The Crossroads Art Center has included information about artists in residence on this page. You may click on an image of the art work to enlarge it.
Ronda Dandliker
I enjoy the commonality of human experience and enjoy discoveries and adventures in art, music, and reading. I get a feeling of satisfaction in the process of creating something and a sense of pride if it accomplishes a mood, idea, or feeling.
I completed a degree in Painting and Printmaking at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia and continue to take classes and workshops. I believe in never being static but pursue exploration as a mean of change, growth, and development.
Although I have painted mostly in oils, I find watercolors and mixed media to hold new challenges for me.
Arlene DeConti
A childhood spent between the sunny beaches, golden ochre hills, lush vineyards and orchards to the brisk dramatic High Sierras of California, the artist had years to examine a blade of grass, summers to float down the icy swift rivers and idly study cloud formations.
Adulthood was a bit busier with a business career in San Francisco and Alexandria, numerous excursions to explore the treasurers of Europe with her best friend and beloved sparring partner, and the satisfaction of studying Art History earning a BA at UVA and MLA from UR.
Today it is back to studying clouds, painting, practicing Ikebana, singing in the choir and luxuriating in the art at VMFA as an active Docent.
Artist Statement - Oil on Canvas
While I paint time is suspended. The process is magical. I delight in moving the tactile buttery paint on canvas, building textures. Creating space whether stretching or compressing, deepening or flattening becomes the challenge. Playing with line - where to define the form where not is the mystery to solve. Color is the lyrical expression of the indefinable for me. My intent is to simplify the complex with quiet rapture.
Sylvia deShazo
My name is Sylvia deShazo. I was born in London, England and have traveled extensively around the world, but I now count Richmond, Virginia as my home.
I love to paint. I doubt I can ever capture the true beauty of nature, but I tend to paint scenes or images that make me happy when I see them, most of them are reminiscent of my life in England. I painted as a child, starting with charcoal salvaged from the garden bonfire. Now that my family is grown and work pressures reduced, I now have time to do what I love - PAINT!
I use both acrylic and water color as a medium. I am an exhibiting member of Bon Air Artists and Tuckahoe Artists in both acrylics and watercolor. My paintings have been accepted in juried shows in Richmond and Petersburg and have been shown at Uptown Gallery, General Assembly, St. Michaels, Glen Allen Cultural Center, Henrico Libraries and other local venues. I have studied with nationally known artists and I continue my studies with Christaphora Robeers.
I enjoy my art and I hope my art also affords you some pleasure.
Betty Drozeski
Elizabeth Drozeski, born and educated in Saint Louis, Missouri, has spent her adult years in the Southeastern states. She began painting seriously in Richmond ten years ago. Her favorite medium is watercolor and she considers herself a colorist. Still lifes are done with highly saturated pigments and crisp, hard edges. Slightly quirky perspective adds interest.
On the softer side, she paints landscapes of the Low Country of South Carolina, where she lives part of the year. Here the colors are a bit softer, the edges less easily defined, but she uses the same palette.
Elizabeth is an active member of the Uptown Gallery and also shows work at the Crossroads Art Center. There she rents a wall and enters the juried shows. She is a board member of Metropolitan Richmond Artists' Association and co-ordinates their all-member shows. She created a piece for String Art, the Richmond Symphony Auxiliary fund raiser.
Dorothy Duke
Dorothy Duke resides in Richmond, Virginia. Her work is spirited and yet pleasing to the senses and elicits an emotional response in the observer. She paints very free colorful oils and paints watercolors in a loose soft manner.
One private collector described Duke's work as "How I feel when I am at the beach and no one is bothering me."
Duke paints for her own enjoyment and relaxation at Virginia Beach, Hilton Head Island, varied locations throughout Europe and the Caribbean and other locations around Virginia. Whenever possible she prefers to begin and finish a painting on location in the tradition of "plein air" artists. She is recognized for peaceful beach scenes, lyrical landscapes and florals.
Choosing to become an art teacher, she received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Art Education from Longwood College. Dorothy Duke continued to study with classes at Virginia Commonwealth University, while teaching art on the secondary level, eventually serving as head of the art department. In recent years she has studied under renowned artists such as, Hugo Ohlms, Zoltan Szabo, Kim English, Bill Hosner and Ann Templeton.
Dorothy Duke's work has been included in juried exhibitions at The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, The Virginia Beach Boardwalk Art Show, Richmond's Arts in the Park, Arts Around the Lake in Richmond, Hilton Head Art League, Virginia Beach Artist Gallery and others, receiving many awards for her work.
Victoria Dye
I always said that when I get old and can’t do anything but sit around, that I wanted a lifetime of pictures to look at. I have to make sure my eyesight stays good! I’ve loved cameras and pictures since childhood. I used to make up realistic scenes with my model horses and photograph them, and then enter contests to see who had the best images. Unfortunately, my photography lay dormant through high school and college since growing up offers a lot of interests and little money. My senior year in vet school re-awakened my passion. I planned to visit a variety of cool places on rotations, so I finally bought my first camera, a Minolta point and shoot. As I photographed everything, I made so many images at Mystic Marinelife Aquarium in Connecticut over my 6 week rotation that the local camera store knew me by name.
Once I became a Veterinarian, I bought a better camera and took an adult education course to learn how to use it. While my camera was not the fanciest in the class I learned a lot. Then I heard about a weekend seminar by two prominent nature photographers. I was hooked. Their lifestyle and the amazing images they made entranced me. It would be many years before I could direct my life towards that end, but it was a fire that simmered deep down.
As life moved on and I pursued my veterinary career I was forever drawn to photography. I would make images on my time off and dream about traveling. The ugly reality that making a living as a nature photographer is daunting at best kept me at my day job. After marrying my wonderful man, I pursued a B&W darkroom printing class. Creating images with my new macro (close-up) lens and then printing them opened up a whole new world. I loved the abstract images I created from getting up close and personal to all kinds of flora. I lived for the moment when the image would materialize on the paper.
As life moved on, I was able to begin working for myself as a relief veterinarian. This allowed flexibility in my work schedule and happiness at being free from a boss. That along with my ever supportive husband allowed me to put more time into pursuing my goals. I now have the opportunity to travel and photograph a variety of wildlife and nature all over the country.
Our national park system is a wonder. The scenery our country has to offer is amazing and diverse, from jagged peaks, to prairie and plains to tidal zones and the great blue ocean, to forests of youth and old growth. It overwhelms the senses and gives flight to the imagination!
Then there’s the wildlife. Our country hosts a huge variety of wildlife. While some are harder to observe than others, it’s a real treat to see them in their natural habitat.
I have learned and experienced so much in the past 2 years. It’s been a whirlwind of new things. I can’t see it all, yet I wish there was more. I need to focus. Animals are a great love and I want to merge that with my art. There are many organizations and groups that can use my help; I need to find what fits me. I plan to concentrate on the nature and wildlife of Virginia in the upcoming years to find my focus. From there, who knows what I’ll discover.
Enjoy!
You may visit Victoria Dye's website at www.victoriasimages.com
Michael Early
I started in photography over 50 years ago where I found that what I enjoyed the most was working in a darkroom turning out prints that met my vision of the image that I had photographed. I have tried to utilize the skills developed in spending over 40 years in the computer industry to fully embrace and capitalize on the new digital age of photography. I tremendously enjoy the whole new digital environment as the digital darkroom lets me re-experience all of the joys that I had creating prints at the start of this journey without the messy chemicals and problems of the wet darkroom.
I spend a great amount of time traveling around the US for the sole purpose of finding locations that help me refine my photographic vision. These travels include numerous locations in my home state of Virginia, West Virginia, and along the east coast from Florida to Maine. I have also had the opportunity to spend time at Bosque Del Apache NWR near Albuquerque; Katmai National Park in Alaska; Jackson Hole, Wyoming; Klamath NWR, California; Arches National Park, Utah; Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee; Oregon Coast; Texas Coast; Texas Highland Country; Lake Clark, Alaska and Anchorage, Alaska; and Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming – the last one at least once a year for the past four years.
While my primary focus is on nature and wildlife you may also notice by looking at my prints, or by visiting my web site, that I am also very captivated by bright colors and mechanical “things”.
All of my work is printed on a variety of high quality paper using pigmented inks that have an archival rating in excess of a hundred years when matted, framed and under glass. I do all of my own printing work and am able to create any size up to 22” wide by as long as necessary to meet what I am trying to accomplish. Thus if you see a print that you like but would like it in a larger version, please let me know and I will be happy to do everything I can to meet your request. All of the matted and framed pieces that are on display were done in-house using archival quality materials. If you see a particular piece of work you like but would prefer to arrange for your own framing please let me know and I would be happy to provide just the print, or the print and matte if you so desire.
Many of my pieces are “Limited Edition” and it is worth defining what I mean by that term. The term “Limited Edition” to me means that it applies across all sizes. Thus, an edition of 30 means that it will be limited to 30 prints of that image in ALL sizes – 16 x20, 24 x 36, 30 x 40, etc. and not 30 of each size.
I hope that you like what you see. I know that I get a great deal of pleasure in capturing these images and then turning them into “something” that can be viewed by others.
I am an active member of the North America Nature Photography Association (NANPA) where I served as the Chair of the Membership Committee for 2003 and 2004, Nature Photographers Network, and the National Association of Photoshop Professionals (NAPP).
A number of my prints have been on display in Scottsville VA, Richmond VA, Chester, VA and Bar Harbor ME businesses.
Please come by and see my work and Crossroad Art Center and visit my web site at www.mdephoto.com
Thanks, Michael Early
Betty Eddows
Wife, mother, grandmother - artist.
Member James River and Rappahanock Art Leagues, Virginia Watercolor Association, and currently serving as a Docent at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts and is Docent Emeritus at the Minneapolis Institute of Art. She has studied and worked in the arts since High School. She attended Parson's School of Design - NYC, Virginia, Commonwealth University and The University of Minnesota as well as participated in a number of classes and seminars with a variety of Art Teachers. Her work has been seen widely in the Twin Cities area as well as here in Richmond including: St. Mary's & the MCV hospitals, the Jewish Community Center, The James Center and For Arts Sake as well as Crossroads Gallery. Betty is a resident of New Kent County where she does much of her painting. Her work is eclectic and includes a wide variety of locations and subjects developed from her travels and studies. Her recent concentration is in watercolor but she has worked in other media including oils.
Kaye Ferguson
During her twenty plus years in the jewelry business, Kaye has encountered and observed many “different”, “unique” and “unusual” styles which have led her to the design and creation of her own line of jewelry.
As a student of the William Holland School of Lapidary in Young Harris, GA, Kaye added to her creativity the skills of Knotting, Chain Making, Wire Wrapping, and additional Beading techniques.
Her talent is exhibited in the style of “One of a Kind” designs using Semi-Precious, Natural, Vintage, Wooden and Crystal Beads along with Fresh Water Pearls which she has acquired throughout the years.
- THE ARTIST -
“The desire to make a difference in the woman’s casual and working wardrobe has inspired me to work with nature’s colors and glitz at an affordable price”.
“ My designs are that special bridge between Fine and Costume Jewelry, making a rare treasure for the woman who chooses to be
“UNIQUE”.
Kaye Ferguson - Design Specialist
Laura Goetz
I have been involved with art for as long as I have memory. My mother is a painter who taught classes in our basement and who helped me to teach my first pastel class to elementary students when I was in middle school. I hold BFA’s in both Art Education and Advertising Art. I have been an active member of Bon Air Artist Association since 1991 and exhibit in the Richmond and Wintergreen areas of Virginia.
Currently I work both abstractly in acrylics using vibrant colors and added texture, as well as doing more traditional oil landscapes. I find inspiration wherever my eye lands. My first abstract was inspired by the aging cracking polished cement floor of a local business. My latest landscapes, inspired by a convertible ride up the Pacific Coast Highway in California overlooking Big Sur. I am drawn to all facets of creative inspiration whether it is working in my flower garden or painting the essence of that flower. I am inspired by nature, its subtle and vibrant colors and how they affect my spirit and I use music to intensify my experience. I have spent the passing years exploring different mediums, working in something until I feel I have found “my style” within that medium and then moving on to the next. In each venture, color is of primary importance. I am continually exploring new ideas and growing as an artist, always looking for that next element that will inspire a change in my work. Hoping, of course, that each change has a positive effect.
For more information on purchase of original & commissioned works you can contact Laura at her Midlothian VA studio at (804) 379-8504.
Jan Goldberg
About the Artist
Jan Goldberg is new to the Richmond area. Originally from New York, she has participated in shows at the Cork Gallery in Lincoln Center, the National Arts Club, the Lever House, the Jacob Javits Federal Plaza and the Interchurch Center in New York City, as well as in various museums and galleries in New Jersey.
While living in South Florida, her work was viewed at the Palm Beach International Airport, the Cornell Museum in Delray Beach and the Boca Raton Museum of Art. As a member of the Boca Museum Artists Guild, she regularly exhibited in their successful gallery in Boca Raton.
A former dancer, Jan feels her work must reflect movement. “When I’m painting, I’m choreographing, and I feel as if I’m actually executing a series of dance combinations. I love working abstractly, letting my emotions carry me into an unknown world. Moving and balancing shapes of color around paper or canvas without a specific vision is exciting to me.”
She studied at the Art Students League in N.Y.C. with Mario Cooper and John Groth, the Art Center of Northern New Jersey and in various workshops.
Jan is pleased to be exhibiting at the Crossroads Art Center, and has won several awards in its juried shows.
During her theatrical career, she met her husband Jerry, a conductor, pianist and composer. Her son Michael is well known as a local TV and radio meteorologist and is also an accomplished clarinetist.
Ben Greenberg
Ben Greenberg Photography
About the Photographer
Ben Greenberg is a lifelong resident of Virginia who grew up and lived in Richmond most of his life. In 2002 he moved to Charlottesville where he currently resides. He has photographed scenic vistas in Virginia, the mid-Atlantic area and many locations in the United States for more than thirty years, the last twenty-five as a freelance professional photographer. His carefully crafted images have won local and national awards and competitions and have been exhibited in numerous individual and group shows. They have been featured in diverse publications and purchased for scores of private collections. Ben’s photographs are currently featured in four galleries in Virginia.
Ben takes great pride in creating photographic images of the highest quality in color and black and white. He uses the best of traditional and cutting edge photographic technology, seeking to create and print his medium format photographs honestly to provide the discriminating viewer with an accurate rendition portraying the natural beauty of the subject. His photographic prints and all materials used in their presentation are prepared to meet the highest archival quality standards for maximum longevity (75-100 years and more) and a lifetime of enjoyment.
Ben’s primary subjects are the scenic landscapes including mountains, lakes, rivers and shorelines of Virginia and the nation. These locations include the University of Virginia and the surrounding areas of central Virginia, the James River flowing through Richmond, the Blue Ridge Parkway and Skyline Drive, Shenandoah National Park, Great Smokey Mountains National Park, Tangier Island and the Eastern Shore, and North Carolina, including the Outer Banks and the southwestern portion of the state. He has also focused his cameras on national locations that include New York City and state, Washington, D.C., Maine, the Black Hills and Badlands of South Dakota, Florida, Colorado and Rocky Mountain National Park.
Ben’s images are available for purchase in many sizes alone, matted, matted and framed or on notecards. Contact Ben for more information:
Ben Greenberg, P.O. Box 1046, Charlottesville, VA 22902
Phone: 434-971-5700; Mobile Phone: 804-467-8212; E-mail: ben@bengreenberg.com
Web Site: www.BenGreenberg.com
Larry Grina
I live in Chesterfield, Virginia and paint original watercolors. My favorite subjects include: landscapes, snow scenes, old barns and farms, seascapes and boats. I like my paintings to be expressive, atmospheric, colorful and to convey emotional content… humor does enter at times, too. “The Many Colors of Mother Nature” is a good expression for my work.
Retirement has given me time to discover that I love painting and I now look upon the world with better eyes. Please stop in to see my work and let me know how you feel about it. For when the paintings excite, sooth or inspire you, I have shared with you my feelings about “The Many Colors of Mother Nature.”
Ella Bryce Harris
Ella Bryce Harris was not formally introduced to art until high school. There she fell in love with the creative process of developing and creating works of art using a variety of mediums. She took classes in graphic arts, and photography. She taught art and photography for five years. Even when she made a career change she continued to dabbled in art at home and where she could on her job, designing logos, posters, and projects for the school. In her spare time she would design and build book shelves, desks, cabinets, whatever her creative eye imagined. She also designed the addition to her house. In the spring of 2006, she took a class in Mixed Media and fell in love with her inner passion all over again, art. Since then she has produced many pieces using combinations of photography, digital imaging, paint, colored pencil and pen and ink. This summer, she sold several pieces in New York and is finally listening to her inner self. To see additional pieces of her work you can visit her website at www.creativeye.ifp3.com.
Karolyn Hawthorne
Personal Brief:
Born and raised in Miami, Florida, in the “pre air conditioning and TV era”, I developed a love for natural beauty early in my life. I learned to appreciate a beautiful sunset; the sparkle of light on water; the ocean, in its many moods; the vibrant colors, textures, and structures of flowers and wildlife. Though the natural world, I developed a strong bond with God and his glory.
I attended college at Virginia Tech, majoring in Biology and minoring in Geology. I spent my undergraduate summers working at the University of Miami’s Rosensteil Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Sciences. After graduation, I taught high school for two years in Lawrenceville, VA. Although, I loved teaching, I gave it up for a position as a retail executive with Peebles Department Stores. After 24 years, I retired to pursue my passion for art.
Artist Brief:
I have always been fascinated with art and watching an artist demonstrate. I told myself that, when I had time, I would try my hand at painting. In 1996, my father died rather suddenly of heart failure. He had always been a true love and inspiration to me. After his death, my mother was going through some of his things and asked me if I would like to have his brushes and paints. What a shock! I never knew that he painted. She told me that he didn’t, he always wanted to learn, but never got around to it. I immediately thought about how much I would love to have a painting that he had created. This proved to be the “wake up call” that I needed. Within three weeks I found and enrolled in an oil painting class at Southside Virginia Community College. I was hooked the moment that I picked up a brush. I plunged into art with an appetite to learn as much as possible from the finest artists that I could find. I have traveled extensively and taken workshops with many nationally known artists including, Tom Lynch, Morgan Samuel Price, Dominic Vignola, Valerie Stewart, and Tom Edgerton.
Recently, I have discovered that my greatest painting pleasure is painting animal portrait commissions. I work in the style of the Old Masters known as Flemish realism. Working from photographic reference material, I am able to capture a pet’s likeness as well as its personality with amazing proficiency.
In the past three years, I have garnered eleven major awards, including “Best in Show”, “First”, several “Second” places, and the “Chamber’s Choice” award while competing in the professional category locally and nationally. I am currently represented by Crossroads Art Center, Richmond, VA, The Purple Parrot, Culpepper, VA, The Blue Piano, Lawrenceville, VA, Bracey Mercantile, Bracey VA, and Lake Living, Eatons Ferry, NC, and the Blackstone Art and Antique Mall in Blackstone, VA. I currently teach oil painting at the Southside Virginia Community College Advanced Learning Center in South Hill and give private instruction.
My art is an avenue to bring many of my passions - my love of nature and animals, my faith, my love of teaching – together with and my marketing and business skills.
Artist’s Vision:
Light, elusive, transient, and fleeting, is the source of all life and inspiration. It is the beginning and the end of every day and every human experience. Not surprisingly, it is a commonly used metaphor to describe God’s grace. Learning to see and understand the way light plays in this world is a lifelong pursuit. Adequately capturing light in any of its many personalities is my lifelong mission. If I can open a viewer’s eyes to light’s beauty, perhaps I can open his mind to life’s possibilities.
Please visit her website at www.artbykarolyn.com and her listing on www.artteachers.org.
Clinton Helms
Clinton Helms started drawing and painting at a very early age. He is currently pursuing a Master’s of Fine Arts (MFA) Degree in illustration at Marywood University in Scranton, PA under their “Get your Master’s with the Masters” program. Clinton attended Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) School of the Arts where he received his Bachelor’s of Fine Arts (BFA) Degree in Illustration in 1999. During his senior year at VCU, Clinton got the opportunity to study abroad for a month and a half at the Lorenzo de Medici Art Institute of Florence in Italy on a summer study program offered by VCU.
In 2001, Clinton retired from the United States Army Reserves with an Honorable discharge after serving over twenty-one and a half years of service to continue pursuing his goals of becoming a successful artist and to support and care for his wife of twenty years, who lost her battle with Breast Cancer in 2005. He was born in South Hill, VA and currently resides in Richmond, VA.
When Clinton is not painting in his studio, he teaches drawing classes at VCU in the Art Foundation Program as an Adjunct Faculty Staff member.
Clinton strongly believes that he was born to be an artist and he is continuing to learn all that he can about his craft by studying the styles and techniques of some of the Old Masters and works of art from some of his favored artists like N.C. Wyeth, Howard Pyle, and Norman Rockwell to name a few. Clinton believes that the basics for any artist at the on-set of their career is to have a strong sense of drawing from life and the ability to draw the human figure accurately. No matter what medium you ultimately master, be it conventional brush, airbrush, or computer, Clinton teaches his students that they must have a good and clear understanding of anatomy, perspective, color theory, and compositional design.
Clinton is a member of the Portrait Society of America, The Richmond Represents Illustration Club, and The Illustrators Club (IC) of Washington D.C., Maryland, and Virginia. Clinton has received a number of awards and recognitions for his work and has participated in both solo and group exhibition Art Shows in New York, Virginia, and North Carolina.
Clinton’s illustration markets of interest are Advertising, Book, Institutional, and Historical.
Please visit the artist's website at www.chelmsstudio.com.
Jane Hendley
My work in clay is clearly focused on interplay between form and texture. I use the empty and virgin
vessel as a starting point and then manipulate the surface to enhance or create compelling tension. I
have always found a precarious and grotesque beauty in the evolutionary armor that is present in nature
(including man). Often I take the inspiration offered and my forms have an obvious and natural kinship with
those in the natural world, the barnacled creatures of the sea, flora and fauna with tentacles, spikes,
scabs, weathered and beaten skins, and other armor.
The protections that evolve as a result of the
overlapping of experiences have developed in my mind as “crusts”. In some of my work, these “crusts”
appear on an exterior surface. Other work suggests an interior “crust“, organ-like forms bloating and
blistering beneath a more pristine exterior. When making a vessel, I treat it as a character with its
own idiosyncrasies. Some forms have impossibly craning necks and absurdly small openings, suggesting
an interior without revealing it. The obsessive surface treatment in my work is a reflection of the
idea that individuals (once empty and perfect as the vessel) pick up scars, tics, stutters, bumps and
blemishes that make each one an extraordinary sight on the natural landscape. Some work takes on an
industrial air, using tools ,metal bits, or mechanical forms in reference to more contemporary protections
or armor. For me clay is natural material for this investigation as it accommodates manipulation and
inspires with it response.
Donna Holland
Eye Candy by Donna, Inc.
Donna has been creating original, handmade gemstone jewelry since 2003. She has always had a deep fascination with art and her passion for creating items of interest and beauty emanates through her gemstone creations.
Besides natural gemstones, she primarily incorporates sterling silver into her designs, but uses other metals such as gold, brass and copper. Pearls, Swarovski crystals, and wood are also among the components featured in her designs.
She began designing jewelry for her family and friends and soon realized the dream of making jewelry on a full-time basis. Donna uses the human body as the palette for her work and finds tremendous gratification in making items to enhance the wearer. Her “wearable art” is collectible and she continues to push her imagination to new levels of creativity.
Artist’s Statement
“Each item of jewelry I create is divinely inspired. Using the beauty of gemstones borne of God’s creation gives me fulfillment and a sense of purpose in my work. I am endlessly intrigued by breadth of variety, color, texture, and the metaphysical values of gemstones.
It is important that the quality of my work be transparent, as I am compelled to put forth my best effort in designing each piece of jewelry. I want the wearer of my creations to enjoy and view their jewelry as a complement, an artistic touch their wardrobe.”
Linda Hollett-Bazouzi
In the past four years my painting has taken me from the other side of the world to my own neighborhood. Ten years ago I began painting Persian miniatures with acrylics, then expanded to scenes taken from slides made while travelling. The last miniatures I worked on were in a series of very small “portraits” of Persian(esque) trees in 2004. After finishing this series, hunched over my work with special glasses, I began to feel life was passing me by. So, on the first warm day of spring I packed up an easel, oil paints, and headed outdoors. What an exhilarating experience! This helped me get back to a passion I have always had about trees. I began with small landscapes, and then explored the unique way leaves “sit” on the surface of trees. This fascination with pattern has expanded to capturing the movement of shadow and light, as well as atmospheric conditions and cyclical change. I have begun seeing how far I can push into the canvas with deep landscapes that beckon you into them. My works are always created in a series, always telling a story. I push myself to work larger, and then withdraw to intimate studies. I use oils for atmosphere, acrylics for boldness and then switch. It is a constant ebb and flow of contrasts as I celebrate what most people never notice in their own back yards.
My focus zooms in, then out, then in again. It is a constant search for pattern in light, shape, and life force. I always work in a series—sometimes a pair, sometime six, but always the last one IS the last one. The paintings tell me when the series is done. The best paintings paint themselves.
Denise Hoots
When I was in the first grade, I knew I wanted to be an artist. I got into trouble the first day of school for talking to a boy about the tempera painting he was working on; it was all in red. I studied art in school and on my own. I possess Bachelor of Fine Arts and Master of Fine Arts degrees. This is my 21st year of teaching art to high school students. All of this experience has led me to realize that I am, in fact, an artist; not because of the degrees I hold or any recognition I receive, but because it is the way I experience the world. I sometimes feel like a stranger on the planet, because I "speak" a language that is not always understood by most of the population, no matter what their background or level of education may be. I question myself daily concerning the validity of what I do and its value to the world at large. I don't know if I'm good enough to justify the expense of making more art. I'm not always sure that I will continue to create more things to fill my tiny studio.
My images come from my life, my feelings, and those few minutes when you think you are still awake but really slipping into sleep. They seem beautiful and poetic to me; they move me. I never know if they will affect anyone else at all. Each work is a journey of searching for what feels right, often without knowing exactly why it feels right. Colors and shapes are important. It is sometimes like fighting a battle, sometimes like being in a trance. I keep working until I feel that I have resolved something.
So, I keep doing it, whatever "it" is. " The artist is a receptacle for emotions that come from all over the place; from the sky, from the earth, from a scrap of paper, from a passing shape, from a spider's web."--Picasso
Harry Howell - Classic Woodturning
Harry’s interest in woodturning began at age 16. A friend’s grandfather had a lathe which was unused. As kids will, the two boys mounted a piece of wood on the lathe and Harry turned his first bowl. The bowl was probably only pretty to the two boys, but Harry was hooked on woodturning.
Among Harry’s loves have been cars. His first car was the dream of many young men, a ’57 Chevy. It was in the ’57 Chevy that Harry brought home the first lathe he bought. His shop was a small wooden shed at the back of the yard at the house where he grew up, and still lives. The lathe was only a hopeful pretender to the lathes Harry uses now, but it was a treasure. Harry began to learn the craft and art of woodturning.
Over the next 25 or 30 years Harry did many types of woodworking including country crafts, furniture building and cabinet work. Always, Harry found himself returning to the lathe. He turned bowls for family and friends, an occasional porch spindle for a neighbor, and decorative pieces which were designed by a combination of his head, and what his hands felt in working the wood.
Harry retired in 1998 and began turning wood in earnest. He bought a more precise and substantial lathe. In a couple of years his skills had outgrown that lathe. He bought a professional quality lathe which he now uses daily. Other lathes have found homes in his shop, which is a far cry from the wooden shed of 40 years ago, and is a wonderful place to work.
Harry turns high quality objects, from highly functional items, to art pieces whose sole purpose is to be looked at and touched. It is exotic woods from mountain forests, dry deserts, and tropical jungles that Harry most enjoys turning. The woods are of colors from red to black, and all between. Many contain contrasting grain, or highly developed figuring. Some of these woods are not easy to work with, but you would never know it to see Harry turning the pieces, or in observing the finished pieces. After lots of years of turning wood, Harry is still looking forward to the next piece. “What will I turn next?” Or, “What piece of wood am I going to put on the lathe now?”
Harry is very generous with his time and enjoys teaching woodturners who are just beginning to enter the hobby. At the other end of the spectrum, turners of skill and advanced ability often come to Harry for his advice on what to do with a piece of wood, or what method should be used in cutting a type of wood. His shop is as much his living room, office, entertainment center, and snack bar, as it is a working area. He entertains friends in his shop nearly daily. And every day, Harry is eager to get to the next log, or piece of exotic wood he has purchased, to see what shape will develop in his head and with his hands.
Harry sells turned wood objects under the name of Classic Woodturning. The name is wonderfully appropriate, as Harry is truly a classic.
Matthew Howell
Matt is a 24 year old Virginia native who has had a lifelong interest in photography. His
love and appreciation for nature and the outdoors brought him to Yellowstone National
Park in the spring of 2005. While working for Xanterra, the park's concessionaire, he has
enjoyed many great opportunities for photography and beyond. In the summer of 2007
he began working for the National Park Service and also started structure and wildfire
training. Always on the move, Matt loves to fish, camp, hike, and travel. His camera
never leaves his side.
Matt, a self-taught photographer, started out with a Nikon film body and eventually
moved to a Canon film body. While he still enjoys film, his new Canon digital camera
has proved to be an exceptional upgrade. His film work is untouched and he stays true to
his digital images as well. Many of his pictures were taken in the park and the greater
Yellowstone area. Matt has been invited to exhibit his work in galleries, photos contests,
and in this year's Yellowstone Association calendar, which is sold to benefit the park.
The work of this young photographer captures natural world around us. In his three
years of living in Yellowstone, the park has offered a wonderful view of animals,
amazing vistas, and Mother Nature at her best. Matt hopes to travel and continue his
adventurous journey of photography and wishes you to come along through his images.
G.M. Howerton
The traditional way each photograph is created according to archival standards and all materials used are acid free. Only my hands touch the photographs from the actual taking of the picture, developing of the negative, mounting, matting, to the final inspection and framing.
The techniques I use in securing fine art photographs include using medium and large format cameras and Zeiss optics while practicing “The Zone System” developed by Ansel Adams. In my photographs I seek to capture solitude, desolation, drama and the sanctuary that only our children, if they are blessed, can understand. I hope that you will enjoy my work.
Please visit G.M.’s web site at www.gmhowerton.com.