This past Sunday, I had the pleasure of seeing Mark Pflughoeft’s paintings at the BioPharmaceutical Center in Madison. Mark taught art in the public schools, and has been painting for over 40 years, so it is interesting to see where he “arrives” at this point in his art career. Many of his paintings deal with color contrast and compositional balance. To me, they often have an “Asian” feel or sensitivity. However, what is most interesting is Mark’s wrestling with the issue of color depth in painting. Throughout history, artists have been concerned with color depth, inventing techniques for glazing, coating the final work with varnish and so forth. Marc’s approach is to do the entire painting on the backside of Plexiglas! It is hard to imagine greater depth of color. The paint is applied layer by layer, is scraped and blended until the creation is complete. The result is quite interesting and unique. Traditional artistic concerns are addressed with contemporary tools and techniques. Mark’s work will be on display through December 1st.
The Ultimate Depth of Color in Painting
The State Street Gallery in Madison is now closed, and the owners have moved on. In its place there is the (shoo) gallery. The (shoo) gallery was opened by two of the staff of the State Street Gallery who wanted to continue selling art. They have chosen to focus on modern-contemporary-abstra
Maybe, given the current economic climate, artists would do well to consider a wide range of marketing venues and ideas. Perhaps it is getting harder for a gallery to survive on art alone. Maybe this is a chance for artists to be on the “cutting edge” of marketing. What do you think? Has the economic pinch meant that you have been looking for alternative venues to sell your art?
VSA WISCONSIN BRIDGES WORLDS
As of June 1, VSA Wisconsin became the official name of an organization that was once known as Very Special Arts. The words “special” and “handicapped” are no longer considered appropriate, and in some circles “disability” is not acceptable. So name choice has been a continual challenge.
However, what they do as an organization is highly regarded. Basically, they provide art programs for children and adults with disabilities. What impresses me is the way they serve as a bridge between widely divergent worlds. For example, their national network is connected with the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. They sponsor exhibitions in places such as the Promega Gallery and American Girl. This month the group’s art is featured at Absolutely Art / Cafe Zoma, where they had a large family celebration at the opening.
Between exhibitions, VSA Wisconsin offers art classes and workshops for people with disabilities, so instruction and training are bridged with great display opportunities. All in all, VSA Wisconsin provides great opportunities for disabled children and adults to “live their art”!
Is Your Studio Like This?
Artists live a major part of their lives in studios – not in galleries. So it makes sense to be creative with the work area as much as with the art itself. One example of an interesting studio I recently discovered belongs to Kevin Schaefer. Kevin is in a building that houses several artists, allowing for great flexibility, and he really makes good use of the space.
Kevin hangs art from the ceiling and on the walls. He also has a giant video projection screen, a computer-based music synthesis system, skin-head drums, and bells. He makes masks, rattles, abstract paintings, composes music, videos, and 3-D collage/assemblage art. To top it all off, he has couches and chairs for guests.
What I like about this studio is that it is about creativity in general, rather than a specific art form. Is this the way your studio looks? Does your environment help your creativity?
Simple Pleasures
The new work featured this month at Absolutely Art in Madison includes a mother daughter team of artists! Sarah and Laura Meddaugh paint garden themes in acrylics. Their paintings have unusually thick textures, with bulges, cavities, and cheesecloth smudges. The paintings are whimsical and playful, with dogs, cats, and cows running all over.
These paintings avoid all artistic pretentiousness. They are straight forward offerings to a wide viewing audience. While most artists are hard pressed to offer work below $100, these artists are selling paintings at $15, with a few selling at $300. There is something for everyone. Indeed, many of their paintings were sold within the first hour of their opening.
I know artists who work hard to sell one piece every three or four months. It must feel great knowing when your new show opens there will be many purchasers. An artist who spends months on one work of art has the satisfaction of creating a very high level of artistic expression, but then has to find venues where their work will be appreciated and sell well.
The high end is difficult in these economically challenged times. State Street Gallery in Madison recently closed their doors. Although they sold giclees from the Chicago artist Laura Lee Jung, they also sold quality original work from local artists, with price tags above $500. The closing of their doors creates a hole in the Madison gallery scene.
Sarah and Laura Meddaugh have found one way to “get their stuff out there”! Simple pleasures.
Imaginary Friends
Last week I had the opportunity to see a show presenting the work of UW Madison students at the Commonwealth Gallery in Madison. Oh, for the days of unrestrained creativity and freedom from the buffered marketplace! There were heraldic wooden shields, large cartoon style drawings, and mixed-media constructions surrounded with barbed wire. This was not a show for sales, but a show of creative expression, and a large crowd was there to see it. When was the last time you saw three-dimensional barbed-wire mixed-media art for sale in a gallery?
The artists were Roger Allan Cleaves, Josh Nemec, and Chinn Wang.
Working Artist – Two Places at Once!
This month’s Hard Working Artist Award should go to Everett Kitts. I saw his paintings today at “Madison’s Best Art Fair” in the Hilldale Mall, but Everett was not there. He had an artist friend in his place who was knowledgeable about his work, and who presented it for sale. But Everett was showing his work in Milwaukee, at a Third Ward Gallery Walk. Hat’s off to hard work.
Everett’s paintings are quite colorful, inspired by rock music. His card says he paints Abstract Art, but his paintings often have recognizable images. He likes to paint around the sides of the canvas, continuing the imagery to the back of the wide stretcher bars – an interesting effect.
I saw Everett’s work about a year ago at a different venue, and thought he had great potential. He showed a large selection of his paintings, and they seemed to be selling. I think his artistic skill has matured — his display is definitely worth a visit. 
Symphony of Color – Just Paint!
It is refreshing to see an artist free enough in her creativity to break from the “accuracy” mandate, and just paint! Sonal Ahuja’s work is currently on display at Absolutely Art on the Cafe Zoma side in Madison, Wisconsin. She has several small floral works, which are quite pleasant. However, I personally enjoy her larger paintings, many of which depict the human figure. Sonal’s paintings are not meant to be realist images, but are much more expressive without being what most people would call “abstract”. Her goal is to “capture the life that is in everything”, rather than reproduce an image from nature. She paints to express herself, and does not feel attached to any particular style.
I look forward to seeing more of her work ….
Digital Art – A Bridge Between Craft and Fine Art?
At a recent Artworks show, I came across an artist doing
“Digital Art”, based on a mix of fractal (mathematically generated) images, photography, and computer-based image manipulation. Artists have been working with fractal imagery for several years now, but too often the work is predicable, looking like the familiar spiral patterns. What is interesting about Carol’s work is that her patterns appear far more natural – sometimes even floral. This is because she is modifying and combining her images in ways that allow for the novel and unexpected to enter.
Carol prints her images in various sizes for sale, on canvas with stretchers. This allows her to print each image in a limited edition, increasing the sales potential of any particular image. She and her husband travel from show to show with their work. April 17-18 they will be at the Hilldale Mall, “Madison’s Best Art Fair”. July 17-28 her work will be at the Buffalo Grove Invitational Fine Arts Festival in Illinois. Carol says that in Wisconsin, most of the places they show lean towards the “craft” side, whereas in shows around Chicago, they lean more toward the “Fine Arts” side. I find it interesting that the same art appeals to both markets. Perhaps Carol has found her own unique bridge between craft and fine art?
Healing Machines at Sundance
Last evening, I visited Trent Miller’s art opening at the Sundance Cinema. On display were six paintings from two series: Healing Machines and Imaginariums. Trent is exploring motion – spinning, whirling, carousels – often under tent-like shapes. The paintings invite a viewer into somewhat recognizable forms that melt into abstract shapes. Overall, the feeling from these works is playful, reminiscent of a children’s museum. Indeed, Trent’s daytime job is with the children’s section of the public library downtown.
I work with middle school students doing art, and I think the Healing Machines and Imaginariums would have great appeal to them. However, it would be good to see more than six paintings. A chance for this is coming up April 12th – June 24th at the Overture Center. Hopefully, Trent will bring more paintings with him.
Perhaps you have seen Trent Miller’s paintings elsewhere. What do you think? Do your kids like his art?
