| From June 4 - July 2, 2005, The Folk Tree Collection presents FIGURATIVELY SPEAKING: Interpreting the Human Form, an exhibition featuring expressions of the human figure in three dimensions by approximately fifteen artists. The scale of the pieces on view is small, the artists' styles are idiosyncratic, and the materials range from fiber to wire, with everything in between. A reception for the artists, open to the public, is scheduled for Saturday, June 4,
from 2 - 6 P.M. Many of the pieces make reference to ethnic arts and doll-making, including the work of Patricia Boyd and Donna Musser. Boyd uses gourds and textiles to create costumed African figures that break through the boundaries of traditional doll-making. Her figures are often sinuous, captured in mid-dance. Several weeks in Kenya in 1997 inspired her to combine her contemporary African American experience with styles and forms from Africa, making her pieces a celebration of a heritage that spans two continents. Donna Musser is an artist who has always been fascinated by world cultures and ancient history. These passions and her love of found objects have resulted in figures created from simple wood shapes and bottles, embellished with vintage fabric, paper, buttons, and an array of other materials. Musser says, "There is a ceremony in doll-making - a ritual in the movements of cutting, stitching, stuffing, bundling and wrapping...a body of wisdom, ancient and yet always new." Several clay artists are represented, including Beverly Crist, Johanna Hansen, and Angel Lopez. The expressive qualities of clay are evident in the dark, somewhat disquieting figures of Crist, such as the masked figure, "Boy Toy," or the penetrating eye of the "Daphne Myth." Hansen takes the opposite approach with whimsical, colorfully painted ceramic figures that tell stories based on her own life experiences. Angel Lopez's stoneware women with small heads and amply proportioned bodies celebrate female strength and fecundity. Other artists represented in the show are: Carmen Abelleira-White (recycled tin); Diane Komater (wire); Brenda Henriques and Diana Taylor (fiber); Ray Jacobs, Grace Lai, and Jaye Lawrence (mixed media); Robert Moore (metal); Carolyn Potter (polymer clay). The Folk Tree Collection is located at 199 S. Fair Oaks Ave., minutes walking distance from the Gold Line's Del Mar Station (and just fifteen minutes from downtown Los Angeles off the end of the 110 freeway) near the heart of Old Pasadena. Gallery hours are: M-W, 11-6; Th-Sat, 10-6; Sun, 12-5. For further information, contact Gail Mishkin at (626)793-4828. |
|
|
