Gallery
The kind-of cosmic feel to Franklund Miller’s work was a great complement to their other exhibition, Light Drawings by James Minden.
Artist: James Minden, Augen Gallery
These “light drawings” are scratched/etched PETG ( plastic ) reflecting light. They are totally trippy in the best sense. We had so much fun looking at these from all different angles. Check out this slide show to see better photos than I could have taken: James Minden on Vimeo.
Continuing the equestrian kick I seem to be on lately, Froelick Gallery happened to be showing Equine, a juried group exhibition showcasing the horse. A diverse showing of work centered around our four-legged friends, it was fun to see the variety of interpretations, including a plate from the famous MuybridgeAnimal Locomotion series. George was drawn to the work of Miles Cleveland Goodwin, which while beautifully rendered, was a bit on the dark side for my tastes. I love how the differences in our tastes spark lively discussion!
Artist: Miles Cleveland Goodwin, Froelick Gallery
I, on the other hand, fell in love with the giant below. White Shadow by Rick Barstow is pastel on paper, 74″ long and it is fabulous. I’m not sure what I love more, the lovely layering of the pastel, the unfinished, sketchy-quality or the scribbled “HORSES” at the bottom. It’s all workin’ for me. Or maybe it is that the straight-on gaze of the horse reminds me of an illustration of a story my grandmother used to read me as a little girl, The Goose Girl.
Artist: Rick Barstow, Froelick Gallery
Our next stop, Bullseye Gallery has a kick-a$$ space. Two levels, full of exposed brick and metal work, rustic wood and these amazing little installation rooms. I got so caught up in admiring my surroundings that I failed to take many pictures. I know, bad little blogger. The gallery is part of Bullseye Glass Company, maker of colored glass for art & architecture. Oh, that explains why there was so much incredible art glass!
Our final destination was Butters Gallery. Are ya’ll tired yet? Because I sure was by this point in the day. ( We’d also hit the Saturday Market, Stumptown Coffee, Powell’s Books and Rogue, in addition to all the galleries. ) Butters reminded me of some of the Chelsea galleries in NYC, as it was kind of hidden away, on the 2nd floor of a walk-up building.
Artist: Susan Hall, Butters Gallery
Butters had some really interesting work on display, I hope to bring you more on those artists very soon, especially the one whose work is pictured above, Susan Hall. I fell head over heads for her work– my crappy picture doesn’t even begin to do it justice. I’ll feature her more in depth in a separate post in the next few weeks.
So ends our little jaunt through Portland’s Pearl District galleries. I can’t wait to go back to PDX and explore the other art districts. This weekend we’re headed North!
