Wearable Art: Designs by Daniel Chavez
Denver artist Daniel Chavez is embarking on a new creative venture: wearable art. Colorful and geometric, his designs are eye-catching and delightfully affordable (most items are $25 – $30). Check out his website, and browse the full selection! www.danielchavezmurals.com
Events: Gallery Wedding
Want to see how fabulous an ‘art gallery wedding’ can be? Check out these photos of Rachel & Andy, who recently got married in our space, the Artwork Network Gallery & Event Center in Denver, CO. Cheers to the happy couple!
Rachel & Andy tie the knot!
Image from the incredibly talented camera wielders of Friends & Lovers Photography. For more info about hosting your event at Artwork Network call us at 303.388.7420!
Friday Favorite: Terri Bell
"Flutter" by Terri Bell
I am reminded of one of my favorite quotes from Futurama (my guilty pleasure), where the main character, Fry, is about to buy a swarm of lizards for his lady love. “Girls like swarms of lizards, right?” he asks. Well, most likely not, but I bet she’d love a swarm of butterflies. This pretty print is available in a variety of sizes, with prices starting at $100.
Artist Interview: Ivy Delon
Artwork Network has been exhibiting the artwork of Colorado artist Ivy Delon this month, and there has been a wonderful response to these wildflower paintings. We asked her a few questions about her art and creative process.
Artist Ivy Delon
Why do you work with oil paint?
Ivy Delon: I started painting with watercolors in the 1980s. I then switched to pastel chalks and painted with them for over 15 years, never going back to watercolors. Currently I work in oils and would have a hard time going back to either of the previous media. Oils can be applied in such a variety of ways, including transparent washes (like watercolors) and in layers (like pastels).
Using brushes extends the variety of application. I love to layer thinned paint and build up to thick impasto. I also love to use brushes to create expressive flowing lines and scratchy scribbles. Anything seems possible with oil paint.
How has your work evolved over time?
Ivy Delon: I was a commercial graphic artist for 5 years before beginning painting. In the early years of painting, I practiced a lot by painting out of doors and observing the true nature of the landscape. I worked at becoming more and more realistic. I learned a lot about color, and three dimensional form. Now I continue to work outdoors, and then use these outdoor studies to focus on the part of the painting that I love the most. I find various compositions and colors within these studies and I develop them into larger and more complete works. Realism has taken a back seat to emotional expression and personal preference.
What’s the best creative advice you’ve ever been given?
Ivy Delon: A good artist friend told me that it is always difficult to start up a cold engine. (She was told this by an artist friend of hers.) I have repeated this advice a lot over the years, to myself and to other artists and students. Once the “engine” has warmed up, my artistic ideas pour out of me. I have a few tricks that I use to “warm up the engine.” I often tell myself that I am only going into the studio for 15 minutes to clean up or go through a few reference photos. Before I know it I am again excited to paint and a couple of hours go by effortlessly.
"Delphinium in Sunlight" by Ivy Delon
Why Art?
Ivy Delon: I wish I could sing or be brave enough to act. Singing along to a favorite song in the car fills my heart. I would love to put my emotions into these venues, but it is not where my talent lies. I could draw at an early age and was encouraged to do so. Once you have accomplished some skill in a field, it is more and more rewarding to express yourself in that way.
Do you visualize your art before creating? Do you know what it will look like before you begin?
Ivy Delon: I do visualize my art before I create it, but not in the way someone might think. I logically think about composition, color, light and dark. I often sketch and do value studies. Then I like to feel how the painting will flow. I put all the logical thinking on the back burner and open up to the expression of the painting.
I enjoy painting second and third variations of my first paintings. I “copy” my own work, and in this way I get more and more ideas from an intuitive place. The variations are more unexpected than the first piece.
What do you want people to walk away with when they see your work?
Ivy Delon: I like my art to move the viewer to see beauty; not necessarily the beauty of the subject matter, (flowers, trees, mountains) but the beauty of the color, movement and energy of the painting. I would like to think that buyers of my art never tire of looking at their purchase. They can sit on their couch at home and daydream while looking all around the piece, noticing things that they hadn’t noticed the day before, and being moved into a peaceful inner place.
Friday Favorite: Rebecca Zimmerman
"Bee in a Thistle" by Rebecca Zimmmerman
This close to Spring, the outdoors are definitely on my mind. Sure, it was a mild Winter, but in my head the arrival of Spring conjures up fantasies of running through fields of wildflowers and plotting how to keep my picnic basket from rolling away in the breeze. This “Bee in a Thistle” photograph by Rebecca Zimmerman perfectly compliments my Spring-time fantasies. It’s available as a print or a giclee on watercolor paper in a variety of sizes. Also check out her other Spring-time photos – you’ll certainly have a tough time choosing your favorite, but it’s a great way to waste a Friday afternoon!
Art in Tough Economic Times
The Art District on Santa Fe shared an interesting article on their Facebook page today, the headline reading Cities facing tough times turn to… the arts?
Carol Strickland at the Alaska dispatch writes, “Towns and cities across the United States – throughout the world, really – are investing in the arts both to attract deep-pocket cultural tourists and to improve quality of life.”
That’s something Denver has definitely taken to heart. Strickland writes, “Denver has also changed its image from a destination for puffy-parka people to espresso-sipping sophisticates. Gov. John Hickenlooper (formerly Denver’s mayor and now governor of Colorado) made promoting arts a major focus. Aided by a bond issue and a dedicated sales tax that residents overwhelmingly renewed until 2018, the city built the striking Daniel Libeskind-designed addition to the Denver Art Museum and spruced up a now-bustling downtown arts district, home to a new Clyfford Still Museum.” (Read more.)
Today Gov. Hickenlooper released a press release that the Art District on Santa Fe is a “Certified Creative District”. Our Art District will receive,” a $15,000 grant and assistance to attract artists, creative entrepreneurs and visitors as a strategy to infuse new energy and innovation and enhance the economic and civic capital of the community.”
This is wonderful, great, tremendous news – we are extremely honored to be a part of the Art District on Santa Fe!
Call for Entry: Renewal – The Art of Spring
Niza Knoll Gallery in collaboration with Art D’Elke is now requesting submissions of artwork for a juried show entitled Renewal—The Art of Spring. Accepted work will be exhibited for 8 days from March 26–April 3, 2012 at 915 Santa Fe Drive with an afternoon Artists Reception on Saturday, March 31 from 2-4. Artists are asked to submit original works in any medium representing this theme. Deadlines and other important dates are as follows:
"Lisse" by Elke McGuire
Work Drop off for jury:
Sunday March 25, 2012 from 10am-12 Noon at Niza Knoll Gallery 915 Santa Fe Drive, Denver
*Work not accepted into show must be picked up the same day between 2-4 pm Sunday, March 25
Exhibit Dates:
Monday, March 26–Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Artists Reception:
Saturday, March 31 from 2-4 pm
Special gallery hours for this exhibit:
Monday-Saturday 11 am-5 pm, Closed Sunday, April 1
Last day of show:
Tuesday, April 3 from 11 am-5 pm
Work pickup after exhibition:
Tuesday, April 3 from 5-6 pm
A more detailed prospectus and entry forms can be found at www.nizaknollgallery.com, click on prospectus for RENEWAL. Each entrant may submit up to 4 entries at $10 per entry. All entries must be submitted in person at the gallery and must fit through a standard door. Images of artwork, submitted in any format, will not be accepted. Jury members for this show are Niza Knoll and John Passaro of Alpine Fine Art Center.
Gallery owner and multi-disciplinary artist Niza Knoll received her formal training in painting and graphic design at the School of Visual Arts in New York. Before becoming a full-time visual artist she had two rewarding careers as a graphic designer and a teacher of painting and photography. Niza Knoll Gallery opened in April 2010 and welcomes artists to show their portfolio. Special gallery hours for this exhibit are Monday-Saturday 11 to 5 pm/ closed Sunday, April 1. The Mix Co-op in the back of the gallery is also open for visitors during regular hours.
For more information visit www.nizaknollgallery.com and for questions contact Niza at nizak@mac.com or 303-953-1789.
Artist Interview: Juan Esteban Usubillaga
During March 2012, Artwork Network will be exhibiting some beautiful abstracts by South-American artist Juan Esteban Usubillaga. He refers to this series as “mind calming”. We asked him a few questions about his process, influences, and what we should impart from his paintings.
Artist Juan Esteban Usubillaga
Why do you work with acrylics?
Juan Esteban Usubillaga: I work with acrylics because they are water-based, and as a kid most of the painting that I did was with watercolor. It taught me a lot about the nature of the colors, transparencies and the use of light.
Does anything else from your childhood come up in your work?
JEU: Light and colors of the rainforest. My cultural and geographical background always comes to influence my work.
How did you get started in the Arts?
JEU: I entered an Art school at age 12 and kept this path until I was 25 years old. I realized very early in life how much I suck at the Arts, and only a lot of hard work made me improve and find personal language. I knew that everything I produced was not as good as the Art I admired, but that planted a seed of urgency to find quality in a personal path.
Do you think it is important for artists to know about art history?
JEU: It is vital! As an artist I know there is a limited time for art production (a lifespan), and even after the artist reach a personal language, we can still learn from past or current artists, from their passions and fears, their masteries, being open and curious to other artists, keeps us open and eventually makes us understand our work more deeply, and probably show our personal paths more clearly, and see what else is out there for us.
"Mist" by Juan Esteban Usubillaga
Speaking of past and current artists – are you more attracted to work that is not like your own, or work that has similarities to yours?
JEU: I find I am attracted to any kind of Art that feels sincere to me.
Do you have a favorite piece of artwork?
JEU: Too many to be so exclusive! But I really the works of Baskiat, Szyszlo, de kooning, and Jacanamijoy.
Has anyone ever given you a real gem of advice?
JEU: The best advice has come not from painters but musicians and athletes – “Do not rush into the future. It creates anxiety. Keep your attention on the now.”
What is your favorite reaction someone has had to your work?
JEU: An international artist and master said, “I wish I could do what you have done in this painting.”
That’s a great compliment! What do you like about your work?
JEU: It takes me to places I like to be.
"The Unseen" by Juan Esteban Usubillaga
Do you visualize your art before creating?
JEU: No, and if I could I wouldn’t, I want to surprise myself.
Why do you make art? And whom do you make it for?
JEU: Probably just to keep my insanity healthy. At the beginning just did it for myself, but as soon I realized other people like it, my mind changed, and now I make art for anyone who likes it!
What other kinds of things do you like?
JEU: I love music and poetry. It twists my mind and soul in a positive way.
Your Artwork Network exhibit is coming up – I want to know, what question do you hate being asked about your art?
JEU: What does that painting mean?
And lastly, is there anything you want people to walk away after seeing your work?
JEU: With an strong emotion, a sense of connection with inner images or realms. I do not care about what kind emotion it is, but prefer when is real and personal.
Click here to see more artwork and info
about artist Juan Esteban Usubillaga.
Friday Favorite – Glow Tube #6 by PJ Bergin
"Glow Tube #6" by PJ Bergin
Felt is a material that is highly versatile and Eco-friendly – even HGTV recently heralded the rise of Felt in design. But Salida, Colorado artist PJ Bergin has been leading this trend for some time now. Her hand-dyed felt pieces are full of texture and intrigue, a perfect combination of approachable and elegant. Created with felt wool and silk chiffon, “Glow Tube #6” is a particular favorite of mine. I love the simplicity of the color choices – red, gray, and white. The extra special quality you may have gathered from its name? Yes – it glows! Soft, twinkling LED lights make this a beautiful bridge between art and ambiance.
Check out “Glow Tube #6″.
View more by PJ Bergin.
Do you love felt? Do you have a different favorite from felt artist PJ Bergin? Share your thoughts in the comment section!
A Discussion: Year Created
Is old art BAD art? Periodically we get questions about the “year created” on artwork. Change it, hide it, covet it – what does the date have to do with anything?
If art isn’t dated, you can’t see the artist’s progression.
Creating an accurate timeline is important in inventorying artwork. “Art is not only aesthetically pleasing, it is also an historical document reflecting a specific time in an artist’s life and work,” Lucas Boyd, Artwork Network’s Artist Development Manager, writes. “As an artist, my work evolves. I think not dating my pieces may misrepresent me - it reflects who I am in a specific moment.”
Older art is not inferior to new art: it’s like fine wine, not old milk.
It is not unheard of for galleries to hide the year created as a sales strategy. The thinking is, if a buyer sees the piece is old, they will wonder why it hasn’t been sold and will second guess their interest. However, as a seasoned gallery employee Aaron Bible points out, “If a work is properly archived, it shouldn’t matter what year it was created. That’s like saying new wine is better than old.”
There’s certainly a reason why collectors covet the early work of master artists. Dates are an important aspect for anyone in any role of the art world. If we covet the childhood doodles of Picasso, why would we push contemporary artists to devalue their own creative history – as if it was a carton of milk with an expiration date?
A connection is a connection – no matter when the art was created.
It is my personal opinion as an art collector that it matters little what age a piece has. I look for a piece that speaks to me, with less concern of how long the paint has been dry. But should my collection ever need to be appraised down the road, I would want all the information available at my fingertips. That’s why Alan Kircher, owner of Artwork Network, says simply, “Transparency is key – no secrets for the buyer.”
So, what do you think? Is the “year created” important to you? Do you put it on your art? When you’re buying art, do you look for its date?
