See You at the Side Street Gallery in Arnolds Park!

Artists to meet and greet at the Side Street Gallery's

Open House Saturday - June 20, 2015!

"©" the artists work shown - upper left - clock-wise: Linda Fries, 

Timothy J. Arand-McIlrath, Barb McGee, Deb Manly, Holly Zinn, 

Karen Ruddy, Marisa Sidles, Irene McCoy, Bruce Morrison, (center) Hank Hall.

Meet and greet artists of the 2015 Artisans Road Trip this Saturday (June 20) afternoon (Noon-5PM) at the Side Street Gallery in Arnolds Park, Iowa!  Stop by and see the works of the artists, ask questions or just join in celebrating the 35th anniversary of the Side Street Gallery and the retirement of the gallery founder Mari Stewart!  The Side Street Galley will close for the season in July and open again next spring under new ownership.

 

Plan a day at the Lakes - there is plenty to do and enjoy!  And be sure to stop by the Side Street Gallery and enjoy the best artwork the region has to offer!

 

Hope to see you there!

2014 Artisans Road Trip Artist Karen Ruddy - Working at the Grotto of the Redemption this Past Summer!

2014 Artisans Road Trip artist Karen Ruddy has been busy this summer! Karen finished a commission over at the Grotto of the Redemption in West Bend, Iowa, contracting for work on the restoration of mosaics throughout the Grotto. The grant was for five weeks of work but ten weeks were spent working on in-place and new mosaic panels on the East Wall of the Courtyard.

Karen completed half (14 - foot long -mosaics) on one side of the pool around the statue of Michael the Arc Angel, and four 3x1 foot panels that will be implanted in the East Wall of the Courtyard when the leaks that blew out the hundred  year old mosaic panels are found and repaired. 

Ruddy says If you have never visited the Grotto, you might consider a trip there. It is a truly holy place. Father Dobberstein, the German priest that was stationed there in the early years of the twentieth century built it over his lifetime. There is a statue of him on the grounds and his work is known worldwide through the SAMA (Society of American Mosaic Artists) conferences. In fact, the last one Karen attended, the first presenter was a woman from France who studied mosaics all over the world and the first frame shown on the big screen was The West Bend Grotto in the middle of the U.S.A.

The tours are well worth a person's time as you learn things about Father's talent and ingenuity. For example, he made stones by melting children's crayons and glass during the war years when he could not obtain rocks, minerals, or Smalti glass for his grotto walls. You will find some in the base of the stations,  along the way of the cross.

The web site is http://www.westbendgrotto.com/.

The Restoration Expert wanted Karen to harvest the old gold Smalti and use it instead of new. The artist had already started building the panels when he called from Wisconsin, so she finished the one with the new Smalti as an extra project and began grinding the cement off all sides of each small piece to prepare it for implanting into the newly restored substrait. The pool project was really difficult as Ruddy had to hammer and chisel each piece out of the original mosaic so that she could create an even surface for the new Smalti image. That was after she clambered over a three foot high metal fence, the only way to get to the work site.

The artist states that if she is still around next summer, she may get to complete the fourteen mosaics on the other side of the pool. 

To find out more about the artist Karen Ruddy, read more about her at the Artisans Road Trip web site - http://www.artisansroadtrip.com/Dr%20Karen%20Ruddy.htm  

And Remember - this year's Artisans Road Trip event will be held the second weekend of October on Saturday - October 11 from 9AM - 5PM and Sunday - October 12 from Noon - 5PM!  See you then!

Meet 2013 Artisans Road Trip Artist Karen Ruddy

 

Artist Karen Ruddy

 100 foot Mosaic Wall teaching project (5th Grade)

 

I graduated from Doane College, Crete NB with a Fine Arts Degree in Art and Education in 1973 and due to my husband being relocated, I had to take advantage of what was available to me at the time and place - and that led to a Masters and Ph.D. in Library Science. Thus I secured positions as Library Director for library Consortiums, College Libraries, and taught Library Science online for my Alma Mater, Texas Woman’s University in Denton, TX.  For thirty six years I toiled in these positions and only occasional Christmas Cards allowed me to do what I loved best, create art. 

 

Bead Paintings - the artist like to combine media

© Karen Ruddy

 

In 2004, my husband, Victor, and I retired back home to Emmetsburg, Iowa and I relished producing Art in all it’s forms since that time. 

 

Mural - "Eleven Birds and a Butterfly (6X8')

 © Karen Ruddy

 

I try to decide what I love doing best, and I love doing ALL of it. Drawing, sculpting, pottery, ceramics, jewelry-making, printing, mosaics, murals, painting, teaching art, statuary reconstruction, all are my passion. 

Stop by again to visit more about the artists of the 2013 Artisans Road Trip!