Making Space: Women Artists and Postwar Abstraction

Alma Woodsey Thomas, Untitled, circa 1968

I was alerted to this MOMA exhibition by an article in The New Yorker (April 24, 2017 issue). A good reason to plan a trip to NYC? The show continues until August 13 and, as an added bonus, MOMA's Rauschenberg show runs May 21 - September 17.

MOMA's website gives this description:

"Making Space shines a spotlight on the stunning achievements of women artists between the end of World War II (1945) and the start of the Feminist movement (around 1968). In the postwar era, societal shifts made it possible for larger numbers of women to work professionally as artists, yet their work was often dismissed in the male dominated art world, and few support networks existed for them. Abstraction dominated artistic practice during these years, as many artists working in the aftermath of World War II sought an international language that might transcend national and regional narratives—and for women artists, additionally, those relating to gender.  

"Drawn entirely from the Museum’s collection, the exhibition features nearly 100 paintings, sculptures, photographs, drawings, prints, textiles, and ceramics by more than 50 artists. Within a trajectory that is at once loosely chronological and synchronous, it includes works that range from the boldly gestural canvases of Lee Krasner, Helen Frankenthaler, and Joan Mitchell; the radical geometries by Lygia Clark, Lygia Pape, and Gego; and the reductive abstractions of Agnes Martin, Anne Truitt, and Jo Baer; to the fiber weavings of Magdalena Abakanowicz, Sheila Hicks, and Lenore Tawney; and the process-oriented sculptures of Lee Bontecou, Louise Bourgeois, and Eva Hesse. The exhibition will also feature many little-known treasures such as collages by Anne Ryan, photographs by Gertrudes Altschul, and recent acquisitions on view for the first time at MoMA by Ruth Asawa, Carol Rama, and Alma Woodsey Thomas."

Also on the website is a 38-minute video of the two curators being interviewed in front of a live audience. One of the topics touched upon is the "reclaiming of craft" as art in the 1960's and 70's.

You can learn more about the exhibit here.

America After the Fall: Painting in the 1930's

The Royal Academy of Art in London is currently staging the exhibition "America After the Fall: Painting in the 1930's".

To accompany the show, the curators have produced several 60-second video profiles of some of the artists featured, including Edward Hopper, Jackson Pollock and Mark Rothko.

The show ends June 4, 2017.

Hudson Artists Spring Show

Delighted to be participating in the upcoming Spring Show of the Hudson Artists. That's my fibre piece on the poster, chosen because it's the donation to the event's raffle in support of the local food bank. Notice our jazzy new AHA logo in the upper left corner, designed by President John Goodger. The poster itself was designed by our graphic wizard, Mona Turner.

I will have twelve new pieces in the show. Exactly which ones? I'm still figuring that out. 

Do hope to see you there!

Papier 17 by the numbers

Tenth edition.

Thirty-nine art galleries.

Nearly three hundred artists.

Twenty thousand expected visitors.

Three days, April 21 to 23.

Cost of admission? Zero.

Papier 17 is a fun opportunity to see what's happening in contemporary Canadian galleries. It's also a chance to visit one of Montreal's best art venues, Arsenal, at 2020 William Street in Montreal. All the work shown will be on paper: drawing, prints, sculpture, and cut and stitched paper, for example.

Nancy Petry  Noatak, 1970 Sérigraphie / Serigraph - 52.7 x 67.6 cm
Galerie Beaux-Arts des Amériques

Exercise in Blue and Orange

I took my cue from a recent blog post by Jane Davies, and tried to make interesting compositions in the complementary colours of blue and orange.

These all measure 10" x 10".

I used a variety of techniques for visual texture: stamping, stencilling, scratching, brayering and blotting with paint, as well as torn and cut collaged shapes. And I used several variations of the two main colours. Transparent paints (blue over orange or orange over blue) often produced a green hue, so I favoured opaque pigments. There's a little scribbling with oil pastel too.

I tried to use shapes in a variety of size: small, medium and large. Sometimes I employed hard edges, and at other times smudged edges. I tried to have some boring areas, and others more complicated. I also wanted to have some ambiguity about what was advancing and what was receding, that "push and pull" that Hans Hoffman achieved. If I could create a sense of depth, all the better.

I found the piece was more successful when one of the colours predominated over the other, rather than having a 50/50 distribution of the orange and blue hues. I also think it was useful to have each colour coalesce into an interesting shape, giving the composition some unity.

This assignment was challenging to me, but I persisted with it because I feel I have so much to learn. Instructors like Jane can make an exercise like this seem easy, but in fact it was quite a struggle. I'm still thinking of these as "works in progress". When I look at them again in a week or so, I may well make further adjustments.

Lakeshore Artists Spring Show

Always one of the best art shows in the region, the Lakeshore Artists will hold their annual spring exhibition at Fritz Farm in Baie d'Urfé, April 21 - 23, 2017.

Please note that Helena Scheffer, a fellow member of text'art, has donated one of her gorgeous textile pieces for the charity raffle.

For more information, go to the LAA website.

With any luck, the woods adjacent to Fritz Farm will be carpeted with scilla in time for the show.

I'm Your Man

Dance Me to the End of Love

A local art gallery has put out a call for entry.  Every year, the gallery hangs a show inspired by the connection between the written word and visual art, and how one can inspire the other. This year, a concurrent theme is an homage to the Montrealer Leonard Cohen, musician, poet and visual artist. Figurative and abstract works are welcome, and there is no requirement to include text in the image.

Ain't No Cure for Love

I have never submitted work to this gallery, but I thought I would give it a try. So...

I Have Tried in My Way to Be Free

... I have chosen four of my remaining twenty-seven Touchstone pieces and titled them with the name of a song or a lyric from Cohen's oeuvre. This was not done in a slapdash fashion, but was carefully considered, looking for a good connection between the feeling evoked by the abstract image and the words. I even rotated one of the images to better convey the sense of the title. Come to think of it, aren't most abstract works titled after completion?

If I Have Been Untrue

Will my entry be acceptable to the jury? Much depends on what is submitted to the show by other artists, and considerations like space and price points. I'll post here when the results are in.

Postscript: The show was postponed to September, and my four pieces were accepted by the jury. Delighted!

Continuing display at Café Mikko

Seven months ago, Elizabeth Glazier of Café Mikko here in Hudson suggested I might display my work at her popular restaurant and boutique. Every few weeks we change it up and install a new batch of art, whether cityscapes in fibre or abstract collage/paintings. Over the months I have developed quite an appreciation for their spring rolls with satay sauce!

I am delighted to have this exposure for my work. Above is a photo of the latest display.

You can visit Café Mikko at 403 Main Road in Hudson. With the arrival of spring, clients will soon be sipping their capuccinos in the front garden, observing the passing traffic of moms, strollers, shoppers and cyclists.

Hudson Fine Craft @ Rigaud Library

A dynamic new group came onto my local art/craft scene a couple of years ago. "Hudson Fine Craft" meets three times a month to share their skills and enthusiasm for a wide variety of craft, including quilting, embroidery, jewelry-making, collage and more.

Their current show can be viewed at the Rigaud Library, and runs until May 15. Their work fills not only the small gallery, but is displayed on the walls of the library itself.

Joanna Olsen, Untitled

Above is a small collage by Joanna Olsen, one of the group organizers. It seems that no matter what the medium, Joanna's work is always exceptional.

Carol Outram, My Secret Garden

Another of the group organizers, Carol Outram, has several arresting pieces in felted wool, embellished with embroidery and appliqué.

Carol Outram, Folk Art series (Skylark)

Carol Outram, Folk Art series (Night Owl)

Ute Sell makes distinctive small paintings in ink on salvaged papers.

Ute Sell, Untitled

Marlise Horst, Fan-tastic

Many of the traditional pieced quilts showed a real flair for colour choice, like this one above by Marlise Horst. Marlise chose recycled silk ties for one of her smaller pieces, and unusual European prints for another.

Phyllis Spriggs, Untitled

Each of the works on display is identified with a unique card, featuring randomly collaged fabric leaves stitched into place with heavy thread.

wall in small gallery

I was pleased that my entry was included in the show, seen above on the gallery wall and then again up close, below.

Heather Dubreuil, Come Sit with Me, Georges Braque

Hudson Fine Craft was responsible for other interesting shows last year, including one on "Women's Work" at the Hudson Historical Museum and the War Memorial Library. They are an inclusive group, with a fresh take on the use of local spaces and an ability to make things happen. 

The Rigaud Library is located at 102 rue St.-Pierre in Rigaud. Hours are posted on the town's website.