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January Issue 2007
Artspace in Raleigh, NC, Offers Three New Exhibits for the New Year
Artspace in Raleigh, NC, will present three new exhibitions for the new year including: Living Your Dreams, featuring works by Leni Newell, on view in the Lobby Gallery from Jan. 5 - 27, 2007; A Sense of Place, featuring works by Thomas Kerrigan and Mike Lavine, on view in Gallery 1, from Jan. 20 - Mar. 3, 2007; and When Grey Was Gold, featuring works by Alison Overton, on view in the Upfront Gallery, from Jan. 5 - 27, 2007.
Leni Newell presents a new series of work based on the transition, growth, and change involved with moving from Raleigh to the coast. This work results from living closer to the beauty, power, and tranquility of coastal waters - a lifelong dream for Newell.
Newell has been a professional artist since 1986 concentrating on abstract mixed media and collage. Newell is the recipient of a Regional Artist Project Grant from The United Arts Council of Raleigh & Wake County. Her award-winning, innovative work has been exhibited in museums and galleries around the country. Newell is also a popular workshop leader, known for encouraging others to think outside of the box.
A Sense of Place features the works of Thomas Kerrigan and Mike Lavine, who had never met prior to this exhibition. Despite the differences in materials and methods of construction, there seems to be a visual connection in the works of art created by these two artists.
Mike Lavine
The works in Lavine's Precious are a series of temporary, indoor installations built with countless, small, tropical hardwood shavings. Selected for their place of origin and their intense and unexpected natural colors, the shavings are formed into various shapes and sizes of mounds, waves, depressions, lines, and flat expanses. Hand-formed and held together by friction, the work is metaphoric and referential. It comments on the human relationship with the natural world and incorporates a sensual and meditative experience of color, form, texture, and aroma.
Lavine was born in 1947 in Atlantic City, NJ. He received a BS in Geography from the University of Utah, Salt Lake City, and an MFA in Wood from Arizona State University, Tempe. Lavine's work has been exhibited nationally. He has received numerous grants and awards including a South Carolina Artist Fellowship. Currently an Assistant Professor of Art, he teaches sculpture and three-dimensional design at Winthrop University, Rock Hill, SC.
Lavine's Precious installation is a
time-based work that encompasses three stages - building, completion,
and destruction/ reclamation. Visitors are invited to experience
the building stage in Artspace's Gallery 1 Jan. 16-19, 2007. You
are also encouraged to visit the Artspace website during this
time period to see the installation taking shape via webcam.
Thomas Kerrigan
For the past 15 years Thomas Kerrigan has lived
in Arizona. The grand simplicity of the desert has been a source
of spiritual sustenance for Kerrigan and a great resource
for his works of art. His current body of work is a reflection
on the essence of the desert, with a focus on the indigenous flora,
which he believes is often quite sensual and erotic. For Kerrigan
however, this is a springboard for addressing larger issues of
internality and mystery.
Kerrigan earned his MFA from Ohio University, Athens, OH. He is
a Professor Emeritus of the University of Minnesota, Duluth. He
currently lives and maintains a studio in Tucson, AZ. He
travels extensively to conduct workshops throughout the United
States, Canada, and Europe. Kerrigan has lectured in China and
in Germany and has been a guest artist in Latvia and Uzbekistan
He has been an Artist-In-Residence at the Banff Center for the
Arts, Canada; at the National University, Canberra, Australia;
and at the Clay Studio, Philadelphia, PA.
Kerrigan's work has been featured in numerous publications nationally and internationally and is part of many public and private collections including the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, CA; the Museum of Art and Design, NYC; and the Puskin Museum, Moscow, Russia. In late March, Kerrigan's work will be featured in an invitational exhibition in Ireland.
Alison Overton
When recently re-reading Kenneth Grahame's classic The Wind in the Willows, Alison Overton came across a phrase describing the breaking of the dawn sky: "when grey was gold." The words resonated with Overton, who had been working on a series of photographs taken outdoors in England, France, and Wales, under overcast skies in the enchanted early morning hours.
For this series Overton utilized the Holga
210S, a toy camera with a plastic lens. After printing the negatives,
Overton overpainted the resulting gray gelatin silver prints with
Marshall's transparent oils in an attempt to transform the work
into something she believes to be magical "something
closer to how my mind's eye sees the wonders of architecture,
gardens, and nature." Then, what is grey becomes gold.
A native of North Carolina and a life-long artist, Overton has
been photographing since 1980. In 1982 she earned a Bachelor of
Environmental Design degree from NC State's School of Design,
Raleigh, NC. Overton was awarded Regional Artist Project Grants
for 2000-2001 and 2003-2004 from the United Arts Council of Raleigh
and Wake County. Her work has been exhibited in NYC, CO, WV, SC,
VA, and in over 75 exhibits in NC.
Artspace inspires creative energy! A non-profit
visual art center, Artspace presents award-winning exhibitions,
educational programs, and artist studios open to the public. Approximately
95 artists are professional members of the Artspace Artists Association
with 35 artists maintaining studios at Artspace. Artspace is supported
by the North Carolina Arts Council; by the United Arts Council
of Raleigh and Wake County; by the Raleigh Arts Commission; and
by individuals, corporations; and private foundations.
For more information check our NC Institutional Gallery listings,
call the gallery at 919/821-2787 or visit (www.artspacenc.org).
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