May, 2012

Artist reception: Arts! Arcata, May  11, 6-8:30 p.m.

STATEMENT FROM THE ARTIST:

“The relationship between observation and the resulting interpretation of the everyday landscape compels me to find beauty in the chaos. I am taken in by the vast impacts of the power in the vistas of landscapes, urban or rural, and, to the scars marked on surfaces. In my work, I explore the tensions between what I see, hear, or sense, and seek render a balance, sculpt details, into an isolated portrait of skewed impressions.

I record my observations in sketches and photography while in the field. The searching begins as I am taken in by the impact of my surroundings. Along a shoreline or passing a fenced-in littered city lot, the resounding impressions capture my curiosity. All carry evidence of the marks, and currents, of the signatures of time. From my notations, visual and written, I select and frame the images for my compositions. This exhibit is a combination of final drawings and some of my working studies.

The use of mixed media is to enhance color, line, and form. These techniques create a subtle “relief” quality on the paper surface. The visual sense holds a strong tactile sensibility in my mind’s eye. My goal is to relate disparate elements in the compositions, creating a whole. With all the compliments and conflicts, I seek to create balance and rhythm. The works become portraits of details, evoking the modern experience. In the manner of an unwritten word seeking definition, I hope to portray small sections of life’s fray, and relate it to our broader experience.

And so, inspired, my explorations and inquiries into the imagery in my artwork continue, looking into the sensitivities of urban/rural/coastal landscapes, of found paintings, rhythms, tensions, and sources, searching for balance in the conflicted.”

Natalie Craig

Natalie Craig received her BA from San Diego State University, MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art in Michigan, and she has participated in arts residencies in the US, Europe, and South Africa. With a grant through the NEA Craig has taught in the public schools in NJ. After art directing for publications with McGraw Hill and Dow Jones Financial Publishing, she began a graphic design firm. She continues her artwork explorations in her Arcata studio.

Please visit Natalie Craig’s website for more about the artist, nataliecraigartist.com.

reception Friday April 13th during Arts! Arcata.
Live music from eastern French Canada by Mon Petit Chou, refreshment served by the Wildlife Care Center.

Seventeen artists are exhibiting their work to benefit the North Coast Chapter of the California Native Plant Society’s school transportation fund. “We want to help fund school kids’ transportation to the May 4-6th Wildflower Show in Manila where they can view specimens and attend workshops,”  says organizer Rick Tolley.

Opening night is during “Arts Arcata” Friday April 13th from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. The Humboldt Wildlife Care Center will serve refreshment; Mon Petit Chou will play Quebecois and Acadian fiddle tunes, the music of eastern French Canada.

Everyone is invited to come and enjoy a variety of oil paintings, watercolors, acrylic paintings, monotype prints and photographs.

Participating artists are: Gary Bloomfield, Andrew Daniels, Joy Dellas, Paul Fabian, Paula Golightly, Michael Harris, Linda Parkinson, Ken Jarvala, Joyce Jonte, Leslie Reid, Alan Sanborn, Patricia Sennott, Stock Schlueter, Rick Tolley, Ann Wallace, Mira Weidman, and Libby Yee.

photoworks by HSU advanced photography students

SHOW STATEMENT:

There is a quality to a creative life that is seldom seen or understood. It is often misplaced when one “grows up,” or misjudged when fear dictates a path in our lives. It is usually then that such a passage seems far too long to follow or too difficult to maintain. When this occurs, creativity is misplaced by necessity, passion is dissolved by control, and the need for expression is easily embraced by repression instead. Soon a creative path seems implausible and therefore easily to dismiss.

Yet any path can be seen and understood if one were to study those who follow it. Such is the evidence present in the photographs of 31 unique photographers entitled “Coincidental Cohesion” by Humboldt State University students. Their images represent the confirmation of experiences seen, felt and imagined. They make up the diverse knowledge of those searching for purpose and meaning. These photographic journeys make clear statements to the fact that any path worth following is the one you find yourself. Their knowledge is our proof that creative expression is a rite to life.

– Don Anton, Professor of Art, Humboldt State University

BUG PRESS SHOWCASES 35 YEARS OF CREATIVE WORK

February 1 – 23, 2012

reception: Arts! Arcata, February  10, 6-8:30 p.m.

A slice of Arcata’s history is on display this month as the Upstairs Art Gallery showcases 35 years of posters and assorted prints produced by Bug Press.

Special events, the arrival and departure of businesses, and styles long forgotten, reappear locked on the pages produced by the firm as it served the town’s movers, shakers, artists and activists.

The works date back to 1974 as two art graduates from then Humboldt State College, Jay Brown and Bill Ferry, opened a design and screen printing shop in a former dry goods store on H Street. Their operation carried on their own artistic explorations as much as it served paying clients. Their equipment was simple and direct—a small table with a silkscreen frame, a hand-pulled squeegee, ink, an arc light and a sink.

Two years later, Jim Test and Ron Sabourin arrived on the scene, adding offset printing. For years, these two methods were used side by side to produce posters, broadsides, flyers, chapbooks, and other works. Later, the firm moved to it’s current M Street location. With offset and digital presses, the Bug Press tradition of effective print communication continues, whether the need is for ten or ten thousand pieces.

Viewers of the exhibit are sure to notice how prints have changed in size over time. The number of classes, lectures, musical events, exhibits and other performances that happen in one day in 2012 is much greater than all of the events that might occur in one month in the 1970s, according to Robert Arena, Bug Press’ current owner. So the large posters of the past have become smaller as they compete for the limited space on bulletin boards and storefront windows.

“Printing is an art, and the medium through which all other art is preserved,” Arena quoted. For more information about the show, call 822-2001.

Suk Choo Kim - Great Britain

December 6 – January 12, 2011

Artist reception: Arts! Arcata, December  9, 6-8:30 p.m.

STATEMENT FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHER:

My wife and I traveled to Great Britain, our first experience in this foreign land.  Growing up in Korea, Great Britain was not a subject within our school’s curriculum nor did we pursue its study as adults residing in the United States.  It was clear the country was rich in its own history, yet it was a history absolutely unknown to us.

In many ways, this degree of ignorance was liberating.  We had the privilege to experience the country freely through our senses – engaging its shapes and colors, focusing on the visuals independent from its historical context. We carried no preconceived ideas of what we would find there and so, everything was new.

These images capture for me, the essence of the British Isles we discovered, the country we brought home to remember.

(Special event on the opening night :  Introduction of Folio Project)

Stock Schlueter – Other Work

November 1 – December 2, 2011

Artist reception: Arts! Arcata, November  11, 6-8:30 p.m.

STATEMENT FROM THE ARTIST:

“This show is a combination of paintings that show a different side of the work that I do. I am known for my landscapes but have always liked painting people working, and in poses where they don’t know that they are being observed. Also there are some works purely from imagination.  And some show a less serene side of nature.”

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The Flow by Don Walker

October 4 – 28, 2011

Artist reception: Arts! Arcata, October  14, 6-8:30 p.m.

ARTIST STATEMENT:

These watercolor paintings are expressions of the flow of life and matter in the flow of time. They are an attempt to capture a feeling of the energy of life in its variety, vitality and fluidity.

My painting procedure is like taking a journey without an absolute destination. We may start out with some direction in mind, but can alter the course based on interesting encounters along the way. We can follow a wandering path where it might lead, but then have to make decisions, choosing which fork or avenue to take, anticipating where the more engaging interactions may occur.

The techniques employed in these watercolors are varied. They include pouring and spattering paint, wet-on-wet areas, large brush stokes and finer brush work.

Don R. Walker has been painting for many years.  His education includes degrees in art From Humboldt State University (BA-1971) and Claremont Graduate School (MA-1981). Employment has included teaching art in high school and teaching architectural drafting at College of the Redwoods.

Ellen Land-Weber

Underwater Archaeology: Fantasies of a Snorkeler

showing through September 29, 2011

Reception during Arts! Arcata: September 9th from 6-8:30 pm

Ellen Land-Weber will be giving a talk, “Secrets of Photo Collage” in the gallery on Friday September 16, at 5PM. All are welcome.

1063 G Street, Arcata, CA

Artist Statement:

I have been snorkeling off the North Shore of Kauai for many years, with each swim discovering marine creatures that are new and fantastic to me (although common enough to the experts). Photographing that environment is a particular challenge since everything is in motion—me, the water, the fish–and the fish don’t generally stop for a pose. Add in the need for good light and clear water–highly unpredictable conditions that change very quickly–and the difficulties increase. But all that is insignificant against the double pleasure of swimming in the warm ocean while entering another realm as a mostly unnoticed observer. It is a visceral experience that is hard to explain, but deeply satisfying.

With my background in art history, I am also attracted to the statuary of ancient cultures and civilizations. On my frequent travels I seek out museums displaying these treasures, where I am usually allowed to take photos. Despite being far removed from their place of discovery, and the impossibility of truly understanding their original inspiration or purpose, these antique representations of the human form still exude a powerful aura. The five millennia-old, but strangely modern-looking Cycladic figures from Greek islands are a perfect example of the mystery. We call each female sculpture a mother-goddess or a fertility symbol, but really, we don’t have a clue. When it comes to the classical period of ancient Greece, we are much better informed, but are still powerless to enter the mind-set of the people for whom these statues were made. We make up our own stories.

The photo-collages you see here are inspired by the double mystery—the ocean environment and ancient worlds—with a good dose of fantasy thrown in. I make up my own “stories” about what they could mean. I hope viewers will do the same.

Ellen Land-Weber

showing through August 26, 2011

Reception during Arts! Arcata: August 12th from 6-8:30 pm

1063 G Street, Arcata, CA

Farm Scenes, a show of watercolors by Alan Sanborn is on exhibit through the month of August. Many North Coast residents will recognize that each year the North Coast Grower’s Association chooses a painting of Alan’s for their annual Farmers’ Market poster. The posters are often seen gracing the windows of many a retail storefront. The works on display provide a unique opportunity to view a series of farm related imagery while enjoying the artistry behind the posters.

“About a third of the work I do is centered around the family farms in this area,” said Sanborn. “It’s a sort of homage to a group of people who are doing some of the most important work of all — not only bringing us whole, healthy food, but also keeping alive the timeless knowledge of how to grow food sustainably.”

“This body of work has more to do with day-to-day movement on farms — the small moments between all the work in progress.”

To see more of Alan’s work visit his website at: http://www.alansanbornart.com/

Showing July 6 – July 29, 2011

Reception during Arts! Arcata: July 8th from 6-8:30 pm (1063 G Street, Arcata, CA)

Our exhibit for the month of July features a collection of collaborative dream paintings by Richard Duning and Madeline McMurray. For over four years McMurray and Duning have been using the images and messages of dreams as source material for their paintings. Dream images, like doorways, are openings: openings into imagination and creativity, as well as openings into personal and archetypal understandings. A shared interest in art and psychology has drawn Duning and McMurray into a unique art/dream process in which two dreams are brought together to awaken a third image that organically grows into the finished work.

The friendship between Duning and McMurray goes back for at least two decades. Over the years they have shared not only dreams and art, but also thoughts on the sacred, psychology, myths, relationships; as well as their questions around the search, the discovery, the puzzle, and the authentic journey.

Madeline McMurray has lived in Humboldt County for over thirty years. She has retired from HSU where she was a lecturer in the Religious Studies Department. She has authored two books, a variety of articles and two videos. Madeline has been exhibiting paintings and masks locally since 2001. She also maintains a practice in Marriage and Family Therapy in Eureka.

Richard Duning originally came to Humboldt County to attend HSU as an art major in 1963. He worked as a photographer for many years and taught photography at CR. In 1977 he began painting and since then has exhibited his work locally, regionally and nationally. Art as archaeology of the soul is his path.

- Images and text courtesy of the artists.