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July Issue 2004
Tyndall Galleries in Chapel Hill, NC, Features Works by Paul Hrusovsky and Julie Olson
Tyndall Galleries in Chapel Hill, NC, is present the exhibitions, New Paintings, featuring works by Paul Hrusovsky, and New Works in Clay, featuring works by Julie Olson, on view through Aug. 14, 2004.
Paul Hrusovsky
Recently retired, Paul Hrusovsky taught elementary, middle and high school art for over thirty years in Chapel Hill area schools. He earned a BFA in Painting and an MA in Art Education from Ohio University and completed post graduate studies at Washington University. Hrusovsky has exhibited widely and his paintings can be found in the numerous private and corporate collections.
"My first strong memories of images came from art books I checked out from the public library over and over again," says Hrusovsky. "One particular series of books contained many stylized images outlined with a thick black line. I would spend hours drawing and tracing the patterns, often times turning them into faux stained glass with colored tissue paper glued between black construction paper. These books as well as school workbooks influenced my forty years of art work."
Hrusovsky adds, "After I became old enough to peruse the art shelves by myself, I discovered a whole new world through art. Matisse and Picasso were my favorite artists because they often used strong lines to delineate shapes and forms; I studied their works and copied their styles. Later, when I became a teacher, I was drawn to my students¹ spontaneous, bold imagery. Young children draw simply with strong lines often dictated by the materials they use. I had a fascination with watching them work and develop an art vocabulary. I enjoyed the years I worked with children because I was always a part of their wonder, their exploration of themselves and their world."
"When I was creating this body of work, I thought about my early contact with books, my childhood art, my family and the impact they had encouraging me to create," says Hrusovsky. "I feel in these works, I have returned to a simple safe place I knew as a kid."
Julie Olson
As a full-time ceramic artist, Julie Olson's art is influenced by spiritual and ritual themes. The majority of her work is in clay with emphasis on lidded boxes made from white stoneware with cone 6 oxidation firing. She also explores metalsmithing, which she has used in the hinged boxes presented in this show.
"In honing my skills as a craftsman, I strive to make order out of chaos, explorers out of spectators and to create appreciation through understanding," says Olson. "The lidded form represents the unknown, something that can spark the curious to become involved. The object must be touched and handled: shape, color, texture, weight and size are all artistic decisions which are my tools. When an observer becomes a participant and recognizes my efforts, I have accomplished my goal."
Olson graduated with a BA in Art from Olympic College and has taught Advanced Pottery at the Craft Center of North Carolina State University since 1986. She was awarded an Emerging Artist grant from the North Carolina Arts Council in 1988 and received a grant from United Arts in 1997 to attend The Penland School of Crafts. She then continued at Penland as an assistant to Ben Owens III in his clay classes. Her work has received many awards, among them the Mansfield Purchase Award at the prestigious 2004 International Orton Cone Box Show at Baker University.
For further information check our NC Commercial Gallery listings, call the gallery at 919/942-2290 or on the web at (www.tyndallgalleries.com).
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