Art Seen: Brush with the wild side

Susan Anderson is basically a Fauvist, as far as I can tell. I’ve been watching her work for years now and am continually intrigued by it.

Stephen Sanders, who created a Web site dedicated to Fauvism, explains Fauvism as this: “Shortly after the turn of the century, (it) exploded onto the scene with a wild, vibrant style of expressionistic art that shocked the critics but has since been recognized as one of the seminal forces that drove modern art. They were called the fauves, French for ‘wild beasts,’ a term of derision used to indicate their apparent lack of discipline. Today fauvism, once thought of as a minor, short-lived movement, is recognized as having paved the way to both cubism and modern expressionism in its disregard for natural forms and its love of unbridled color.”

Disregard is not the word I would use, instead preferring the idea of a supra-regard translating into the joy of expression through the happy mimicking of the wondrous and varied forms in the natural world.

Anderson was not formally trained, apparently, but rather lived and breathed art in the context of a family full of artists and art educators. The folk appeal and seeming naivety of her pieces work best when she uses simplified images without an abundance of detail.

The landscapes in her solo exhibition at the 4-D Interiors upstairs gallery space generally lack the unusual and psychological drama the others obtain. One exception is “Paris Taxi,” a watercolor whose irregular perspective and loose handling serve it immeasurably. The feel is of a street more alive and holding greater character than any photo or photorealistic rendering could capture.

In “Hanging Out,” she has let the bold strokes and large areas of color and texture create a ground for the three figures who seem to be constructed of stacked shapes. With less detail, the viewer is allowed to wonder all sorts of things about the subjects, as well as simply enjoy the bold brushstrokes.

“Jazz Guitar Man Jeff Golub” is almost too slick to be included in this exhibit; the effect is clean and predictably composed. She painted it from an image she captured with an iPhone at a concert, a technique also utilized on the more interesting “Soulman Sam and the Band,” which brings us back to the quirky style I so appreciate. The figures appear to grow from the bottom of the canvas, and the composition has a drunken, vibrant feel. The sharp angles and high contrast between the complementary colors of blue and orange create a mysterious energy.

“Greek Harbor Lights” is a sweet watercolor, fancifully created and left simple, as is the small portrait “18 Going on 30,” which has the brazen marks I’ve come to really love about Anderson’s work. “Into the Finish” is unusually composed and encapsulates both the energy of a sled-dog race and the chaos of inclement weather.

Anderson’s most successful piece has got to be “Man in Thought,” done in encaustic on a small panel. The ancient medium, a combination of beeswax and resin, is extremely inviting. One has to be disciplined in order to not reach out and caress the smooth surface and luscious, lumpy buildup. The piece consists of basically two panels. The separation is created with the pigment, rather than the substrate, but the effect is complete. The left side compromising of two-thirds of the image is entirely abstract, with two floating squares that create tension and, alternately, solidity. The right side has a discernable figure of a man, but is handled in the same spontaneous quality as the rest of the piece.

“Blue Note” is also done in encaustic, but lacks the anchored design needed to hold the floating paper in a context. It is an inviting medium, however, and one I am never unhappy to run across.

Anderson’s exhibit runs through March.

Zirrus VanDevere is a local mixed-media artist and owns Art Works gallery in Soldotna. She has bachelor’s degrees in fine arts and education.

Art Seen: Jury’s in — Biennial exhibit has plenty to consider

I recently had the interesting task of co-judging the Biennial Judged Exhibit at the Kenai Fine Arts Center this year, with Potter’s Guild president Charlie LaForge.

Each year it seems I get more excited about the range and quality that comes in, regardless of the format. Every other year is a “juried” exhibit, rather than “judged,” meaning pieces are selected to be included in the exhibit, and there are many that do not hang or display.

As was the case this year, all entered pieces are eligible, and the judge’s job is to choose the awards and honorable mentions. The competition is obviously much greater for the juried shows, and our guest juror is usually someone from out of our immediate area (in case he or she needs a quick getaway. Jurors are occasionally given a hard time for their choices, which are, of course, subjective, but always educated).

The following were given cash awards for their placement in this year’s exhibit:
Best of Show: John Lagoutaris, ceramics, “I Am Free in the Rapid River Waters of Destiny.”

• 1st Place 3-D: Shirley Seanor, pine needle weaving, “Jug With Lid.”
• 2nd Place 3-D: Heather Floyd, cast bronze using a lost wax method, “Sphere I.”
• 1st Place 2-D: Erica Miller, pastel, “Chasing the Sun #2.”
• 2nd Place 2-D: Joseph Kashi, digital photography, “Frozen Windows.”
• 3rd Place 2-D: Traci Knutson, Polaroid transfer over Palladium print with watercolor, “Melancholy.”
• Honorable mentions: A. Jane Alford, Allan Janonis, Andy Hehnlin, Clayton Hillhouse, Connie Tarbox, Donna Schwanke, Juanita Hillhouse, Kristin Edwards, Marali Sargeant-Smith, Pamela Mersch, Sandra Sterling, Steven Pannarelli, Tony Oliver and Tracie Howard.

I spoke with a few of the placers in the exhibit to try and get more of a sense of the processes that led them to the finished pieces.

Traci Knutson took a workshop on Palladium printing before creating the small but fascinating portrait of her dog. Palladium is a metal that is mixed with a chemical and acts as an emulsion that is then painted on a surface, in this case watercolor paper. It’s then developed using a large digital negative and long exposure times.

She transferred parts of the same image from Polaroid shots right onto the Palladium print using a water bath, and added some watercolor to finish the effect. Charlie and I were both drawn to the unusual psychology of the piece and were intrigued by the possible meaning of the artist’s choices. Upon questioning, Traci agreed that there were intense dynamics surrounding the work, as well as the animal that is no longer with us.

John Lagoutaris’ work was also quite striking in its symbolism and emotional qualities. He calls himself an intuitive artist, one who is not so much of a drafter, but interested in letting the foundation determine the outcome. He then moves along with the piece as it evolves. There were many layers of work, and numerous firings over the course of a year to achieve the surface he was shooting for. The soulful longing evident in the expression and the bold execution of the work helped to land its placement as Best of Show.

Joe Kashi’s photography is unmanipulated digitally, save for some range changes in the light to dark ratio. He frequently finds himself looking for interesting abstractions that are already existing in reality, and then capturing them like a found object. The windows are especially ripe for unusual aberrations due to the old single-pane glass and abundance of cooking inside Veronica’s Coffee House during frigid winter months.

Joe claims that what a photographer needs in order to capture these little gems are an open and still mind, and of course a keen eye. Oh, and also the ability to avoid the picturesque, unless it can be handled in a completely new way.

The exhibit stays up through the end of the month and then comes down to make way for the Kenai Peninsula Borough Student Exhibit. Gallery hours are 12 to 6 p.m., Monday through Saturday.

Zirrus VanDevere is a local mixed-media artist and owns Art Works gallery in Soldotna. She has bachelor’s degrees in fine arts and education.

Art Seen: Painter dresses up youthful art with advanced approach

The walls at the Gary Freeburg Gallery at Kenai Peninsula College’s Kenai River Campus abound with color and well-crafted design this month.

Al baio, a recent graduate from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in New York City, exhibits a series of large paintings depicting young children in various animal uniforms. The paintings are done in Flashe paint, which is vinyl-based, and Sharpie marker. The Flashe paint is very guachelike, allowing for large areas of very flat color. She has been working exclusively in this medium for a year and a half, and color is obviously central to her work. I am amazed that a 22-year-old has such a mature sense of composition and form.

She says her experience of working on this first solo show was thrilling in every way. She also explains that her artwork has been focused on children and childhood for a while, with this current body of work primarily built around her memories and notions of childhood camaraderie. Growing up, she never had many friends and secretly envied all cliques she didn’t qualify for, no matter where their status fell on the totem pole of preschool popularity, she said.

The bright-eyed children in this body of work are unified by their attire as much as by their exaggerated facial expressions. Their animal regalia becomes a trademark of their solidarity, establishing the exclusivity of their gang. As they peer out of their Crayola-colored uniforms, a humorous vulnerability emerges, exposing them for the children they are.

Ellen Chambers, who curated the “Paper x3” exhibit at the college recently, discovered al baio while searching for artists to include in that exhibit. Baio’s work was in a juried exhibit for student work executed over the nonacademic summer months, and she won the Boit Award for her pieces. Chambers says she was impressed by the unpretentiousness and easy friendliness of the young, blue-haired artist, and could not wait to arrange an exhibit.

Baio has come through solidly on this first exhibit; it will be interesting to watch her career progress.

Zirrus VanDevere is a local mixed-media artist and owns Art Works gallery in Soldotna. She has bachelor’s degrees in fine arts and education.

Art Seen — Better together

The truth is we need each other. I’ve lived on the Kenai Peninsula for 20 years now, and as far as I can tell, it has always attracted and bred artists. It is quite possible that the amazing beauty that surrounds us on every side is an inspiring element, whether the artist chooses to represent those images or something else.

I’m certain many artists throughout history have managed to produce interesting bodies of work without associating with a group designed to encourage and support them. But we need them, nevertheless, and they need us, as well. Our participation in artist co-ops may not be as intensive as being involved in the European “salons” at the turn of the last century, but they can certainly invigorate us and keep us working. The Kenai Potters’ Guild and the Kenai River Council on the Arts, each located at the Kenai Fine Arts Center, have gone through many changes and revolutions over the years, but still remain viable sources for artists.

The Arts and Humanities Council, developed to be an overarching source of support for the arts of any kind, functioned out of the KFAC for years and put on the Jail House Rock fundraiser (the building used to house the town jail). Eventually, fluctuating board membership caused the group to join with the Peninsula Art Guild, but then was revived as the Kenai River Council on the Arts when there was a big push in the art community for a new, world-class center of the arts in the central peninsula area. Although that dream has not yet been realized, the board has once again rejoined PAG and has been putting on experimental shows, as well as group experiments, exhibits and installations.

Last month, Joyce Cox displayed “Facets of Three-Dimensional Art.” It is an eclectic mix of materials and indicates an artist with a lively curiosity and a sure love for the object. She has a triptych that is a tribute to Louise Nevelson, an artist who may well be one of those aforementioned artists who worked in relative isolation and was able to put out quite an interesting body of work. Most of what she produced, although original, was quite similar throughout her career.

She built large, mostly bas relief sculptures (meant to be viewed against the wall, but have three-dimensional elements. It sometimes means “slightly raised,” and is pronounced bah-relief) amounting to various sizes of boxes to hold the myriad interestingly shaped wooden objects. If the pieces were not already of a similar color, she painted the entire sculpture one color, to help emphasize the form and the relationship between the objects. Her work is striking and poetic, and certainly has endured, both physically and in the public eye. I would love to see what she might have created had she been part of a supportive group of artists, how her work may have inspired others, and how their input may have encouraged her, as well.

We’ll never know, of course, but in an area that has as many artists per capita as a well-known artist community like Homer, I am thankful we have groups like the KPG, the PAG and the KRCA, and I look forward to their continued growth. If you are also feeling thankful for their existence, you might want to join the upcoming PAG meeting at the Kenai Fine Arts Center, at 10 a.m. Feb. 28. You don’t even need to be an artist to get involved, just have an interest in supporting the arts.

Marcia Beauchamp is a great example of someone who gave her time, intelligence and excellent managerial skills to the PAG board, and was not herself a practicing artist. She donated over a decade of service in memory of her mother, who had been an artist. When she moved to the treasurer position, Roy Shapley, a photographer and busy teacher, stepped up to the role as president. Recently, Roy passed away at about the same time as Marcia left the peninsula for Napa Valley, Calif. Although we miss them both immensely, they have left an organization in full swing and progressive motion. Roy was only 52 when he died, shocking a huge community of friends and co-workers. He and Marcia are models for all of us by their unselfish service and dedication to what they loved and believed in.

So if you believe in the arts and want to do what you can to support artists in our area, consider joining the effort. Because we really can’t go it alone.

Zirrus VanDevere is a local mixed-media artist and owns Art Works gallery in Soldotna. She has bachelor’s degrees in fine arts and education.

Shooting for her dreams — Skyview graduate merges photography, music industry

Blair Reynolds recently came back to town to wow folks with an impressive photography display at Coffee Roasters on Kalifornsky Beach in December. Her work is extremely high contrast, depicting band and concert events from names like Fall Out Boy and Silverstein.

She has some quieter portraits of whole bands or solo performers that feel quite intimate and spontaneous. Her full portfolio also includes shots of Dillinger Escape Plan, Every Time I Die, Alesana, Misery Signals, Chiodos, Gym Class Heros, Paramore, Haste the Day, The Bleed, Portugal the Man, Anberlin, Poison the Well, Bayside, Goodbye Elliot, The Sword, Circus Survive, The Academy Is, The Almost, Deftones, Boys Like Girls, N.E.R.D., All Time Low, 3oH!3, Fear Before and Geffery Star.

In an image from a Silverstein concert, she captured that ecstatic moment when a fan reaches for and makes a connection with an often-frenetic performer. The lighting is surreal, and as is true in much of what she chronicles, the lights created by other photographers actually help to garnish the amazing light for her lens to capture.

While growing up on the Kenai Peninsula she attended public schools and graduated from Skyview High School. An atypical student, Blair credits two teachers for altering her life path by encouraging her interest in photography, and helping her fulfill that dream. Clark Fair and Sandra Lewis, both teachers at Skyview High School, were definitely a positive influence, and she still values their support.

Sandra remembers Blair as an exceptional student who went the extra mile, refining and perfecting her photography, often spending vacations working hard on her craft.
“It was great to have her in class.” Sandra said. “She inspired me. I’m pretty sure she made her mind up to become a professional photographer her junior year and never deviated from that pursuit.”

Recruited by the Center for Digital Imaging Arts at Boston University, Blair attended school on the East Coast in 2005 and 2006. While studying photography, she began developing contacts with bands, record label executives, producers and high-end fashion photographers. After graduation, she moved to Denver and is currently employed by Soda Jerks Presents as a promoter for local music venues. Blair is also a tour manager for bands based out of Denver, New York and Los Angeles.

Blair envisioned using photography professionally, whether it translated into commercial success or not. Happiness comes from following your dreams, she said, and she loves the road she is on. She’s being careful to not fall into the various traps and foibles that can diminish the professional nature of what she does. She says it’s easy to not feel star-struck when so many of her friends are involved with bands and with the industry.

She also says she doesn’t want to be typecast into any one genre, and has the desire to do something important for the world at large. She’s been looking into Invisible Children, a Los Angeles-based organization that helps kids in Africa. She wants to go document what’s going on.

Talking to this young dynamo of a woman, I don’t doubt that if she sets her mind to it, it will happen. As we spoke, even more talent abounded in the crowded café during the opening. Kelsey Shields, Derek Poppin and Kaleb Nelson were putting out grass-rooty, original music, a nice complement to the energetic photography.

Although her work speaks for itself, included in her bio was the following, impressive quote, from Dane Poppin with A Static Lullaby:

“Blair Reynolds Photography sets the bar for what should be expected out of a band/event photographer in a generation where every kid with a digital camera and a website can be labeled a ‘professional’. She is a person who has dedicated her entire life to pursuing her craft, and it truly shows. I’ve seen this girl surf crowds, elbow scene kids, and dodge speakers just to capture the intensity of a band’s live show in one photograph. If you are lucky enough to have her point the lens your way, be prepared to witness the best work her field has to offer.”

Zirrus VanDevere is a local mixed-media artist and owns Art Works gallery in Soldotna. She has bachelor’s degrees in fine arts and education.

Art Seen: Display brings out shared sense of color, introspection

Odie’s has been serving up more than sandwiches and coffee lately, with some really fine art displayed on the walls. Claire Rowley, Ashley Doremire, Sam Merry, Sue Zurfluh-Mann and Donna Schwanke are all artists who have taken classes at Kenai Peninsula College and have teamed up for an informal group exhibit at the popular sandwich shop on the Sterling Highway in Soldotna.

It is a show that hangs together better than most “student exhibits” tend to, and there seems to be a kindred spirit element to the arrangement. Most of the works actually feel like self-portraits, whether they are labeled as such or not. The abstracts have a vibrancy and immediacy that are as visually entertaining as they are colorful and accessible.

Sam Merry’s “Octopod” shows a geometrically stylized octopus that seems moody, quiet and intelligent. Most of the smoothly painted arms disappear off the edges of the frame, only to curl back inward toward the body of the creature. Sam is not afraid to let parts of the animal vanish into shadow, and the overall composition is maturely handled.

In “Sea, Land and Sun,” Claire Rowley (who is also an employee at Odie’s) has allowed the underlying painted texture to further animate her already dynamic brushstrokes. There is a yin/yang element to the piece without becoming trite or obvious. Another of her works, a fiber piece called “Family Dynamics,” is a happy, Picassoish wall hanging. The lines are bold and energized, the mostly primary colors strong but proportionately interesting. The title allows for easy empathy.

“Alone and Inbetween” is a painting by Ashley Doremire, and has a nice balance of abstract and representational elements. It feels as much, if not more so, like an honest self-portrait as her “Self Portrait,” which is still a fun and quirky little piece that depicts a severed head wearing big, red, squarish sunglasses and a somewhat petulant expression.

The character and emotional tone of “Alone and Inbetween,” however, tells me of a young woman with both the courage to take chances, and the thoughtfulness to learn from the results of whatever experience ensues. There is a reaching up and a digging down that create a striking balance.

It’s refreshing to view a joint exhibit that allows for so much personality to shine through the individual pieces, as well as the show as a whole. The exhibit will remain on view through the rest of January.

Zirrus VanDevere is a local mixed-media artist and owns Art Works gallery in Soldotna. She has bachelor’s degrees in fine arts and education.

Art Seen: Colorful variety at Kaladi’s shows

Both Kaladi Brothers coffee shops are alive with color this month.

Amy Warfle has photographs on display at the Kaladi Brothers on Kobuk Street in Soldotna. Although the majority of the pieces are wildlife or landscapes, the most successful are her human subject portraits. In “Abriel,” a child’s downturned face fills the image. Her eyes appear closed and her expression is befitting of a much more experienced and wise being.

In “Dress Up,” the subject, possibly the same young girl, sits in front of a large oval mirror in a big, white, floppy hat and a slip obviously meant for a woman. Her pose and expression are captured as the classic dress-up stance; the peripheral environment could not have been better planned (if in fact it was) as the metal chest, large woman’s dress shoes and perfectly aged door create the quintessential backdrop for the child’s play. It is either an expert studio shot, or just a really fortuitous catch.

The framing concerns me some; not just the lack of it, but also the fact that only one of these photographs incorporates a mat that could protect it against damage. Photos have a nonporous surface (unless they are digitally produced on porous paper), as does the glass these are pressed up against.

Moisture can get trapped between the two and make them adhere, sometimes irrevocably. Our environment is dryer than most up here, but I have still seen it happen many times. Using matting and backing board can also usually help with the rippling/waving effect that some of these pieces have occurring.

At the Sterling Highway branch, Donna Schwanke and Kathy Painter have a body of work on display that I first encountered at Odie’s sandwich shop. The two artists work in watercolor, Donna’s relaxed handling often in contrast to Kathy’s more tightly rendered painting (although “Counting Sheep” by Kathy is a wonderful exception).

What is interesting is most of the paintings were created jointly, and then signed with the name Vidalia Romeko. The combination works well. Excepting just a couple of them, namely “Berries and Cherries” and “Lemon-aide,” which have the cluttered, too-many-cooks-spoil-the-soup sort of feel, most of the joint ventures are strong, engaging and lovely.

Two particularly successful Vidalia Romeko pieces are “Landscape,” with rich deep tones and vibrant hues, and “Down the Creek,” in my estimation the best of the show. The latter is nearly fully abstract, but salmon shapes are discernible, and the energy created by the vigorous brushstrokes and the areas where the watercolor paints were left alone to do that crazy thing they do, is quite exciting. It is the kind of painting one could spend a considerable amount of time with and still feel one has not fully explored it. “Counting Sheep” is Kathy’s most successful solo entry, and Donna shines with her almost cartoonish and very playful “Tulips.”

Zirrus VanDevere is a local mixed-media artist and owns Art Works gallery in Soldotna. She has bachelor’s degrees in fine arts and education.

Art Seen — Many moose

I see moose. They’re everywhere. They eat our compost when times are tough. Sometimes they get in the way of our vehicles, and vice versa. I’ve had one try to cross a small bridge with me, bumping my car into the opposite guardrail, ever so gently.

They are mysterious and majestic, powerful, gangly and awkward, all at once. Regardless of how we feel about them, they are a common part of our experience, one that is explored with visual media in an exhibit that is a brainchild of Bill Heath’s, and presented by the Peninsula Art Guild at the Kenai Fine Arts Center.

“Only Moose” is an invitational exhibit Heath had been thinking about for years and put into action about a year and a half ago. Rather than send out invites to a list of chosen artists, he used a more casual approach by mentioning the exhibit in random conversations. Interestingly, the latecomers to the project were the ones to enter more pieces than those who had significantly longer lead time. The artists came through in typical Kenai Peninsula fashion, entering a wide variety of media, including photography (both classic and digital), graphite drawing, pottery, fiber, found object sculpture, oil, acrylic and watercolor painting, and pen and ink.

Many of the pieces are fanciful, like Donna Steele’s “Asneakin & Apeakin,” a line
drawing in India ink, and Pat Lytle’s sweet portrait “Amble.”

Much of the photography is of the expected “look who I found in my yard” variety, but Heath himself included two thoughtful pieces, both with the media description “photo-based artwork.” “Moose Ears” is a nearly iridescent-on-black image that feels as if one is looking through stained glass at the fireweed and ears-only hint of a young moose. In “Brown Water,” you find the adult moose swimming in shallow water, but the image has been so abstracted as to feel like a monoprint on rice paper or even something more exotic.

Genevieve Klebba’s interesting photographic entry is of a male and female moose in a marsh. The image is quite grainy, and the contrast has been pumped up, also giving the effect of some sort of printmaking. Timothy Oliver’s quiet watercolor, “Thriving,” also deserves mention. It is understated and lovely, rendered in surprising greens and blues.

One of my most favored works is a freestanding piece by Joy Falls titled “Moose Diaries.” She uses a skull, barbed wire, stone, pencil and paint to create a really fascinating sculpture. An imaginary diary sprawls across the skull, which is both comical and tragic.

Gaye LaRane’s watercolor/acrylic strips spin freely, each suspended from a spot in the ceiling. The tones are earthy, and the textures inviting.

I decided to execute a fairly traditional work for this exhibit, which I have realized is especially unusual, judging from the responses I’ve gotten. One woman who has seen my work for years expressed surprise that I worked representationally. It is called “Law of Economy,” and is a fairly large oil over acrylic on canvas of a mother moose and her offspring who shines purple in the nighttime light. The handling is fairly loose, and the mood verges on ominous. Rarely do I mention my own work in these articles, but I thought I would throw that one in. It was an interesting task.

Two of my other favorites surrounded my own on display: Pat Lytle’s “Drifting” done in soft pastel with swirled and cloudy glazing, and Anne Louise Gillilan’s “Signs of Spring,” a photo of moose droppings revealing themselves as ice begins to thaw in a puddle. The composition is good and the printing basically flawless, with a nice tonal range of blacks, grays and full whites. Both pieces say a lot with just a little.

We really do seem to love our moose, whether we are recording their aesthetically pleasing droppings, or telling a loving story, like in Pam Mersch’s “Harvest I,” in fiber, and “Harvest II,” in mixed media, where she visually explains the missing broccoli from her garden-acquired meal. And even more so when we are pleading for their welfare, as in “Traffic Control” a digital illustration by Chris Jenness. From the looks of it, these powerful, lovely creatures are a revered and adored part of our community, and are here to stay in our hearts and minds. The exhibit runs through this week.

Zirrus VanDevere is a local mixed-media artist and owns Art Works gallery in Soldotna. She has bachelor’s degrees in fine arts and education.

Art Seen: Dena’ina exhibit includes craftsmanship of usable, decorative arts

The “Dena’ina Art and Regalia” show at the Funky Monkey in November was an interesting compilation of works gathered by the Kenaitze Tribe.

You will see photography of interpretive sites by Kim Dolchok, as well as be able to pick up a flyer on “K’Beq” or “Footprints,” the Kenaitze-run interpretive site this side of Cooper Landing. Or you could peruse Maggie Jones’ 2007 anth- ropology class project, a series of stories incor- porating Dena’ina language. She has a fiber piece on exhibit titled “Three Friends” or “Tuq’ina Ida Sukdu,” which appears to be a story of three feathered friends who live in a coastal area.

Jones also displays a number of beaded leather garments, or regalia, at least one of which has earned an award at the Kenai Peninsula State Fair. Dentillia shells are utilized quite a bit in these pieces, which have a historic reputation for denoting wealth and prosperity. A handbag paired with a particularly beautiful garment has an authentic gut sack bottom, cleverly sewn into a heart shape as seen from below.

Dana Verrengia has her leather and beadwork displayed, as well, plus a series of four small wall hangings depicting various Alaska scenes, including a vibrant depiction of our beloved red salmon buddies.

Benjamin R. Baldwin has contributed two unique paintings. One is called “Dagedi T’et’ani” or “One That Makes Smoke” and is about Mount Redoubt erupting in the late 1980s. The piece is backed or matted by wild beach grass, and Baldwin has told his story using pigments made from fireweed, Alaska blackberry and powdered Kenai river rock. In “Nagh quinqudatl” or “They Have Returned to Us,” salmon are returning to their spawning grounds. In this he’s utilized fireweed, delphinium, Alaska blackberry, dog berry/leaf and crushed Kenai river rock. The depictions are subtle and earthy.

There is a sense of deep reverence and love that seems to come out of this compilation. It is good to see that efforts toward keeping the culture alive and well seem to be paying off. The dim but not sparse lighting of the space creates an ambiance that urges customers to feel comfortable with small talk as well as deeper discussion.

The next art show at the Funky Monkey will open with a First Thursday reception for photographer Allison Mattson from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday. Kaladi Brothers will likely have new artists to check out then, as well, but look for most First Thursday venues to have something going on in February. The first Thursday in January falls on the first day of the year, a day not likely to yield receptions or openings.

Zirrus VanDevere is a local mixed-media artist and owns Art Works gallery in Soldotna. She has bachelor’s degrees in fine arts and education.

Art Seen — Drinking in variety at Kaladi Brothers’ November art shows

With the opening of a new shop on the Sterling Highway, in the old Godfather’s Pizza space, Kaladi Brothers now offers twice the art to see each month.

There are artists showing in both locations, where First Thursday receptions were held at the beginning of the month. Libby Berezin’s clay work is on exhibit at the Sterling Highway shop. She completed a bachelor of arts degree in literature in Illinois before moving to Alaska with her husband in 1975.

The pieces she has on display are mostly functional platters, with glazes that feel organic and with designs that are patterned after the natural world.

Some of the round platters have handles, and all of the square and rectangular platters have irregular, sort of floppy edges. There is an almost Japanese feel to some of the lighter, less heavily painted pieces.

In the side room, she has a series of objects that appear to be both wheel thrown and hand built and have the quality of sea urchins or some such underwater creature. Even though they appear to be nonfunctional ceramics, I find myself imagining turning them flat on a counter to hold rings and other jewelry.

There is something about clay that invites one to use it, handle it and make it fit into one’s lifestyle somehow.

Her prices are more in keeping with national prices for pottery, but are still reasonable (potters in our area of Alaska sell their wares quite inexpensively, especially considering the extra cost of materials shipment).

It is good that she mounts solo exhibits in more serious venues, as well, which helps to challenge her and keep her creative juices flowing. A couple of her pieces already had sold tags on them.

At the original Kaladi Kobuk location are the fanciful fiber creations of varying sizes and themes by Jan Wallace. I particularly enjoy the more subtle and thoughtful “Slow Dancing” and the vibrant and irregular “Looking for Stargate.” There is something inviting about “Fractured Ecosystem,” but there is a disconnect between the troubling title and the serene, Zenlike quality of the piece.

“Spirits and Myths” seems to be an interesting exercise, but I feel the composition could have been better orchestrated.

Her triptych, “Finding My Way,” seems more personal and the compositions more interesting, especially when the attached objects break the outside line of the piece.
She calls the work displayed in this exhibit a “creative outlet,” and all in all, the show fills the space well, almost verging on crowded. There is even a bonus underwater scene in the bathroom you will want to take in.

Kaladi Brothers has been providing a venue for artists for a number of years, and those willing to use the difficult hanging system (everything must be suspended by fishing line) have been bringing in a wide variety of art to display.

Zirrus VanDevere is a local mixed-media artist and owns Art Works gallery in Soldotna. She has bachelor’s degrees in fine arts and education.

Art Seen — Artists Without Borders show offers lots to look at

Artists Without Borders has another group exhibit in the conference room upstairs in the 4D Professional Building on Marydale Avenue and the Kenai Spur Highway.

Sometimes the exhibits have themes, which can increase the creative input from participants (last month’s was “The color of music”). Occasionally, it will be a solo endeavor, but mostly the exhibits are open to any and all. There is no formal group that meets, but rather, an e-mail list that word goes out to regularly. Anyone wishing to be a part of the list can call Karen at 262-3958.

I would describe the current exhibit as cute, with an abundance of pieces popular for decades here on the Kenai Peninsula. Clear exceptions include Donna Schwanke’s pieces, and an entry from Kathy Painter titled “Peacock Gone Wild.”

Schwanke’s “Taking Risks” was the people’s choice, understandably, as it is a vibrant piece with unusual textural handling. The medium is represented as watercolor on textured canvas, but the brushstrokes are so severe and the paint so shiny and plastic feeling, I would have guessed this was done with a polymer of some type.

The composition is solid, and the colors are uplifting without feeling corny. The piece is so inviting and unusual, it needed a notice posted to keep viewers’ hands off of the canvas. It’s been fun to watch Donna stretch and experiment these last couple years, and her work is really starting to garner attention. One might call her “up and coming,” if she’d allow it. She is generally quite demur when complimented, simply professing a great love for creating her work.

Another piece with an interesting aspect is “Wild Horse Canyon” by Sherry Collins. She has used an oil knife rather than a brush, which creates much of the visual interest in this work, as it is pleasingly loose and textural. Her horses appear to be sort of floating in space, however, something I’m not thinking she intended.

Melinda Hershberger has displayed some really lovely and controlled brushstrokes in her still life “Apples and Ball Jar.” It is executed in oil, which can be a messier and potentially unruly medium as compared with others, so her skill is to be appreciated. The creamy colors used in defining the cloth are delicious.

Georg-Anne Phillips has done a nice job on the whimsical “Raven Love II,” a small but accessible painting.

I am pleased to see the interest in creating and displaying art that this exhibit represents. It would be a great benefit to our community if more of the artists took their interests a step further and sought training and education in the visual arts.

Kenai Peninsula College has an excellent program, with knowledgeable and patient instructors. Being in a school environment can open up a person’s perspective and world significantly, and can provide the impetus for expressing one’s self in unique and fortifying ways.

Zirrus VanDevere is a local mixed-media artist and owns Art Works gallery in Soldotna. She has bachelor’s degrees in fine arts and education.

Art Seen: Artistic challenge ‘found’ in KPC gallery

“Works from Found Objects” is as the name suggests, a show of a number of individual works that include found objects. What isn’t readily apparent is that the objects hail from a single source.

Drew O’Brian was cleaning up the Kenai Peninsula College machine shop and made an offer to Joy Falls, another faculty member, who teaches sculpture and ceramics. She was thrilled with the idea of utilizing some of the mostly metal objects in her own art, as well as offering them up to the other art faculty members. The culminating project stands as a cohesive faculty exhibit on view in the Gary L. Freeburg Gallery until Nov. 13.

Cathleen Rolph’s singular contribution is a totem-sized “fetish.” It is called “Oath Taking Figure and Sacred Trust,” and is a joy to absorb. She has driven large nails and spikes of many styles and types into a wooden post that feels as if it is splitting from the pressure of it.

The abstract “face,” however, feels quite serene and compassionate. It reminds me of Francis Picabia mechanical drawings from the Dada era; especially the effect of the red paint applied to the inside of the post where it is split apart, so that it is visible and protected, all at once. Also Picabia-ish are the multiple gears surrounding the “neck” area.

Celia Anderson, currently appearing to be the most prolific of the bunch, has become increasingly political and heartfelt with her work. She tackles issues as serious as poverty, genocide and AIDS, but presents them with such cunning aesthetics that you don’t feel preached to or hammered down from the weight of it.

In “Darfur,” dyed material is the base. The process is called arashi shibori, a Japanese technique of creating the fabric surface by folding, wrapping and binding it on a pole, and then utilizing a reductive method termed “discharge dying.”

To this she has added rusty chain and a good-sized broken bone that was amazingly also acquired in the machine shop scavenge. The center of the piece is the pure black of the material, providing a polarizing and psychological dimension in relation to the subtle Conté crayon drawings of skeletal shapes on the right side. The work is beautiful, the message, unsettling.

Similarly, in the acrylic on canvas “Holes in the System,” the colors and brushstrokes are luscious and inviting, yet the yearning in the subject’s eyes is painful to witness.
He looks as if he is being squeezed by the top and bottom edges of the canvas. His pockets are turned out and empty, and metal discs flow to either side and right off the canvas to the surrounding wall space.

The discs could symbolize money or coins, and have the movement of an energy flow, outward and dissipating. The darkness surrounding him and the constricted composition evoke a desperate feeling.

There is an ominous tone to William Heath’s “Monument,” as well. The colors are cold and crisp. The machine in the photograph seems to tower over us, even though the image is of moderate size.

I get the sense that all of the artists are uncomfortable with these difficult times, and that there is an underlying tension with hints of angst to be found among the otherwise pleasing arrangements.

During World War I many writers and artists were aware of a growing discomfort with the way things were headed, and it showed in their work. Dadaism was an organized effort to throw the world’s deeds back into its face and ask “why?” thereby exposing the nonsensical nature of war and violence, and the political machinery that creates it.

Ellen Chambers’ cozy constructs in this exhibit inform me that although there are sharp differences between many of us, we are all interconnected and can find some sort of balance if we learn to work together. We just have to stop taking sides.

Zirrus VanDevere is a local mixed-media artist and owns Art Works gallery in Soldotna. She has bachelor’s degrees in fine arts and education.

Art Seen: Artists dig deep for inspiration in experimental exhibit

Folks arriving at the Kenai Fine Arts Center this month will stumble onto a unique exhibit. The third annual experimental art show, “Outside the Bag,” involves 13 diverse artists, each charged with the same task: to create a piece of art using 17 duplicated objects (or groups of objects).

Most of what was added to the grab bag was very nearly trash. In fact, a number of the encyclopedias had to be replaced due to incessant mold problems. The idea evolved from a previous year’s discussion about true artists and their need to create, no matter what the conditions or materials present. An artist locked away in a cell would eventually begin to draw in the dirt (or with it), carve in the walls, fold toilet paper or create “happenings” maybe only they could ponder. But do it they would; it is a need that comes from somewhere deep within the psyche and soul of an authentic artist.

There are varying degrees of both technical excellence and conceptual quality in this display, but there is a little something for everyone. The show statement explains, “The mission of the Experimental Show is to showcase and promote the works of emerging and professional artists engaged in the creation of conceptual ‘events’ and/or large scale installation works of art of a general alternative character.”

Each of the artists has written a statement to correspond with their work. The following are snippets from some of those, along with detail shots of their work. Artists involved were Joyce Cox, Laura Faeo, Joy Falls, Anne Louise Gillilan, Clarice Kipp, Denneice Lofgren, Pam Mersch, Tracie Stang, Connie Tarbox, Zirrus VanDevere, Carol Walkiewicz, Jan Wallace and Kathryn Zerbe.

“Outside the Bag” will be on exhibit through Nov. 1.

Joyce Cox, “Cerebellum”
“I see an object and almost immediately imagine it in new untraditional functions.”

Joy Falls, “Can You Guess My Name?”
“I like the saying ‘I am a spiritual being, having a human experience,’ because it describes how I feel and what I struggle with.”

Anne Louise Gillilan, “Welcome to My World”
“These items spoke of the seemingly chaotic collection of experiences that can be formed and transformed into a luscious image that tells a story.”

Clarice Kipp, “Phoenix”
“The idea for the ashes came first.”

Denniece Lofgren, “Learning”
“In the autumn of my life, I returned to school, but really I’ve returned to more than simply educate my mind.”

Pam Mersch, “Knowledge”
“… Ribbons of truth/life — mirror, seeking knowledge/truth of self. … Wow.”
Tracie Stang, “Ravenous”
“The raven is thought to be a highly intelligent bird with an unsavory reputation as a scavenger that does not distinguish between humans and animals. When I think about our world today, environmentally, socially and morally, I am reminded of another species.”

Connie Tarbox, “Seeking Order”
“Our times are deep into chaos, a paradigm shift is eminent.”

Zirrus VanDevere, “Sordid Turbulence”
“The alchemy that an artist is involved with can be great magic, indeed. It can transform our darknesses into a creative process and thereby create new emotional and psychological understanding.”
Carol Walkiewicz, “Gothic Clowning”
“… A black distorted order not quite right in reality.”

Zirrus VanDevere is a local mixed-media artist and owns Art Works gallery in Soldotna. She has bachelor’s degrees in fine arts and education.

Art Seen: Exhibit is new page in art book

When I walked into the Gary L. Freeburg Gallery at the Kenai River Campus of Kenai Peninsula College, the lights suddenly turned on. A motion sensor has been installed, probably to help the college save money on electricity. But while I found myself engrossed in the subtle and strangely intense exhibit, the lights quit on me no less than four times. A minor irritation, to be sure, but each time I felt a spell was broken.

Brenna Burns’ delightful Kozo (mulberry) paper installations have the breadth and depth to take viewers outside themselves, or inside themselves, if they are so inclined. Each lightly hanging piece incorporates quirky little drawings of cocoons, pods, creatures and dresses with blocks of writing, only sometimes legible, which serve to create varying textures on the already texture-rich handmade paper.

The words span from statements like, “the body is the garment of the soul,” to, “you’re not ready to know” (which is what I felt when I couldn’t read the words on some of the pieces, like a secret teaching I knew I could gain access to only when I was truly ready). Sometimes the repeated words feel like a mantra, other times more like the frenzied babblings of a manic-depressive. In others yet, like a detached factual statement, repeated in an offhand manner.


These works really seem like an archeological find, delicate transcripts depicting ancient practices, some areas torn, or bunched, or overlaid to varying effect. I found myself wishing I could literally surround myself in this element, in a paper house of sorts, enjoying the way the material responds to only slight movements around the room.

To quote the artist, who is also a writer based in New Haven, Conn., “Mulberry is the preferred food of silkworms, and I enjoyed this connection between the insect nature of the paper and the insect nature of the images I was working into the paper. Kozo also has a sound to it — it rustles and flutters without much provocation – and this struck me as another nice kinship with the insect world.”

The exhibit is called “Paper x3,” because of the three artists represented.Each have been involved in their own type of exploration into paper. Rhoda Rosenberg’s connection with paper was brought to the surface (I think I mean that as an intended pun) while she was learning printmaking in the 1970s.

“In etching, I fell in love with black ink. The surface was seductive. Instead of using the process to make images that I already had in my mind, I began to find images through the process.”

Each is a mono print and the artist has reiterated that point by writing 1/1 in the signature area. Her work is quite sensual and visually strong. I would like to see more of it, and on a grander scale, perhaps.

“Exhale” by Nicole Seisler, her only piece in the exhibit, is a series of chunky handmade papers, displayed so they are set off the wall and create nice shadows. The paper does not seem unlike those created by students in any number of printmaking 101 classes across the country. All of the artists appear primarily process oriented. And while printmaking and papermaking are imbued with seemingly magical properties themselves, it is Brenna Burns’ work that haunts me with its magical, whimsical and inherently thoughtful approach.

At the turn of the millennium, there was a summit called to decide what a time capsule should optimally contain that would not be opened for another thousand years. After much discussion (who knows what operating systems or even electrical/energy systems will in use by then, since metal does weird things in space and is heavy, etc.) it was decided that something on paper would be the best choice.

Paper, even though it can wrinkle, mold, get crispy and yellow from an abundance of tannic acid, fall apart or simply dry out, is a surprisingly long-lasting element when properly cared for. So cheers to paper, times three, in all of its glory and subtlety. Thanks to the curator, Ellen Chambers, who pulled it all together, and a special kudos to Celia Anderson, who makes things like this happen at our local college.

Zirrus VanDevere is a local mixed-media artist and owns Art Works gallery in Soldotna. She has bachelor’s degrees in fine arts and education.

Art Seen: Water works

Pam Mersch discovered her love for art as an adolescent, painting horse portraits for her father. She had two aunts who were longtime active artists, and another who tried her hand at it but then focused all of her energy on her job helping the developmentally disabled.

Mersch’s mother, Gwen Thomas, was always an oil painter. That is until Mersch coerced her into taking a watercolor workshop in Oregon. Now Thomas is an avid watercolorist almost exclusively, much like her daughter. Mersch has done some “smoke paintings,” where she’s utilized the smoke from a burning fatwood stick to “paint” on paper. The effect is quite dreamy and intriguing. She has also done the occasional collage, sometimes utilizing her watercolor pieces in them.

Mersch received an associate’s degree in art from the University of Alaska Anchorage in 1975, and married Steve Mersch in 1978. He is a veterinarian, and Mersch spent many years working for his practice, as well as doing numerous other jobs, including volunteering for local arts groups like the Kenai Art Guild (aka Peninsula Art Guild) and Triumvirate Theatre. Throughout it all, she has continued to explore her artwork, delighting especially in the almost magical nature of watercolor.

Her work will be on display at the Funky Monkey in Kenai for October, with a First Thursday reception from 6 to 9 p.m. The lively piece “Trade” incorporates a new technique she recently picked up at a workshop in Homer. It involves thoroughly wetting both sides of a 140-pound weight piece of watercolor paper, then laying it flat on a gator board. The paper stays flat because of the water saturation, avoiding the pesky curling many watercolorists often contend with. The colors are also more lush and remain more saturated upon drying, and the brushstrokes are especially yummy.

Mersch has traveled to Italy for a workshop and recently lived awhile in Sherborn, a town in Dorset County, England. Steve had a stint as a resident veterinarian and Mersch used this opportunity to sketch and paint her new surroundings. Every Tuesday she walked into Sherborn to paint with a watercolor group. Tea was served promptly at 3 p.m., without fail. The watercolor group that meets here locally at the Kenai Fine Arts Center every second and third Saturday is a great source of camaraderie and inspiration for her, as well. (Call 262-7040 for information on that.)

I asked Mersch what her advice to aspiring artists would be, and she quickly responded, “Live it, breathe it; even more than I do. Experience as many mediums as you possibly can and be brave.”

And then she laughed, because sometimes we teach best what we most need to learn. Mersch’s work is certainly lively and curious, and any new direction she may choose to go is likely to yield inviting results.

Zirrus VanDevere is a local mixed-media artist and owns Art Works gallery in Soldotna. She has bachelor’s degrees in fine arts and education.

Art Seen: Long lens — Photographer finds new uses for old medium

Joe Kashi has been taking photographs since he worked during high school in a photo store while growing up in the Pennsylvania coal fields. While at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology during college and graduate school, he was news editor of the MIT newspaper and simultaneously worked for The New York Times, taking dozens of photographs each week with a 35 mm Pentax while covering Boston’s tumultuous events of the late 1960s and early 1970s.

He studied fine art photography for a time under Minor White at MIT. White was a prominent American photographer and photographic educator at MIT who founded the national fine arts photography journal Aperture and edited it until at least the mid-1970s. For about 40 years, Minor White had been a close friend and collaborator with Ansel Adams and other pioneers of the American photographic fine arts movement.

Later, while at Georgetown Law School in Washington, D.C., Kashi started working mostly with large-format view cameras that made 4-by-5-inch through 11-by-14-inch negatives because of their inherently higher quality. He often spent Saturdays in those non-Internet days at the Library of Congress researching older but higher-quality photographic chemistry and processes. He still uses these large format cameras from time to time but now makes detailed scans of the negatives and prints them using digital printers rather than chemicals and darkrooms.

Kashi moved to Alaska in 1977 when he accepted a job offer to become one of the first attorneys for the Kenai Peninsula Borough. During that time, he did a good deal of large format photography and some of those photos were accepted into several statewide and Kenai Peninsula juried all-media fine art shows. He taught fine art photography and darkroom work at Kenai Peninsula College for a few years and also had a small, part-time custom photographic processing business in those chemical darkroom days.

The demands of a full-time private law practice were high and he put aside fine arts photography for more than 20 years. He had learned a great deal about aesthetics from his first wife, Michelle Corder, now deceased, who had quickly become a prominent fine arts painter in Alaska, with state commissions and work in various museum permanent collections. Corder was formally educated in painting at Carnegie-Mellon in the United States and also at the Italian State Art Academy in Florence, Italy.

Kashi started using digital photography for practical legal purposes in 2003 and found that digital photography, particularly when annotated or used as part of an interactive electronic brief made with Adobe Acrobat, could be an extremely powerful weapon for the trial lawyer.

By mid-2006, Kashi found that digital photography, even when using carefully chosen compact consumer cameras with good lenses, could produce results that were equal to or better than traditional 35 mm film and chemical photography. So he again tried his hand at fine arts photography in addition to family photos and the photo documentation he routinely used in legal practice.

His photos were accepted into a number of statewide juried shows since then, gaining an honorable mention in the 2007 Rarified Light show. His stepdaughter, Rachel Lee, also was accepted into the 2007 Rarified Light show. He and Rachel shared an Anchorage show in December 2007 through the Alaska Photographic Center, and both were accepted into the 2008 Rarified Light show. Kashi also has been invited to participate as one of 50 photographers statewide for next year’s invitational show commemorating the 50th anniversary of Alaska statehood.

Many of Kashi’s works are contemplative and dynamic. Some of his more accessible work can be seen adorning the walls at Mykel’s Restaurant, including the 24-by-36-inch landscape photographs above the stairs near the front door. He and Rachel will share a show at Art Works in Soldotna for November and December, with Kashi exhibiting some of his more “artsy” stuff. An artist reception will be held Nov. 6. He is also hanging a series of photos documenting the passage of the seasons at Veronica’s Cafe at Old Town Kenai in October.

Zirrus VanDevere is a local mixed-media artist and owns Art Works gallery in Soldotna. She has bachelor’s degrees in fine arts and education.