Exhibit Glimpse 2

Ellen Van Fleet
"...drives the flower"#8
Watercolor • 44" x 32"

Today's post features the work of Ellen Van Fleet, another California artists who participated in our Albuquerque exhibit, "Be Leaf It or Not." Ellen is interested in "mark making" and abstraction, and has traveled in the US and abroad studying petroglyphs and cave paintings.

For our exhibit, Ellen contributed work which also reflects her love of Henry Matisse, through her use of intense color and flowing, rhythmic line.

As Ellen notes in her Artist Statement: "I tend to use painting motions I can repeat. It is soothing and fascinating to see how marks or stripes...pile up and become visually interesting...Take the black stripes in the current work. I love dragging a brush full of pigment across a sheet of paper in a whole body motion, over and over, sheet after sheet. Then I take what I have amassed and tweak it until something mysterious and right happens."

Her title comes from a Dylan Thomas poem where he describes the force of Nature that "...drives the flower..."

If you would like to make a comment about Ellen's work, please use the "COMMENT" link below; or send me an email, and I'll forward it to Ellen.

Have a great Monday. See you Wednesday!

Image ©Ellen Van Fleet. Text©Carol Adamec. All rights reserved.

Exhibit Glimpse I

Artist: Louise Pryor

Left: Names of Women Artists Meditation Robe

Right: The Farmer Says Goodbye to the Farm

This is the last day of our Harwood Art Center exhibit, "Be Leaf It or Not"; and I have finally taken time to photograph the work in the show. I thought I would share these photos to give you some idea of the artists' intentions and sensibilities that have been on display for the past month.

The two artworks featured today are by Louise Pryor, one of the artists from California. Louise grew up in California, on land owned by her family for over 150 years. For many years she was a serious Zen student of Buddhist teachings.

Louise has chosen fabric as her medium. As stated in her Artist's Statement, "I explore ideas with cloth...Because my way to the universal is through the deeply personal, I choose clothing shapes from my life experience. I wore Zen meditation robes and Sacramento Valley farmers clothing for many years....The transparent and radiant cloth mirrors our transparent and radiant existence."

Both artworks are lifesize and exquisitely crafted. The Meditation Robe has individual canvas leaves sewn onto a kimono-style robe made of sheer metallic silk in a light color. Each leaf bears the name (or signature) of a women artist—some famous and many who work and create outside the mainstream of contemporary art. Nevertheless, on Louise's Robe, all are equally honored.

The Farmer's suit is constructed of the same material in a rich earth color, except the leaves are sewn within the interior of the shirt and pants. For me, this piece speaks to the physical and spiritual connection of mankind to the land which provides for all of earth's creatures.

If you would like to comment on Louise's work, you may do so by clicking the "COMMENTS" link below (Louise reads this blog, too!) Or drop me an email and I'll forward your response to her.

Thanks for taking a moment to read today's entry. Have a great weekend, and I'll see you on Monday.

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Images ©Louise Pryor, text ©Carol Adamec. All rights reserved.

Art for a Good Cause

California Calla I, 2008
Original oil, alkyd on gessoed panel
12" x 12"
Available to highest bidder at
www.spivaarts.org

Just before moving to New Mexico, I completed the painting featured in today's blog and mailed it to Spiva Center for the Arts, in Joplin, MO. The painting is my donation to this year's Annual 12 x 12 Auction fundraiser, which features artwork by local, regional, and national artists who support the art center. I think this year has 78 contributions, all 12" x 12" and available for purchase to the highest bidder when the auction ends November 7 (see details online at the Spiva website).

Having been Spiva's Associate Director while living in the Joplin area, I know what a great art center Spiva is. In addition to showing top notch national exhibitions, Spiva supports local artists, too, through its Regional Gallery, Annual Membership Show, gift shop, and other events such as this auction. The art center offers year-round art classes for all ages, plus a day of art at Spiva for every Joplin 6th grader...over 600 kids! Spiva has a very hardworking staff, a volunteer board, and many faithful volunteers and supporters whose contributions make a huge difference for the local and regional communities that Spiva serves. It is an honor for me to again participate in this annual fundraiser.

If you are interested in bidding on my painting, go to www.spivaarts.org and follow the 2008 12x12 links. California Calla I is #67. You may want to check out the other entries, too. There are some great art pieces, and you can join the fun via online bidding, knowing that all proceeds support the art center.

Thanks for taking a moment to look at my painting. Have a great day! See you Friday.
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Text and image ©Carol Adamec 2008. All rights reserved.

Chicken Door

Chicken Door, 2008

Original oil, alkyd on canvas panel

8" x 10"

Contact Artist to purchase.

Here's my first completed painting since settling into my New Mexico studio. The dappled light of the late afternoon sun on this adobe wall was appealing to me and fun to work up with loose brushstrokes. I also loved the way the light skimmed across the tops of the marigolds in the foreground.

Thanks for taking a moment to look at my painting. If you would like to leave a comment, please do so by clicking the COMMENTS link below.

Have a great day! See you Wednesday.

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Text and image ©Carol Adamec 2008. All rights reserved.

Hello from The Land of Enchantment

South of Ghost Ranch, NM
Photo: Carol Adamec



Hello, Dear Readers,

It seems like forever since my last blog entry, just before my move to New Mexico. So here's a quick update of my activities over the past several weeks:

Thanks to my son Erik, I enjoyed a pleasant drive and a very efficient move into my studio at the Harwood Center. (Erik did part of the driving and all the heavy lifting and box lugging up the stairs....Thank you, Erik!)

The September 5th opening reception for the "Be Leaf It or Not" exhibit at the Harwood was very nice. Sondra Diepen, the mastermind of this show, invited her California artists-friends Joanne Kamiya, Louise Pryor, Ellen Van Fleet (and me) to exhibit with her. The intent of the exhibit is to show work that depicts, expresses, reveals, and is inspired by Nature. All of the artists (except Ellen) were present for the opening and enjoyed many good conversations with the viewers. Many old friends showed up to welcome me back to Albuquerque. I sold "Morning Tulips" (see blog entry for May 21, 2008), and both Sondra and Joanne sold giclée prints. From the comments in the Guest Book, the show was well received. I'll be sharing a few pictures from the exhibit, which continues through September 26, in future blog entries.

While Sondra's friends were in town, we went to Abiquiu to tour the Georgia O'Keeffe house. I would have liked to have posted a photo of O'Keeffe's home, but no photographs were allowed. So, instead I am posting a view from the picnic grounds where we had lunch after our tour, just south of Ghost Ranch. The colors of the rock and the bluest skies I've ever seen are still thrilling to me. I am looking forward to doing some plein air painting out in the "wilds" of New Mexico, too!

Later in the week, we went to Santa Fe to the O'Keeffe Museum to see the "Natural Affinities" exhibit featuring paintings by O'Keeffe with photographs by Ansel Adams...quite a good show, indeed!

Just in the last week I have gotten back to painting. I have taken several pictures and worked on a few ideas, so I hope to be posting some new work on this blog in the near future.

Many thanks to all of you for tuning into this post. I'm glad to be back in touch with you. Please know that I welcome your comments which you can enter at the end of this entry if you'd like to share your thoughts with all the readers. Or feel free to send me an email.

Have a great weekend. See you Monday!
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Text and photo ©Carol L Adamec. All rights reserved.