ArtSake

Congratutions to Sand T on her 2009 New England Art Award victory as the People’s Choice for Best Standout Work by a Local Artist in a Group Show as organized by the New England Journal of Aesthetic Research. ArtSake recently caught up with artist Sand T and she has graciously agreed to let us take a peek in her studio and talk to us about her work.

The primary intention of this body of non-objective work is to create a simple visual experience utilizing the basic elements of dot, line, color, surface and light. I feel the pieces suggest concepts of time, concentration, and the meditative energies of motion. The reductive aesthetic in my work is an overlapping of decidedly contrary visual elements: fluidity vs. structural, opacity vs. transparency, and formalistic vs. introspective.

I use a combination of UV resistant industrial epoxy resin, graphite, and paint on archival tempered clayboard or acrylic glass panels. The lines are drawn using graphite in varying weights and grades. Resin droplets are placed on the final surface one at a time. The placement of these two elements is sometimes improvised, sometimes planned until a “visual plane” emerges.

Though my process is time consuming and labor intensive, working with resin and acrylic glass provides a balance of structure and chaos that is fulfilling to me. It challenges my affinity for problem solving, material sensitivity, time management and organizational skills. Lighting plays an important role in the presentation of my work for it maximizes the viewing experience. When the viewer moves from one side to another of the artwork, they will see a sequence of reflections in the work. Clearly, there is more to be mined from the work when seen in person.

A huge challenge for viewers is to not touch the work. The physical properties of these tactile art objects fill viewers with an almost irresistible urge to touch them. The glistening, shining surfaces give them an appearance of being wet with beaded water.

Photographing this series of work is a challenge for me. The glossy surface and the intricate visual details innate in my art objects are hard to capture with any accuracy. The source, brightness and angle of the lighting changes the appearance of the object. These fine details are usually not noticeable or distinctive in any image reproductions. Since accurate reproduction is very difficult, I invite interested persons to view the original creations at my studio or art exhibit. What could be more satisfying than being able to appreciate a piece of original work of art up close in person?

So with that said, I would like to invite you to a reception to be held at Grimshaw-Gudewicz Art Gallery in Bristol Community College in Fall River on Thursday, March 11, 2010, from 6-8pm. This joint exhibition, Linear, is curated by Kathleen Hancock and features the works by three regional artists. Exhibition Dates: March 11 - April 7, 2010. For more info, please visit Grimshaw-Gudewicz Art Gallery’s Web site. To learn more about my work, please visit my Web site.

Image credit: All images courtesy of Sand T. Image captions: Image 1, 2 and 3: In progress… I am getting ready these panels for my show at Grimshaw-Gudewicz Art Gallery this March-April. Panels’ dimensions: 42×42x3.5”and 46×46 x3.5”. Image 4: Packing time. Image 5 and 6 : Work on display in my open storage in Malden, Massachusetts.

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Lisa Olson, who recently became of member of the artists-run Bromfield Gallery in Boston, lets us peer into her studio, where various machineries (both mechanical and creative) produce enigmatic works of art.

Most of my current work is on paper: artists’ books, prints, drawings or collage. I often juxtapose text and image as parallel elements, allowing both to supply meaning. I began making books because of this interest in integrating text into visual art, but now find myself bringing text back out of the book–often incorporating it into collage or prints.

I believe that the best artwork comes from a combination of intuition and thoughtful direction, but I often find that the little critics who sit on my shoulder and ask “what does it mean?” or “why does this matter?” try to take charge. To compensate, several times a week I allow myself to work on quick unedited collaged projects, purely fluent and intuitive. This summer I have been making a series of small 3″ x 5″ collages which incorporate fragments of text and image and also simple 4-6 page collaged books with no or minimal text. The rules are simple: I am not allowed to spend more than a two or three hours on each and I am not allowed to think beyond the simple exercise of the small work–it often takes effort for me to accept that everything shouldn’t be better or bigger.

I have two letterpresses in my studio, a small tabletop Kelsey platen press and a larger Vandercook proofing press. The Kelsey dates from the 1940’s and came out of a commercial print shop on Cape Cod. I purchased it from John Barrett at his Letterpressthings resale shop in Chicopee.

The Vandercook is newer, it was made in 1969, and moved around among businesses in the Los Angeles area before winding up in a barn in northern California. The International Printing Museum in Carson, CA acquired it with other printing equipment and because this type of press was already represented in their collection, I was able to buy it. Both presses came to me encrusted with grease and soot and ink, and the countless hours that I spent cleaning them with a toothbrush, steel wool and WD40 not only taught me something about how they worked mechanically but also felt like a devotional act. These types of old presses are still around but becoming more difficult to find, and I am thrilled to have both of them in my studio.

I am currently working on a series of images, dark drawings and etchings of animal forms silhouetted on white paper. I’ve made dozen of these images in the last year and don’t seem anywhere near finished yet. I’m still considering what they might mean and why they have captured my attention. I think that there is something about the dual nature of the images — both monster and sweet thing — and about their formal properties, the shapes created and the lovely repeated graphite and ink marks that represent fur and make up the forms. I think they work as a grouping rather than as individual images and perhaps are also about quantity and accumulation, themes that I have frequently worked with in the past.

All images courtesy of Lisa Olson. You can see some of Lisa’s finished works at her Bromfield Gallery artist page.

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We caught up with Cynthia Maurice (MCC Drawing/Printmaking/Artist Books Fellow ‘02) and asked her to tell ArtSake a little bit about what’s going on in her studio.

According to Cynthia, she likes the concept of exposing her process by inviting the viewer to see how her visual ideas develop.

Her exhibit, Fresh Cut, is based on two series, vegetables and flowers, and alternates between drawing and painting. Together, the finely finished paintings combined with the rougher, but equally considered drawings, reflect an artistic process that speaks to the conversation between the two mediums, as well as the tensions between abstraction and realism.

The flower drawings in the series focus on the fleeting, transformative aspects of a bloom from bud to decay.

Beginning with a small painting of radishes that evolved into a union of abstraction and reference, the vegetable series allowed the artist to test herself in new, more personal ways.

Her intentional inclusion of erasures and then re-drawing are enhanced by written notes on the surface of the works, which resemble sketchbook diaries.

To see more of her work in person, be sure to check out her upcoming solo exhibtion called Fresh Cut at the Newton Free Library. The opening reception is June 2. The show runs from June 2 - 29.

Cynthia Maurice holds MFAs from the School of Visual Arts, New York, NY and Boston University. She has won numerous awards and has had many group and solo exhibits. She has taught in the New England area for many years and most recently at the Danforth Museum. Her work can be found in many corporate collections including Bank of Boston and Beth Israel Hospital.

Images: All photos by Rita Lombardi

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We heard about an intriguing art show opening this weekend in Allston - Spin, which features art pieces made from cassette tapes and vinyl records. We got in touch with Kevin Hebb, the artist who came up with concept and one of the show’s contributors, and asked him to give us a peek into his studio, his work, and the origins of Spin.

The concept behind the show came from my interest or addiction to nostalgia. I am not alone in feeling that part of our childhood was taken away with the emergence of the Internet… or am I? The theme of this show is one of dedication to how things used to be and how far technology has come in such a short time. Cassettes and vinyl records were chosen as canvasses for their classic iconography and simplicity.

As an artist I am naturally inclined to question subject matter. It is in the dislike for modern culture that I am left with an unfortunate feeling of bitterness. When music turned into a platform to make a quick dollar off what was trendy, we saw the cassettes start to rot on the store racks. People began to glorify the Internet’s ability to put everything at your fingertips. Mixtapes became a thing of the past as music downloads and MP3 players started to emerge. This show will honor the simplicity of a looping bass line playing under a slowed down disco beat. A time when grunge was grunge, and no one did anything for the sake of fashion.

Growing up on the south shore of Massachusetts, I acquired an outsider’s point of view of the hustle and bustle of the city. My work embodies the grit of Dudley Station and the stillness of Borderland Park. Often my work shows distant views of a blank cityscape popping off of layered backgrounds inspired by far off vantage points and graffiti filled alleys.

Want to see Kevin’s completed work for SPIN? Rescue Apparel and Accessories (252 Brighton Avenue in Allston, MA) is hosting GLOVEBOX’s latest show SPIN, featuring the work of local emerging artists. The opening reception on March 1 from 6-9 PM; free and open to the public. SPIN is on view until March 29, 2009.

GLOVEBOX is a non-profit artist organization that enables artists to exhibit their work in non-traditional spaces around Boston. GLOVEBOX works side by side with local venues to create these alternative spaces, building relationships with these business and the public.

Images: Studio shot of Kevin Hebb’s work for SPIN; studio view; works in progress for SPIN; Kevin Hebb, HOME SWEET HOME (2008), acrylic and spray paint, 12 in X 20 in; Kevin Hebb, MAYBE NOTHINGS WRONG? (2008), acrylic and spray paint on wood, 30 in X 40 in; publicity postcard for SPIN.

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Adrienne Sloane pushes the boundaries of fiber art, expanding the concept of knitting and what it can create. She lets us peek into her studio, shares insight into how she makes her work, and ponders what’s next.

Knitting is so versatile that I sometimes get lost in exploring and experimenting with the possibilities. I am currently working on several pieces that use knit in distinctively different ways, continuing my thematically political work while also starting a series of landscapes both figurative and imaginative, which use a form of painting with knit. Having recently started to teach knit wire jewelry, I’ve also become distracted with how to use color and shape incorporating transparency which provides me a respite from the emotional intensity of current events.

With my dog as companion, I usually listen to NPR during my studio time, turning the radio off only when there is a design problem that requires my full attention. My political imagery emerged largely from the constant barrage of news about the war and America’s place on the world stage. Now, post election, I am wondering how my imagery will change.

I plan to work on larger pieces this year as well as finding a medium that will allow me to use fiber techniques to withstand presentation in a public space on an ongoing basis.

I am also looking forward to an active upcoming teaching schedule. I will be teaching sculptural knitting at a variety of venues locally and nationally including in RISD’s continuing education program, at OFF THE GRID, the Surface Design Association national conference in Kansas City in May, Peter’s Valley Craft Center in June. I have been invited to teach in Australia in fall ‘09.

Further, my work is included in the recently released book: Knitting Art: 150 Innovative Works from 18 Contemporary Artists by Karen Searle from Voyageur Press.

Images (top to bottom): Knitting machines; jewelry table; fiber art in progress; fiber art in progress; all images courtesy of Adrienne Sloane.

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Jeanne Williamson is a mixed media artist whose work combines printmaking, painting, collage, and sewing. We asked her what she was working on now, and she passed along these intriguing “studio views”:

I really like the plastic orange fences that are used as a barrier to keep people out of danger, by blocking off a construction site. The fences come in many shapes and sizes, and I have been collecting different shapes of them for many years.

To create my work, I monoprint the textures of fences on one large piece of fabric. Then I paint over the printed fabric, to add color or more detail. Often I’ll also add hand stamped shapes, using hand cut rubber erasers. When I am satisfied with the design, I stitch lines using my sewing machine, following the horizontal and vertical grid of the fence.

I’ve been very interested in the grids of buildings under construction, and I have been working to translate different projects in my work. The piece in process in the photo is of a condo project in Natick, MA. Also shown is the actual fence I used to print, which happens to be a green fence, not orange. After I monoprint the fence on the fabric, I hang it to dry in my bathroom shower, before I start painting or hand stamping.

Recently, I’ve taken some larger older work, and cut it up, added more paint, and reassembled it to create new, smaller pieces. The photo with my sewing machine shows a few piles of work, as well as some felted pieces I’ve been creating, one per week.

For more information on Jeanne Williamson, check out her website, blog, and book.

Photo Credits: All images courtesy of Jeanne Williamson

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For the past year Jessica Burko has been creating sewn paper quilts. She uses her own photographs, vintage photos, and collected paper ephemera found at yard sales, flea markets, and in trash bins. Let’s take a look-see into her studio.

I began creating the quilts as an experimentation in using the many gathered paper items I had amassed in my studio - waste not/want not, right? I felt that before I make more prints, or buy new supplies, I should see if I could find a way to work with what I already have, and the paper quilt was born. I’ve sewn paper in the past and incorporated stitched elements into my work for several years, but never before had I attempted to use the paper and sewing as the only components on my work.

My South End studio is a great place for me to work. The space is ample for my needs, and is already covered with decades of artist materials so there is no need for me to be careful about splashing wax on the walls, or getting paint on the floor - anything that drips from my brush just adds to what is already there. I keep a portable record player in the space and when my hands aren’t too gooped up I listen to old tunes from Aretha Franklin, and various big bands, but when I’m working with wax on some of my larger pieces I tune in to NPR and Emerson’s WERS.For the four years that I have been working in the space I feel like it has become a second home.

All images courtesy of Jessica Burko.

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Let’s take a peek at what’s going on in Clara Lieu’s studio.

I am currently working on a new series of figures wading in water. The project focuses on the dual nature of water as a substance which can be responsible for sustaining or ending life. As humans, we turn to water as a source of healing and comfort that can be small in scale and intimate. (more…)

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What is really going on behind closed doors in the multitude of artists studios throughout Massachusetts? To find out, we thought we’d ask artists to let us peek inside their studios, and tell us what they’re up to these days.

The first to answer the call was Boston-based artist Santiago Hernandez:

Stripes, Flame Jobs and Sacred Geometry

My work has always dealt in different ways with the dialectical relationship between order and chaos, the sacred and the profane. With this new body of work I want to touch upon the possibilities of this intricate relationship from a personal point of view while making use of elements - camouflage patterns, flames, hazard stripes, etc. - taken from popular culture or from my immediate surroundings.

Much of my work has been informed by my familys experience as Cuban immigrants, a chaotic experience at best. However, for me as a child that experience was really about discovery. In my new work I use the flames and hazard stripes to express my belief that while the immigrant experience is characterized by disruption and a sense of loss, it is also about transcending barriers, testing faith and forging new realities.

In some of my new work I incorporate geometric elements based on the Golden Mean to reflect the idea that sacred geometry and flame jobs might actually be quite similar in that they symbolize a transcendence of the commonplace; they symbolize, in effect, a form of redemption.

All images courtesy of Santiago Hernandez.

Do you have jpeg images of your studio work-in-progess you’d like to share? Let us know.

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