tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83408556821279889602024-02-18T20:04:15.766-08:00Art by Jeanne Beck: What MattersAdventures in choosing a creatively-focused lifeJeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.comBlogger304125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-69447374391808533892015-04-18T07:03:00.004-07:002015-04-18T07:03:45.444-07:00Jeanne Beck Blog Moved to jeannebeck.com<div style="font-family: Arial;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCtuSwN318P8xhgRWZq4PHGLnRc4Y1Tj9_0VFxfkOSJ9WDvM5f2AzCmSPTornWsv-7IqeVHWEktd94cAE67mkct2PZDUpAuLimyhmAuS18jsP2QghsFZYT2YTvEv3gg733m4c5hrqhVlBI/s1600/35-JeanneBeck-atworkinstudio.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCtuSwN318P8xhgRWZq4PHGLnRc4Y1Tj9_0VFxfkOSJ9WDvM5f2AzCmSPTornWsv-7IqeVHWEktd94cAE67mkct2PZDUpAuLimyhmAuS18jsP2QghsFZYT2YTvEv3gg733m4c5hrqhVlBI/s1600/35-JeanneBeck-atworkinstudio.jpg" height="211" width="320" /></a></div>
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Change is good, right?! That’s been my motto in art and life, even when change has chosen me instead of my choosing it. But choosing a new CMS website option to manage and update totally on my own has been high on my wish list for a while.<br />
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So I shifted my blog and website to WordPress in March. I’m slowly trying to learn it. Also have thousands of images to delete or name and organize in my hard drive. Happily, I’m making progress with both and hope to get up to speed and fully functional in a few more months.<br />
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I’m currently able to post to the blog but am having a tough time editing the gallery pages, which currently just have placeholders. The website editing plug-in called PixGridder is what I'm having a hard time learning. There may be changes in my design template ahead and possibly lots of weird looking web pages you'll see as I work through the Word Press.org learning curve. Please bear with me.<br />
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Meanwhile, the new blog works as an excellent studio log to share new ideas and works in progress with you.<br />
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Please visit the <a href="http://www.jeannebeck.com/"><span style="color: #dd7700;">new blog</span></a> site to say hi and share your thoughts and comments. Thanks!<br />
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Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-67994263144656350272015-03-01T17:44:00.001-08:002015-03-01T17:44:33.646-08:00Rusty Nails and Inspiration<p><font size="3"></font> </p> <p><em><strong><font size="3">My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style.</font></strong></em> <p><a href="http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/m/maya_angelou.html">Maya Angelou</a> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-wLmRG1kc80g/VPPAeeNCuwI/AAAAAAAAGF8/V-HvK63AhlI/s1600-h/maidmarianrustynailsetsy.jpb%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img title="maidmarianrustynailsetsy.jpb" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px" border="0" alt="maidmarianrustynailsetsy.jpb" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-i9X96-RF8oo/VPPAe-brJkI/AAAAAAAAGGE/IvjuKjBwK-s/maidmarianrustynailsetsy.jpb_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="644" height="364"></a></p> <p><font size="3">Yes, these are indeed rusty nails, 2” with square heads, pulled from boards in a circa-1905 Victorian home. I just purchased them from an Etsy shop. God bless Google searches. </font></p> <p><font size="3">So why are rusty nails so exciting to me today? They’re a demonstration of how much inspiration fuels my work. At 4:30 AM this morning this idea woke me up. The little rusted hand-made paper and wire sculptures I’m currently constructing could hang from rusted nails instead of bent copper wires. I wasn’t even trying to find a replacement for those copper wires! Now it seems the most perfect way to hang them, so I hope it works. </font></p> <p><font size="3">I love these surprising bursts of insight and inspiration most about being a creative. Do you ever experience such flashes of new ideas when you’re engaged in a project? </font></p> <p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvTUVy_RwoWAM_gpCorje6QkpQwIy54hKGo7bJrJqA4ZT0vTdN0v_LfrMvTqDKvFIOqNbKYc6KN1imYTHwUbLBhd7orbi1QlilYlv_ZQY4Er2a-PsBbUtk3VQHorEnzy0uqPLSnN75qP9L/s1600-h/JeanneBeckworksinprogress%25255B5%25255D.jpg"><img title="JeanneBeckworksinprogress" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px" border="0" alt="JeanneBeckworksinprogress" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-m8KbGjObHAM/VPPAgFfDPwI/AAAAAAAAGGQ/2711mgxJHuc/JeanneBeckworksinprogress_thumb%25255B7%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="644" height="464"></a></p> <p><strong><em>Here are some of the works in this installation, now nearing the finish line. Will the rusted nails work? I love the suspense of wondering while I wait for them to arrive in the mail. </em></strong></p> Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-44281197154255441862015-02-22T10:18:00.001-08:002015-02-22T10:41:37.762-08:00Urban Wall Art/Creative Muse<p> </p> <p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi89iPTI_o9v-0OBL_R9alrbl_h9bnm4GTcoQmmuS2YoSONc8HvbK8P8y3VvhTjQECaekgKaa_xzG2Qrd0V-t0qM9S14NIoPcRnUyy5kvj-ZhSdDZd3v8iPd5uP2TS3TIZ-sL4cjOj0fP80/s1600-h/WT14_0727_JS_Omen_01%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img title="Finished Omen mural at fedder building in rochester NY for wall therapy 2014" style="border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px; border-top-width: 0px" border="0" alt="Finished Omen mural at fedder building in rochester NY for wall therapy 2014" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcVFQQzklmKqLgrBmo8cfhphz0MFOx8Qje26iZPItzrPBSlkSHXPkZB2Z-lGN4C7y7TtbJCOEAEcwVEiK6p1ePdPYEvk7UiMDOhqrK4rnOpF-nCOKhTmTEQVAkYAUalIWOPZNwbGoPFjPA/?imgmax=800" width="604" height="484"></a></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">One day last summer I took my usual drive down East Main Street in Rochester to my studio building and this wall mural seemed to just have suddenly appeared on the Fedder Building (I’m sure it took longer!). When I did actually notice it, I did a total WOW-what-IS-this. Now I pass by her every day as I drive to my studio. She has become something of a personal creative touchstone in a neighborhood of old warehouses, rundown buildings and homes divided into numerous apartments.</font></p> <p><font size="3">She is one of many murals that have been painted around the city of Rochester since 2012 through WALL/THERAPY, which its website describes as “a community level intervention using mural art as a vehicle to address our collective need for inspiration.” </font></p> <p><font size="3">And inspire my three-story lady does. Perhaps she is not quite the face I might have imagined for my creative Muse, but that is exactly what she accomplishes for me each day I gaze up at her while I drive past. She does more than just lift my spirits, though, she radiates a transforming presence in an area that needs an infusion of creative energy. Seeing a building wall thus transformed reminds me of the potential visual art has to surprise, uplift and delight through all of life’s circumstances and challenges.</font></p> <p><font size="3">For a view of the other wall murals now currently creating a new landscape in urban Rochester, please visit the </font><a href="http://wall-therapy.com"><font size="3">WALL/THERAPY</font></a><font size="3"> website</font>.</p> Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-643601496945465632015-02-15T10:01:00.001-08:002015-02-16T03:31:03.851-08:00Off the Wall!: New Small Sculptural Works<p><font size="3"></font> </p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-RJGr9d1xwSI/VODe4C9EqoI/AAAAAAAAGCc/bAD6-8qC8iE/s1600-h/JeanneRafferBecksculpturalpaperonstand1%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><font size="3"><img title="JeanneRafferBecksculpturalpaperonstand1" style="border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; float: none; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-left: auto; display: block; padding-right: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; margin-right: auto" border="0" alt="JeanneRafferBecksculpturalpaperonstand1" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-cJLLpofY7oU/VODe4syV4eI/AAAAAAAAGCk/ZJvhdHzbZ6o/JeanneRafferBecksculpturalpaperonstand1_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="364" height="484"></font></a></p> <p><strong><em><font size="3">Jeanne Raffer Beck, “Dialogue”, 4” x 4” x 13”; wrapped wire, handmade pulp & paper, poplar base.</font></em></strong></p> <p><strong><font size="3">My first small, free-standing, sculptural wire and paper piece debuted in my studio a week ago. Most people see these forms as bonelike and ancient. I’m still debating price, which led to some surprising and enjoyable conversations about what people might pay for small works like these. The poplar base and slight rusting on the hanging forms and paper-wrapped wire holder all work together well. Two more single pieces are in progress, which you can see in the picture below. </font></strong></p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-dia1NWiYv00/VODe47_LwPI/AAAAAAAAGCs/NHl4_CadgdI/s1600-h/JeanneRafferBeckorganicelements%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><font size="3"><img title="JeanneRafferBeckorganicelements" style="border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px; border-top-width: 0px" border="0" alt="JeanneRafferBeckorganicelements" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-AWWtIlvMM9U/VODe5U2yjHI/AAAAAAAAGC0/qkwGmvVbA74/JeanneRafferBeckorganicelements_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="644" height="484"></font></a><strong><font size="3">in the meantime, I’ve been creating and stockpiling organic shapes for the multiples I’m creating now. If the finished piece is successful, I’ll enter it into Memorial Art Galllery’s biennial juried exhibition.</font></strong><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-OxQThU90f4o/VODe51oU9FI/AAAAAAAAGC4/pMRGqpxQ7H8/s1600-h/JeanneRafferBeckpaperonboard_edited-1%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><font size="3"><img title="JeanneRafferBeckpaperonboard_edited-1" style="border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px; border-top-width: 0px" border="0" alt="JeanneRafferBeckpaperonboard_edited-1" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-2FBeABZY6w8/VODe6BCBL0I/AAAAAAAAGDA/QqgeegsruVw/JeanneRafferBeckpaperonboard_edited-1_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="644" height="432"></font></a><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-pDeZaFusFkw/VODe6m0Oi-I/AAAAAAAAGDI/N3CqhkFeZB4/s1600-h/JeanneRafferBeckwetpaperonwood%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><font size="3"><img title="JeanneRafferBeckwetpaperonwood" style="border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px; border-top-width: 0px" border="0" alt="JeanneRafferBeckwetpaperonwood" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-jKsHmn3wwqw/VODe6-CdV3I/AAAAAAAAGDU/NUG81Hwdjl4/JeanneRafferBeckwetpaperonwood_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="644" height="484"></font></a></p> <p><strong><font size="3">By the time I closed shop yesterday afternoon, the whole space looked a bit like an assembly line. Yesterday was also our building wide Second Saturday at </font><a href="http://www.thehungerford.com"><font size="3">Hungerford</font></a><font size="3"> but with storm warnings and snow, traffic stayed light. Still, I enjoyed great conversations with the people who did visit and made the most of the quiet; couching sheets of abaca paper and applying them wet over the remaining 6” x 9” wooden panels for my 24 pieces. As the paper dries and shrinks, it will totally adhere to the wood surface.</font></strong> <p><font size="3"></font></p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-ukMklPI6-dI/VODe7ZQ9eWI/AAAAAAAAGDY/y8sVeKwMfyY/s1600-h/IMG_0885%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><font size="3"><img title="IMG_0885" style="border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px; border-top-width: 0px" border="0" alt="IMG_0885" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNJALxQYqsffHVEitC5NwgBkPuWoPqtnYOIuoLKJPIvbdIidDAJgBjxZtFVfp8PiQQU3BwXKqZzRX3IfwwiG3qWA6B25QH4_nIAOz7FSgE-c02hs3M_Je4Lqh2B1uTQ-EyTCGYebkM0eYf/?imgmax=800" width="644" height="484"></font></a> <p><strong><font size="3">Many thanks to my good friend <a href="http://www.claurelartist.com">Christina Laurel</a></font><font size="3"></font><font size="3"> for sending me the darker value chai tea bag papers – a great surprise that arrived in a little package in the mail this week. Friends help take the chill away in winter! These will join my other carefully saved papers to be collaged on their surfaces when I return to my studio this week and start to compose and collage. </font></strong></p> Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-58346768043458017622015-02-07T18:17:00.001-08:002015-02-10T05:33:34.415-08:00Seeing, Feeling, Expressing<br />
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<b>Your vision will become clear only when you look into your own heart. Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakens. --Carl Jung </b></i><br />
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<b>After enjoying hundreds of visitors who came to my studio last night for First Friday, I realize just how much of an equation there is between making art and sharing it. That exchange feels magical when what we make is well received by others. We encounter that energy in concerts, in live performances and sporting events. Athletes, actors, dancers, musicians all perform to audiences and whether small or large, our creativity comes full circle when shared. </b><br />
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<b>For many of us who are makers, our creative selves are always reaching. I’m feeling an internal desire now to focus on emotional content in new work. What is it that makes some pieces evoke a deep emotional response? </b><br />
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<b>Colors, shapes, lines and textures can communicate feeling, either what the artist feels internally or their responses to the world around them. The Abstract Expressionists of the 1950s believed the best way to express pure emotion was to create nonobjective or totally abstract artworks. They saw the use of colors, shapes, lines and textures as vital to expressing deep emotional states. </b><br />
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<b>What feelings or emotions do you wish to express through your works? How do you choose color, shape, line and textures to communicate those? </b><br />
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<em><strong>Painting is poetry that is seen rather than felt, and poetry is painting that is felt rather than seen. ~Leonardo da Vinci</strong></em><br />
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<br />Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-32634234806837292842015-02-01T11:32:00.001-08:002015-02-01T16:56:33.669-08:00Exploration: Sculptural Forms<p> </p> <p><font size="3">Three-dimensional forms are my current focus – O.K, more like a fixation. I’m working on a new series to combine wire armatures and handmade paper – using either freshly couched, wet sheets or dipping armatures into paper pulp. The high shrinkage of 4-hour beaten abaca pulp from <a href="http://www.carriagehousepaper.com">Carriage House Papers</a> lends itself to this process. The results are incredibly durable, even though they look very fragile</font>. </p> <p> </p> <p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic1cD68fp4yj4rBW4q_KRLW9pJGhMWmb6X25mw8yNTzlWMuaKNz2mYKq7xRgh8qeAPl4FZooLYDf0_sXSyZ6Etl6eWBq3IBgucDG7C6I7f5D0Tlh-1T0dXHBnSdT_NB12lLT62HlGluHLM/s1600-h/JeanneBecknewlayerspiece1%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img title="JeanneBecknewlayerspiece1" style="border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; float: none; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-left: auto; display: block; padding-right: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; margin-right: auto" border="0" alt="JeanneBecknewlayerspiece1" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-yiya3IsB4Z8/VM5_VfRUmPI/AAAAAAAAF-c/2A1XwkrSHww/JeanneBecknewlayerspiece1_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="347" height="484"></a></p> <p>.<font size="2"> </font><strong><em><font size="2">Jeanne Beck, Layers, 6” x9”, wire and paper sculpture mounted on hardwood covered with handmade paper, tea bag papers, gesso.</font> I’m researching sources for a thin drop-in frame for these. Any suggestions for sources? My husband hopes you will please share them to get him off the hook for more R&D assignments! </em></strong></p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-TR1d3vajB-8/VM5_Vo4YU2I/AAAAAAAAF-o/mtwmEaN7p7I/s1600-h/JeanneBeckdippedpaperpulpwireforms%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img title="JeanneBeckdippedpaperpulpwireforms" style="border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; float: none; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-left: auto; display: block; padding-right: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; margin-right: auto" border="0" alt="JeanneBeckdippedpaperpulpwireforms" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-mD6u8D3mVDA/VM5_WH8BW6I/AAAAAAAAF-w/PE-wkrlVDHs/JeanneBeckdippedpaperpulpwireforms_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="363" height="484"></a></p> <p><strong><em><font size="2">Freshly dipped wire forms, drying on a wooden rack in my studio. The drying process takes three to four days. The moisture rusts the ungalvanized wire I use. Some pieces may be dipped, partially dried and dipped again several times to accumulate layers.</font></em></strong></p> <p><strong><em></em></strong> </p> <p><strong><em></em></strong><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-8LafAPe2RO4/VM5_WpYXFFI/AAAAAAAAF-0/f42HZi4kfUw/s1600-h/JeanneBecknewworkresearch%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img title="JeanneBecknewworkresearch" style="border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; float: none; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-left: auto; display: block; padding-right: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; margin-right: auto" border="0" alt="JeanneBecknewworkresearch" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvOvbVbYK8PSkyRJyv6EuXyVsFsU_zoAMfNDEo4pbXybX95Z8ytdHrTUjZy_SRRgJyW6JkV1E0r6FDPw8hmRgSIg0jvCTZAH8CstehltYQei7E67HmBEPVYc2HUDdmA-w7U6irYsRZ8-Dk/?imgmax=800" width="363" height="484"></a></p> <p><strong><em><font size="2">My resident R&D department has been helping to design stands to provide another presentation option for these small works.</font> </em></strong></p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-PzSFicYFlnI/VM5_XR98B-I/AAAAAAAAF_I/Qcp8CYNFXuc/s1600-h/JeanneBeckwoodfornewpieces%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img title="JeanneBeckwoodfornewpieces" style="border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; float: none; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-left: auto; display: block; padding-right: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; margin-right: auto" border="0" alt="JeanneBeckwoodfornewpieces" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-oVoa5L_3FXQ/VM5_XzG8YqI/AAAAAAAAF_Q/eQ38j9O-dM0/JeanneBeckwoodfornewpieces_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="363" height="484"></a></p> <p><font size="3">My vision for this series – much like my current fluttering pages pieces – is to work with repetition. I visualize rows and rows of them hanging together.</font></p> <p><font size="3">I’ll work this week to complete 11 more pieces. That will allow me to see how they look as multiples. If successful, then I’ll create 24 in this first series to hang 6 across and 6 down. If not successful, then back to the drawing board. Ideally, working with multiples will allow galleries and collectors flexibility for purchasing and presentation. More ideas for combining and hanging these together are evolving.</font></p> <p><strong><em>Special thanks to two excellent workshop teachers, <a href="http://www.mokelman.com">Mo Kelman</a> and <a href="http://www.melissajaycraig.com">Melissa Jay Craig</a>, for providing so much excellent information and assistance in starting down this trail. Melissa is teaching 3-D papermaking again at <a href="http://www.wsworkshop.org">Women’s Studio Workshop</a> this summer, if you are interested.</em></strong></p> Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-57856424211245124902015-01-23T15:00:00.001-08:002015-01-24T06:38:08.271-08:00A Shiny Winter Tonic<p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.mainstreetartgallery.com">Main Street Art Gallery</a>, located in a picturesque two-story building in Clifton Springs, NY, decided to counteract winter’s chill by inviting an eclectic mix of artists (my absolute favorite type of show) to participate in <a href="http://mainstreetartsgallery.com/blog/">Solid Gold</a>, a celebration of glowing 2 and 3-D works featuring ceramics, sculpture, painting and mixed media. All works incorporate metallic paint or gold leaf on their surfaces. </p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-J4C7dYAyTPQ/VMLSk1iTUMI/AAAAAAAAF9Q/Tr5R5lh5c8o/s1600-h/MStreetArts3Medium%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img title="MStreetArts3Medium" style="border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px; border-top-width: 0px" border="0" alt="MStreetArts3Medium" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-JYZHTgoFlrc/VMLSljVxZjI/AAAAAAAAF9Y/VnyYlbcJbPk/MStreetArts3Medium_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="644" height="429"></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-e_9y4kXgNi0/VMLSmL5npfI/AAAAAAAAF9g/kAo2xSlLhW8/s1600-h/DSC_0439%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img title="DSC_0439" style="border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px; border-top-width: 0px" border="0" alt="DSC_0439" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-xogparB3-mE/VMLSnNux4KI/AAAAAAAAF9o/Or-DhJLc7Bw/DSC_0439_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="644" height="429"></a></p> <p>The opening was great fun, one of the best ones I’ve been to, friendly and down to earth and the perfect tonic for a cold, dark January day. </p> <p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0tXFOsxkNfj3uGQ2iOQhz6nKy9EGz8GVC1MT9-LHggG0lACAByLswGIqtnoWTIfhZuRpVGV2LSxgzYBlo0i2yJtSUW6QAZaapbjVY0iCer5626UVyw9oxMKm_KtR9bDr5-ISWsbWcye9H/s1600-h/DSC_0393%25255B17%25255D.jpg"><img title="DSC_0393" style="border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px; border-top-width: 0px" border="0" alt="DSC_0393" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-RJgvl29fXXw/VMLSoyQ4C7I/AAAAAAAAF94/NIF2n6QBunM/DSC_0393_thumb%25255B5%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="644" height="451"></a></p> <p>Main Street Art Gallery also invited me to contribute a post to their <a href="http://mainstreetartsgallery.com/blog/">Inside the Artist Studio</a> series and I hope you will click the link and take a look. </p> <p>Confession. I haven’t blogged in over a year. I was questioning so many things about being an artist including what place art has in our culture. Then I realized my job is to be true to my own inner inspirations and share that with anyone who is interested. I can’t control or often understand what’s happening in the rest of the world but I can choose to live my own life each day connected to my spirit of adventure and creativity.</p> <p>So creating – the research, experiments, failures, explorations and victories that all go into turning ideas into form – are where we’ll go this year on these pages. Comment, share, join in the dance – those who love creating are a tribe and I’m eager to meet more of mine.</p> Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-62327731772702904602014-01-09T14:22:00.001-08:002014-01-09T14:22:08.649-08:00Mindful Marketing Practices, Step One<p style="font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><strong> AUDIENCE </strong></p>
<p><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/chicagogeek/4333114156/"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-te3TYa5CeOM/Us8VEbeNSFI/AAAAAAAAFz4/DgrbhhHu0e8/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" alt="NewImage" width="600" height="450" border="0" /></a></p>
<p><em> This image is from http://www.flickr.com/photos/chicagogeek/4333114156/</em></p>
<p><em></em> Since I’m endlessly curious, clearing my mind to practice mindfulness is important to me. So are setting intentions. I started this year with a personal vision quest – eight full days -- through snowstorms and subzero temps (in Chicago, I’m told, the zookeepers even brought the polar bears indoors!). </p>
<p> My retreat unfolded this way. First I happened onto a self-inventory called "The Gifts of 2013" from<a href="http://www.susannahconway.com/2013/12/lets-make-some-magic-in-2014/"> Susannah Conway</a>. I spent New Year’s Day writing until I had filled it all out. When I reviewed what I had written about the pluses and minuses of 2013, I savored the confident, positive woman I saw reflected back to me.</p>
<p> A few days later I met with two fellow artists with long corporate careers and much expertise to discuss our desires and directions for 2014. I acknowledged that I am very savvy about marketing for others but not on my own behalf. Could I change that mindset and still be true to my own values? Indeed I can.</p>
<p>As I take steps this year to make my work more visible, then my audience -- those people who will invest in my works -- will find me. How can people purchase my work if they don’t know it exists?</p>
<p>Just who is my desired audience? As I visualize them, here's what I see:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>You appreciate contemporary art. It ignites your interest and delights you. You surround yourself with original art in your home and office.</strong></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><strong>You have confidence in your taste. You trust your instincts.</strong></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><strong>You're informed. You learn about the artists who interest you. If possible, you visit their studios and connect with them personally.</strong></li>
<li><strong><br /></strong></li>
<li><strong> You're comfortable with contemporary art. You make it a point to visit museum exhibitions and gallery shows because you enjoy learning. You spend time with a work to really see and appreciate it.</strong></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><strong>You share your enthusiasm for the arts and artists with your friends, family and co-workers. You may be low-key about it but you are definitely an advocate for artists. </strong></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><strong>You think for yourself. You enjoy purchasing art that will increase in value but you don’t make your purchases based on profits. Today’s stars come and go in contemporary art as in music and movies; you choose to buy art that captivates you rather than follow trends and passing fads.</strong></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><strong>You are a genuine, compassionate and interesting person. You probably wouldn’t find visual art appealing if you weren’t!</strong></li>
</ul>
<p>My audience is out there – and since I have a clearer idea of who they are, it will be easier to develop ideas for how to reach them.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-67202974019628372132013-03-18T08:40:00.001-07:002013-03-18T08:40:59.037-07:00New Explorations: Chapter 1<p><font size="3">So many of you have expressed interest in what my new directions will be. The core of my ideas and concepts are not changing, I’m just not using dyes and silk as my materials</font>. </p> <p><font size="3"> I am still deeply committed to considering the effects of time and aging on memory and personal identities through my “fluttering pages” series. </font></p> <p><font size="3">But yes, a new series of pieces using paper pulp is now underway. <a href="http://raphaelamccormack.com">Raphaela McCormack</a>, a talented artist and friend, is teaching me about working with it. Do go to her website and look at her work; I love her sailing vessels and canoes. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii0ahn0Tf8KPdonexZKsahH3UxgSWFbiuhjfBFRF1gS3oSOV67Lq15aymmg7VscyTVR-ePDIYUpWhs2JO1QQeZUSJeCaGO3b8c1p4iO1KxP7buMAGibc8lVNQzI0E8swAAANE_EqHcRCXP/s1600-h/IMG_0048%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_0048" border="0" alt="IMG_0048" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-fY25jQtStJ4/UUc1gYTpxSI/AAAAAAAAFvA/qID1cOyYPiU/IMG_0048_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="522" height="395"></a></p> <p><font size="3"> First, Raphaela showed me how to form basic sheets of paper. </font></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-jnoldLO6wAk/UUc1hOke68I/AAAAAAAAFvI/KFJf2noTIbI/s1600-h/IMG_0051%25255B5%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_0051" border="0" alt="IMG_0051" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-4BE1ki8-eqo/UUc1hQysWrI/AAAAAAAAFvQ/biYHQKfXn-A/IMG_0051_thumb%25255B2%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="605" height="459"></a></p> <p><font size="3"> Then we set up the wet room to dive into testing out a few of my specific ideas. On the right is a sample threadwork memory map dipped into and layered with pulp.</font></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-9U2fNtdgN7o/UUc1iJs-ceI/AAAAAAAAFvY/tj_avXMJP3k/s1600-h/sculpturalpapertestpiece1b%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="sculpturalpapertestpiece1b" border="0" alt="sculpturalpapertestpiece1b" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-ckSNOGEFwhk/UUc1imVPEVI/AAAAAAAAFvg/ru-gfj0XDdA/sculpturalpapertestpiece1b_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="507" height="383"></a></p> <p><font size="3">My first “paper and threadwork” sculptural sample hangs on my design wall. So much potential!</font></p> <p><font size="3">Like every first try, my eye sees issues to resolve for the next ones, but it’s an exciting beginning.</font></p> Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-26045354614728970002013-03-10T09:11:00.001-07:002013-03-10T09:12:49.409-07:00Hungerford Artists: Thaw 3 Delivers Diversity<p><font size="3">For the third year, artists from the Hungerford Building combined forces March 1 –8 to show their work in “Thaw 3”. <font size="3"><font size="3">“Thaw” exhibits have taken place all over Rochester and surrounding areas, a collaboration of </font><a href="http://www.roberts.edu/davisongallery/Gallery/Forum.aspx"><font size="3">Regional Gallery Directors’ Forum at Roberts Wesleyan College</font></a><font size="3">.</font></font></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font><font size="3"></font><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDY9s33oDqb022ePalTNqSXOQEroSc0ihLJ9eKqsQ3JbynmlQ_2yoC_Vpr9IBNhKkcmf5M5bOt0Bor8Htgb71Cj3tgdEPFBzZTz5If-koOjT_4yO41AAtP7LBvwuzKYBfq0R18WZBn6sQ1/s1600-h/IMG_0103%25255B10%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_0103" border="0" alt="IMG_0103" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-WNYvqXYLA1o/UTywqv7PdUI/AAAAAAAAFs4/kTVzS9VY5b8/IMG_0103_thumb%25255B4%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="472" height="358"></a></p> <p><font size="3">The diversity of mediums and subject matter in the Hungerford “Thaw” shows are always inspiring, but more so are the commitment and focus evident in the artists’ works. </font></p> <p> <a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-1pDE55W_i5U/UTywrL2V8FI/AAAAAAAAFtA/l1AHKLP0taM/s1600-h/IMG_0102%25255B10%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_0102" border="0" alt="IMG_0102" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-GmQ9jvhhaC4/UTywrtGbfXI/AAAAAAAAFtI/gKMomFfdN_Y/IMG_0102_thumb%25255B4%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="477" height="361"></a></p> <p><font size="3">Even with over 20 artists displaying multiple works, this huge studio space in the building could have held more! </font><font size="3">Here is a small selection of the works in this years THAW 3:</font></p> <p><strong><em><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-yFKYoCGo08c/UTywsY8I6rI/AAAAAAAAFtQ/siIVlldPDk4/s1600-h/IMG_0089%25255B11%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_0089" border="0" alt="IMG_0089" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-1emiYfN2JxA/UTywsvnPmiI/AAAAAAAAFtY/si8lP_-4raQ/IMG_0089_thumb%25255B5%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="377" height="505"></a></em></strong></p> <p align="center"><strong><em><font size="2">Robert Rogaliski’s (studio #222) wonderful imagination comes to life in this mixed media work, titled “Falling Leaf”.</font></em></strong> </p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-N1LEDm5chYI/UTywtRoaQoI/AAAAAAAAFtg/APfv-t7diHg/s1600-h/IMG_0092%25255B12%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_0092" border="0" alt="IMG_0092" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-GsdU4YeUwDw/UTywtyD779I/AAAAAAAAFto/komHlwYycio/IMG_0092_thumb%25255B6%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="433" height="328"></a></p> <p align="center"><strong><em><font size="2">Detail, “Falling Leaf”, mixed media, Robert Rogalski</font></em></strong></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-9JG-HcdfwJs/UTywutEHQXI/AAAAAAAAFtw/tIQvRqgoPVI/s1600-h/IMG_0100%25255B5%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_0100" border="0" alt="IMG_0100" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-MJLEN4IrB-4/UTywvIpbVdI/AAAAAAAAFt4/LHeLmXCgGZk/IMG_0100_thumb%25255B2%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="436" height="330"></a></p> <p align="center"><strong><em><a href="http://www.codykroll.com"><font size="2">Cody Kroll’s</font></a><font size="2"> “Chadogu – Tea Utensils”, an installation featuring vessels using 16th century and modern American shino glazes. Cody writes in his artist statement at his website, “In the last few years I have become fascinated conceptually by the "living" nature of clay and themes of impermanence.” See a full view in the image at the top of this page. Cody’s studio is #228.</font></em></strong> </p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-ZIs7-nQhlEk/UTywvoI4IdI/AAAAAAAAFuA/ZriVUhmYRjo/s1600-h/IMG_0113%25255B9%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_0113" border="0" alt="IMG_0113" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-rmGAiLQ_21c/UTywv7kU3zI/AAAAAAAAFuI/9OBvmzk4nAo/IMG_0113_thumb%25255B3%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="358" height="479"></a></p> <p align="center"><font size="3"><strong><em> <font size="2">Larry Moss and Kelly Cheatle, “Light Snack”, Airigami, studio #234, silver halide print, young girl with balloon sculpture.</font></em></strong></font></p> <p><font size="3">Hungerford is home base for <a href="http://www.airigami.com">Airigami,</a> where Larry Moss and Kelly Cheatle design balloon installations for venues all over the country. They’re currently awaiting publication of two children’s books they’ve written and illustrated with – of course -- their innovative balloon works.</font></p> <p><font size="3">One of my favorite artists in the building is Michael Pigett, who paints cloud paintings that are gentle, sensitive contemplations of light and movement. I left some the background surrounding this painting in because the two interact in such an interesting way. </font></p> <p><font size="3"><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-CXSaKDdX8Sk/UTywwlR9DuI/AAAAAAAAFuQ/jQb6vppCNpg/s1600-h/IMG_0104%25255B12%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_0104" border="0" alt="IMG_0104" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-qO75dg-05OY/UTyww-7gBGI/AAAAAAAAFuY/_4rwEZ-dIRM/IMG_0104_thumb%25255B12%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="346" height="463"></a></font></p> <p align="center"><strong><em><font size="2">Michael Pigett, “Clouds”, oil on canvas</font></em></strong></p> <p><strong><em><font size="3"><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-A8t9oJn409M/UTywxGARQMI/AAAAAAAAFug/UZBLkpNy8sQ/s1600-h/IMG_0096%25255B10%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_0096" border="0" alt="IMG_0096" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-J8CpQakd-kc/UTywxjfuRDI/AAAAAAAAFuo/Fv1NcNmyXlE/IMG_0096_thumb%25255B4%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="313" height="418"></a></font></em></strong></p> <p align="center"><strong><em><a href="http://oliviakimstudio.com/section/299635_Figure_Sculpture.html"><font size="2">Olivia Kim,</font></a><font size="2"> “Walking Woman”, studio #335, hydrocal and encaustics. Olivia’s love of the figure and her supreme attention to realistic detail inform her body of work.</font></em></strong></p> <p><font size="3">Many thanks to <a href="http://www.constancemauro.com">Constance Mauro</a> and Jennifer Buckley for coordinating the Hungerford Thaw 3 exhibit. </font></p> <p><font size="3"><em><font color="#9bbb59"><strong> <font size="2">If you live in the Rochester area, please visit the Hungerford Building, 1115 East Main St., Rochester, NY, on </font></strong></font></em><a href="http://thehungerford.com/first-friday/"><em><font color="#9bbb59" size="2"><strong>First Friday Gallery Nights</strong></font></em></a></font><em><font color="#9bbb59" size="2"><strong> (go to this page for a listing of the studios open each month) and enjoy offerings of art and craft in every conceivable medium.</strong></font></em></p> <p><em><font color="#9bbb59" size="2"><strong>Visiting First Friday at Hungerford combines adventure, inspiration – and good exercise! – all in one convenient indoor location. </strong></font></em></p> <p><font size="2"><em><font color="#9bbb59"><strong>Parking is crazy on First Fridays, but here’s the way to avoid the crowds</strong>: </font></em><font style=""><em><strong><font style="" color="#dfce04">Just park across the road in the bank parking lot or half a block down on the same side of East Main at the Greenovations building. Plenty of room in both! And do make sure to come visit me in studio #366!</font></strong></em></font></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font> </p> <p><font color="#dfce04"></font></p> Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-9525919433423178582013-03-01T08:52:00.001-08:002013-03-01T08:54:07.346-08:002013 Niche Award and JGK Galleries’ Art ROC Showcase Winner<p><font size="3"></font> </p> <p><font size="3">This excellent week started with discovering that Book of the Ancients 8: Bethel Park Elementary, won a </font><a href="http://www.nicheawards.com"><font size="3">2013 Niche Award</font></a><font size="3"> in decorative fiber. My piece, among 40 professional and 19 student winners, will be featured in the spring issue of Niche Magazine. This was the first time I entered Niche, so I was doubly pleased, first to be selected as a finalist and then to receive this prestigious award for my work.</font></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-S3JyIjq7_K8/UTDcyoAD3cI/AAAAAAAAFro/gvQlan79JMs/s1600-h/J_Beck_bookoftheancients8%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><font size="3"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="J_Beck_bookoftheancients8" border="0" alt="J_Beck_bookoftheancients8" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidG1hEe4Vwo0fCOwk2xdM9ACUqQRvcoYLvpHhaeTiuaiKkVyvrxtTDnBCSnHYi0M-mumt2-O-n_TG4uYnFFFWZgWz0bsxNmdNFzdOPjSP9SGVaERetTRH3YaIoVB1cr2kfUyiR3sjEPgyF/?imgmax=800" width="292" height="390"></font></a><em><strong><font size="3"> My Book of the Ancients pieces consider the effects of time on memory and personal histories.</font></strong></em></p> <p><font size="3">But that’s not all the delightful surprises this week brought. Last night Bob and I attended the closing reception for </font><a href="http://www.jgkgalleries.com"><font size="3">JGK Galleries’ Art ROC Showcase</font></a><font size="3">, which features 12 regional artists. This juried exhibition offered a first prize of gallery representation and a solo show for one of the artists. Last night when the winning name was announced, it was – mine! </font></p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-02Mcio3oKao/UTDczkVSm0I/AAAAAAAAFr4/8kCDPFbnQ1I/s1600-h/IMG_0071%25255B9%25255D.jpg"><font size="3"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_0071" border="0" alt="IMG_0071" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-VwU4WaoUs8M/UTDc0K8uahI/AAAAAAAAFsA/Lyh3F7TAt_o/IMG_0071_thumb%25255B3%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="327" height="249"></font></a><em><strong><font size="3">JGK’s space is warm and inviting with brick walls, gleaming hardwood floors and generous wall space, as well as ample room for 3-D works. </font></strong></em><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-lQBSAgMTMNg/UTDc1Owc3LI/AAAAAAAAFsI/Ai4KtzoL4y8/s1600-h/IMG_0070%25255B5%25255D.jpg"><font size="3"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_0070" border="0" alt="IMG_0070" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-Vzlc6p8m47M/UTDc1j8_xOI/AAAAAAAAFsQ/K0pwpBid9rI/IMG_0070_thumb%25255B2%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="332" height="252"></font></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-erKisQ8btgk/UTDc2XHIo7I/AAAAAAAAFsY/11NYnrCjGOo/s1600-h/IMG_0074%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><font size="3"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_0074" border="0" alt="IMG_0074" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-vgT-sLP5Vk8/UTDc221_sGI/AAAAAAAAFsg/wkAJ3fCv5p8/IMG_0074_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="469" height="355"></font></a></p> <p align="center"><em><font size="3"><strong>Out of twelve artists, </strong></font><a href="http://www.reneesimonelee.com"><font size="3"><strong>Renee Simone-Lee</strong></font></a><font size="3"><strong> and I were the two women selected to exhibit in the JGK Galleries Art ROC 2013 Showcase. Of course we rock!</strong></font></em></p> <p><font size="3">Tonight will be the last night to see </font><a href="http://www.jgkgalleries.com"><font size="3">JGK Galleries Art ROC Showcase 2013</font></a><font size="3">, which will be open for First Friday gallery night in Rochester. Check out JGK’s </font><a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/JGK-galleries/301799"><font size="3">Facebook page</font></a><font size="3"> and you can see work by all 12 artists in the exhibition. </font></p> <p><font size="3">If good things come in threes, that means I can look forward to one more bit of good news arriving. It is fun to imagine all the good things that might be! </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-48422001525685929562013-02-20T05:25:00.001-08:002013-02-20T05:25:38.325-08:00Janet Echelman: Imaginings<a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-8D7J7B3kKm4/USTOzGLCU7I/AAAAAAAAFqY/aMnhBnwmqi4/s1600-h/Janet_Echelman_With_Sculpture_Protot%25255B2%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; margin-left: auto; border-left-width: 0px; margin-right: auto; padding-top: 0px" title="Janet_Echelman_With_Sculpture_Prototype" border="0" alt="Janet_Echelman_With_Sculpture_Prototype" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-Pp7oNtcjqvU/USTOzy5GeNI/AAAAAAAAFqg/NnGZTkW6ZUo/Janet_Echelman_With_Sculpture_Protot.jpg?imgmax=800" width="241" height="244"> <p align="center"></a><strong><font size="2"> </font></strong><em><strong><font size="2">“When Inspiration finds me, she will find me at work.” Picasso</font></strong> </em></p> <p><font size="3">Today I’m writing a press release for the </font><a href="http://www.surfacedesign.org"><font size="3">Surface Design Association’s</font></a><font size="3"> upcoming June 6-9 In-ter-face Conference in San Antonio. Janet Echelman is our keynote speaker; her lecture title, “Taking Imagination Seriously.”</font></p> <p><font size="3">Janet, a 1987 Harvard graduate, started her art career as a painter. As she describes in her TED talk (below), she applied for and received a Fulbright to travel to India in 1987 and create paintings. The artist arrived, but her paints did not. As she watched fisherman weaving their nets along the beach, a new idea emerged, to create a three-dimensional woven structure that could move and float in the air. That initial project has evolved into designing massive floating sculptural installations for urban spaces around the world. </font></p> <p><font size="3">While I am awed at the scale and fluidity of these forms and impressed at how they animate and engage the steel and concrete environments and human populations that surround them, what impresses me most is Janet herself as a creative. As the TED talk reveals, Janet has candor, humor and a passion for creative process and the power of imagination that are contagious.</font></p> <p><font size="3">In this new year, as I challenge my own imagination to be bolder, more daring and confident, this artist is the first one I am choosing as a touchstone. The above image of Janet seems to encapsulate her energy and creative vision.</font></p> <p><font size="3">I am drawn to the communal nature of Echelman’s work. Rendering her ideas into form engages experts in engineering, science and even aeronautics in a collaborative process. When artistic vision mingles with science and physics, all contribute to a creative process that leads to awe-inspiring results. </font></p> <p><font size="3">Janet broached this same subject as a TED talk in 2011:</font></p> <div style="padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; width: 448px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding-top: 0px" id="scid:5737277B-5D6D-4f48-ABFC-DD9C333F4C5D:6234e932-a972-493a-9c25-51a313a8f1a5" class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent"><div id="9acbc33a-f51a-4a38-8f59-7c62de5e5e06" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; display: inline;"><div><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9YekkGz1E2k&feature=player_embedded" target="_new"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-itTuOmhqyMk/USTO0b-g4QI/AAAAAAAAFqo/n-ZJnEsJH30/video99d643309ede%25255B110%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-style: none" galleryimg="no" onload="var downlevelDiv = document.getElementById('9acbc33a-f51a-4a38-8f59-7c62de5e5e06'); downlevelDiv.innerHTML = "<div><object width=\"448\" height=\"252\"><param name=\"movie\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/9YekkGz1E2k?hl=en&hd=1\"><\/param><embed src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/9YekkGz1E2k?hl=en&hd=1\" type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"448\" height=\"252\"><\/embed><\/object><\/div>";" alt=""></a></div></div></div> <p><font size="3">I am eager to hear Janet speak more fully on imagination at the </font><a href="http://www.surfacedesign.org/conference/2013-surface-design-associatio"><font size="3">Surface Design Association conference.</font></a><font size="3"> This artist/imagineer, her history, ideas and experiences as a maker will be a fitting launch for a conference that always inspires and informs my own creative practice. </font></p> <p><font size="3">(For more, read this </font><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/janet-echelman/"><font size="3">Huffington Post interview</font></a><font size="3"> with Echelman.)</font></p> Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-70941606496574921832013-01-16T05:09:00.001-08:002013-01-16T05:09:32.354-08:00Art of the Steal at Hungerford Studios<p>The time has come to let go of many of my experimental surface design works and samples along with my dyes, silks and cottons, both undyed and dyed and printed -- and all of my sundry collected-over-15-years assortment of books, magazines, tools and equipment. It's a mega letting go and I'm excited. The old "one door closes, another one opens" adage fits here. I am committed to my new body of work and the directions it is leading me; these materials no longer fit. </p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0875.jpg" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-7JAupsDnBdU/UPRruqa3SpI/AAAAAAAAFpE/CoNQpPEpyu0/IMG_0875.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="IMG 0875" width="448" height="600" border="0" /></p>
<p><strong><em> The piles for pricing keep growing and it's amazing how good it feels to let it all go.</em></strong></p>
<p>This shift has meant pulling everything out of storage areas in both my home and studio and piling boxes and bolts and etceteras in my soon to be painting and printing space. I'm pulling out the stove, washer and dryer to paint the walls and set up additional work space. </p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0877.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-TDH5DA9uI24/UPRrvmpFQvI/AAAAAAAAFpM/xT4ZU06SEfY/IMG_0877.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="IMG 0877" width="448" height="600" border="0" /></p>
<p>As I prepare for the sale, I am visualizing a lovely clear space in my artistic life that is making room for new ideas and new works. I am ready to pare down, let these much loved and carefully collected raw materials move along to people who will actually USE them!</p>
<p>The sale is mushrooming from my personal studio sale to a building-wide January clearance sale. Turns out that a whole lot of us need to let go of the old as we usher in the new year!</p>
<p style="text-align: center;">So if you are in the area and want to help me make this shift, please come to Hungerford Studios' "Art of the Steal Sale" on Friday, January 25 and Saturday, January 26, 11 AM - 4 PM.<span style="text-align: center;"> </span><img style="text-align: center;" title="hungerfordsaleflier.jpg" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-uCDD_0p6o3U/UPRrwZs4KEI/AAAAAAAAFpU/1t5OCZj2T90/hungerfordsaleflier.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="Hungerfordsaleflier" width="463" height="600" border="0" /> </p>Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-28590098533958878642013-01-04T06:16:00.001-08:002013-01-04T06:18:06.794-08:00Hey There’s Nothing Wrong with the Old, But…<p> </p> <p><em><strong><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0Ya65GWhMJmQpM7az6wNX40inIYGFRmMkVknj7tEZNPVeSsiOJq_FcdSf_qAOhKXkBwdg1Qc7BrNiBYz2GAlIfmveX2PxM_p6Tu_hkWGknRKho_72YJzyvBmGvYcaNILzS22lLLwbORk7/s1600-h/howdydoody.phineastbluster%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; margin-left: auto; border-left-width: 0px; margin-right: auto; padding-top: 0px" title="howdydoody.phineastbluster" border="0" alt="howdydoody.phineastbluster" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/--9hTEYXeKNQ/UObkOvD5JpI/AAAAAAAAFnY/hm-c1Ba9otI/howdydoody.phineastbluster_thumb%25255B2%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="254" height="339"></a></strong></em></p> <p><em><strong><font color="#f79646" size="3">IN WITH THE NEW!! It’s 2013!!</font></strong></em></p> <p><em><strong><font color="#4bacc6" size="3">A New Year always brings the energy of change and new directions with it and I love the feeling. </font></strong></em></p> <p><font color="#4bacc6" size="3">For years I’ve been a goal setter and list maker – every day checking off and adding to a never ending list. It feels great to be action-oriented and productive, but all my to-dos started to feel like an endless sea of chores. This year, after reading, reflecting and opening to new ideas for the past few months, I have a new focus: I’M FOLLOWING THE GOOD FEELINGS. That’s it. That’s my compass and map for the year.</font></p> <p><font color="#4bacc6" size="3">How to set that exciting new energy into motion?? Make a list, of course! Here it is and I love it:</font></p> <p align="center"><font color="#f79646" size="3">My Awesome Desires for 2013</font></p> <p><font size="3"><font color="#ccb400">Read more juicy, brilliantly written books that inspire and uplift me and transport me to other lives and times</font> </font> <p><font size="3"><font color="#ccb400">Enjoy my body. Dance, swim, stretch, walk, bounce and skip through all the seasons and enjoy a limber, fit and trim body.</font> </font> <p><font style="background-color: #666666"></font><font size="3"><font color="#ccb400">Savor delicious, healthful foods that nourish my being and delight my senses. Make eating and cooking adventurous and live-enhancing.</font><font style="background-color: #666666"></font> </font> <p><font size="3"><font color="#ccb400">Laugh and play more every day. Sing my favorite songs.</font> </font> <p><font size="3"><font color="#ccb400">Spread kindness, generosity and laughter. Lots of laughter.</font> </font> <p><font size="3"><font color="#ccb400">Discover wonderful artists, musicians, writers and filmmakers and appreciate their creative offerings.</font> </font> <p><font size="3"><font color="#ccb400">Practice hope and positivity for myself and for the world. All is well.</font> </font> <p><font size="3"><font color="#ccb400">Share my thoughts, dreams, hopes and discoveries through my my art and my writing.</font> </font> <p><font size="3"><font color="#ccb400">Delight in my creative process and make ample time to explore, research and flesh out exciting new works.</font> </font> <p><font size="3"><font color="#ccb400">Speak about and to myself with kindness, love and nurturing.</font> </font> <p><font size="3"><font color="#ccb400">Think and speak and practice positive thoughts and words about others. Share laughter and joy and appreciation with each member of my family.</font> </font> <p><font size="3"><font color="#ccb400">Travel to fun, stimulating and exciting locations and find the best that each has to offer.</font> </font> <p><font size="3"><font color="#ccb400">Update and refresh my home and studio environments so they truly allow me to feel open, expansive and fully at home, at ease and nestled snugly in comfort and beauty here.</font> </font> <p><font size="3"><font color="#ccb400">Bring more art into my life. I've added some new pieces to my home in 2012; let this continue in 2013 and fully enjoy the process of selecting each piece. Love and appreciate each one and surround myself in beauty.</font> </font> <p><font size="3"><font color="#ccb400">Enjoy discovering and purchasing wonderful new clothing and jewelry that convey my love of all things creative and artistic.</font> </font> <p><font size="3"><font color="#ccb400">Thrill to new discoveries and growth in my body of work so it continues to be become more visually compelling and irresistible.</font> </font> <p><font size="3"><font color="#ccb400">Accept and appreciate my authority and expertise as an artist, writer and wise woman. Radiate confidence in all that I do.</font> </font> <p><font size="3"><font color="#ccb400">Connect with my inner compass and trust what it tells me.</font> </font> <p><font size="3"><font color="#ccb400">Innovate and experiment feeling confidence and trust in the creative process and my connection with my inner compass.</font> </font> <p><font size="3"><font color="#ccb400">Affirm and bless the gifts that my life brings me each and every day and appreciate how wonderful my life is.</font> </font> <p><font size="3"><font color="#ccb400">Let my spirit soar and boldly express in every thing I do.</font> </font> <p><em><font size="3"><font color="#4bacc6">I</font><font color="#4bacc6"> wish you a joyful New Year filled with many creative adventures. We’re on our way!</font></font></em></p> Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-43704139705138392732012-09-03T18:05:00.001-07:002012-09-03T18:05:32.623-07:00Transforming a Yellow Spot into the Sun<p> </p> <p align="center"><em><font size="3">There are painters who transform the sun</font></em></p> <p align="center"><em><font size="3">into a yellow spot, but there are others who,</font></em></p> <p align="center"><em><font size="3">thanks to their art and intelligence, </font></em></p> <p align="center"><em><font size="3">transform a yellow spot into the sun.</font></em></p> <p align="center"><em><font size="3">PABLO PICASSO</font></em></p> <p align="center"><em><font size="3"></font></em> </p> <p><font size="3">Isn’t this a wonderful quote from an incredible artist? I found it in <em>The Zen of Creativity: Cultivating Your Artistic Life </em>by John Daido Loori, which I spent this past weekend reading. I had just finished an intense period of creative work last week when a wonderful new friend passed along her copy of this book to me. The timing was perfect; I was tired and stressed and somehow the thoughts and ideas that Loori shared helped me release some of the tensions that had built over the past month.</font></p> <p><font size="3">Here’s what happened. In June I had three works to enter in an international juried fiber exhibition with an August 31 entry deadline. I looked forward to taking the whole month of July off from studio work. </font></p> <p><font size="3">Then two of the works sold (who could complain about that?!) and the third one went out on consignment to an art consultant. That gave me four weeks to create three new works to meet the submission deadline. Each piece normally takes me close to a month to complete.</font></p> <p><font size="3">Somehow I did it! A key ingredient was serendipitously finding an excellent studio assistant to help. In less than four weeks, I completed three new pieces in the Book of the Ancients series and made the entry deadline!</font></p> <p><font size="3">The works in this series continue to be inspired by remembered bits of personal history, considerations of how and what we remember over time. I’ve returned to the photographer who is able to capture the truest representation of the luminosity and colors within each work. </font></p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-lwbcpMMqqGc/UEVTwlyYFBI/AAAAAAAAFlU/AMNHZz4vKlk/s1600-h/sm3615%25255B6%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="sm3615" border="0" alt="sm3615" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF7hQjwOlOpJRh1jT3xdTynZp2_q-LUXvaYfmAmEYKC050AkURY_swBKF9bryEj5eKLFOcR0kMWdylL6fp4MIlMZFP4yIEiJ84eb9M4oDD0xRzxkggqw32oTJNzYsjRREQVd6LCf7FhFTy/?imgmax=800" width="364" height="484"></a></p> <p><strong><em><font size="3">Jeanne Raffer Beck, Book of the Ancients 8: Remembered Teachers, 2012, 36” x 48”, composition gold leaf, spun polyester, fiberglass window screening, acrylics. Screen printing, gel medium transfers, cut, stitched and constructed.</font></em></strong></p> <p align="center"><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-HmfSxPNWc7M/UEVTxhG6SpI/AAAAAAAAFlk/2FN_lACHALo/s1600-h/sm3589%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="sm3589" border="0" alt="sm3589" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-jNag2YMph7E/UEVTyMBT6qI/AAAAAAAAFls/4W-VwuTeLKc/sm3589_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="324" height="484"></a></p> <p align="center"><strong><em><font size="3"> Detail, Book of the Ancients 8</font></em></strong></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-lqang8_lngw/UEVTynlC_dI/AAAAAAAAFl0/iZkpfgcqu-o/s1600-h/sm3599%25255B6%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="sm3599" border="0" alt="sm3599" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-MpfoPvefX18/UEVTzHWEPsI/AAAAAAAAFl8/X02G79ejKyo/sm3599_thumb%25255B3%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="364" height="484"></a></p> <p align="center"><strong><em><font size="3">Book of the Ancients 9, 2012, 36” x 48”, composition gold leaf, spun polyester, fiberglass window screening, acrylics, oil stick. Screen printed, cut, stitched and constructed.</font></em></strong></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-i3hLp6S0rhI/UEVT0DoMe1I/AAAAAAAAFmE/m925ZVRz6b8/s1600-h/sm3604%25255B10%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="sm3604" border="0" alt="sm3604" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-AgDM193hDNs/UEVT0l4OE6I/AAAAAAAAFmM/9AUYUuM6wTQ/sm3604_thumb%25255B7%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="644" height="431"></a></p> <p align="center"><em><strong><font size="3">Detail, Book of the Ancients 9</font></strong></em></p> <a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-v4_WH_0fHZU/UEVT1PR81BI/AAAAAAAAFmU/SEyFr2umoy0/s1600-h/sm3606%25255B6%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="sm3606" border="0" alt="sm3606" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-ojNvjhSIkfk/UEVT1tJ5MII/AAAAAAAAFmc/4QrV594tmVg/sm3606_thumb%25255B3%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="364" height="484"></a> <p align="center"><em><strong><font size="3">Book of the Ancients 10, 2012, 36” x 48”, composition gold leaf, spun polyester, fiberglass window screening, acrylics, oil stick. Stenciled, cut, stitched and constructed.</font></strong></em></p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-2FBli9e7G8w/UEVT2bH5JvI/AAAAAAAAFmk/fK6tcYY_AFc/s1600-h/sm3610%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="sm3610" border="0" alt="sm3610" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-91R6TSKV5ro/UEVT2_BvnhI/AAAAAAAAFms/dSynscccZvU/sm3610_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="324" height="484"></a></p> <p align="center"><strong><em><font size="3">Detail, Book of the Ancients 10</font></em></strong></p> Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-51575979965014944422012-08-13T06:15:00.001-07:002012-08-13T06:15:03.169-07:00Photographing New Works: Your Opinion, Please<p><font size="3">I work with three photographers. One doesn’t have a studio to photograph my larger works so I have to pay for his travel time and set up in my studio; another has a studio but it’s a two hour drive away. I took this latest work to a third photographer who has his own studio and he shot it a bit differently. Here’s your chance to take a close look and share your opinions about how it turned out – I would greatly appreciate it if you do!</font></p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-r_5GpJl61oM/UCj9yYonWMI/AAAAAAAAFiI/LVC_Sq0JvfI/s1600-h/IMG_0551%25255B6%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_0551" border="0" alt="IMG_0551" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-Lwo6t6vo-DE/UCj9y6ArEjI/AAAAAAAAFiQ/1TglJstii80/IMG_0551_thumb%25255B3%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="383" height="515"></a></p> <p><em><font size="3">We had to jury rig a hanging device for the piece. Since he is a Photoshop wizard, he was able to remove all signs of the orange clamps from the final image. Because of the slope of the hanging mechanism, the piece listed a bit to the right.</font></em></p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-As3Mk0KsY78/UCj9zh2GAtI/AAAAAAAAFiY/zwMQjOw5ZZo/s1600-h/_DSC9122%252520800%252520x%252520800%252520x%25252072%252520dpi%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="_DSC9122 800 x 800 x 72 dpi" border="0" alt="_DSC9122 800 x 800 x 72 dpi" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-gFZUCbWzvnk/UCj90BzjtvI/AAAAAAAAFig/n-qITKIXzlM/_DSC9122%252520800%252520x%252520800%252520x%25252072%252520dpi_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="565" height="567"></a></p> <p><em><strong>Jeanne Raffer Beck, Book of the Ancients: Memory 2, 48” x 48”, 2012</strong></em></p> <p><font size="3">That’s the final image above. The reflectiveness of the piece by photographer #3 is less visible than the one in the piece below done by photographer #2. Here is the question:</font></p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-t5GJykbCUpg/UCj900tsc8I/AAAAAAAAFio/NBRfSuTbTQ0/s1600-h/BECK%252520BookoftheAncients3lres%25255B5%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="BECK BookoftheAncients3lres" border="0" alt="BECK BookoftheAncients3lres" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-EV2HyftTNJo/UCj91cbLpBI/AAAAAAAAFiw/7i92btewAWY/BECK%252520BookoftheAncients3lres_thumb%25255B2%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="576" height="498"></a></p> <p><strong><em><font size="2">Jeanne Raffer Beck, Book of the Ancients 3: Memory, 36” x 36”, 2011.</font></em></strong></p> <p><strong><font size="4">Which photograph best holds your attention and interest and makes you want to see more? </font></strong></p> Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-90239429431883082582012-08-01T06:48:00.001-07:002012-08-01T06:48:10.542-07:00Hungerford Artists Open Studios and ACC Member Showcase 2012 this First Friday<p> </p> <p>Please join me and my guest artist, <a href="http://www.claurelartist.com">Christina Laurel,</a> as we show our work together this Friday, August 3, 6-9 PM at the Hungerford Building First Friday Open Studios, 1115 East Main Street, Rochester, NY, at my studio, #366 on the third floor, 5 –9 PM.</p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-EiwvfOpDusU/UBkzk-BKRaI/AAAAAAAAFhU/l7d0GcjoucE/s1600-h/B%252526WFan14%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="B&WFan14" border="0" alt="B&WFan14" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM3HflJ3Y_TmrKSeUzdGT4Of0W53iKBossx70111FyWmJofN7aO1ZOAf45vjgTXL14i_k4UcK90wZdCLL8kfZi1sOjvWEb_dU8UuF89zwC23hw6iIq3pyex2N3GjjfYASZxQNWXC5cgaYy/?imgmax=800" width="598" height="404"></a></p> <p><em>Christina Laurel, Black and White Fan #14, mixed media; collaged, layered, found and prepared papers.</em></p> <p>In addition, one of my silk and thread constructions, “Pages 7”, is in the <a href="http://www.artsrochester.org">Arts & Cultural Council</a> Member Showcase 2012 Exhibition at 277 North Goodman Street, a short walking distance from the Hungerford Building. You’re invited to this opening as well this Friday evening 5 – 9 PM. </p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-L9UemgP_sUo/UBkzlx84gBI/AAAAAAAAFhk/9FnC5kdMR4Q/s1600-h/Pages7%25255B6%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="Pages7" border="0" alt="Pages7" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJz_ENThZzRTPR_tnUON8ztS_MO1r-PBPTVfLGpcW3AdZhjLWj-wv7he1gIpWBeKqz2AUGOpjqVIdJwPN2Xumx4-B3gGoGC6FikmS297x2oRJPu4_ZSLUIBy-zhM2TxC4pNu5izDKHbwSS/?imgmax=800" width="289" height="437"></a></p> <p>In total, ACC received 204 submissions from 73 member artists. The exhibition jurors selected 20 pieces from 19 artists, so I am delighted my work is among them. The exhibition runs August 3 – 30.</p> Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-30735036620985135542012-06-19T03:55:00.001-07:002012-06-19T03:55:57.450-07:00Oklahoma’s FiberWorks 2012<p> </p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-OFXQozcevLI/T-BanNtdckI/AAAAAAAAFfw/yMUCQaBAEFU/s1600-h/FiberWorks2012header-300x235%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="FiberWorks2012header-300x235" border="0" alt="FiberWorks2012header-300x235" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-c6ki-VEWomA/T-Ban777fRI/AAAAAAAAFf4/-N7Ep_F0TLY/FiberWorks2012header-300x235_thumb%25255B2%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="540" height="427"></a></p> <p>I<font size="3"> spent this past week in Oklahoma City as this year’s FiberWorks juror, lecturer and critique presenter. FiberWorks, a juried annual exhibition produced by </font><a href="http://www.fiberartistsok.org/"><font size="3">Fiber Artists of Oklahoma</font></a><font size="3">, is now held at </font><a href="http://iaogallery.org/wordpress/exhibitions-2"><font size="3">IAO</font></a><font size="3">, an expansive new gallery in a downtown neighborhood where various studios like Paramount once stored and distributed movie films.</font></p> <p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdZoY8eXYhcaYNSFbQqKkX0nu-nOYz1Apf6SZn6VS61lK2o5wx7ndzacDbQKSxNuVloM_sy2QrcQElEgUkHQ2r5v15EWdi07bY335zBss1vYcqR229hg-s4EZvX6h-ilTVlz9pIeNYbdm1/s1600-h/DSCN7980%25255B8%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7980" border="0" alt="DSCN7980" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-Y7dpqhOT1IU/T-BapQMgQ4I/AAAAAAAAFgI/fJTkBD3oE1o/DSCN7980_thumb%25255B5%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="475" height="635"></a></p> <p><font size="3">This exciting and diverse annual exhibition, mounted by its talented founder </font><a href="http://web.mac.com/reginamurphy/StudioSixOKC/SullivanArt.html"><font size="3">Sue Moss Sullivan</font></a><font size="3"> for 34 years, showcases the full gamut of traditional and contemporary fiber art and fine craft.</font> </p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-BISC3p9xsaA/T-BarqeA4cI/AAAAAAAAFgQ/ThSFw2uprmI/s1600-h/DSCN7978%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7978" border="0" alt="DSCN7978" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-g7iojuhX4uU/T-BasDr5SrI/AAAAAAAAFgY/l5tVavPtmV0/DSCN7978_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="500" height="378"></a></p> <p><font size="3">A great crowd gathered for Friday night’s opening and I enjoyed giving an opening lecture to a supportive, interested audience.</font></p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-D3JOTsdM_aQ/T-BasrBwspI/AAAAAAAAFgg/bVFY7zFn5bI/s1600-h/DSCN7907%25255B5%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7907" border="0" alt="DSCN7907" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-xLmn9X0h4No/T-BatJay0zI/AAAAAAAAFgo/HguSaDLWhW8/DSCN7907_thumb%25255B2%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="486" height="369"></a></p> <p><font size="3">The gallery is extremely spacious and well-appointed, with excellent portable walls and numerous pedestals, a spacious lecture/reception area in the back, kitchen, storage area and office space. It is a dream space and IAO is truly an asset to Oklahoma City artists.</font></p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-HOsqE8ZH1gA/T-BatvbM36I/AAAAAAAAFgw/gOlTA6nmOiI/s1600-h/DSCN7910%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7910" border="0" alt="DSCN7910" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-OYgqblnQa2w/T-BauOCyqlI/AAAAAAAAFg4/cICrkOJogDs/DSCN7910_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="473" height="358"></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-qXTkFxS3PLQ/T-BaukQv9II/AAAAAAAAFhA/v2Mmn-F5XJI/s1600-h/DSCN7989%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7989" border="0" alt="DSCN7989" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-NIIL2Pbj3MM/T-BavLYc3LI/AAAAAAAAFhI/R4TDBIu4M6c/DSCN7989_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="474" height="358"></a></p> <p><font size="3">On Saturday morning, we had a strong attendance of artists in the show who gathered for a juror’s walk-through and critique of each work in the exhibition.</font></p> <p><font size="3">I felt honored to meet this talented group of artists and artisans and be so involved in this year’s exhibit. It was a busy week filled with lots of friendly artists and interesting conversations. </font></p> <p><font size="3">Check the </font><a href="http://www.fiberartistsok.org/"><font size="3">Fiber Artists of Oklahoma</font></a><font size="3"> website in a few weeks to see images of some of the works selected for FiberWorks 2012.</font></p> Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-10595125519234902142012-05-31T05:47:00.001-07:002012-05-31T14:50:18.041-07:00Memories and Recollections: Autobiographical Imagery<p> </p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-CQyGdLBa3Tw/T8doTbvOXfI/AAAAAAAAFe8/jEQBcmakm8c/s1600-h/railroad_tracks418%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; margin-left: auto; border-left-width: 0px; margin-right: auto; padding-top: 0px" title="railroad_tracks418" border="0" alt="railroad_tracks418" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-MXsjKQ-ybvA/T8doTyblpII/AAAAAAAAFfE/Kh6VuIvhdDM/railroad_tracks418_thumb%25255B2%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="267" height="401"></a></p> <p><font size="3">How would you tell the story of your life visually?? That’s a question I’ve been asking myself as this excavation of personal memories as visual imagery continues. Memory is a quirky thing – full of random bits and pieces, some crystal clear and others a bit muddied or vague. All fuel for artistic inspiration.</font></p> <p><font size="3">My Pittsburgh childhood in the 1950’s holds both urban and suburban recollections. One vivid memory is the streetcar or trolley car. We would dress up and take the trolley downtown to shop at the downtown department stores like Joseph Horne’s, where uniformed elevator operators with white gloves would call out each floor and its products – “Fourth Floor,Ladies dresses, Lingerie”, until we reached our desired destination.</font></p> <p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpWFOfQz99tn8t9d2-HewviLgFvICSllpn8kZoL2i_kzc-v_uir2yqhTZNoDv9df0gBLO1WOBBQ3ERJyOumt5SXssHukVDYZSz7o1068NMt09p6n9O7j3UxWfIuXfdduuUsoUuQTj8IPVg/s1600-h/TROLLEY11%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; margin-left: auto; border-left-width: 0px; margin-right: auto; padding-top: 0px" title="TROLLEY11" border="0" alt="TROLLEY11" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-1kh4X-tq8WA/T8doVnXkxtI/AAAAAAAAFfU/DMSv8_qNhBg/TROLLEY11_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="459" height="273"></a></p> <p><font size="3"></font> </p> <p align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3zdvcNdoR4Ng1a657KRipJDdA51aP0kLauDK_uxDNQfMud4rdU-pys5JyWJO3hly1jRy0h0148ieTHmGNt6EOC73vJfNYNuIUZYonTV_G9s3L4WUn5u4Ic6uLBR0qr-eJAkg_9szNj_9K/s1600-h/s_n29_05181260%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="s_n29_05181260" border="0" alt="s_n29_05181260" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-jaUFyEdRDTs/T8doZvdjmdI/AAAAAAAAFfk/QfcB5HIi7DM/s_n29_05181260_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="494" height="345"></a></p> <p><font size="3">My grandparents ran a lunch counter and soda fountain much like the one shown in this early Pittsburgh historical photograph, called the H & H Dairy Bar. The two H’s stood for Herman & Helen Haupt. Men wore hats, suits and white shirts with ties and women wore stockings with a seam up the back, dresses and high heels every day. </font></p> <p><font size="3">As a young girl, when I visited my grandparents, I slept in the front bedroom of their apartment above their store. The wires for the trolley cars ran level with the second story window ledge. As I lay in bed I could see the sparks fly from the wires as the trolleys sped by and hear the clattering of their wheels on the tracks. The trolleys lulled me to sleep.</font></p> <p><font size="3">I’ve been mining this rich vein of recollections from my personal history and contemplating how they might fit into my work.</font></p> Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-19333992325322914522012-05-17T04:12:00.001-07:002012-05-17T07:22:26.136-07:00Living Twyla Tharp’s “The Creative Habit”<p><font size="3"></font> </p> <p><font size="3">Twyla Tharp writes in this “practical guide” to living a creatively engaged life about a “blank space” that every creative person faces: “the task of starting with nothing and working your way toward creating something whole and beautiful and satisfying.”</font></p> <p><font size="3">I’m beginning a new cycle of creative exploration. I know I am because I feel like an infant again rather than someone who has been working with creative process for close to two decades. In this beginning place, where I’m heading is a mystery, spurred only by the raw material of an idea, an image, a phrase or thought.</font></p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-nH1kWlHtHco/T7TdI0MsRXI/AAAAAAAAFeI/fRQbtxddIR8/s1600-h/DSCN7835%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><font size="3"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7835" border="0" alt="DSCN7835" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9kXZsCFKEzoPI17r1Mv5KmeID23XripqZmY5Lxd4TNpYz0HW5vxj3Y5IfTknkhmVhBQ1s5lp5mzIrj42ToYmvrmWSNvT70oS-h8VRFRrijaXHS7yaZ15gBCO6qMTuOY9OJLLPudR2UdrV/?imgmax=800" width="566" height="428"></font></a></p> <p><font size="3">So I do the only thing I know how to do. Begin somewhere. Make samples. Let the ideas simmer and expand. I don’t start with a completed vision of a masterful work of art, only a crumb of an idea that teases and tugs at my consciousness.</font></p> <p><font size="3"> <a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-gjfmw5E06OY/T7TdKpYVGRI/AAAAAAAAFeY/mlW6VBxJtI0/s1600-h/IMG_0466%25255B17%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_0466" border="0" alt="IMG_0466" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9Td8j2om6wbXVGA5Zv_H5CR2-fiQ42Af11rjNTgCqkKDccgX_sSBIp6QW8SggcFDISKwFK5DK801KYMnSg5oTY66XvuzH73KaIlE4rtESy8djR3GppE5FMEfdLRRwZpKPvHm3nN4YeuZD/?imgmax=800" width="478" height="494"></a></font></p> <p><font size="3">Growing from this scrap of a beginning takes work. Lots of it. Not the straight line, numerically-ordered, step-by-step, “man she knows what’s she doing” type of work. More like the “crawling on one’s knees in the dark feeling with one’s hands to find a way forward” work. But I do have an inner compass that guides this, one that trusts both the process and my skills enough to make me believe that I will indeed find a sure footing, an engagement with an idea that will lead to more focused action and work.</font></p> <p><font size="3">Twyla Tharp starts a new dance piece with what she calls “scratching”. “A dance doesn’t hit me whole and complete. Inspiration comes in molecules of movements, sometimes in nanoseconds…You can’t imagine the work, you can only generate ideas when you put pencil to paper, brush to canvas…when you actually do something physical.”</font></p> <p><font size="3"><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-asPe0vK2I3M/T7TdMfh1eII/AAAAAAAAFeo/6a_FXbKYVLs/s1600-h/IMG_0464%25255B6%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_0464" border="0" alt="IMG_0464" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-D5QUNcGRrAQ/T7TdNKPbZYI/AAAAAAAAFew/fstBPPc1e-A/IMG_0464_thumb%25255B6%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="492" height="538"></a></font></p> <p><font size="3">I’ve learned this. So I improvise. I create small studies. I listen to the thoughts that pop into my head just as I am waking. They whisper golden suggestions. “Create a thread map of the neighborhood you lived in as a child” was yesterday morning’s. </font></p> <p><font size="3">Today’s was “write your blog about this beginning place and how you don’t know whether you will fail or succeed, but you know you are committed to keep creating because this is who you are and this is what you do.”</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-41012238988215592072012-05-06T17:48:00.001-07:002012-05-11T05:29:32.872-07:00First Friday Open Studio: Behind the Scenes, Before the Crowds Arrive<p> </p> <p><em><font size="3">Since not everyone can come to Hungerford for one of our First Friday Open Studio nights (just had this one Friday, May 4), here’s a virtual tour of my studio waiting for the fun to begin:.</font></em></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-mL995VDoXXU/T6cbwc5N78I/AAAAAAAAFcE/McXTEKHfsfM/s1600-h/DSCN7806%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7806" border="0" alt="DSCN7806" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-VoOZ0Q00q6A/T6cbwjuAW_I/AAAAAAAAFcM/zqtjHdCTDqs/DSCN7806_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="443" height="335"></a></p> <p><em><font size="3">First stop, the door to my corner studio on the third floor of the building. Just freshly painted green, with blue panels on either side. Of course it will be open wide to welcome everyone as soon as I’m done shooting this picture. By next month, a sign – and possibly some bright Mexican tiles along the green trim – will be added to welcome you!</font></em></p> <p><em><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWT4UVFvhaxwa2d3nS-3jUn-l8Tn7FMn-v1gTOAKCwtH7RCqsySng2K5VhkGWspNsYTAQeh9lwWrcsSi7Dga1bcsxqHgsTzFof7cyEE5HSVlRjkBvLpuz-V8AI2bEAs1ITESz8Ir34Ns14/s1600-h/DSCN7807%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7807" border="0" alt="DSCN7807" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-O4tDOhEebGE/T6cbx99uHiI/AAAAAAAAFcc/ZJzxgR_uKXA/DSCN7807_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="430" height="325"></a></em></p> <p><em><font size="3">Once you open the door, there’s a small entryway. My husband just painted it too so now it serves as an additional small gallery space. On the right, a quick view of my new “Big, Bold Life” painting.</font></em></p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-p6Qq616xGOw/T6cbyQ5cpcI/AAAAAAAAFck/pbcaaf7E-Jg/s1600-h/DSCN7808%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7808" border="0" alt="DSCN7808" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqEOuj91ZKokQIzL0VhqeuNifSpIjerA3thLimPaxYCuezO1cf8Hnge3opRzYaL6RekAqaiOPiOm_ilZjp3jolxQDBv4822ACpD9wUZ1Yv2i5XLolAqzHGpety5jLHA3f9r7TGtrFmo83Y/?imgmax=800" width="435" height="329"></a></p> <p><em><font size="3">Look to the left, and you see “Fall Equinox” and two 12” x 12” pieces from the “Notations” series.</font></em></p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/--gnW9McfjAc/T6cbzjbKE9I/AAAAAAAAFc0/hJqeu1Qhw70/s1600-h/DSCN7810%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7810" border="0" alt="DSCN7810" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSseqdjeViVcFYYwB_YEskJeqzdelyVezYCUzXbUxzL-wgWKf2G0aBuSOuIYYkjRTD0PDpHC7wZ0Le0fu2yEMlL6N_PnTR_bW74ZkspeuCzoiGQVRj6-IJH21Zfgg4RWp2wPB5hxoIXS_V/?imgmax=800" width="440" height="333"></a></p> <p><em><font size="3">Just inside the entryway, the wall on the right has another painting, “Spring Equinox”, plus one of my Book of the Ancients pieces and three small framed works.</font></em></p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-lpPiCwadDmQ/T6cb04dY8rI/AAAAAAAAFdE/DJ7ACYeapq0/s1600-h/DSCN7811%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7811" border="0" alt="DSCN7811" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-dL-sR1NC8n8/T6cb2SefMKI/AAAAAAAAFdM/62oBVqLEZaw/DSCN7811_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="414" height="313"></a></p> <p><em><font size="3">Facing you is the dark charcoal accent wall with another “Book of the Ancients” piece.</font></em></p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-6985pQnozto/T6cb3Ofoc1I/AAAAAAAAFdU/Jm8-_KaK34c/s1600-h/DSCN7812%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7812" border="0" alt="DSCN7812" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-IKOXvHhxk-I/T6cb39FQ83I/AAAAAAAAFdc/eR9OEXPMUgg/DSCN7812_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="411" height="311"></a></p> <p><em><font size="3">Most everyone who comes in loves the space and comments on how wonderful the natural light is. I love it too, but on First Friday open studio nights I wish I could wave a magic wand and create more wallspace!</font></em></p> <p><em><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-IFbs43ZONkY/T6cb5MI97cI/AAAAAAAAFdk/jD228cUliGc/s1600-h/DSCN7816%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7816" border="0" alt="DSCN7816" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-RLeEX9h6vUk/T6cb5Yc8BKI/AAAAAAAAFds/M3F2iMm3hDI/DSCN7816_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="421" height="318"></a></em></p> <p><em><font size="3">Close up of the pieces in front of the east wall bank of windows.</font></em></p> <p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9WS3ONoWnFR6SoKkTBWHkfjlLdfJQP7uthdG6e2W5ABqPy2YEBlyUIXuEd6FKc_oTNiY77rQfIAdrwFF7PTU8_o75obpz4qXhhaQlmE_kahWh9zjhDjiS2TeoooNQMT1rN-2AEPC6in_K/s1600-h/DSCN7817%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7817" border="0" alt="DSCN7817" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-9zcR07PE2G0/T6cb60pcNFI/AAAAAAAAFd8/T4huSzzNxWE/DSCN7817_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="438" height="331"></a></p> <p><em><font size="3">If you stand in front of that east wall bank of windows and face the west end of my studio, you’ll see the entryway on the left again and my design wall, which gets commandeered as another display space on First Fridays.</font></em></p> <p><em><font size="3">So there you go – in just an hour or so after I shot these pictures, the halls began to fill and interesting, delightful people got to visit the many unique studios and meet the artists who work in them. What a great way to spend a Friday evening. </font></em></p> <p><em><font size="3">Do come join us if you’re ever in the Rochester area!</font></em></p> Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-58901850118549364832012-04-25T05:58:00.001-07:002012-04-25T05:58:16.808-07:00Slow Art Day April 28 at MAG in Rochester, NY<p> </p> <p><font size="3">Over 94 locations all around the globe are joining together this Saturday, April 28 to participate in </font><a href="http://www.slowartday.com"><font size="3">Slow Art Day</font></a><font size="3"> with one goal: slow down and take more time to really look at art. I admit it, I’m guilty, I rush through many art exhibitions, overstimulated and overwhelmed in trying to take it all in.</font></p> <p><font size="3">The founder of Slow Art Day observed the same and decided to create an event that would encourage all of us to approach art with a slower, more contemplative mindset. A simple idea with incredibly rewarding results!</font></p> <p><font size="3">In Rochester, the </font><a href="http://www.arenaartgroup.com/"><font size="3">Arena Art Group</font></a><font size="3"> and </font><a href="http://www.magrochester.edu/"><font size="3">Memorial Art Gallery</font></a><font size="3"> are partnering to host the first Slow Art Day event in our area. Two of our Arena Art Group member artists, Liz Durand and Sid Roepke, will be on hand to facilitate observation and appreciation of five works in the gallery’s collection. </font></p> <p><font size="3">Three of us did a slow walk-through yesterday to chat about the works we had selected for viewing and the more we looked, the more we began to see in each painting. From the formal aspects of composition to questions of narrative and emotional tenor, the more time we spent looking and discussing, the greater our appreciation and connection grew to each work.</font></p> <p><font size="3">Alone, I might have spent two minutes with each of these works, but as the three of us discussed and shared our observations, I gathered more and more information and insight into each one.</font> </p> <p><font size="3">We’re starting with more representational works and then moving to abstract:</font></p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-7gqGSR7x2vs/T5f0zplbWmI/AAAAAAAAFaw/4HBhX81GWH8/s1600-h/JamesHenryBeard.The%252520NightBeforetheBattle.1865%25255B7%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="78.15" border="0" alt="78.15" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-kQQjeezKQGw/T5f00P05fqI/AAAAAAAAFa4/S4jyCDHsKfQ/JamesHenryBeard.The%252520NightBeforetheBattle.1865_thumb%25255B4%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="433" height="306"></a></p> <p><em>Night Before the Battle, 1865 by John Henry Beard. This representational painting has a strong narrative. A cloaked skeletal form sits quietly gazing out over the rampart, his hands resting on the cannon while the first hints of dawn appear over the far horizon and a small group of soldiers lie sleeping, waiting for the battle to begin.</em></p> <p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_ne5WQzm8zHYbk3l6bs4bGHhkoHlyDWtMv2vFCCYgKWwrERUSn4LOBExkWSaayzkABZ-UgcxNYGlDXEtXAKz71lFyhbq5q5RNnZEvT3TFezjv_QI6-WoleqJGUxKb7bZcEQkEghdVMvl2/s1600-h/JonasLie.MorningontheRiver.circa1911.12l%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="JonasLie.MorningontheRiver.circa1911.12l" border="0" alt="JonasLie.MorningontheRiver.circa1911.12l" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-PM-HdG1fDj0/T5f02J-tKRI/AAAAAAAAFbI/ChIg6I0gAfs/JonasLie.MorningontheRiver.circa1911.12l_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="447" height="373"></a></p> <p><em>Jonas Lie, Morning on the River, circa 1911-12. Moody, atmospheric, the raw chill of a winter morning is palpable in this artist’s perspective of the Brooklyn Bridge on a cold, wintry morning.</em></p> <p><em><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-2CwlGryovvk/T5f02mhWo1I/AAAAAAAAFbQ/AGTOUXmWRQ4/s1600-h/JohnKoch.Interlude.1963%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="65.12" border="0" alt="65.12" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-V-o99lcKIbk/T5f03Yoq-2I/AAAAAAAAFbY/Y8Jpljt531k/JohnKoch.Interlude.1963_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="295" height="373"></a></em></p> <p><em>John Koch, Interlude, 1963. This painting hangs next to the Hans Hofmann piece, below, and although the subject matter and degree of abstraction are certainly at opposite ends of the spectrum, the same careful thought has gone into the compositional choices each artist has made.</em></p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-_-VZbA-9rPo/T5f03_XmMTI/AAAAAAAAFbg/g8WssWnouHk/s1600-h/HansHofmann.RubyGold.1959%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="60.37" border="0" alt="60.37" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv4v4nBOorQx-RN5QDgBJxg06_1XTs5AacRtzzpw32tv3U725QQYGqqM_Ne7JB-HwgIPqD4l-Jem91-7gFEqeiBzTth6SdY-mxJBEmJ0W3pptjU3AJ34qAtP_T_6w9roSkAJyjyFpthGFG/?imgmax=800" width="305" height="421"></a></p> <p><em>Hans Hofmann, Ruby Gold, 1959. I confess to breezing by this particular painting for years. Yesterday, the more time I spent with it, the more I recognized how the colors orchestrated a variety of emotional,non-verbal responses in me. I began to fully appreciate the intentionality of the impasto palette knife marks and the interactions of the color fields and shapes. So if you are one of those people who says,“my five year old could paint that”, you would reconsider that opinion if you spent careful time observing this painting.</em></p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-F3WGO9A8814/T5f05PI4giI/AAAAAAAAFbw/ytshQAvRrds/s1600-h/LouiseNevelson.Dawn%252527sLandscapeXL.1975%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA " border="0" alt="OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA " src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ4fEIh3RVvvEwLp7-bNrhQV0kVlPZlMsdc70d0FUDpzXBP8lrON-_dzY9Z1pMj4BSfjmLZt4cfaJntk1yDt-f90S205nJINJtNRkIhM3MJRMpa6Doe-oU2cdEYgtdxLsAXnjLhl2YSvRu/?imgmax=800" width="306" height="354"></a></p> <p><em>This feast for the senses art experience will ends with discussing a work by Louise Nevelson, Dawn’s Landscape XL, 1975. This is a complex and intriguing work that rewards the slow viewer with intricate compositions within compositions. The urban influence is apparent in this work, along with intriguing compositional details that can suggest a myriad of interpretations. </em></p> <p><font size="3">These images just don’t do the works justice. Join us this Saturday at Memorial Art Gallery, 11-AM – 1 PM. Program free with paid museum admission.</font></p> <p><font size="3">If you live elsewhere, check out the </font><a href="http://www.slowartday.com"><font size="3">Slow Art Day</font></a><font size="3"> site and see if there is an event happening in your area!</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-74563445710840973642012-04-16T11:21:00.001-07:002012-04-16T11:24:00.514-07:00Fiber Art Philadelphia: “Mending = Art” at Borowsky Gallery<p><font size="3">Guest curator and participating artist </font><a href="http://dianesavonaart.com"><font size="3">Diane Savona</font></a><font size="3"> gathers together twelve artists in “Mending=Art” on display through May 6 at the </font><a href="http://www.gershmany.org/gallery.php"><font size="3">Gershwin Y, Borowsky Gallery</font></a><font size="3">, 401 South Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA. Open Mon- Sun, 9 AM – 5PM,</font></p> <p><font size="3">Savona writes that mending has been historically viewed at the low end of craft, “merely a humble necessity.” The artists that she has selected for the show “invert that scale, using mending as an art process, as social activism and as a statement of personal identity.” <br></font></p> <p><a></a></p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-o1edRgVLz0w/T4xi4lwYPpI/AAAAAAAAFYg/-aosDGkXc_o/s1600-h/DSCN766713.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; margin-left: auto; border-left-width: 0px; margin-right: auto; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7667" border="0" alt="DSCN7667" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-XMEcvxq0G2Y/T4xi5L2EtUI/AAAAAAAAFYk/600lUQ3xY3E/DSCN7667_thumb4.jpg?imgmax=800" width="372" height="282"> <p></a><font size="3"> </font><font size="2"><em><strong>Diane Savona, Repair Manual, silkscreen and sewing on fabric, bound in spiral notebook, 12” x 24”. Sections of text about mending are interspersed with line drawings and text about retinal surgery.</strong></em></font></p> <p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZtbOipr8qI35pnsZ2opKYZeOw0y5VKM81KvsDMn30o3anqJkT8RwhFIUiW-3JgzOn4b2Clvn6Gdy_joeJ6aGoCVhJ3aDT3Kn6x30B6nvCimbguQFbNdrouFyyKXVde-OUmRw9seT25stn/s1600-h/DSCN76693.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7669" border="0" alt="DSCN7669" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-5fyX_86bbEQ/T4xi6APIZ0I/AAAAAAAAFY0/zdCToMViLQg/DSCN7669_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="184" height="244"></a><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-6-HXMCYfMPk/T4xi6-wCfkI/AAAAAAAAFY8/dqsNGaPcQM4/s1600-h/DSCN76707.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7670" border="0" alt="DSCN7670" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-0fh3_gotJGE/T4xi7mPHC8I/AAAAAAAAFZI/3VD8wNUJ65A/DSCN7670_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="184" height="244"></a><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-KyRNBBt7h8U/T4xi8XmWUsI/AAAAAAAAFZQ/uBOng-BO2BI/s1600-h/DSCN76713.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7671" border="0" alt="DSCN7671" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-VFM0wRu_UUQ/T4xjJAtTcLI/AAAAAAAAFZY/NhE_bpN7aGQ/DSCN7671_thumb.jpg?imgmax=800" width="184" height="244"></a></p> <p><em><strong><font size="2">Selections from </font><a href="http://www.erinendicottart.com"><font size="2">Erin Endicott’s</font></a><font size="3"><font size="2"> “Healing Sutra” series. The artist stains and embroiders vintage family textiles, signifying the healing of old emotional wounds</font>.</font></strong></em></p> <p><strong><em></em></strong> </p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-HyLOb2qObC4/T4xjJjiilOI/AAAAAAAAFZg/xeG5UekrxW4/s1600-h/DSCN7680%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7680" border="0" alt="DSCN7680" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-_2-v7OYstfk/T4xjKLmlxAI/AAAAAAAAFZo/D495YYZEexU/DSCN7680_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="366" height="489"></a></p> <p><em><strong><font size="2">This traditional Japanese boro (heavily darned old garments) from the early 1900’s is an exquisite example of the care that once went into preserving personal possessions.</font></strong></em></p> <p><strong><em><font size="2"></font></em></strong><strong><em><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-ME7ZVCdEzh4/T4xjK8UuWtI/AAAAAAAAFZw/NFmMmTXaGsc/s1600-h/DSCN7682%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7682" border="0" alt="DSCN7682" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-TLsCA6acmi5n3f_5noP-NRex04WQo9uQ24pMQmyT_ZLsyKTSH-oytof9ij4IZ6gu_YMr9fWSEit86xMCKPa7jji7AjrtVlO8kJwGJ3ZazA-nHAwbInwlN6x_rOF9JEl38efIlyuxW54J/?imgmax=800" width="346" height="462"></a></em></strong></p> <p><strong><em> Detail of the mended cloth on the pant leg.</em></strong></p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/--vZxyz2LLNo/T4xjMMg8zLI/AAAAAAAAFaA/lqhBndELnwk/s1600-h/DSCN7652%25255B9%25255D.jpg"><font color="#dd7700"></font><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; float: left; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7652" border="0" alt="DSCN7652" align="left" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-xa3aVQcNOVA/T4xjM5BMolI/AAAAAAAAFaI/9HWF-73ZfG4/DSCN7652_thumb%25255B3%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="401" height="404"></a></p> <p><strong><em></em></strong> </p> <p><strong><em></em></strong> </p> <p><strong><em></em></strong> </p> <p><strong><em></em></strong> </p> <p><strong><em></em></strong> </p> <p><strong><em></em></strong> </p> <p><strong><em></em></strong> </p> <p><strong><em></em></strong> </p> <p><strong><em></em></strong> </p> <p><strong><em></em></strong> </p> <p><strong><em></em></strong> </p> <p><strong><em>Dorothy Caldwell, Lake, wax resist, discharged cotton, stitching, earth, 13” x 13”</em></strong></p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-gBdXVr7zLsE/T4xjN0dTmGI/AAAAAAAAFaQ/LKyGjedo2dw/s1600-h/DSCN7653%25255B5%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; float: left; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7653" border="0" alt="DSCN7653" align="left" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5A1Jsi7bvJcNc5aGrHXNBeX_-7LTb3NL-yJuIrfcSbVhMUZu6fyQtN43AtDtZ08196_rHcYQbBn1-3DUjOxIURHX1G5b0YKLC-DZIOw2aId7tK-vQ-En9Ccy0Bq5oppKEqpsc3vCEj2IR/?imgmax=800" width="401" height="380"></a></p> <p><em><font size="2"></font></em> </p> <p><em><font size="2"></font></em> </p> <p><em><font size="2"></font></em> </p> <p><em><font size="2"></font></em> </p> <p><em><font size="2"></font></em> </p> <p><em><font size="2"></font></em> </p> <p><em><font size="2"></font></em> </p> <p><em><font size="2"></font></em> </p> <p><em><font size="2"></font></em> </p> <p><em><font size="2"></font></em> </p> <p><em><font size="2"></font></em> </p> <p><em><font size="2">Dorothy Caldwell, Bowl, wax resist, discharged cotton, stitching, earth, 13” x 13”</font></em></p> <p><font size="2"><em> </em></font><font size="3">Dorothy Caldwell shines in any exhibition with her powerful works. Ideas of darning, mending and sewing combine with observations of the rural landscape and its cycles of plowing, planting and harvesting. The small punctuations of color seem to signify homesteads on the vast surface of the landscape.</font></p> <p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisHK32Jvwt3r_K5ChWINa-dhgfbr2jU_8SLQoBbjE6AQEy-a32PlCfJNIOlIHlP7k5MamPgo15pzgEgtcqFwp1uJLdaOJE4SsjqdJQLiq5mvMNw0KdBtq-6Z7Ex5pb1e8Ng89UupE77QMr/s1600-h/DSCN7654%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7654" border="0" alt="DSCN7654" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmGEg3WoQP5BwuvhEXcchVBtCvg1qw7IDaX_hW1DCm9scts7i6KTTuhadv4-3CsBIep97qmBarqIwOnKxdW2wzbYr7Eo02vgNgHWyHpQYYuZEsy3qC5Q2Ghuq84YNCj2Yj13aiKe2nDmRv/?imgmax=800" width="507" height="383"></a></p> <p><strong><em><a href="http://www.inliquid.org/complete-artist-list/soffer-libbie">Libbie Soffer’s</a> Journal from the Studio, 35 pieces approximately 14” x 14” each. Muslin, silks, rayon, silkscreen, embroidery, heat transfer, marker, cotton, sewn with red thread. Using fragments from garments and old textiles, the artist creates a visual journal of women’s lives.</em></strong></p> <p><font size="3">The artists in “Mending=Art” are: Dorothy Caldwell, Erin Endicott, Janet Haigh, Amy Houghton, Ilaria Margutti, Wolfie E. Rawk, Diane Savona, Barbara Shapiro, Libbie Soffer, Sally Spinks, Michael Swaine, Jan Vormann.</font></p> Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-34623421053396457932012-04-11T05:04:00.001-07:002012-04-11T05:04:28.518-07:00Fiber Philadelphia 2012: Snyderman-Works<p> </p> <p align="left">I<font size="3"> drove to Philly for the SAQA/SDA conference last weekend and joined other attendees on Saturday trying to fit in as many gallery visits as possible offering </font><a href="http://www.fiberphiladelphia.org"><font size="3">Fiber Philadelphia</font></a><font size="3"> exhibitions. Since there were over 40 scheduled exhibitions for this bi-annual event, time did not permit my visiting more than a small selection of the venues in one day. I’ll plan to spend more time there in 2014.</font></p> <p><font size="3">The 8th International Fiber Biennial at </font><a href="http://www.snyderman-works.com"><font size="3">Snyderman-Works</font></a><font size="3"> runs through April 28. It is a stunning show in an attractive, generous space that presents both large and small scale works beautifully. Dorothy Caldwell’s large-scale new piece, below on the right, had ample space to be viewed and appreciated.</font></p> <p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisYIzDfk0a4pQ7epVrwqwsJrfT2ZpLzoC3B0BC9XspVopGR46DF8LjurWqDXaqYMwYBAAZ-sVoyyp0UHHYX7EwZYv9x9pClXJ9JUx3V22akFxxXdDR4eizUhnPagWHyXLmFxhyJWcmTO6X/s1600-h/DSCN75886.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; margin-left: auto; border-left-width: 0px; margin-right: auto; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7588" border="0" alt="DSCN7588" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoXMM2mmVMuqr1Arwagdc4NmZ0BnhbkBDcjzs1AxwUuLp8BvzfPfl-ImxMbtsU7_1HivlHy-8r4vbK9oidcUFxrlcGCXlvo9oibmctJzzp0VbfpK2QQ0ceQbNBMYOcSQiVt3EpMD6dbh57/?imgmax=800" width="385" height="293"></a><a></p> <p> </p> <p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhorvyhjnyxLtlrIvHhXI9itol5ULB9olvb1grv1mJez9KMXtLje4AJRMKfd532ZTfpOVFapmeYP_upgddwk-Vwm1zfyFVhQ_EXWzyuNCpv9l6OEEHuR2hIjcEL-uc91ZD0hxORNgw9BiY/s1600-h/DSCN76019.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; margin-left: auto; border-left-width: 0px; margin-right: auto; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7601" border="0" alt="DSCN7601" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrySl9cwausa3Nf7UJ2wUEgKO05Fc2UvFvevhBQco0naIWRfDaSxm9co5UEZSyjJgwXGsFobMwTkUMzXStyQ1HpCAA2pyYME0u6mYMQ8w9Tg0WN3wrFmYNS25ykSOTvBZ0AobCmPaE8yWV/?imgmax=800" width="270" height="360"></a></p> <p><font size="3">My first introduction to Lanny Bergner’s work , above, was at a lecture he gave at the 2011 </font><a href="http://www.surfacedesign.org"><font size="3">Surface Design Association Conference</font></a><font size="3"> in Minneapolis. I loved the display of his mesh “containers” in heat-treated copper.</font></p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-u441GNZbr_Y/T4VzQ--TkMI/AAAAAAAAFYA/Q94J7nZDzvQ/s1600-h/DSCN75944.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; margin-left: auto; border-left-width: 0px; margin-right: auto; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7594" border="0" alt="DSCN7594" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-fnFwxU878qs/T4VzRREb9_I/AAAAAAAAFYI/f6f1KAsp9Nc/DSCN7594_thumb1.jpg?imgmax=800" width="437" height="331"></a></p> <p><font size="3">Equally exciting were Warren Seelig’s new steel and rock “weavings”. Above is a detail shot. The full work is easily 5 x 7 feet.</font></p> <p align="center"><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-kDkgtjH86Ew/T4VzSAVQSHI/AAAAAAAAFYQ/S8RWpkSDc_Y/s1600-h/DSCN7634%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7634" border="0" alt="DSCN7634" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-tqmRcrTHThc/T4VzS2IjmjI/AAAAAAAAFYY/c1mEo1ryn5c/DSCN7634_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="537" height="406"></a></p> <p><font size="3">In addition to the gallery, there is also a wonderful gift shop adjacent to the downstairs gallery that offers unusual fine contemporary crafts for sale.</font></p> <p align="center"><font size="3">This year’s invitational artists at Snyderman Work’s Fiber Biennial are: Adela Akers, Kate Anderson, Lucy Arai, Dorothy Gill Barnes, Pamela Becker, Lanny Bergner, Mary Bero, Karin Birch, Yvonne Bobrowicz, Dorothy Caldwell, Kai Chan, Sonya Clark, Lia Cook, Virginia Davis, Carol Eckert, Katie Henry, Lissa Hunter, Susan Iverson, Michael James, Christine Joy, Nancy Koenigsberg, Lewis Knauss, Gyongy Laky, Ed Bing Lee, Jacqueline Rush Lee, Mi-Kyoung Lee, Pazia Manella, Margarita Cabrera, Shizuko Kimura, John McQueen, Nancy Merritt, Dorie Millerson, Norma Minkowitz, John Paul Morabito, Marilyn Pappas, Leslie Pontz, Jill Powers, Ann Coddington Rast, Joh Ricci, Jon Eric Riis, Betsabee Romero, Amanda Salm, Joyce Scott, Piper Shepard, Hisako Sekijima, Cynthia Schira, Tilleke Schwartz, Warren Seelig, Joseph Shuldiner, Hillary Steel, Wendeanne Ke`aka Stitt, Louise Strawbridge, Jo Stealey, Missy Stevens, Deborah Warner, Katherine Webb, Jeanne Williamson, and Grethe Wittrock.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><a> </p> <p></a></p> Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340855682127988960.post-81967926127302074192012-04-01T03:57:00.000-07:002012-04-01T03:57:00.335-07:00Arena Art Group Reception at FLCC<p> </p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-j3PEZmILnPQ/T3RAQAsJTsI/AAAAAAAAFW8/9dhY3Gjr7Ew/s1600-h/DSCN7556.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7556" border="0" alt="DSCN7556" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-gMzKNquSAuaXdRU94dfRzQm9xBjBRouaF_wMsUq7ND3P25XAUCSsGeYMD_DtR2WrvAjVjlUqWPkcZwWqC7SraJucXFDJ_zySJUzTlSY-S9kPgV0_mq49RhFzB9CUOSi936BcfKEONXA3/?imgmax=800" width="389" height="296"></a></p> <p><font size="3">The </font><a href="http://www.arenaartgroup.com"><font size="3">Arena Art Group</font></a><font size="3">’s opening reception on Friday March 23 at Finger Lakes Community College’s Williams-Insalaco Gallery 34 showcased 15 of our members’ works beautifully. Above is one of a series of ceramic sculptures by <a href="http://www.nancyvalle.com">Nancy Valle</a>. My work is behind it on the left and Dan Neuberger’s photography piece behind it on the right. The gentleman talking with two visitors is </font><a href="http://www.chaitstudios.com"><font size="3">Stu Chait</font></a><font size="3">, an architect who creates abstract compositions on canvas by pouring layers and layers of watercolors.</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font> </p> <p><font size="3"><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-cusUwmwJ_H4/T3RAStv6R8I/AAAAAAAAFXI/MadGw8RfSbo/s1600-h/DSCN7551%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7551" border="0" alt="DSCN7551" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-MapBIrD8Nnk/T3RAS_S74EI/AAAAAAAAFXQ/xuMBu4OCg2U/DSCN7551_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="402" height="304"></a></font></p> <p><font size="3">This intriguing oil painting by Wendy Menzie sold quickly.</font></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-0W7i7qrIEsU/T3OrU9YjaDI/AAAAAAAAFWM/lWo2bFwsAFA/s1600-h/DSCN7571%25255B5%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7571" border="0" alt="DSCN7571" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-h80ouZFlnto/T3OrWCg7C-I/AAAAAAAAFWU/MrC2zj6afH8/DSCN7571_thumb%25255B2%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="397" height="531"></a></p> <p><font size="3"><a href="http://www.jefferyoungyoga.com">Jeffery Young</a>, left, the group’s treasurer, is a photographer and yoga teacher.</font></p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-J7FmvMXuM_4/T3OrXH6txcI/AAAAAAAAFWc/QgOo19FWiB4/s1600-h/DSCN7569%25255B9%25255D.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7569" border="0" alt="DSCN7569" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-CRgN6t-WOCU/T3OrYMUTUyI/AAAAAAAAFWk/1Oi2wtXhzKk/DSCN7569_thumb%25255B3%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="401" height="303"></a></p> <p><font size="3">FLCC hired professional photographer </font><a href="http://www.facebook.com/rikkivancamp"><font size="3">Rikki Van Camp</font></a><font size="3"> to take images at the opening. She spent time with each exhibiting artist and took shots of them in front of their works. This is <a href="http://web.me.com/zannebrunner/">Zanne Brunner</a> in front of one of her gouache paintings of a tree spirit.</font></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-KEvslemur8Q/T3OrYkDgYVI/AAAAAAAAFXY/kVdanxDpNmM/s1600-h/DSCN7557.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="DSCN7557" border="0" alt="DSCN7557" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCpLDsmJ4ET-O-fbJvf8RMlhWx9L7tPu4GUnN_tbEITCWRgM882JN8DLWbo3xw8yHrU5YLe6RyhGzTZGvnyDoNrU-qqHk1QQlUw8tiA8X34lNbAfOg3X1nKvEh0o4GlEi9UoRBU06L7xeH/?imgmax=800" width="412" height="314"></a></p> <p><font size="3">This image shows a mask piece from a new ceramic series that </font><a href="http://www.andersonalleyartists.com/artists/?artist=richard_harvey"><font size="3">Richard Harvey</font></a><font size="3">, a mixed media artist, has been exploring. </font></p> <p><font size="3">The Arena Art Group’s next exhibit together will be in June, a show called “Anything Goes” at the <a href="http://www.blackradishstudio.com">Black Radish Studio</a> in Rochester.</font></p> Jeanne Raffer Beckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17080286350374492967noreply@blogger.com0