St Paul Art Crawl…ed

Hey everyone!

I’ve been totally caught up in the activity involved in selling art at the St Paul Art Crawl. It’s been exciting, but also frustrating. Early reports say that sales were down in most buildings, probably due to heavy road construction in the Lowertown area and unseasonable, gorgeous weather. I love warmth, high, puffy, cumulus clouds and fall tree colors against deep blue skies, so I’m not going to complain. I would have been oot and aboot myself, given the option.

Those who did spend time inside buildings instead of tripping through leaves were rewarded with a bounty of new art. It must have been a terrific summer for creating, because I saw many artists expand their oeuvres in exciting new directions. Even I tried something new, as you’ll see a little later on.

This is an image from Beth Stoneberg’s work with birch wood and tinted polyurethane. Her pieces are LARGE. As always, the image is off since I’m just using a photograph of her business card to give you a taste of what you will see when you click on her name. She creates dramatic, timeless art that is effective in homes, lofts or corporate offices. Her website shows a few pieces installed, highlighting the abstract patterns of the wood while retaining its natural beauty.

The second thing you should know about Ms Stoneberg is that not only does she create amazing art, she also invests quite a bit of time in co-organizing the Rossmor Building’s participation in the Art Crawl. Many hours that could go into new work gets devoted to filling the building with fine artists. Thank you Beth!

Patrick Clancy is the other organizer of the Rossmor’s offerings for the St Paul Art Crawl. I know he was shooting a wedding on Sunday in addition to everything else going on with his studio and sales this weekend. I don’t know how he found time, but I’m sure glad he did. Can you see from this image that the middle photograph is a tinted black and white? If I was a bride-to-be I’d seriously be considering this man to take the pictures. Check out his website to see more poignant and stunning images of his past work.

Linda Bonine doesn’t have a website, yet. What she does have is unique, striking jewelry that appeals to women of many ages. I know this because I sat across from her delectable display for three days and watched young girls and the more mature get lost in her vintage broaches, necklaces and bracelets. She has leather cuffs with sparkle (you’d have to ask her how that’s accomplished) and bangles heavy with repurposed pieces from your grandmother’s top drawers. She’ll be at the 18th Annual MN Women’s Art Festival at the Midtown YWCA in Minneapolis on Saturday, December 11th. (So will I!)

Roxanne Richards was in the process of selling three pieces to two buyers when I last spoke to her. That’s no mean feat in this economy. But I shouldn’t be surprised because she is so adamant about the quality of her work including the archival paper and UV glass. Ms Richards works in pastel, but mixes it with Isopropyl rubbing alcohol to create a medium that doesn’t flake inside the frame. She’s not only a vibrant artist, she’s a careful craftsperson, paying attention to all aspects of the process. Her work is now selling at Your Art’s Desire Gallery in Minnetonka.

Lauren Strom is the mastermind of a very impressive clothing and arts empire. Okay, I might be exaggerating a tad, but her output is incredible and her business just keeps growing. If you click on her name you’ll be brought to her Etsy shop. Scroll down to see classic images of her birds (most have knees), bicycles and bubbles. (You can buy an original bird watercolour for $20! Or a t-shirt…) You can also go to her Dancing Fork blog which shows her artwork as well as her divine studio in the Casket Arts Building. Twinkly lights, canvases against a brick wall, a fan with a face; it looks like heaven to me.

Here are my latest creations! The churches have thin slices of a cane I created to look like stained glass. If you put a light behind them, you can see the glow, which is pretty entertaining to me. (I don’t get out much.) The houses are recreations of my little home series. You’re looking at No. 19, 20, 29, 38 and 23. I’ll be selling them at Anne and Friend’s holiday ornament store, in Wayzata and at the 18th Annual MN Women’s Art Festival at the Midtown YWCA in Minneapolis on Saturday, December 11th.

So, while the St Paul Art Crawl lived up to the slow part of its name for me, it was still a success for many and well worth seeing. If I get organized, in an upcoming blog I’ll introduce you to some other artists I met. Maybe you’ll be in a position to patronize them? A happy thought.

Until next time…—Chris

 

 

The Art of Aging II

I’m still aging! The spots on my wrist and right hand have become more pronounced. I find myself reading articles all the way through about reversing aging’s effects. What once was an esoteric topic is suddenly upfront and personal. I think of my grandparents, long gone, almost daily. If I want to face this as calmly as they did, I’d better change my attitude.

I decided to look for role models in the artistic community. Last week I went again to The Art of Aging exhibit currently shown at the Minneapolis Central Library. The first time I visited, I focused on Lucy Rose Fischer and Karen Searle’s works. Now I wanted to see what Ms Goodman and Ms Stadler had to say about aging.

Bette Globus Goodman installed huge fabric panel prints of her photographs that lightly respond to a breeze. The image that struck me the most was “Leah: A Woman’s Measurement of Time.” This woman, with years reflected in her eyes, looks intently at you from above. Because of the movement of the fabric, the image seems alive, making the experience a little unsettling. I felt like a fish on a hook, trying to wriggle away from her intensity.

Another large fabric panel was entitled “Kathy: Cancer is Probably the Most Unfunny Thing in the World.” Ms Goodman was asked by Kathy to document her ongoing experiences with cancer. Like Leah, she looks directly at the viewer, with wide open eyes. Again, there’s a direct connection that I can’t avoid.

I think that’s Ms Goodman’s true gift. Whether taking candid, sensitive shots of elderly mothers and their adult daughters, or hands that are wrinkled from age, she manages to express each person’s love of life. These are images of truth, not despair or grief. That’s a tremendous feat, when one’s subjects are deep and difficult as these.

Jody Stadler works in charcoal, pastel and acrylic. She moved to the Twin Cities from Ames, IA, primarily for the art connections available here, leaving friends and family to pursue her passion. (I’m originally from Iowa, so any reference to the state gets my attention.)

I was fascinated by “Monie, the Pianist at 100,” the first of four annual pieces of her aunt (great aunt?) Maureen. It continues through “Monie at 103, in her Rose Recliner.” The woman’s hands, carefully resting in front of her, are the hands of a musician. Her eyes meet the viewer’s from the side. Though she’s a century old, something in her manner says that she knows a great deal and that we’d do well to remember it.

She also created two provocative pieces, also in charcoal, called “Annie, Angry” and “Annie, Resigned.” This woman had a Do-Not-Resuscitate order on her medical records, which wasn’t honored. Ms Stadler gave the woman’s frustration a voice and a wider audience through these works. It’s a strong example of how art can keep an issue alive and help others see the emotional cost of those who can not fight for themselves.

Not all of the art is about women. There are many pieces that feature men facing age, including “The Mathematician at 80: My Bill.” There’s also a great deal of whimsy in the exhibit, as in “The Great Arsenic Lobster.”

This exhibit was presented in collaboration with MN Creative Arts and Aging Network (MNCAAN), the Metro Regional Arts Council (MRAC) and from “the vote of the people of Minnesota on Nov. 4, 2008.”

This was a helpful exhibit to me. If nothing else, I learned that others are as surprised as I was by the reality of aging. More importantly, it shows a way to use my art to advantage. Maybe we can reclaim a position of honor and respect that elders used to have. It’s as hopeful a thought as I’ve had in months. Maybe ageism can even be inspiring?

Here’s to my grandparents and all of the other elders who continue to pave the way… –Chris

(Logistics: the entrance at the top of the escalator isn’t open. Try entering through the 2nd floor of the main library.)

Photographic Memories

Hello again!

If you’ve seen any of my work, you’d know I love black and white photographs, especially those through the 1950s. There’s something so wonderful about them.

In our house, we have a series of b & w’s in the hallway and I often find myself in front of them, without any recollection of having stopped there. These are snapshots of our family, so perhaps that’s not surprising. But I feel the same attraction, the same fascination with those of perfect strangers. Actually, perfect is a good way to describe them. Unless they’re blurry, the people in them always seem to be exactly right, like they were made for that moment in time.

One of my best finds was a small album put together by a young woman to record a most remarkable period in 1927. She was joined by several female friends as they traveled from Selah, Washington to Mt Ranier National Park to Salt Lake City, Utah. Sometimes it was just two of them, sometimes five, as they traveled by car, train and boat, using the camera to document their adventures.

Sadly, I have the names of all her friends, but the album’s owner never names herself. I’m just so grateful she took the pictures and that the album was intact when I purchased it at an estate sale (years ago, before I realized what a treasure it was).

As an artist, I’m continually impressed and heartened by other people’s generosity. I suppose some of it’s due to the fact that I’m just starting out, but it’s been incredible, whatever the reason. While I understand that my mentor has a vested interest in my success, that still doesn’t explain why she’d give me access to two huge family albums, carte blanche, to scan in and use whatever I liked. Or a family member who’s been steadily divesting herself of her personal pictures and sending them to me to keep and use.

These kinds of people remind me that art is never created in a vacuum. It depends on an interaction with the world. I also think that kindness begets better art. It’s the support of others, even those who don’t understand what’s being created, that makes the work possible and gives the artist the courage to explore and the willingness to make mistakes.

For me, the generosity of others has made me reach further and confirmed my desire to make my art as meaningful as possible, so that these efforts aren’t in vain. I continue to experiment with photographs to see what they can tell me about myself. And I continue to be surprised by how mesmerized I am by them, as I continue to see possibilities in black and white.

Thanks for stopping by! –Chris