Feature Articles

October Issue 2002

Summit One Gallery in Highlands, NC, Features Exhibit of Photographs of Trees

In the midst of "Leaf Lookers Season" in the mountains of Western North Carolina, Summit One Gallery in Highlands, NC, will open a photography exhibition entitled, Trees, Just Trees, which will be on view through Oct. 5 - 30, 2002.

The exhibition features fifteen regional photographers. The subject matter of only trees, in black & white and color, takes the viewer to the mountains, the coast and on to Europe. Those exhibiting are Roy Gordon, Gordon Kilgore, Catherine Cosotolo, Bob Cassanova, Don Bryant, Reis Birdwhistell, Kevin Saunders, David McCord, Mary Kay Moore, Cheryl Bird, Hunter Coleman, Cynthia Strain, Bud Uffleman, Helen Moore and Jeff Millsteen.

New to Summit One Gallery is Ann DerGara who says, "And what is art. ..except a way to express ourselves when our thoughts and feelings catch in our throats and fail to transfer into a sound that is heard." The enthusiasm with which she approaches her art is a lifelong passion. Being proficient in printmaking, which has been described as "remarkable", DerGara's first love remains painting, a vibrant testament to her profound talent. Santiago Leon of ARTEFINO speaks for many admirers when he says that DerGara's work is typical of an artist assured of her own talent. It is unconstrained, blending great skill and maturity with the free spirit of a child. DerGara is intent on achieving the original, the unique, the different - but only as it celebrates what is positive and beautiful. Her brilliant use of color expresses the passionate respect for the harmony of nature - a recurring theme is a body of work that brings her growing international acclaim. DerGara was born in Greenville, SC and attended Georgia State University and the Atlanta College of Art, where she studied under Dick WIlliams. She is exhibited and is collected extensively here and abroad.

Also new is Ernie Howard. He is a self-taught artist, born in rural LA, he later lived in the magnificent desert and mountain regions of the American Southwest. The vistas provided and unending array of artistic inspiration. Howard's abstract and folk-inspired paintings show a dramatic fascination with Pueblo Indian and Hispanic art and religion. He started his art career more than twenty years ago with a series, which were mostly rendered within the confines of a circle, a tribute to Native American ideas of the Sacred Circle. Having Lived in Asheville, NC for more than a decade, Howard's abstract paintings now show great influence from these beautiful mountains. His paintings display vibrant color and energy.

Cathryn Miles is grounded in tradition, her paintings are not portraits of places, but are her response to the natural world. She is especially sensitive to the effects of light, the power of which suffuses all of her work. Miles' style is quasi-abstract and painterly and derives its impact from a strong underlying structure and richly varied tonality. Initial influences include l7th century Dutch painters, with their use of wide horizons and large expanses of sky, and the dark, moody colors of northern European art. Through experimentation Miles has developed a process of starting each piece with an undercoat of intense color and allowing the edges of the numerous top layers to show through. The compositions are a combination of painterly surfaces, color and slightly abstracted landscape reference. By focusing on everyday scenes, rather than the picturesque or monumental, and by using a dark, luminous palette, her art evokes a sense of mystery and a spiritual connection between the earth and the sky. Cathryn Miles received her MFA from the University of Houston in 1979 and has taught throughout GA. She has exhibits in galleries throughout North America and abroad.

Benn Johnson is a Southerner. He was born in AL in 1952 and his life-long work is to preserve the American South. "Southern Art is more than magnolias and old barns. Even though I studied painting in Paris and my work is influenced by Post-Impressionism, I want everything I create to celebrate the American South", Johnson says. He feels the southern tradition of "timeweaving" in his art. Johnson employs fresh, modern colors and a 21st century perspective, but his paintings often evoke the Old South. His use of color blocks recall Southern quilting. Just as Southerners seek and give enjoyment, Johnson's paintings are buoyant. It has been said of him and his work, "He is pure Southern joy that lifts one's spirit like a tall glass of sweet tea." Southerners are rooted in the land and Johnson's paintings are of Southern landscape or the botanicals he grows on his farm. Johnson has his Master degree from the University of Alabama and continues to study art in France. He is exhibited and is represented in numerous private and public collections here and abroad.

For more information check our NC Commercial Gallery listings or call the gallery at 828/526-2673.

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