The C Gallery in Los Alamos is getting a reputation for its contemporary art and creatively themed shows. Calls for submissions of works with the theme “pink” or “pop” have stretched the imaginations of artists near and far as they angle for unique adaptations of the theme.
This time, gallery owner Connie Rohde has challenged artists to address the theme of “Circles and Sticks,” leaving interpretation wide open. Rohde expected to receive both literal and metaphoric work and she said she wasn’t disappointed by the submissions. Because of the growing popularity of the exhibits and themes, Rohde has had to jury works, whereas she previously accepted all entries. This juried show attracted more than 30 artists from the Central Coast and as far away as Massachusetts. Pieces represent a variety of media, from sculptures to paintings to photography.
Rohde said the theme offers the most elemental and organic of symbols from which to draw inspiration.
“As a universal and ancient symbol, the scope for circle work is vast. Sticks as toys, sticks as weapons, or sticks as ritual implements offer an equally broad scope,” Rohde said. “Sticks and stones could break bones, or they could offer sport or transcendence.”
Solvang resident Mike Brady submitted his piece called Scraps. Brady works in a variety of media, but primarily favors wood sculpture and assemblage. His sculptures are often large, some more than 10 feet tall, and many have moving parts. He calls them whirligigs; his American flag moves when it’s in the wind.
Scraps was a piece that benefited from a larger piece Brady worked on. He was creating a wood assemblage when the idea came to him in the form of leftover and interesting pieces.
“When I finished, I thought, ‘Those are too cool. I can’t just throw them away,’” he said.
He fashioned the bits into a sort of weave pattern with no specific intention other than to follow what needed to be done, and Scraps was born.
“The pieces really speak of what they’re going to end up being in terms of design and feel,” Brady said.
Teresa McNeil MacLean of Santa Ynez submitted Smooth Granite, a watercolor piece she created with a burnished technique. McNeil MacLean said the technique makes watercolor drawings look much like paintings, though it’s a long process. Smooth Granite is 9-by-12 inches, but some of her larger pieces can take up to 60 hours to create.
“The idea with Smooth Granite was stretching what you really see and maybe add a bit of symbolism,” she said. “I focused on the stone and used the rhythm in nature repeating the stick image to create that rhythm, and in doing that it created a wave.”
McNeil MacLean said she attempts to tap into the camera in her head as opposed to seeing what she gets in photographs.
“The colors are brighter, the shapes have more movement,” she explained.
Santa Maria resident Julie Steyer is also inspired by what she sees in nature. She submitted Mustard Seed, a mixed-media collage piece that incorporates color pencil, watercolor, and collage to create a mandala design with a tree form and abstract images of leaves and seeds.
“The idea is starting with a small seed of faith and growing large,” Steyer said.
She said it’s also a metaphor for the human body, with the tree limbs representing veins. Steyer often works with the mandala form, as well as the medium she used for this piece.
“The mandala is fun and playful to work with, and the layering of pencil on top is fun to do and allows for some spontaneity,” she explained.
Arts Editor Shelly Cone likes stone soup. Contact her at scone@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Nov 4-10, 2010.