Susan Lenz - Window XXIX, 2011

Fiber Artist Susan Lenz:

“My artistic mentor is oil painter Stephen Chesley.  His studio is across the hallway from mine at Gallery 80808/Vista Studios.  He’s been a self supporting artist for over 25 years.  He gave me good advice right from the start.  He always has an opinion for contemplation, a kind word when needed, a strong suggestion when needed, and honors me with his respect.” 

 Natalie Boorman Lacy Ferns, 2011

Ceramic Artist Natalie Boorman: 

“Many people and institutions. Indirectly, my early teachers who noticed my art work in grade school, my family, and art institutions in places I’ve lived as an adult.  In North Carolina, I’ve attended many classes locally in Chapel Hill as well as Penland, John C. Campbell School of Crafts.  Paulus Berensohn, Jimmy Clark and George Kokis, teachers from Penland, have been very inspirational to me.  I think broadly, family, friends, institutions, and community all support and inspire me and others to make art.”

 Julia Woodmann Cockle Burr I, II, III Servers, 1995

Silversmith Julia Woodman:

“Mostly the late Heikki Seppä with whom I studied in several workshops at the Penland School of Crafts inspired me. Heikki was born and received his early metals training in Finland. After immigrating to America he for years chaired the metals department at Washington University in St. Louis. He was widely recognized and honored for his seminal work with anticlastic and synclastic forms and related shell-forming techniques. When I moved toward work involving three-dimensional tessellation he was most generous with guidance and encouragement. He was likewise very supportive while I was engaged in my graduate studies and subsequently encouraged me to apply for a Fulbright grant to study in Finland. Once in Finland I found myself studying with 2^nd and 3^rd generation descendants of Faberge masters. Following completion of my studies I was able to compete successfully for certification by the Finnish craft guild as a Master Silversmith, the first American so honored.”

 Bruce Lankard Lankard 2007

Photographer Bruce Lankard:

“Like many young photographers, I was inspired early by the works of the great street photographers like Henri Cartier-Bresson and Garry Winogrand. My biggest inspiration, to this day, has been the work of Robert Frank: his ground-breaking vision at the time of “The Americans” and his refusal to be pigeonholed and his continued explorations into new avenues of artistic expression.”

How did our 2011 Winter Show artists find their passion?

 Susan Lenz - Window XXIX, 2011

Fiber Artist Susan Lenz: 

“I had a silly dream.  I was determined to get to grad school as quickly as possible because I thought I wanted to be a museum curator.  So, I finished my undergraduate in three years (Medieval and Renaissance Studies) … and delved into a graduate program in History of Art with a concentration on arts administration.  What did I learn?  I learned I didn’t want to be a museum curator; I just wanted to “play with the stuff”. So, I quit school. After running a business,  I got a studio and started a new adventure.” 

Link to her blog Art in Stitches: http://artbysusanlenz.blogspot.com/

 Alan Hollar - Dunatis’ Chalice

Wood Artist Alan Hollar:

“I never had a plan, just wandered from one thing to another until I started restoring furniture.  Learning to turn and carve to make repair parts grew into a way to satisfy the creative urge growing within.”

 Sue Grier - Teapot with Redbird, 2011

Ceramic Artist Sue Grier:

 “I had always painted (lessons & all) and was pursuing a BA in college for three years. I ended up with a BS in Computer Science. However, I never used the BS and turned to clay rather than painting. Twenty-seven years later I’m still entranced by clay and eventually returned to grad school for a MFA in Ceramics in 2004.”


  Natalie Boorman

Porter Natalie Boorman:

“I thought I’d be a teacher, nurse, store keeper or social worker.  I did become a social worker though have always dabbled in art.  Growing up, I went to a small school in rural Minnesota where we were taught the ‘3 r’s’ (reading, writing, arithmetic).  So I didn’t have any formal art classes in school back then.  I remember art projects in school and was often recognized by teachers along the way as ‘that’s very good!’  I think that kind of recognition helped steer me toward making art throughout my life.”

  Mary-Ann Prack - Finding Joy

Susan Lenz

Time Flies

Susan Lenz’s textiles are currently on exhibition in the solo show “Famous Last Words” at the Vision Gallery in Chandler, Arizona until November 5, 2011.

Vision Gallery

Artist’s website

Karen Crouch & Virginia Gibbons

Karen Crouch, Bird on Wheel

Virginia Gibbons, Inland Sea

The works of Karen Crouch and Virginia Gibbons will be shown in the exhibition “Stones Unturned: Sculpture in Clay and Bronze” from October 28 - November 18, 2011 at Acme Art Studios in Wilmington.

Acme Art Studios

Karen Crouch’s website

Virginia Gibbon’s website

James Barnhill

 Hosea

James Barnhill’s works are on exhibition at the African American Atelier in “Figure: The Art of James Barnhill” until December 16, 2011.

African American Atelier Gallery

Artist’s website

Juie Rattley III

Crime Scene

The works of Juie Rattley III will be featured in a solo exhibition at the North Charleston City Gallery in Charleston, South Carolina from November 1 - 30, 2011.

Charleston’s TheDigitel

Artist’s website

Mary Tuma & Jan-Ru Wan

Mary Tuma, Unsung Heroes

Jan-Ru Wan, The Coercion

The works of Mary Tuma and Jan-Ru Wan, along with nine other North Carolina artists, will be featured in the SECCA exhibition “Out of Fashion,” which is curated by Steven Matijcio and will run from November 3, 2011 - March 4, 2012.

Out of Fashion

Mary Tuma’s website

Jan-Ru Wan’s website

Chrys Riviere-Blalock

Christmas Snow

Chrys Riviere-Blalock’s works will be shown in a solo exhibition at The Hickory Museum of Art from November 11, 2011 - February 12, 2012.

Hickory Museum of Art Events & Programs

Artist’s portfolio

Kristianne Ripple

Akashi Mountains 7

Printmaker Kristianne Ripple will be the featured guest at Alia El-Bermani’s monthly Artist Potluck on November 12, 2011 at 7pm in Cary.

NC Monthly Artist Potluck

Artist’s website

Presley Ward

Role Model

The works of Presley Ward—a Greensboro native—are currently being featured in the “People’s Biennial,” a traveling exhibition curated by Harrell Fletcher and Jens Hoffman. Ward’s drawings will be exhibited in the “People’s Biennial” show at the Cantor Fitzgerald Gallery at Haverford College from January 27 - March 2, 2012.

Article on Presley Ward at ArtSlant

People’s Biennial at the Cantor Fitzgerald Gallery

By Edie Carpenter

Julia Clift

10.11

Julia Clift, View from the North Window, 2010, oil on canvas, 15 x 22 inches

One of the pleasures of visiting an artist’s studio is a chance to see works in progress and observe the artistic process in situ. Heading to meet Julia Clift at her studio in Artspace in Raleigh, NC, where she is the new Regional Artist in Residence, I think of some of the other artists I have met through this great residency program – fiber artist Claire Burdulis surrounded in skeins of woven electrical wire; Shaun Richards in front of a painting of a haunting corn field, and Megan Sullivan and her witty “beagle topos” quilts in the 2008 Gallery Nomads exhibition. 

 Julia’s studio is tucked away at the end of a hallway on the second floor of Artspace’s renovated industrial building at the center of the growing downtown art district.  The artist, in tortoise shell glasses and jeans, stands in the center of the small room. The poise and self- assurance she projects are reflected in a recent self-portrait on an easel next to her and we enter into a conversation about that work.  She has portrayed herself sitting cross legged on the floor, in a simple skirt with head bent downward, a thin brush in her right hand and her folded knee grazing the surface of the picture plane.  I comment on the interesting pose and she laughing says she was avoiding the traditional heroic stance of the artist before the easel.  During my visit I can’t help thinking that if the dark curtain of a dry spell fell upon you during the limited time of a residency it would be difficult to be so exposed.  Julia appears to have no problem with producing, and two new works in progress are fleshed out in sepia under-painting on the walls.  To my eye they reveal a kinship of sensibility with Odd Nerdrum, the Norwegian artist with whom Julia has just completed an apprenticeship.  On another wall I admire one of her paintings that will be exhibited in the upcoming Winter Show at Green Hill Center.  It is a view from her window at Nerdrum’s stronghold outside of Paris. The painting of a view of the edge of the formal garden and the thick stone wall below her window, like her self-portrait, offers a surprising perspective and projects a depth of feeling beyond the confines of the architecture.  This sense of investing inanimate objects with feeling is more evident in another painting, also in Winter Show, of a bronze statue of a standing nude, with a playful addition of a pink scarf.

Julia Clift, The Statue, 2010, oil on canvas, 19 x 16 inches

Daniel Johnston

10.18

Driving into Seagrove always brings to mind visiting this unique potters’ community with Toshiko Takaezu and her assistant several years ago when Toshiko returned to NC for her one-person exhibition at Green Hill Center. The young New England potter accompanying Takaezu was one of the last of her live-in assistants. He had never seen so many working potteries in one place and kept murmuring how wonderful it was.  That day we visited one of Seagrove’s masters of large-scale pots, David Stuempfle, and I can still see Toshiko’s smile as David led her in to look at his large kiln up close, her diminutive form engulfed in the entrance.

Daniel Johnston, Jar, 2010

After only a few wrong turns I am driving slowly down a straight gravel road through quiet farmland to visit Daniel Johnston. This long approach to the complex of wooden buildings and kiln structure that compose the pottery was the scene of one of the Johnston’s recent projects — 100 large (30-50 inch high) pots which were produced in three months and sold in 20 minutes.  With preening hens scratching at our feet we look at new slip-trailed pieces awaiting the revelation of firing and speak of the project.  He says that he is just finished all the back orders for pieces but was happy so many large works got out into the world.  I am here to select works for Winter Show where Johnston will be exhibiting for the first time.  Today is a busy one with a firing of the modified Anagama kiln which I am told has nearly 900 cubic feet of space. Constructed from finely aligned fire bricks and  rising to a narrow arc, the kiln can accommodate large scale works by Johnston as well as the work of fellow potter Kate Waltman whose carved leaf-patterned surfaces have caught my eye and who has just returned to NC with her MFA.  

Of his own work Johnston has stated:    

I enjoy the hard work and it leaves no part of the process separated from me. I do not try to control my materials, rather I try to understand them. From digging the clay to firing the kiln I put all my effort into creating pots that have a powerful presence. It is important to me to create pots that are timeless but reflect the culture and times in which I live.  This holistic approach, so evident in the homemade wood ash glazes Johnston prefers, recalls Takaezu’s statements about listening to the clay.   Though an enormous amount of sheer labor is everywhere in evidence, from the perfectly formed vessels to the waiting stacks of pine planks that will be replenished and consumed in the two day firing, there is creative charge here.  And I am glad to have met Daniel Johnston and Kate Waltman who like others in Seagrove, live surrounded by pottery history yet are continually renewing the potter’s art.

Kate Waltman, Mint Jar, 2011

Edie Carpenter

Director, Artistic and Curatorial Programs                 

Green Hill Center for NC Art          

At its core, the individual elements of art are nearly valueless; paper, canvas, paints, ink, clay, stone or steel.  It is when one engages passion, and intellectual, emotional property that value is added to art. Considerable value that exceeds accountants and spread sheets. If we look at history, art values transcend stocks, bonds or real estate. Art is valuable beyond “rational” measurements. Art transcends time, and it can be argued that art is always a wise purchase. A down turned economy may be the best time to purchase art. New record prices have been set this year at the NYC auction houses for American artists.

Green Hill Center for NC Art’s Winter Show will exhibit the work of 125 artists, many of who are emerging young artists. The show will have over 500 works of art, and there is artwork priced to fit almost any budget. Edie Carpenter, Curator, has paid special attention to selecting artists whose work crosses different medium, and price ranges from $50 to $5000. She has included emerging artists who have never shown at Green Hill Center providing buying opportunity for first time collectors and seasoned collectors who like to find new artists and support them as their career progresses.  “We want everyone to become a collector, no matter what their budget or what the economy is doing,” Carpenter says. “I’ve bought a lot of things that I later regretted buying, but not one of them has been a work of art. If you have less money, as many of us do right now, why not invest it in something unique and handmade, something that’s one of a kind, and something that will increase in value.”

Please join the Green Hill staff and Board of Trustees for this phenomenal annual art sale and fundraiser that supports Green Hill’s exhibition and educational endeavors. “First Choice,” an event that allows preview purchases from the show, is on Thursday, December 2rd for patrons who purchase advance art credits. The December 4 gala”Collector’s Choice” is the official preview party for Winter Show and tickets are available online or at the door. The exhibition will open to the public December 5th, and will remain open until January 15. During that period, there will be special events in the main gallery and in the shop. Visit the web site for details on the calendar.

Add some “value” to your life this holiday season. Purchasing a piece of art as a gift, or for you.

It is with great pleasure that Green Hill Center for NC Art extends this invitation to you to submit a work in 2011 U.S. Figure Skating Championships Poster Competition. The competition is open to all living NC artists who have or have not shown at Green Hill Center before.  From the contest submissions thirty finalist works will be selected to be exhibited at the Greensboro Coliseum for the month of January.  On Saturday, January 22^nd, 2011 from 5:00 to 7:00 pm Green Hill Center will host a Private Reception to be held for the finalists, and a winning piece will be announced from the artists in the exhibition.  Green Hill Center is proud to promote not only the largest figure skating event in the United States, but also North Carolina’s main event of the year.  The artist with the winning work will receive a $3000 cash prize in exchange for allowing his/her work to be reproduced on an official poster for and to be distributed during the 2011 U.S. Figure Skating Championships and by the U.S. Figure Skating Organization.  In addition to the cash prize royalties for the posters sold at the Championships will be negotiated and agreed upon prior to the Private Reception.  The winning artist will retain all rights to their artwork and be able to pick up their piece on the pick-up dates designated below.

Schedule:

CDs, Entry Form, and Resumes Due:  Postmarked by November 10, 2010

Statement Due (optional):  Postmarked by November 10, 2010

Notification of Semifinalists:  November 15, 2010

Semifinalist Delivery Dates:  December 8 – 9, 2010 (Wed-Thurs); 10 am - 4 pm

Notification of Winning Design:  December 15, 2010

Private Reception and Award Prize:  January 22, 2011, 5:00 – 7:00 pm

Pick-Up Dates: January 31 and February 1st, 2011 (Mon and Tues); 10 am - 4 pm

Entry Forms are located on our website homepage at www.GreenHillCenter.org.  If you have any questions please e-mail edie.carpenter@greenhillcenter.org with the subject line: Poster Competition.  For questions concerning digital images please e-mail mario.gallucci@greenhillcenter.org.  For more information about the 2011 U.S. Figure Skating Champions please visit www.NorthCarolina2011.com or contact Hill Carrow, 2011 U.S. Figure Skating Championships at 919.678.1651 or hcarrow@northcarolina2011.com.

We hope you can participate and we look forward to having you submit for the Poster Competition!

Jerilyn Virden is a very talented ceramist we had in Winter Show 2009 and her work is currently available for sale in the Shop @ Green Hill Center (www.greenhillcenter.org). I love Jerilyn’s work and have for many years now, since I first met her while working at Penland School of Crafts where she was a resident artist—from the very start, I knew she she was so talented. Below is a excerpt of an article written by Penland’s Communications Manager Robin Dryer for the October issue of Ceramics Monthly. Robin is a master in writing about art, artists and the creative process…he makes everything so accessible without losing its scholarship. Thank you Robin. For everyone else check it out…. Laura Way, Executive Director/CEO

Jerilyn Virden: The Evolution of a Form  by Robin Dreyer

Dough bowls and grinding stones: these humble, functional forms were the starting point for potter/sculptor Jerilyn Virden’s highly evolved, double-walled ceramic vessel sculptures. “I saw them in New Mexico” she says. “I was drawn to the massiveness of the forms. The dough bowls were very roughly hacked out of a solid piece of wood. The grinding stones felt as though they had just evolved into their forms through necessity. They were flat stones that became bowls over years and years of grinding grain on them. It gave the forms a gracefulness as well as a history. They seem to possess a slow movement with great power, like water moving down a river.”

She was studying with Peter Beasecker in the MFA program of Southern Methodist University and trying to follow whatever forms attracted her aesthetically. “I was looking at all this stuff,” she says, “and I didn’t know what I liked about it so I just started trying to make those forms, and I made these things that looked just like wooden dough bowls only they were made out of clay, and they were really heavy because they had a different shape on the outside than they did on the inside.” She was making the forms by building oversized forms out of thick coils and then carving back into them. “I could carve this really nice curve on the inside and spend a long time just focusing on that curve,” she remembers.

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(Source: Flickr / greenhillcenter)