Framework: National Juried Exhibition
October 13th-November 24th
Opening Reception: October 20th
Opening Reception: October 20th
Juried by: Kristina Fjellman
Kristina is an emerging visual artist and performer, and is eager to combine these passions. She has exhibited her sculptural fiber art across the Midwest and in the Twin Cities, is a 2010-2011 recipient of a Jerome Fiber Art Project Grant at the Minnesota Textile Center, and has performed with The Winding Sheet Outfit, Red Eye Theater and Sandbox Theatre. Her work with The Winding Sheet Outfit’s Theater of the Tiny Clandestines received a Knight Arts Challenge grant in 2015. Recently, the installation, Borealis, was exhibited and purchased by St. Catherine University, a retrospective of her work was exhibited in Apparent Magnetism at Coe College in Cedar Rapids, IA, and she had a solo exhibition Reflection and Refraction in the Atrium Gallery at The Phipps Center for the Arts in Hudson, WI. Her current work incorporates light and sound through projected animation and explores how it interacts with her sculptures.
Kristina is a graduate of St. Catherine University with a Master of Arts in Education in both Art and Theater Education. Currently, she is an ensemble member of Sandbox Theatre. Upcoming projects include performances in The Memory Box of the Sisters Fox with Winding Sheet Outfit for MN Fringe Festival and Sandbox Theatre’s production, Wanda Gag: In the Treetops, at Open Eye Figure Theater in October 2017.
Kristina is an emerging visual artist and performer, and is eager to combine these passions. She has exhibited her sculptural fiber art across the Midwest and in the Twin Cities, is a 2010-2011 recipient of a Jerome Fiber Art Project Grant at the Minnesota Textile Center, and has performed with The Winding Sheet Outfit, Red Eye Theater and Sandbox Theatre. Her work with The Winding Sheet Outfit’s Theater of the Tiny Clandestines received a Knight Arts Challenge grant in 2015. Recently, the installation, Borealis, was exhibited and purchased by St. Catherine University, a retrospective of her work was exhibited in Apparent Magnetism at Coe College in Cedar Rapids, IA, and she had a solo exhibition Reflection and Refraction in the Atrium Gallery at The Phipps Center for the Arts in Hudson, WI. Her current work incorporates light and sound through projected animation and explores how it interacts with her sculptures.
Kristina is a graduate of St. Catherine University with a Master of Arts in Education in both Art and Theater Education. Currently, she is an ensemble member of Sandbox Theatre. Upcoming projects include performances in The Memory Box of the Sisters Fox with Winding Sheet Outfit for MN Fringe Festival and Sandbox Theatre’s production, Wanda Gag: In the Treetops, at Open Eye Figure Theater in October 2017.
[Best in Show] "Dangle"
Ceramic, metal, thread 52” x 26” x 23”
Matthew Eames
Carbondale, CO
Matthew Eames was born and raised on Cape Cod, Massachusetts. He received a BFA in Ceramics from the University of Hartford and an MFA in Ceramics from Wichita State University. Beyond the academic setting, he has held residencies in Arkansas, Colorado and Massachusetts. Through his years as a working artist, he has had group and solo exhibitions in galleries around the United States. He is currently the Studio Manager at the Carbondale Clay Center in Carbondale, CO.
“I am fascinated by the development of space. With my work, I look to interpret space and structure through physical and emotional layers. By presenting incomplete junctions of materials juxtaposed with recognizable structural elements, this work is a reminder of the lack of permanence that exists within our constructed realities.”
Carbondale, CO
Matthew Eames was born and raised on Cape Cod, Massachusetts. He received a BFA in Ceramics from the University of Hartford and an MFA in Ceramics from Wichita State University. Beyond the academic setting, he has held residencies in Arkansas, Colorado and Massachusetts. Through his years as a working artist, he has had group and solo exhibitions in galleries around the United States. He is currently the Studio Manager at the Carbondale Clay Center in Carbondale, CO.
“I am fascinated by the development of space. With my work, I look to interpret space and structure through physical and emotional layers. By presenting incomplete junctions of materials juxtaposed with recognizable structural elements, this work is a reminder of the lack of permanence that exists within our constructed realities.”
[SOLD] "Estuvimos Hablando"
Mixed media, hand and machine embroidered 16” x 18”
Erman
Miami, FL
Cuban born Juan Antonio Gonzalez aka ‘Erman’ was raised globally. He has been working with fiber since 1975 first as a Fashion Designer transitioning into FiberArt in 1993 and presently practicing in concurrent careers. His visual works are series based and self-propelled introspections of his human condition. His methodology is usually associated with women's work such as sewing and embroidery which investigates matriarchy, gender and traditions with sub contexts of displacement, religion and Afro- Caribbean folklore. The works are accomplished mostly by reclaiming materials and using post production goods. Erman has been the invited guest presenter at FIT in NY, Edna Manley College in Jamaica, Colorado State University in Ft. Collins and Utah State University at Logan to name a few. His works are collected and form part of the PAMM permanent collection in Miami, ACBEU in Salvador Brazil, Dade County Public Library collection in Miami and Instituto Sacatar in Itaparica Brazil amongst others. He has taught special needs children and adults living with disabilities in programs sponsored by Miami Dade Parks and Recreation Dept. and has received various Cultural Affairs Department grants that afforded him cultural exchanges throughout the Caribbean.
“This piece like all of the work forming the series The Gladys Chronicles, was created by recording information from conversations in Spanish with Gladys, my maternal unit, who passed last September, succumbing to Alzheimer's and age related ills. In her altered state of memory, Gladys became quite poetic and a conversationalist which she never before was in her lifetime, giving me real and fictional stories of who she was and who we were as a nucleus. "...because we were sitting talking so comfortably and honestly that we rooted..." Is a translated excerpt from said conversations and the starting point for this work. The materials used in the piece were mined from her wardrobe and sewing room as I learned pattern making, tailoring, fine finishes and sewing from Gladys, who as a couture worker, doing piece work and made to measure for a varied private clientele, bought the home I grew up in, upon our migrating to Miami from Cuba in the 60s. This piece is also framed in a refurbished ornate frame from her estate.”
Miami, FL
Cuban born Juan Antonio Gonzalez aka ‘Erman’ was raised globally. He has been working with fiber since 1975 first as a Fashion Designer transitioning into FiberArt in 1993 and presently practicing in concurrent careers. His visual works are series based and self-propelled introspections of his human condition. His methodology is usually associated with women's work such as sewing and embroidery which investigates matriarchy, gender and traditions with sub contexts of displacement, religion and Afro- Caribbean folklore. The works are accomplished mostly by reclaiming materials and using post production goods. Erman has been the invited guest presenter at FIT in NY, Edna Manley College in Jamaica, Colorado State University in Ft. Collins and Utah State University at Logan to name a few. His works are collected and form part of the PAMM permanent collection in Miami, ACBEU in Salvador Brazil, Dade County Public Library collection in Miami and Instituto Sacatar in Itaparica Brazil amongst others. He has taught special needs children and adults living with disabilities in programs sponsored by Miami Dade Parks and Recreation Dept. and has received various Cultural Affairs Department grants that afforded him cultural exchanges throughout the Caribbean.
“This piece like all of the work forming the series The Gladys Chronicles, was created by recording information from conversations in Spanish with Gladys, my maternal unit, who passed last September, succumbing to Alzheimer's and age related ills. In her altered state of memory, Gladys became quite poetic and a conversationalist which she never before was in her lifetime, giving me real and fictional stories of who she was and who we were as a nucleus. "...because we were sitting talking so comfortably and honestly that we rooted..." Is a translated excerpt from said conversations and the starting point for this work. The materials used in the piece were mined from her wardrobe and sewing room as I learned pattern making, tailoring, fine finishes and sewing from Gladys, who as a couture worker, doing piece work and made to measure for a varied private clientele, bought the home I grew up in, upon our migrating to Miami from Cuba in the 60s. This piece is also framed in a refurbished ornate frame from her estate.”
"Net That Did Not Catch A Golden Retriever (Not Even One)"
Fabric, acrylic paint, ink
Ali Hval
Iowa City, IA
Ali Hval graduated from the University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa in 2015 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting, Honors, and Summa Cum Laude. In Spring of 2015, she received the Windgate Fellowship from the Center of Craft, Creativity, and Design in Asheville, NC to pursue her own projects over the course of a year. She is currently an MFA candidate at the University of Iowa in Painting and Drawing.
“My work is founded on repetition and breaking past a natural boundary or infrastructure. This piece begins with the formal structure of a grid, which is then simplified into a less predictable pattern—while retaining recognizable organization as the source. I have always had the inability to be completely at ease; part of this is anxiety, part of it is likely from being in a world where you fault yourself if you’re not constantly in motion, whether mentally or physically. It is retracing thoughts to make sure I’ve thought them correctly. It is making unnecessary lists and crossing things off my unnecessary list. It is a constant drone, a white noise machine on high volume. My work is the result of a process that emphasizes accumulation and excess, pushing a single idea to its furthest. The objects themselves are always begging for attention, always demanding more, always fighting to be beyond what they are. They reach past their natural boundaries while still retaining their initial form. The work must live with what it has become, but can manipulate itself into something else as long as it realizes its own limits.”
Iowa City, IA
Ali Hval graduated from the University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa in 2015 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting, Honors, and Summa Cum Laude. In Spring of 2015, she received the Windgate Fellowship from the Center of Craft, Creativity, and Design in Asheville, NC to pursue her own projects over the course of a year. She is currently an MFA candidate at the University of Iowa in Painting and Drawing.
“My work is founded on repetition and breaking past a natural boundary or infrastructure. This piece begins with the formal structure of a grid, which is then simplified into a less predictable pattern—while retaining recognizable organization as the source. I have always had the inability to be completely at ease; part of this is anxiety, part of it is likely from being in a world where you fault yourself if you’re not constantly in motion, whether mentally or physically. It is retracing thoughts to make sure I’ve thought them correctly. It is making unnecessary lists and crossing things off my unnecessary list. It is a constant drone, a white noise machine on high volume. My work is the result of a process that emphasizes accumulation and excess, pushing a single idea to its furthest. The objects themselves are always begging for attention, always demanding more, always fighting to be beyond what they are. They reach past their natural boundaries while still retaining their initial form. The work must live with what it has become, but can manipulate itself into something else as long as it realizes its own limits.”
"Clematis V"
Copperplate Photogravure on Somerset Satin 20” x 15”
Richard Hricko
Philadelphia, PA
Richard Hricko has exhibited internationally in museums, galleries and juried competitions, including the National Academy Museum in New York, Glynn Vivian Art Museum in Wales, International Mezzotint Competition at the Pratt Graphics Center in New York, the International Print Center of New York, and Garton and Cooke Gallery in London. His work is represented in many public and private collections, including the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Woodmere Art Museum, G.E. International Headquarters and the Delaware Art Museum. He is the recipient of a West Virginia Arts and Humanities Council Artist-in Residence Grant, Pennsylvania Council on the Arts Fellowship, National Endowment for the Arts/Mid-Atlantic Regional Fellowship, Brandywine Institute Visiting Artist Fellowship and several Temple University research grants. He is Professor and Program Head of Printmaking at Tyler School of Art of Temple University, where he has also served as Associate Dean, Graduate Program Director and Department Chairperson. He holds a BFA degree from the Rochester Institute of Technology School of Art and Design and a MFA degree from Tyler School of Art of Temple University. He is a co-founder of Crane Arts LLC, an organization engaged in the adaptive reuse of historic, industrial buildings for art and design studios, international exhibitions and performance spaces.
“My studio work draws upon the observation, invention and integration of details from natural and built environments. I compose each image by synthesizing a medley of disparate visual qualities and material characteristics (natural phenomena and materials, artifacts and architecture). Intricate, subtle rendering and subdued light serve to enhance an atmospheric sense of quiet mystery. A unique, believable image that never wholly existed in nature emerges from this variety of sources, suggesting the passage of time and the tension between mechanically constructed and naturally created forms within this condensed space. Photogravure is a 19th century process for transferring a photographic image to a copperplate, which is then etched and printing intaglio by hand on an etching press. When I make my copperplates, I use a combination of photography, digital and hand manipulation before I print the image onto paper."
Philadelphia, PA
Richard Hricko has exhibited internationally in museums, galleries and juried competitions, including the National Academy Museum in New York, Glynn Vivian Art Museum in Wales, International Mezzotint Competition at the Pratt Graphics Center in New York, the International Print Center of New York, and Garton and Cooke Gallery in London. His work is represented in many public and private collections, including the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Woodmere Art Museum, G.E. International Headquarters and the Delaware Art Museum. He is the recipient of a West Virginia Arts and Humanities Council Artist-in Residence Grant, Pennsylvania Council on the Arts Fellowship, National Endowment for the Arts/Mid-Atlantic Regional Fellowship, Brandywine Institute Visiting Artist Fellowship and several Temple University research grants. He is Professor and Program Head of Printmaking at Tyler School of Art of Temple University, where he has also served as Associate Dean, Graduate Program Director and Department Chairperson. He holds a BFA degree from the Rochester Institute of Technology School of Art and Design and a MFA degree from Tyler School of Art of Temple University. He is a co-founder of Crane Arts LLC, an organization engaged in the adaptive reuse of historic, industrial buildings for art and design studios, international exhibitions and performance spaces.
“My studio work draws upon the observation, invention and integration of details from natural and built environments. I compose each image by synthesizing a medley of disparate visual qualities and material characteristics (natural phenomena and materials, artifacts and architecture). Intricate, subtle rendering and subdued light serve to enhance an atmospheric sense of quiet mystery. A unique, believable image that never wholly existed in nature emerges from this variety of sources, suggesting the passage of time and the tension between mechanically constructed and naturally created forms within this condensed space. Photogravure is a 19th century process for transferring a photographic image to a copperplate, which is then etched and printing intaglio by hand on an etching press. When I make my copperplates, I use a combination of photography, digital and hand manipulation before I print the image onto paper."
"Line in the Sand" [VIDEO]
Telecine from double 8mm film, Digital audio
Sandy McLennan
Huntsville, ON
Sandy McLennan is a multidisciplinary artist, compelled to channel docu-drama evidence of the world around [Ontario]. He currently shoots, processes and projects regular 8mm and super 8 film and recently collaborated with his wife, artist Beverley Hawksley, to create their first narrative digital motion picture. A 1981 Sheridan College Media Arts graduate, he was an Audio-Visual/Computer Technician in schools until 2014. Under an Ontario Arts Council grant he teaches analog photography using cardboard pinhole cameras and a portable darkroom. He has exhibited photography, motion pictures, audio and installation/performance in festivals and galleries.
“Reflecting on divisions in thought, purpose, practice; in the world. The regular 8mm camera with its unique format including a line down the middle is my tool of choice for such pondering. At public beaches and docks near my home ("Cottage Country": Muskoka, Ontario; where I do not have a cottage) I shot with lenses and also a pinhole in their place, sometimes double-exposing, always hand-processing with various operations and chemicals. To me it reveals a different experience every time, just like going to the public beach in all seasons: sometimes you are alone, sometimes with others, sometimes with others and their props. The sound is compiled from location recordings, scans of a depth map of the bay in the lake and scans of the film itself (the mid line acts like a vinyl record groove).”
Huntsville, ON
Sandy McLennan is a multidisciplinary artist, compelled to channel docu-drama evidence of the world around [Ontario]. He currently shoots, processes and projects regular 8mm and super 8 film and recently collaborated with his wife, artist Beverley Hawksley, to create their first narrative digital motion picture. A 1981 Sheridan College Media Arts graduate, he was an Audio-Visual/Computer Technician in schools until 2014. Under an Ontario Arts Council grant he teaches analog photography using cardboard pinhole cameras and a portable darkroom. He has exhibited photography, motion pictures, audio and installation/performance in festivals and galleries.
“Reflecting on divisions in thought, purpose, practice; in the world. The regular 8mm camera with its unique format including a line down the middle is my tool of choice for such pondering. At public beaches and docks near my home ("Cottage Country": Muskoka, Ontario; where I do not have a cottage) I shot with lenses and also a pinhole in their place, sometimes double-exposing, always hand-processing with various operations and chemicals. To me it reveals a different experience every time, just like going to the public beach in all seasons: sometimes you are alone, sometimes with others, sometimes with others and their props. The sound is compiled from location recordings, scans of a depth map of the bay in the lake and scans of the film itself (the mid line acts like a vinyl record groove).”
"A Piece of Time"
Ink Jet Print 23” x 25”
Denis Hagen
Cedar Rapids, IA
Former advertising agency art director/creative director and graphic designer in Cedar Rapids, Omaha and Chicago. Hagen has worked for large and small agencies and created advertising in print, television, and collateral for large and small clients. Fine art photography was an avocation until retirement, and his work has been accepted into regional, national, and international competitions. Hagen recently received an Honorable mention at the International Photography Awards (aka Lucie Awards) for this series.
“These are digital photo composites. They are not planned or staged, but subject matter is found at various times and locations, captured, and multiple whole photos are combined in Photoshop. My focus is visual exploration, and my goal is to use digital technology to create images unlike those I’ve seen before. There is always the surprise of discovery, the search for something unique, and the irony of making photos that may not eventually resemble photographs.”
Cedar Rapids, IA
Former advertising agency art director/creative director and graphic designer in Cedar Rapids, Omaha and Chicago. Hagen has worked for large and small agencies and created advertising in print, television, and collateral for large and small clients. Fine art photography was an avocation until retirement, and his work has been accepted into regional, national, and international competitions. Hagen recently received an Honorable mention at the International Photography Awards (aka Lucie Awards) for this series.
“These are digital photo composites. They are not planned or staged, but subject matter is found at various times and locations, captured, and multiple whole photos are combined in Photoshop. My focus is visual exploration, and my goal is to use digital technology to create images unlike those I’ve seen before. There is always the surprise of discovery, the search for something unique, and the irony of making photos that may not eventually resemble photographs.”
[SOLD] "Threads #1"
Mixed Media on canvas 24” x 48”
Jane Chukas
Galena, IL
Jane paints with oil pastel, acrylic or oil on a variety of surfaces. She received her BA in Music Education from the University of Northern Iowa and, as time has gone by, discovered a love of visual art--while bringing music along with her. Tone, color, rhythm, and melody all appear in the painting in different form. “I think it is important to find a ‘first voice’--that is, not painting what you think you should and overlaying it with some definition of art.” She believes the viewer decides how to interpret and find enjoyment for the work themselves. Her works have been featured in numerous group and solo shows and is represented across the Midwest.
“This series show wide swaths of white and other colors to isolate the way in which a viewer sees the work. Threads of fragile ink lines connect the images into a larger weaving, framing our experience of the physical world and our emotional response to it.”
Galena, IL
Jane paints with oil pastel, acrylic or oil on a variety of surfaces. She received her BA in Music Education from the University of Northern Iowa and, as time has gone by, discovered a love of visual art--while bringing music along with her. Tone, color, rhythm, and melody all appear in the painting in different form. “I think it is important to find a ‘first voice’--that is, not painting what you think you should and overlaying it with some definition of art.” She believes the viewer decides how to interpret and find enjoyment for the work themselves. Her works have been featured in numerous group and solo shows and is represented across the Midwest.
“This series show wide swaths of white and other colors to isolate the way in which a viewer sees the work. Threads of fragile ink lines connect the images into a larger weaving, framing our experience of the physical world and our emotional response to it.”
"Chandelier"
Digital and Screen print, fabric 25” x 25”
Tony Dongwook Kim
Pasadena, CA
Kim received his Master’s Degree in textile design from Nottingham Trent University in the UK and his Bachelor’s degree in fashion-textile from Academy of Art University in San Francisco. Kim was selected as a top 5 finalist of PBTeen Textile Design Contest in 2011, and participated various group exhibitions including: VMRC Art Exhibition in Virginia in 2010 and 2013, New Designers in London, UK in 2014, Contempo Art Exhibition in Florida in 2015, It’s Now Fiber Art Exhibition in Seoul, South Korea in 2015 and 2017.
“Before starting the project series, my goal was to create a new and unique textile art that is appropriate for wall hanging. Away from flowers and tree patterns that I used to design, I wanted to try a new design that I’ve never done before. I have always been inspired by nature, but for this series I was to be inspired by artifacts, more specifically, the architecture of Alvar Aalto. After performing an overall research on the Scandinavian’s country, the unique characteristics each of Aalto’s architecture would be created into my own textile art. During the process, many different techniques were to be experimented as well. I only use the traditional hand printing technique however, for my new project, I want to try various techniques, such as hand printing and digital printing. Since the design target for my textile is interior, I would also research interior products and create a textile design that is suitable for interior.”
Pasadena, CA
Kim received his Master’s Degree in textile design from Nottingham Trent University in the UK and his Bachelor’s degree in fashion-textile from Academy of Art University in San Francisco. Kim was selected as a top 5 finalist of PBTeen Textile Design Contest in 2011, and participated various group exhibitions including: VMRC Art Exhibition in Virginia in 2010 and 2013, New Designers in London, UK in 2014, Contempo Art Exhibition in Florida in 2015, It’s Now Fiber Art Exhibition in Seoul, South Korea in 2015 and 2017.
“Before starting the project series, my goal was to create a new and unique textile art that is appropriate for wall hanging. Away from flowers and tree patterns that I used to design, I wanted to try a new design that I’ve never done before. I have always been inspired by nature, but for this series I was to be inspired by artifacts, more specifically, the architecture of Alvar Aalto. After performing an overall research on the Scandinavian’s country, the unique characteristics each of Aalto’s architecture would be created into my own textile art. During the process, many different techniques were to be experimented as well. I only use the traditional hand printing technique however, for my new project, I want to try various techniques, such as hand printing and digital printing. Since the design target for my textile is interior, I would also research interior products and create a textile design that is suitable for interior.”
"Tinker"
Silver Gelatin Photographs 36” x 29”
David Van Allen
Cedar Rapids, IA
David is a Professor Emeritus, having taught photography, design, Art History and Intro to Art at Mount Mercy University from 1983-2012. He has also taught at Kirkwood Community College and Coe College. He grew up in Iowa City, received a BA in English from St. Olaf College (1973) and an MA & MFA from the University of Iowa School of Art & Art History (1980). He frequently travels internationally to such places as Mexico, Guatemala, Egypt, Sudan, Turkey, Italy, Greece, Czech Republic, Germany and soon to Portugal. He has a live-in studio in the Cherry building in Cedar Rapids.
“I have been creating these multiple-image portraits since 1997. Each fragment is from a 35mm film negative. Each portrait was made from 5-8 rolls of 36-exp. film, with a close-up lens and a very close camera (4-5 inches). The focus ring is taped down so that the camera/subject distance remains constant as the hand-held camera ‘scans’ the subject. Each fragment is individually printed, full-frame, in the darkroom including part of the sprocket region. This emphasizes and calls attention to the frame of each fragment. The interior fragments are cut down to a thin black line and the exterior edges are rough due to the filed-down negative carrier signature of the enlarger. Although the portraits are made up of many rectangles, the final piece has a very irregular, rectilinear shape. These works are all about framing, on multiple levels and at multiple stages of the process. Every frame also represents a different point of view and a different moment in time.”
Cedar Rapids, IA
David is a Professor Emeritus, having taught photography, design, Art History and Intro to Art at Mount Mercy University from 1983-2012. He has also taught at Kirkwood Community College and Coe College. He grew up in Iowa City, received a BA in English from St. Olaf College (1973) and an MA & MFA from the University of Iowa School of Art & Art History (1980). He frequently travels internationally to such places as Mexico, Guatemala, Egypt, Sudan, Turkey, Italy, Greece, Czech Republic, Germany and soon to Portugal. He has a live-in studio in the Cherry building in Cedar Rapids.
“I have been creating these multiple-image portraits since 1997. Each fragment is from a 35mm film negative. Each portrait was made from 5-8 rolls of 36-exp. film, with a close-up lens and a very close camera (4-5 inches). The focus ring is taped down so that the camera/subject distance remains constant as the hand-held camera ‘scans’ the subject. Each fragment is individually printed, full-frame, in the darkroom including part of the sprocket region. This emphasizes and calls attention to the frame of each fragment. The interior fragments are cut down to a thin black line and the exterior edges are rough due to the filed-down negative carrier signature of the enlarger. Although the portraits are made up of many rectangles, the final piece has a very irregular, rectilinear shape. These works are all about framing, on multiple levels and at multiple stages of the process. Every frame also represents a different point of view and a different moment in time.”
"Passing Purple"
Ink Jet Print 16” x 24”
Michael Graham
South Salem, NY
Michael Graham’s journey to the world of Fine Art Photography started in the operating room..sort of. Before tearing his rotator cuff in 2016, he was working as a portrait/headshot photographer in the New York metropolitan area. After surgery, Michael spent more time in rehab than behind the camera. It was in NYC, with a point-and-shoot camera, where he whet his appetite for making the puddle reflection photos which have gained him recognition. Graham studied at Parsons in New York, NY and at Luther College in Decorah, IA. He has recently exhibited (solo/group) throughout California, Connecticut, Iowa, and New York --and in 2016 was awarded “People’s Choice” at the Des Moines Art Center.
“This current series consists of images that capture city life in the form of water reflections. The images are made by placing the camera very near the water and waiting for an interesting subject to enter the frame. In most cases, the images are presented upside down to shift the focal point to the reflection.”
South Salem, NY
Michael Graham’s journey to the world of Fine Art Photography started in the operating room..sort of. Before tearing his rotator cuff in 2016, he was working as a portrait/headshot photographer in the New York metropolitan area. After surgery, Michael spent more time in rehab than behind the camera. It was in NYC, with a point-and-shoot camera, where he whet his appetite for making the puddle reflection photos which have gained him recognition. Graham studied at Parsons in New York, NY and at Luther College in Decorah, IA. He has recently exhibited (solo/group) throughout California, Connecticut, Iowa, and New York --and in 2016 was awarded “People’s Choice” at the Des Moines Art Center.
“This current series consists of images that capture city life in the form of water reflections. The images are made by placing the camera very near the water and waiting for an interesting subject to enter the frame. In most cases, the images are presented upside down to shift the focal point to the reflection.”
"Oil Field"
Mixed Media on paper 9.25” x 14
Jeremy Downie
St. Paul, MN
Jeremy Downie is a visual artist currently based in St. Paul. He graduated from the School of Animation, Arts & Design at the Sheridan College Institute of Technology and also studied at the University of Toronto. His interdisciplinary practice embraces a variety of mediums including painting, drawing, mixed media, photography, and drawing performance.
“My objective is to engage the viewer beyond surface and image. Most recently, I’ve been experimenting with mixed media paintings on surfaces that are considered somewhat throwaway or transitory. They range from newspaper, wood, cardboard and city maps to more conventional watercolor paper and canvas. The paintings are generally developed on newspaper or cardboard and if used, collage pieces are random and serve merely as an underpainting or as a means to build the surface. These mixed media paintings depict divisions and boundaries, metal structures and delineating wires. Whether they are social divisions, theoretical or physical constructs, they all serve as frames to divide and isolate.”
St. Paul, MN
Jeremy Downie is a visual artist currently based in St. Paul. He graduated from the School of Animation, Arts & Design at the Sheridan College Institute of Technology and also studied at the University of Toronto. His interdisciplinary practice embraces a variety of mediums including painting, drawing, mixed media, photography, and drawing performance.
“My objective is to engage the viewer beyond surface and image. Most recently, I’ve been experimenting with mixed media paintings on surfaces that are considered somewhat throwaway or transitory. They range from newspaper, wood, cardboard and city maps to more conventional watercolor paper and canvas. The paintings are generally developed on newspaper or cardboard and if used, collage pieces are random and serve merely as an underpainting or as a means to build the surface. These mixed media paintings depict divisions and boundaries, metal structures and delineating wires. Whether they are social divisions, theoretical or physical constructs, they all serve as frames to divide and isolate.”
"October Night"
Digital Collage 20” x 16”
Sara Slee Brown
Iowa City, IA
“I have always been an artist but I have not always made art.” The second of four children, she is the oldest daughter of a doctor father and a painter mother in Ann Arbor, Michigan. She attended college in her hometown, majored in art, and received a BFA in Painting from the University of Michigan. She married right out of college, had two children and supported her husband throughout his education. They lived in Richmond, VA, New Orleans, LA, and Ann Arbor, MI before finally settling in Iowa City, IA. Later earned her MA and MFA in Painting from the University of Iowa and in her early fifties, was treated for breast cancer with a mastectomy and a year of chemotherapy and radiation. She worked as a clerk and graphic designer at the Iowa City Public Library for 20 years and, several years ago, left the library to fully focus on art.
“Architectural framework is predominant in many of my works- doorways in particular. The doorway indicates a transition is possible from one space into or out of another. The viewer is invited to consider what opening each particular door might reveal or what new path might await. These doorways are symbols for the choices or decisions that we must make every day about matters large and small, and where they might lead us. Eventually all these choices have brought us to who and where we are today.”
Iowa City, IA
“I have always been an artist but I have not always made art.” The second of four children, she is the oldest daughter of a doctor father and a painter mother in Ann Arbor, Michigan. She attended college in her hometown, majored in art, and received a BFA in Painting from the University of Michigan. She married right out of college, had two children and supported her husband throughout his education. They lived in Richmond, VA, New Orleans, LA, and Ann Arbor, MI before finally settling in Iowa City, IA. Later earned her MA and MFA in Painting from the University of Iowa and in her early fifties, was treated for breast cancer with a mastectomy and a year of chemotherapy and radiation. She worked as a clerk and graphic designer at the Iowa City Public Library for 20 years and, several years ago, left the library to fully focus on art.
“Architectural framework is predominant in many of my works- doorways in particular. The doorway indicates a transition is possible from one space into or out of another. The viewer is invited to consider what opening each particular door might reveal or what new path might await. These doorways are symbols for the choices or decisions that we must make every day about matters large and small, and where they might lead us. Eventually all these choices have brought us to who and where we are today.”
"Lullaby for a Refugee: Figure 1"
Ceramic 17” x 9”x 7.5”
Irina Bondarenko
Ann Arbor, MI
Irina was born in Kyiv, Ukraine, lived in Scotland and settled in Ann Arbor, MI in 1999. In 2008 she took a community ceramic studio class and, ever since, clay became another language to study and reflect upon. The challenges of not being a native speaker, the novelty of being in a foreign country and in unfamiliar surroundings attune one’s senses to appreciate those little things to which we can relate. The work explores connections of new and old, distant and local, and interweave her daily reflections with old ceramic traditions.
Lullaby for a refugee
“Sometimes life gets so harsh, that the only solution left is to flee your home, your city, your country. And the only treasure one can take on the road is love, and if you’re lucky, happy memories from childhood, and may be a silly lullaby. And when the journey becomes unbearable, the lullaby’s simple words provide a subtle frame, a refuge that carries one through the hostility and destruction all around, helping you survive and remain human.”
Ann Arbor, MI
Irina was born in Kyiv, Ukraine, lived in Scotland and settled in Ann Arbor, MI in 1999. In 2008 she took a community ceramic studio class and, ever since, clay became another language to study and reflect upon. The challenges of not being a native speaker, the novelty of being in a foreign country and in unfamiliar surroundings attune one’s senses to appreciate those little things to which we can relate. The work explores connections of new and old, distant and local, and interweave her daily reflections with old ceramic traditions.
Lullaby for a refugee
“Sometimes life gets so harsh, that the only solution left is to flee your home, your city, your country. And the only treasure one can take on the road is love, and if you’re lucky, happy memories from childhood, and may be a silly lullaby. And when the journey becomes unbearable, the lullaby’s simple words provide a subtle frame, a refuge that carries one through the hostility and destruction all around, helping you survive and remain human.”
"The Copulation of Man & Nature" [PERFORMANCE]
Silent digital video
Brock Jensen
Thorp, WA
Brock Jensen left his hometown at the age of eighteen; living as a vagabond for six years throughout the Rocky Mountains, Central Cascades, and Southern Mexico, Jensen experienced the simplicities of life outside public bureaucracy and rigid social standards. This nomadic lifestyle continues to be a major influence for him as he creates ritualistic performances exploring his own mental and physical capacity for enduring pain, suffering, isolation and physical exertion. His work encompasses photography, film, sculpture and drawing, while incorporating found locations and materials, both natural and industrial, in combination with the human body and man-made objects. Utilizing a wide variety of techniques Jensen addresses man’s feral nature, while depicting issues of individual, communal, and environmental identity coinciding with the primordial need for power, dominance, and sex.
Inter: Domesticity
“The Reintegration of Man and Animal: Humans have long forgotten their place in the wild. In an age of domesticates, they have become viscous creatures of routine—existing only in the mundane and meaningless exercise of civility. They are domesticated creatures of habit, conformed and captive to their newfound way. This is the call of the brute—the unrestricted voice of reason in its most primal state; the call to be alive, to explore the virtue of our nature, by drawing power from the Earth's clay. This is the action of becoming undomesticated and free. The brute is not an allusion, but a portrait of human reintegration with the natural world; it is the confrontation of our most animalistic and primordial subconscious and our domesticated self, coinciding not with the way things are, but with the way things have to be.”
Thorp, WA
Brock Jensen left his hometown at the age of eighteen; living as a vagabond for six years throughout the Rocky Mountains, Central Cascades, and Southern Mexico, Jensen experienced the simplicities of life outside public bureaucracy and rigid social standards. This nomadic lifestyle continues to be a major influence for him as he creates ritualistic performances exploring his own mental and physical capacity for enduring pain, suffering, isolation and physical exertion. His work encompasses photography, film, sculpture and drawing, while incorporating found locations and materials, both natural and industrial, in combination with the human body and man-made objects. Utilizing a wide variety of techniques Jensen addresses man’s feral nature, while depicting issues of individual, communal, and environmental identity coinciding with the primordial need for power, dominance, and sex.
Inter: Domesticity
“The Reintegration of Man and Animal: Humans have long forgotten their place in the wild. In an age of domesticates, they have become viscous creatures of routine—existing only in the mundane and meaningless exercise of civility. They are domesticated creatures of habit, conformed and captive to their newfound way. This is the call of the brute—the unrestricted voice of reason in its most primal state; the call to be alive, to explore the virtue of our nature, by drawing power from the Earth's clay. This is the action of becoming undomesticated and free. The brute is not an allusion, but a portrait of human reintegration with the natural world; it is the confrontation of our most animalistic and primordial subconscious and our domesticated self, coinciding not with the way things are, but with the way things have to be.”
"The Last Plant in Boone"
Ink Jet Print 16” x 20”
Rachel Deutmeyer
Ames, IA
Deutmeyer is a visual artist currently based in Ames, Iowa. She is an MFA candidate in the Integrated Studio Arts program at Iowa State University, where she also serves as a teaching assistant. Deutmeyer received her BFA from Ashford University in Clinton, Iowa, where she employed photography to express an adoration of regional travel and community. She continues to create fine art photographs that explore place and examine implications of the photographic medium, including art and snapshot.
“Iowa and much of the Midwest boast fields, farms, and endearing communities. Like Dundee, Iowa (pop. 174) claims on a wide painted sign at the southeast corner of town, many country communities are 'small in size, mighty in pride." These rural Iowa towns present both brilliant character and a resilience to monotonous expansion. My photographs explore themes of relationship, place, and identity found in Midwest American landscape, specifically small town Iowa. A visual interaction with humble scenes, the work considers assigned significance and reveals a regional history. The photographs exist to witness and document growth, change, and decay.”
Ames, IA
Deutmeyer is a visual artist currently based in Ames, Iowa. She is an MFA candidate in the Integrated Studio Arts program at Iowa State University, where she also serves as a teaching assistant. Deutmeyer received her BFA from Ashford University in Clinton, Iowa, where she employed photography to express an adoration of regional travel and community. She continues to create fine art photographs that explore place and examine implications of the photographic medium, including art and snapshot.
“Iowa and much of the Midwest boast fields, farms, and endearing communities. Like Dundee, Iowa (pop. 174) claims on a wide painted sign at the southeast corner of town, many country communities are 'small in size, mighty in pride." These rural Iowa towns present both brilliant character and a resilience to monotonous expansion. My photographs explore themes of relationship, place, and identity found in Midwest American landscape, specifically small town Iowa. A visual interaction with humble scenes, the work considers assigned significance and reveals a regional history. The photographs exist to witness and document growth, change, and decay.”
"Structure, Function, Skin & Bones #1"
Ink Jet Print on photo paper 11” x 14
Carl Patow
Richmond, VA
Carl Patow is a digital video artist living in Richmond, exploring consequential contemporary social issues. He graduated with a B.A. from Duke University and holds several graduate degrees from major U.S. universities. He is currently enrolled in the Master of Fine Arts program in Kinetic Imaging at Virginia Commonwealth University, in Richmond, VA and a present resident at the Hungarian Multi-Cultural Center in Budapest. His videos have been selected for multiple film festivals in the U.S. and nominated for a regional Emmy of the Academy of Arts and Letters. His work is represented in the permanent art archives of Duke University and the Minnesota Public Media Film Vault. Carl Patow is also the founder and CEO of Time and Light Laboratories, an experimental digital video development center.
“Structure, Function, Skin and Bones is a series of digital photo montages of images from the metal framework of the Foundation Louis Vuitton in Paris, France. The building, designed by Frank Gehry, opened in 2014. It consists of an outer glass paneled set of ‘sails’ that surround a series of ‘icebergs’; these are irregularly shaped buildings, composed of complex metal structural skins. The images in this montage are photographs of the inside of the metal skins, taken by Carl Patow in January, 2017. Visible in the photographs are the structural beams, metal skin, bolts and nuts that create and that support the undulating surface of the ‘iceberg’ buildings. Each montage is composed of three images, transformed using multi-layer digital techniques.”
Richmond, VA
Carl Patow is a digital video artist living in Richmond, exploring consequential contemporary social issues. He graduated with a B.A. from Duke University and holds several graduate degrees from major U.S. universities. He is currently enrolled in the Master of Fine Arts program in Kinetic Imaging at Virginia Commonwealth University, in Richmond, VA and a present resident at the Hungarian Multi-Cultural Center in Budapest. His videos have been selected for multiple film festivals in the U.S. and nominated for a regional Emmy of the Academy of Arts and Letters. His work is represented in the permanent art archives of Duke University and the Minnesota Public Media Film Vault. Carl Patow is also the founder and CEO of Time and Light Laboratories, an experimental digital video development center.
“Structure, Function, Skin and Bones is a series of digital photo montages of images from the metal framework of the Foundation Louis Vuitton in Paris, France. The building, designed by Frank Gehry, opened in 2014. It consists of an outer glass paneled set of ‘sails’ that surround a series of ‘icebergs’; these are irregularly shaped buildings, composed of complex metal structural skins. The images in this montage are photographs of the inside of the metal skins, taken by Carl Patow in January, 2017. Visible in the photographs are the structural beams, metal skin, bolts and nuts that create and that support the undulating surface of the ‘iceberg’ buildings. Each montage is composed of three images, transformed using multi-layer digital techniques.”
"Night Crimes"
Ink Jet Print 33” x 26.5”
Sharon Burns Knutson
Cedar Rapids, IA
Sharon went to undergraduate school at UNI as a chemistry major. It was during the Vietnam War and because of it, became much more involved in her art classes; she finished a BA in painting. She wanted to go to graduate school right after graduation, but accepted a job teaching in Iowa City Schools because it housed the University of Iowa and the art department was respectable. She only applied for one job in Iowa and this was because Iowa City had a good graduate art program. She ended up teaching for 5 years before attending graduate school at University of Iowa, receiving an MA and MFA in painting. She went back to teaching half-time and painting the other half. She enjoyed the freshness of the young children’s work and how they do not like to linger too long on a project. “I think our temperaments are in synch.”
“I am a painter and have been working on monoprinted printer's paper. I then draw on the flattened surface with a pencil and coat this surface with a polymer to protect the paper. I use Holbein oil paints because I like the thick consistency of the paints and their range of colors. My images are narrative icons of stories about things going on the world around me. The characters may take on animal forms that seem to be like the human that I am putting in these small plays. Night Crimes, specifically, is an old piece which I did when I first started working in this narrative style. I was working at my kitchen table in an apartment on Bever Avenue. The neighborhood was usually full of activity as it is even today. My friend was watching the television show - Kojak. I told him to turn it off and to come watch the episode taking place on my front street. Someone had escaped from the Men's Reformatory in Anamosa and was staying in his girlfriend’s apartment. The street was blocked and squad cars were parked all around with officers holding rifles. This area also had a lot of churches surrounding it. I had the Holy Trinity observing from a nearby cloud.”
Cedar Rapids, IA
Sharon went to undergraduate school at UNI as a chemistry major. It was during the Vietnam War and because of it, became much more involved in her art classes; she finished a BA in painting. She wanted to go to graduate school right after graduation, but accepted a job teaching in Iowa City Schools because it housed the University of Iowa and the art department was respectable. She only applied for one job in Iowa and this was because Iowa City had a good graduate art program. She ended up teaching for 5 years before attending graduate school at University of Iowa, receiving an MA and MFA in painting. She went back to teaching half-time and painting the other half. She enjoyed the freshness of the young children’s work and how they do not like to linger too long on a project. “I think our temperaments are in synch.”
“I am a painter and have been working on monoprinted printer's paper. I then draw on the flattened surface with a pencil and coat this surface with a polymer to protect the paper. I use Holbein oil paints because I like the thick consistency of the paints and their range of colors. My images are narrative icons of stories about things going on the world around me. The characters may take on animal forms that seem to be like the human that I am putting in these small plays. Night Crimes, specifically, is an old piece which I did when I first started working in this narrative style. I was working at my kitchen table in an apartment on Bever Avenue. The neighborhood was usually full of activity as it is even today. My friend was watching the television show - Kojak. I told him to turn it off and to come watch the episode taking place on my front street. Someone had escaped from the Men's Reformatory in Anamosa and was staying in his girlfriend’s apartment. The street was blocked and squad cars were parked all around with officers holding rifles. This area also had a lot of churches surrounding it. I had the Holy Trinity observing from a nearby cloud.”
"Open Book"
Acrylic, mixed media 19” x 27
Nancy Lindsay
Cedar Rapids, IA
A painter for nearly fifty years, Nancy Lindsay is best known for her landscape paintings. However, her multimedia work has been newly inspired. She uses abstract, linear strokes on canvas, then cuts and folds into unique compositions. Nancy Lindsay’s work can be found in many corporate and private collections as well as the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art. She received her art instruction at Colorado State University and Art Students League in NY. She works from her studio near Stone City, Iowa.
“Painting is one of the greatest pleasures in my life.
Creating art has been a life-long journey for me. Growing up in Nebraska, my father's drawings and my grandfather's woodcarvings inspired me. My mother always encouraged me to be creative and provided me with plenty of art supplies. As a teacher, she had many creative interests. Together we experimented with pottery, mosaics, batik and weaving. Here, I’ve created a 3-D book of painted canvas, folded and bound to create an interactive object that allow visitors to create their own favorite composition.”
Cedar Rapids, IA
A painter for nearly fifty years, Nancy Lindsay is best known for her landscape paintings. However, her multimedia work has been newly inspired. She uses abstract, linear strokes on canvas, then cuts and folds into unique compositions. Nancy Lindsay’s work can be found in many corporate and private collections as well as the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art. She received her art instruction at Colorado State University and Art Students League in NY. She works from her studio near Stone City, Iowa.
“Painting is one of the greatest pleasures in my life.
Creating art has been a life-long journey for me. Growing up in Nebraska, my father's drawings and my grandfather's woodcarvings inspired me. My mother always encouraged me to be creative and provided me with plenty of art supplies. As a teacher, she had many creative interests. Together we experimented with pottery, mosaics, batik and weaving. Here, I’ve created a 3-D book of painted canvas, folded and bound to create an interactive object that allow visitors to create their own favorite composition.”
