Arti Gras is On

Pascal and I went to the Leawood Foundation's "Arti Gras" Gala tonight, a fundraiser to open their Annual Juried Art Show.  For the second year in a row, I am in the show!  This year's accepted entry is Rose Dance.

Jan with Rose Dance at Arti Gras (with painting by Summers).

As last year, the show featured a wide variety of work--different media, different subjects, different approaches.

The photo my husband Pascal took of me with Rose Dance and the artwork just above it, In the Garden of Glen, by R. Gregory Summers illustrates some of the show's range.

For a view of all the artwork in the show, go to the 2013 Arti Gras Gallery and scroll down.

The Arti Gras Show continues, with FREE admission, 11-4 on Saturday and Sunday.  If you're in town and have time, it's well worth the trip to see the art.

My favorites:
Norma Herring probably takes "first place" with me in this show.  I've been an admirer of her detailed mixed-media paintings since last year.  They are large but very intricate.  She had two in the show: my personal favorite, The Secret Byway, and Guest Juror James Martin's #1 "Best of Show" choice, Shades of Autumn.

It was a lively, crowded scene at the Arti Gras Gala Friday night 2/22/13.

I also loved Loreta Feeback's pastel, Dried Flowers Still Life; Jean Cook's oil painting, First Sign of Spring; Marla Craven's photograph, Zhouzhaung-A Watertown; Ric Cummings's photograph, Red Curtain; Dona Corben's photographs, A Walk in the Fog and Patterns in Nature; Karen Dreyer's oil, Heavy Load; Craig McCord's photograph, Klepzig Mill; and Patrick Schlotterback's oil, Taylor.  I also found the technique and imagery of Melinda Heaton's digital collage, Majestic Joshua Tree quite intriguing.  And I think I must acknowledge the quirky humor and unexpected compositions of Laura Carricker's oils, Shelf Life #1 and Shelf Life #4.

I believe I recall correctly that both Schlotterback and Heaton are art teachers in nearby school districts.  Knowing how much work a public school teacher must do each day, I am all the more impressed with their fine art accomplishments!

Here's another view of the crowd enjoying the hors d'oeuvres and art at the Arti Gras Gala, 2/22/13 in Leawood, KS.

 Pascal's Favorites:
 Pascal was drawn to Corben's work also, as well as Johne Richardson's acrylic, Blue Skies Overhead ("what an expressive face!"), which also received an Honorable Mention recognition from Guest Juror James Martin, and Sally Sullivan's mosaic, Meli.

I'm a sucker for painterly passages and intricate detail, but he takes a different approach. He says that once he's satisfied of the artist's overall competence, he primarily looks at the composition.  "A lot of artists almost get it right, and nobody does it every time, but when they do it just feels right.  That's what I like."

Official Winners:
Guest Juror James Martin chose this year's prize winners: as noted above, Norma Herring's Shades of Autumn received Best in Show.  Penny Pate Dillon's The Katz Clock took 2nd, and Parker Nicholson's Maple Vessel got the nod for 3rd.  Honorable Mention recognitions went to Sylvia Rose Augustus for Custer State Park, Lake Fog; Peter Crane for On Edge; Denny Dowdy for Mom's Backyard; and Pascal's choice, the Richardson painting, Blue Skies Overhead.

As Martin noted, it was a strong show. And you can still see it if you're in town! 11-4 Saturday and Sunday.  FREE admission.  Such a deal!

PHOTOS: The photo of Jan with Rose Dance is by Pascal Gephardt; the other two photos are by Jan S. Gephardt.  We allow re-posting with attribution and link-back, and no alteration of images.  Otherwise, all rights reserved.

3 Opportunities to See my Artwork!

Depending on where you live, you may have a chance to see my artwork at a show near you in February!

See my art at SheVaCon, Hotel Roanoke, Roanoke, VA

SheVaCon, Feb. 8-10, 2013
The first opportunity comes the second weekend of February, in Roanoke, VA.  Several pieces of my fantasy artwork will be on display at the SheVaCon Art Show. The show runs Friday through Sunday, February 8-10 at the historic Hotel Roanoke.

Robin W. Bailey Book-Signing Feb. 15, 2013
Join Robin W. Bailey, Grace Townley, and me for an art show and book-signing at Prospero's Books in Kansas City (the 3600 Broadway #107, KC, MO location) on February 15 at 6:00 p.m.

Robin W. Bailey, author

Robin W. Bailey is a former president of Science Fiction Writers of America (SFWA), one of the founders of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame (see another post about it on the KaCSFFS Blog), and is the author of numerous books, e-books, short stories, and poems.

In addition to his "official" website, which hasn't been updated in a while, he has an "unofficial" website, which also hasn't been updated for a while. I suspect that is because he's been too busy writing! 

I especially want to thank Robin for the idea of turning his book-signing into an event that includes a chance to show artwork, as well!

Grace Townley's Inspired by a Star Formation

Grace Townley is an accomplished oil painter whose passion is outer space. Her "Interstellar Weather" portfolio gives a representative sample of her work, which ranges from very large paintings to a wide variety of affordably-priced prints.

The image at right is one of my favorite examples of Grace's work. I first encountered Grace at the Art Westport show in September 2012, and she joined a group of us in December for the Holiday Visual Feast.

Since a good bit of my fantasy artwork probably won't be back from SheVaCon by then, I'll be showing a mixture of fantasy, nature, and architectural themes, including pieces from my two new multiple-original editions.

Arti Gras Gala and Annual Juried Art Show, Feb. 22-24, 2013
I am delighted to announce that for a second year a piece of my paper sculpture has been accepted into the Arti Gras Annual Juried Art Show, sponsored by the Leawood Foundation of Leawood, KS.

The big event of that weekend is the Arti Gras Gala on Friday, February 22, at the Leawood Community Center in the lower level under City Hall (4800 Town Center Drive, Leawood, KS). Gala 6-8:30 p.m. 2/22.

Rose Dance was accepted into Arti Gras 2013!

This is a delightful, Mardi Gras-themed reception, to open the show and announce the recipients of several cash prizes. Most of the artists will be there (including me!), and if it's anything like last year the food and drink will be delicious. It's a fundraiser for the Foundation, so there is an admission fee.

If you can't make the Gala, the show remains open to the public for free viewing from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. that Saturday and Sunday, February 23-24.  

Please note that the address for the Feb. 15 book signing/art show location has been updated from the original post.

IMAGE CREDITS: Many thanks to SheVaCon and the Hotel Roanoke for the photo of the hotel.  I would like to thank Robin W. Bailey, both for the use of his profile photo from his official website, and also again for inviting me to show artwork at his book-signing!  Thank you, Grace Townley, for the use of the Star Formation image.  I want to extend many thanks to the Leawood Foundation, the Arti Gras show, and juror James Martin for accepting my work into this year's show, and for making their logo available for use.  The image of Rose Dance is my own. It may be re-posted online, as long as the image is not altered, and credit is given to me as the artist, with a link back. Otherwise, all rights are reserved.

Writing an Artist's Statement

Sunset Oak was accepted for the Arti Gras show! 

I recently learned that I must write an Artist's Statement.

It had been on my to-do list for a long time, but suddenly when my paper sculpture Sunset Oak was accepted into the Leawood Foundation's Arti Gras Juried Show, it was required!

The first thing I had to do, to seriously write an Artist's Statement, was get over some "attitude."

Whenever an Artist's Statement is offered at a show or on a website, I nearly always read it--or try to. Unfortunately, all too often I wade in and struggle until I start drowning in amorphous polysyllabics about the sources of the artist's vision, or his/her philosophy and/or aesthetic approach.

That didn't seem a very attractive or helpful thing to emulate. As I often do, when seeking guidance on the professional side of being a fine artist, I turned to a handy book by local gallery owner Paul Dorrell (coincidentally, he also was the highly tasteful juror who gave the nod to my artwork!).

A handy resource!

Living the Artist's Life, Dorrell's book, addresses Artist's Statements on pp. 60-61. From reading it, I am guessing that Mr. Dorrell has waded through more than his share of amorphous polysyllabics, too, and is even less a fan of them than I am.

Keep it short, he advised: "keep it to one page, and don't over-explain the subtleties of your work. . . Factual biographical information is always more important than fluff."

I certainly could get behind that! So I gave it a shot, then cut the first draft by two-thirds, futzed and polished, and ended up with the Artist's Statement reproduced on one of the secondary pages of this blog (see the tabs at the top). I'll let you decide if I've written a good one (advice is welcome).

And meanwhile, if you're in Kansas City the weekend of February 24-26, please come by and see the Arti Gras Show in the heart of the Leawood Arts District, Leawood Community Center, City Hall, 4800 Town Center Drive, Leawood, KS 66211

Since the Gala on Friday, Feb. 24 is a fundraiser for a good cause, please also check out the Arti Gras Gala page and consider making a reservation.

IMAGE CREDITS: The photo of Sunset Oak is by me, and may be used in a limited manner under a Creative Commons license, as long as they give me credit and do not alter the image. The cover photo for Living the Artist's Life is courtesy of Rainy Day Books. I hope you'll recognize the Arti Gras logo from the City of Leawood website.