September 2014 Gallery Picks Newsletter

From the Department of Things That Are Better Late Than Never, we bring you our monthly Gallery Picks Newsletter.  The semi-bad news is that we are very late posting; the very-good news is that October's edition will follow shortly, so this month will be brimful of beautiful art!

Please enjoy a look at these wonderful new items from our fabulous artists, and don't forget, for more information click on the individual links to visit them in our online shop.

Let's start with some amazing furniture.

FINE WOOD FURNITURE

Walnut Table, "The Impala"

 Quite simply, this is one of the most beautiful tables we have ever seen.

Constructed of claro walnut from Chico, California, from live-edge

slabs that were gently aged over many years here in the Gallery, this is a

product of careful consideration and collaboration by a number

of our wonderful local artists. The table top is made from the burl ends of the

slabs; the legs are black patinaed steel designed and crafted right here

on Bainbridge Island.

Ready to grace your dining room, office or boardroom, and just... Magnificent.

But why, you ask, have we named it The Impala?

 (Can you see it?)

For a closer look, drop into the Gallery.

(It would love to meet you in person!)

Writing Table.  Ted Scherrer

 Lush cherry and ash woods animate this lovely desk.

Perfect for your office (or a very lucky student) it has two drawers and

a sweet retro surprise:  a secret compartment!

How often do we see an added feature like that these days?

Northwest wood artist Ted Scherrer has shown his work with

us for many years, in the form of chairs, settles and tables created with
the traditionally spare yet exquisite quality of Craftsman furniture.  His
hand-crafted designs, with their easy functionality and superior workmanship,
never go out of style.

View one of Ted's gorgeous settles here.

Here's something about the classic Craftsman style that inspires Ted's work:

The Arts and Crafts movement initially developed in England during

the latter half of the 19th century, inspired by social reform concerns together

with the ideals of reformer and designer, William Morris.

This movement was a response to the rise in often shoddy
factory-made goods and furniture seen at the time.  It also challenged
the often extravagant tastes of the Victorian era, and sought to bring
back work for individual craftsmen, put out to pasture rather
precipitously in society's rush to embrace mass-manufacturing.

In the United States, Gustav Stickley also promoted these ideals out

of New York City, and found that by using factory methods to produce
basic components, then utilizing craftsmen to finish and assemble,
he was able to produce sturdy, serviceable and attractive

furniture which was sold in great quantities, and still survives.

The term Mission style is also used to describe Arts and Crafts Furniture

and design in the United States, particularly in the Southwest, and brought

into play the added influence of Native American and Spanish-Mexican artwork.

Mid-Century Modern Chair.  Arne Hovmand Olsen

Our latest mid-century modern  furniture find, this graceful chair

is quite special, with its Danish Modern lightness of style and clean look.
It is created from subtle teak wood with a cane-wrapped back and leather seat.
Notably, it is signed by the artist.

Here's a little about Arne:

Arne Hovmand Olsen (1919-1989) was born and raised in Kirkeby Sogn

in the middle of Denmark. He was the eldest of five children, and though from a

farming family he realized at an early age that he wanted a different career.

He had always liked to draw, and was apprenticed to a cabinetmaker,

P. Olsen Sibast, in 1938. After his apprenticeship, Arne dreamed of being

able to design the furniture which he produced, and therefore enrolled in a

technical school specializing in furniture design at Aarhus, in 1941.

Once qualified, Arne started his own studio creating beautiful furniture,

influenced by Scandinavian design and executed in a simple and light style.

His furniture was sold in Denmark , but was mainly exported to the large

overseas market, with the U. S. market being an avid consumer.

His studio closed in the 1970s.



SCULPTURE
(Ceramic) 

Brink.  Maria Simon

This month we welcome extraordinary sculptor Maria Simon to the gallery

Her sensuous ceramic pieces are a rich feast of form and color,

built to reside on a special wall, some as table pieces, all with great depth,
suggestions of rolling hills or earthy strata, and hints of whimsy.

Here's a little about Maria and her process:

Born and raised in Chicago, Maria Simon began pursuing art as a young child.

With the support of her parents, she attended children’s classes at the

Chicago Art Institute. She attended Washington University’s Steinberg School

of Fine Arts in St. Louis, studying sculpture and printmaking. She also

studied classical sculpture at L’Accademia d’elle Arte in Florence, Italy.

After a fifteen year exploration of colored clays, producing decorative

vessels and tiles, which she considered a marriage of sculpture and printmaking,

Maria returned to her love of sculpture, using clay, her favorite medium.

Maria's work has been selected for numerous private and corporate art

collections and has exhibited her work both nationally and internationally.

She has been the recipient of several grants and awards.

Now living in Portland, Oregon, Maria devotes a significant part of her

time to teaching and workshop activities. She has also been providing

Artist-in-Residency programs to the metro area schools in sculpture, ceramics,

and mural making through the Regional Arts and Culture Council and Young

Audiences of Oregon and SW Washington, and as an independent contractor

since 1991. In addition, she has presented workshops on her process

throughout the country since 1981.

As to Maria's process, all pieces are built with terracotta or porcelain clay.

Most begin with thick-rolled slabs, cut and fit together, puzzle-like.

The clay is left to reach leather-hard stage, then some areas are built up with coils;

at this point the largely subtractive work of carving begins. 

Over a period of four to five weeks, refinement of the sculpture takes place.

Once the fine details are completed, it undergoes a slow bisque-firing,
after which painting with terra sigillata commences and can continue
over a ten-day period.  The piece is burnished, then fired a second time.

Ember.  Maria Simon

 (As a point of interest, terra sigillata in contemporary pottery refers to a clay "slip", 
or liquefied suspension of fine-milled clay particles in water, usually the 
consistency of heavy cream.  Pigments can be added to produce a colored slip.

 Archeologically speaking, the term terra sigillata literally means "sealed earth";

not as in earth made impervious by sealing but, rather, pottery decorated with "seals"
or sigilla, a Latin word referring to small statues or figures in relief.  The term is also applied,

however, to plain-surfaced Roman pots of a certain type or era.)


VISUAL ARTS

Rest Assured.  Esperanza Grundy

Seattle artist Esperanza Grundy has recently brought us several new works.

This one, Rest Assured, is acrylic collage on canvas, notable for its lively

earth colors that are juxtaposed with darker tones amid rambling,

somehow familiar, textures.

(Perhaps desert Southwest, wisps of written communications, hint of mountains...)

This piece and several from her Faces series are currently in the Gallery;

two others can be viewed at our Realogics Sotheby's International Annex,

right here on Bainbridge Island at 271 Madison Avenue S. 

 

A member of the Women Painters of Washington, Esperanza has won numerous awards

for her works in collage and watercolor.  With a BFA in Industrial Design from the

University of Washington, she has lived both in the Southwest and Northwest. 

 As the artist notes, color is the main ingredient in her work, in abstract compositions

which explore the lives of  literary artists (Bedside Table Series), the American Flag,

or the place of women across cultures. 

 

Esperanza comments on her work: 

 

Color is the main ingredient in my work. 

 

The urge to create is irresistible to me. The symbols, images, textures and colors

in my paintings and collages are my pathway to spirit and truth.

My fundamental source of inspiration is my personal heritage: my family is

hispanic and native american and has lived in the Southwestern US for

many generations. Cultural explorations continue from there by

listening to other people's stories, traveling to exotic places,

reading and dreaming. 

 

I love to gather, arrange and layer materials. Everything is a potential

element: paper and fabric scraps, my own handmade papers, paint,

stencils, transfers and photographs. Using cast off "compost" to give

new life to art is richly symbolic to me. Creating physical depth through

layering allows me to more deeply express ideas and feelings. I hope

the layers act as levels to invite emotions, thoughts, memories

and meaning for viewers of my art.

 

 

WEARABLE ART

Necklace Bergamo, Black.  Begona Rentero

 If you've seen our Blog before you already know what we

think of Begona Rentero's work.

And yet this necklace...

WOW!

Just...

WOW!

And here are the earrings, in red:

Earrings Bergamo, Red.  Begona Rentero

 These are huge, long, dangly, lightweight, and available in other colors.

Our first pair was snapped up immediately after we put them
on display, but stay tuned. We'll have more available shortly.

Can you even imagine wearing these to a holiday party?

!!!!!!

Enough said.

"Intermezzo" Silk Swing Jacket.  Roselle Abramowitz

This is yet another gorgeous piece by remarkable artist

Roselle Abramowitz.  Double-layered hand-painted silk

in shades of blue, green and purple make a luscious

statement in a cropped swing jacket that can be

hung on the wall as an art piece or worn to that

extra-special occasion.  The length and drop-shoulder
tapered-sleeve styling makes this a universally becoming garment.

As we have reported elsewhere in this Blog,

Roselle passed away recently in her home of Stowe, Vermont.

To read more about her fascinating life, skip back several posts

or search Roselle Abramowitz to read our homage

to this talented artist.

So much for September, now all nicely wrapped up.  Please come back soon for a bright October harvest version of the newsletter, already in the works!  If you'd like to have our e-card reminder delivered to your mailbox, plus early warning of events, exhibits and sales, please contact sr@theislandgallery.net, leave your e-mail address, and we'll sign you up.

Thanks for visiting, and see you next time!