Wow, Another Year!

• DateJanuary 25, 2018

Pieces from AIR Vallauris

Its 2018!  With the new year comes new ideas. I thought I would provide a synopsis of last year because it is the foundation for new things in the works…

I began 2017 by taking stock of where I have been and where I want to go with my art practice. Since our third and youngest child was going off to college in the fall, it was a great time to make some big changes. I began the year by applying for an international artist residency. Then, after taking a workshop at the Art Students League of Denver in the spring, I enlisted the assistance of Martha Russo and Bruce Price, two established artist/educators, to guide me on a new educational journey. They gave me sculpture and reading assignments and we went on field trips to galleries and museums throughout Denver and Boulder. It was fun and productive and it is not over yet. We are calling this my “DIY MFA” and I am so lucky to have these two brilliant and supportive individuals on my side!

At the end of September, I left for my residency at A.I.R Vallauris in France. As a precursor to the residency, I spent a long weekend in Corsica with my sister-in-law, relaxing and planning the work ahead. In Vallauris, I shared living and studio space with five other artists from around the world. Four of us spanned the U.S. from east to west, all working in clay. The other two residents were painters, one from Israel and the other from Australia via South Africa. We shared stories, meals, and ideas. While there, I produced four pieces that were inspired by research I had done on Pablo Picasso’s ceramics from Vallauris (he spent several years in town in the 1950’s). These pieces represented a progression of my work from vessel to figure to abstraction. Working without my usual equipment pushed me to develop a new process that was very enjoyable, albeit challenging with such a short time to bring a piece from start to finish. Three weeks into the residency, we set up a group exhibit of our finished work. It  was the camaraderie of our group that really defined the experience.

Upon my return, I decided to reorganize my studio and expand my work space. I now have a second studio up and running and I am back to work on furthering my art education by continuing to read and do sculpture assignments. I also had the great experience of assisting Martha Russo with setting up and taking down her phenomenal show at Goodwin Fine Art. And I loved seeing and discussing the curating process for Bruce Price’s incredible exhibition at the Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art.

Now it is time to get back to work. Lots of changes are in store!