"COME TO MY WINDOW" - Solo Exhibit by Anita K. Plucker, 2014 Artisans Road Trip Artist!

"ONE WITH NATURE"

watercolor ©Anita K. Plucker

"COME TO MY WINDOW" is a new solo exhibit by Anita K Plucker!  The exhibit will be held at the Nobles County Art Center, 407 12th St. in Worthington, MN.
 

"FROM MY KAYAK - TRUMBULL  LAKE"

watercolor ©Anita K. Plucker

"This exhibit offers insight as to what matters to me....what is important to me....and what inspires me to create my watercolor paintings and colored pencil drawings,"states the artist.

"ADAPTATION - BULLFROG"

 watercolor ©Anita K. Plucker

"At the top of the list is nature, all forms of it. I am in awe of nature and am grateful for the wonder I feel for it. When I am immersed in it, the real me rises to the surface and life's chaos melts away..... for a while. Nature literally reveals and soothes my inner spirit. I especially love the peacefulness of being out on the water in my kayak. Usually with camera in hand, I am able to capture scenes of nature up close. For the last five years, these outings have led me to create a body of work titled, "From My Kayak"., focusing on the designs, the patterns and the textures created as nature and man play with the surface of the water. I find myself almost constantly looking at my world through an invisible viewfinder, studying and analyzing the light, the shadows, the composition, all of which triggers something inside me to consider what I am seeing as a painting or drawing."

Exhibit Opening & Artist's Reception: Sunday, June 1, 2-4 pm

Art Center hours are 2-4:30 weekdays.

Mel Myers and the Iowa Festival of the Arts!

All pottery ©Mel Myers

 

Mel Myers' s most recent kiln load of glazed fired pottery is now unloaded, and packing is underway in preparation for the Iowa Festival of the Arts hosted June 6 -8 in Iowa City. Mel's hand thrown, hand carved pottery draws a crowd as well as devoted, returning purchasers who await his Spring collection. 

 All pottery ©Mel Myers

 

The Iowa City show is the first of eight shows for Mel this summer. Under the building sign of "Clay County Clay", Mel works daily at his studio where walk-ins can see the master ceramic artist at work, admire works in progress, and visit the gallery shop -- all located at his work place at 717 13th Ave West in Spencer, Iowa. Walk-ins are welcome.

 

Tim Arand-McIlrath - "A Fiber Artist's Journey"

"Swooped" (top view)
artwork ©Tim Arand-McIlrath

Tim Arand-McIlrath, Okoboji, will be the featured exhibition at the Witter Gallery in Storm Lake, IA for the month of May. The exhibition is titled "A Fiber Artist's Journey".

"I realized that I had been making art for over 45 years. Recently I have been revisiting printed fabrics from many years before, and incorporating them into new mixed media artwork .  The exhibition will feature selections from the different approaches I have taken with my work over the years. The emphasis will be on the 2D mixed media work and the 3D sculptural mixed media pieces. Also included will be felted artwork, woven and screen printed pieces.

"Eruption", Felted wool, wool fabric, 30"H x 22"W - $350
artwork ©Tim Arand-McIlrath

Folk art has long been an area of interest for me. I have researched and collected folk art in all my travels. I have spent extended visits to Mexico and in particular to the Oaxaca area. The color, texture and freedom of expression have fascinated me for many years. There is an incredible excitement in the work of folk artists.

I have been 'accused' of having too much fun creating my art. Not possible in my world. Having fun is one of the prime motivators in my work. I love having viewers smile. I smile a lot while I am working on my art.

"Mementos" -  3 panels, 14"x14" Crocheted yarn, shells, sand, $150 each panel
artwork ©Tim Arand-McIlrath  

In my two dimensional pieces, the backgrounds are painted with acrylic paint or are surface designed fabrics and sometimes embellished with found objects. The foregrounds have crocheted webs introduced onto the compositions. The three-dimensional pieces are usually constructed out of willow branches and are many times painted or varnished. The found objects and crocheted yarn inhabit the structures. Color, texture, repetition, and pattern have always been strong elements in my work. The compositions are based on my observations of the world around us."

The exhibition dates are May 7- 30 with an opening reception planned for May 8 from 5- 6:30PM. The Witter Gallery is located at 609 Cayuga St. Storm Lake, IA.  For additional information contact Ron Stevenson, Gallery Director at 712-732-3400 or wittergallery@yahoo.com.