Good endings

Happy New Year's Eve!

First Night Hartford all around downtown, I'll be the Hartford Public Library 3-5 pm today. Visit me on the 2nd floor with my 6' interactive storybook - add your lines to the story!

You can also see "UPcycled Sampler" on the 3rd floor Artwalk Gallery, open through Jan. 9, 2015.  I'd love to give you a tour!  Thanks to all those who have already seen the show, lots of good comments on it already.

Wishing you all the best for 2015!

Gallery talk with my h.s. arts students, in front of "Songs in my Head"

photos by Crystal, student at CREC Academy of the Arts

Trash is In

The saying is really true: one man's trash is another (wo)man's treasure!

Abstract Recycling Exhibit at the Provenence Center, New London.  Serendipity brought me to this show and to meet some wonderful artists.  A new take on the previous exhibit at the Transfer Station.  I am honored to be included:

Grocer's Dilemma by Anita Gangi Balkun

More info at:
http://www.provenancecenter.com/present.htm








Next on the agenda:  Hub Cap pinwheel-garden for Artwalk's 10th Anniversary, Sun. Sept. 15th on the West Hartford Art League grounds, 1-4 pm. Artist led by me!  Come and join the fun!  Families welcome, no painting experience necessary.

How does your garden grow?

more event info:  www.westhartfordart.org/special-events/

Recent installation exhibit at the Morrison Gallery, Kent CT by Henry Kilmowicz

Artist statement:

“Cardboard is simple and straightforward. It is also a severely limited material. It has an ever-present cultural bias related to its past uses as a container or its present use as waste. I love it when the material transcends its cultural confines. If I can make something beautiful from cardboard, I have then said that anything can be made valuable, fruitful, or hopeful. I see this work as very positive because of the lengths that have been traveled by the material from trash to beauty. It is a statement about the possible—that all things can be redeemed, often for more than what was deposited. Creativity can be that redeemer.”

Disk #3

This exhibit was truly amazing!!!  If you can get out to Kent, selected pieces are on exhibit through Oct. 6th.  It is a "WOW" installation show, and very beautiful gallery.  We enjoyed meeting Bill Morrison and talking guitars too.

more info at:

http://www.morrisongallery.com/artists/156.html

BTW: it's all cardboard and hot glue!!!

call for Artists: West Hartford & Putnam CT shows

Above: an image of Tuscany, Italy from Sean Kernan's bookAmong Trees.   Sean is the juror for this years Exposures, our annual Juried Photography Exhibit, coming in November. Exposures 2011 Juried Photography Exhibit  CALL FOR ARTISTS: November 4-27, 2011 Clubhouse and Saltbox Galleries Click here to download an entry form. Juror of Selection and Awards: Sean Kernan Sean Kernan is an award-winning photographer and writer who lives and works on the Connecticut coast. His photographs have been shown in museums around the world, including the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, the Museum of Photography in Greece, and the Whitney Museum in the United States, and he has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, Communication Arts, Graphis, and the Atlantic Monthly. He is the author of Among Trees (Published by Artisan Books, May 2003) and The Secret Books, with Jorge Luis Borges. Contact Us The West Hartford Art League 860.231.8019 www.westhartfordart.org

Call For Entries  EXHIBIT NAME:   "Trashformations": Trash to Treasures   EXHIBIT DESCRIPTION:   Artists are often on the cutting edge and see things a bit differently than others. For instance there is now a very large movement using items we discard on a daily basis to create something entirely different and novel - contemporary art. This is the practice of "upcycling", transforming everyday trash into treasure troves of creativity. There have been hotels and places of worship made of garbage, as well as furniture and vehicles. We are looking for small-scale work for this show-- an art piece worthy of gift-giving for the holiday season exhibiting a sophisticated level of craftsmanship only. Make a mosaic or other mixed media work and exhibit your creativity. Compositions can be made from recycled paper or plastic bags, rubber bands, dried paint chips, recycled bottles, cans, bike parts. We ask that you do not submit perishable items like food as art.   IMPORTANT DATES:  *Submission Due Date: Friday October 7, 2011 Notification of Acceptance: Friday October 14, 2011 Exhibit Dates: November 30-December 31, 2011 Artist Reception: Friday, December 2, 6-8pm   HOW TO SUBMIT ARTWORK:  download the prospectus here for submission details  email us for more information     *contact us if you have any questions or concerns about deadlines*

Back on Campus

Most schools are back in session this week, though slightly delayed due to Irene.  I love visiting Univerisity galleries so here is a re-cap of some great places from the past school year, inspiring you to discover something new when getting back on campus.

Trinity College is a hop, skip and jump from our school so it is an easy and welcomed outing on a spring day.  Their campus chapel is filled with detailed relief carvings on all the pews - perfect for graphite rubbings (and the rev. was amused with our visit).

Mixed Media class trip:

The Smith College Art Museum is always a fav destination because of its close proximity to the center of Northampton.  Our main interest was the "The Last Silent Movie" installation by Susan Hiller (a Smith College alum). With a background in anthropology, Hiller documents on film lost or nearly extinct languages where the speaker is only heard and not seen (except for the scant text identifying the speakers/language titles).  On our way to the museum's artist decorated bathrooms in the lower level, we discovered this illuminated installation by Machiko Agano , whose work I had also experienced at the Fuller Craft Museum.  I love how the delicate woven process creates an imaginative ephemeral environment through its structure.

Creative Response thru Art Class trip:

Machiko Agano

gotta love super sized donut paintings!

artist designed sink in the 'ladies' room

In June Steph and I caught the end of "When I Last Wrote to You about Africa", a retrospective exhibition by Ghana artist El Anatsui at the Davis Museum at Wellesley College.  His shimmering draped wall pieces are made from found aluminum and wire.  it was worth the drive to see them in person!  I especially liked his installation of hundreds of small tin boxes that covered part of the gallery floor in reference to a crowded marketplace.

El Anatsui "Sacred Moon", 2007