Now Showing Jeff Nebeker

I'd like to extend a warm welcome to our newest artist, Jeff Nebeker!

Jeff is an artist in the Sacramento area and is best known for his almost delectable ceramic pastries. He received his BA from UC Davis in 1980 and studied with Robert Arneson and later attended San Francisco Institute of Art and received his MFA in 1983. Jeff is one of a select group of artists who have displayed work at the famed Candy Store Gallery that was once in Folsom, California.


Cupcakes | ceramic | 2010

Jeff is considered to be one of the first Funk ceramicists to use pastry tools in clay sculpture. These tools help differentiate textures and ultimately transform his pastries into realistic looking forms. I have to admit, the pastries almost look good enough to eat. Jeff's cupcakes are topped with swirls of thick frosting and sprinkles, and are wildly fun and witty. In fact, our showcase at the front of the gallery is now fully stocked - we have decadent cakes decorated with bright fruit and flowers, festive caramel apples just in time for Halloween, and a collection of miniature pastries that remind me of the treats found at Freeport Bakery in Land Park!

Congratulations!

A big congratulations is in order for two of our artists at EFG.

Bryan Mark Taylor just returned from the 12th Annual Laguna Beach Plein Air Painting Invitational with the Collectors' Choice Award. Bryan won the "Best Of Show" award at last year's festival. Way to go, Bryan!

Here are a couple of the paintings he completed while at the festival:





Teresa N. Fischer and her painting Ol' No.5, which is featured in "The Still Life" this month, are in the top 50 finalists for Southwest Art's "21 Over 31" competition! We're very excited for Teresa, and it's no surprise that her work was selected out of nearly 3,000 applicants. Great job!


Ol' No. 5 | Oil on canvas | 16" X 12"

Mid-Month Update

"The Still Life" has been up for about half a month and I'm very excited to report that there are 17 red dots in the showroom! Positive comments along with the sales, of course, have been very encouraging.

The spread in American Art Collector's October 2010 issue has brought in new clients, which isn't surprising when considering the quality of the pieces featured. Click on the images below to read the full article:




As I mentioned in an earlier post, the point of "The Still Life" was to exhibit outstanding work by talented artists who "specialize" in still life. Now that the show has been up for two weeks I've had the opportunity to really look at each piece and appreciate what each artist has brought to the table. I can't tell you how many times I've walked through the exhibition space (with the intention of going to back of the gallery) and have found my self distracted by a painting in the show. James Neil Hollingsworth's painting, Dumbo, is one that I frequently visit through out the day.


James Neil Hollingsworth | Dumbo | Oil on hardboard | 24" X 24"

Neil's ability to differentiate the textures throughout the piece is without a doubt masterful. The piece is so impressive, in fact, that this photograph does not do the painting justice. From the trees reflected in Dumbo's plastic skin to the creases in the the tarp covering the lower portion of the ride, the artist has treated every surface, corner, nook, and cranny with equal care and attention. If you're in California, this painting will make your trip to the gallery worthwhile.



Shawn Kenney | Dutch Oven | Acrylic on panel | 8" X 10"

I've also spent a lot of time examining Shawn Kenney's work in this month's show, which is featured at the top of this post. Shawn lives in Rhode Island and attended RISD (Rhode Island School of Design) and has also worked as an illustrator, designer, and art director. There are two aspects of Shawn's paintings that attract me most - the manner in which he paints and his ability to depict light.

Although it isn't as obvious in photographs, Shawn's paintings utilize varying layers of paint to "build" and describe his subjects. Interestingly enough, areas lacking paint are equally as important as the areas with paint. This diverse range of opacity infuses each painting with a unique sense of three-dimensionality, which is further emphasized by his use of a single light source within each piece.

Both Table Setting and Dutch Oven, for example, are illuminated by an overhead light source, allowing Shawn to focus on specific areas of his subjects. Areas that are not in the path of the light recede into darkness, creating a palpable sense of space. This dramatic combination of warm, focused light along with rich, dark background colors immediately reminds me of the "master" of painting light: Caravaggio.


Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio | Still Life With Fruit | c. 1605

While Caravaggio is perhaps most famous for his religious paintings during the Counter-Reformation, we can still identify with his innovative style: tenebrism. This term is described by the overarching use of chiaroscuro, a style of painting that is characterized by strong contrasts between light and dark. This effect is used for both emotive and compositional purposes, and in such a way that it becomes a dominating force within the piece. Caravaggio's impact was certainly profound during his career as a painter, and his stylistic "followers" were known as the Caravaggisti. This artistic legacy persisted even after his death, as masters such as Peter Paul Rubens, Johannes Vermeer, and Rembrandt van Rjin, utilized chiaroscuro as a prominent stylistic element in their paintings.

Caravaggio was a household name during his life, but was almost immediately forgotten by the general European public after his death in 1610. The importance of his work was rediscovered in the 20th century, and it's exciting to know that contemporary painters are still influenced by his artistic legacy - even 400 years (exactly!) after his death.

When Art Imitates Life: Depicting Movement

Just as I was about to leave the gallery today I noticed a woman walking her two Scottish terriers on the sidewalk across the street. They weren't quite full grown yet but were full of energy as they scurried along the sidewalk.

I couldn't help but think of Giacomo Balla, the Futurist painter who known for his depictions of light, movement and speed. It's interesting to consider how visual artists slowly adopted new and innovative ways to depict movement on a two-dimensional surface. "That seems easy!" one might think, but is it really? Check out the painting I immediately thought of when I saw the two Scotties scampering by:



Dynamism of a Dog on a Leash | 1912

The painting is a bit dizzying, I must admit, but it certainly provides a summation of time over the course many individual "moments." I won't get into the political implications of Futurism, but I find it fascinating as an art historical convention.

Here's an interesting quote that coincides with Balla's painting:

"On account of the persistency of an image upon the retina, moving objects constantly multiply themselves; their form changes like rapid vibrations, in their mad career. Thus a running horse has not four legs, but twenty, and their movements are triangular." - Technical Manifesto of Futurist Painting

This, of course, leads me to think of photographer Eadweard Muybridge, who is known for his work on animal locomotion. Eadweard used multiple cameras to capture separate moments in time. In fact, his work photographing a galloping horse answered the much debated question of the period: whether all four of a horse's hooves are off the ground at the same time during a gallop. In fact, Leland Stanford, who was the California governor at the time, hired Muybridge to to settle the question.


The Horse In Motion | 1978

Muybridge's photographs showed that Stanford's racehorse was airbornein the midst of a gallop, solving the question once and for all. These photographs were taken in the late 19th century and directly relate to the Futurists' interests in the early 20th century.

To come full circle, the point of this post was to consider the idea of art imitating life. I'm constantly making associations between the past and present - it seems like anything and everything relates to art in some way, shape, or form. Art is continuous, fluid, and ongoing... and that's very, very exciting.

- Michelle

"The Still Life"

A new month means a new show at the gallery, and it is with great excitement that we're having our first annual invitational still life group show. My main objective in seeking new artists was to find "experts" who have a well-defined style, a high level of consistency, and a passion for painting objects. Ultimately the show confirms that contemporary still life artists continue to push boundaries through style, content, and technique, as they build upon an age-old tradition.

Here is a list of the accomplished painters featured this month:

Alvin Richard

Christopher Stott

Craig Stephens

Daryl Gortner

Derek Gores

Donald Bradford

Kathrine Lemke Waste

James Neil Hollingsworth

Otto Lange

Paul Coventry-Brown

Philippe Gandiol

Sally Tharp

Shawn Kenney

Teresa N. Fisher

So why collect still lifes? What's the big hoopla around them?

When I referred to the act of still life painting as an "age-old tradition" above, I wasn't kidding - painting realistic scenes of objects has persisted through out western art history. Trompe L'oeil still lifes are most often associated with the Flemish, as their realistically painted fruits and flowers for example, looked luscious enough to touch (Willem Kalf is a favorite). When considering the French, on the other hand, one might first think of the master still life painter Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin, who was famous for his genre paintings. Cezanne, of course, was also French but he took on a very different vision from his predecessors as he explored post-impressionism through fragmented brush strokes, incongruous compositions, and vivid color. The Italian painter Morandi made tonal explorations through his still lifes as they often approached abstraction through a sense of "flatness" achieved through a simple design aesthetic.

I've only mentioned a few, but it's easy to see that still life artists have faced varying challenges and objectives over time, which leads us to wonder what's going on now?

Here are a few paintings (amongst many) in this month's show which will answer that question:

Alvin Richard - Held Over Monet - Acrylic - 12" X 9"

Aside from the fact that this piece is tremendously well done, the story behind it is equally compelling. Alvin gave me a little insight into the subject and here's what he wrote, "The title is a play on words. The vase is by Robert Held, a California born artist living in Vancouver Canada. While doing the rounds of the art galleries (on Prince Edward Island), I discovered the magnificent art glass of this very prolific artist. The luminosity in the glass is incredible... I knew at that very moment that I wanted a piece for myself and that I would want to paint it. Driving home I was thinking of anchoring it on a Japanese woodblock print. After I read Mr. Held's biography stating his main's influences as being Louis C.Tiffany, Gustav Klimt, and Claude Monet I had the perfect pocket book of Claude Monet which I had been eager to use in a painting."

Daryl Gortner - Forever Lasting - Oil on canvas - 48" X 30"

Daryl's painting is graphic, bold, and eye-catching. Read what she has to say about the piece and how the subject of a lollipop found its way to her canvas. "The lollipop's swirls of bright colors instantly reminded me of my childhood as I recalled the excitement of picking one out, enjoying its sugary flavor, but never finishing it because it was so large. I've further accentuate the 'everlasting' quality of the lollipop by painting it from a child's vantage point, as if it appears larger than life"

Teresa N. Fischer - When Your Horse Comes In - Oil on linen - 24" X 18"

Teresa's painting is grounded in its pyramidal composition and her use of striking tonal variations, which carefully describe each of the horse figurines. Notice the varying textures - the wood, the shiny plastic, and even the thread looped around the label - as they are all individually differentiated. The contrasting black background complements the piece nicely and further emphasizes the three-dimensionality of Teresa's subject.

James Neil Hollingsworth - Dumbo - Oil on hardboard panel - 24" X 24"

Neil's painting of Dumbo exhibits a thorough understanding of light. Dumbo's plastic surface is almost sumptuous with its tonal variations and impressive reflections. While the picture of this painting is fantastic, you have to see the piece in person to really appreciate the talent of this incredible painter.

Christopher Stott - Type B & Type A - Oil on canvas - 20" X 40"

Whether it's the subtle whimsy pervading his subjects, or the intricacy of detail, Chris' paintings are consistently magnetic. While books may seem commonplace or banal, they are treated with grandiosity through his attention to detail and thoughtful compositions. Here's a little insight into what Chris was thinking when he painted this: "I was having a conversation with Cynthia, an art consultant at the Elliott Fouts Gallery, about one of my paintings. Apparently someone was looking at one of my unruly stacks of books and said they'd constantly be compelled to organize the books, straighten them out and make a tidy pile. I like hearing about how different people interpret my paintings. And the idea occurred to me then to honor different personality types and how they relate to each other and can be integrated in to the same relationship, or paintings, in this case."

To see the rest of the show, please follow the link to our website below:

Elliott Fouts Gallery Website

The show will be on display from October 2 - November 4, 2010 with our Second Saturday opening on October 9th from 6:00 to 9:00 PM.

Hope to see you there!

- Michelle

New Blog and A Recap of September

It has been awhile since we've blogged and I've decided to jump back into the game with a sleek new design!

This month at Elliott Fouts Gallery has been very exciting - Bryan Mark Taylor's one-person show Atmosphere, Light, Land garnered a generous amount of attention and it's no surprise that 3/4 of his show has sold. A solid review by The Sacramento Bee's Art Critic, Victoria Dalkey, brought in several new clients and confirmed that critics and collectors agree, Bryan Mark Taylor is one artist you must add to your collection.

Here's why:

• He's young. How many 34 year old artists can say they've sold 19 / 28 paintings in a month-long show? Not many. He has a well-defined style and has created what I like to call, a "tripartite" oevre consisting of cityscapes, farmscapes, and seascapes.


• He's academically trained. An artist with an artistic education behind their career is usually one step ahead of the next. Painters learn the fundamentals of painting in school, and whether they continue to pursue "academic" subjects like the nude, for example, or go on to create abstract works, a strong background is key. Picasso didn't jump right into Les Desmoiselles d'Avignon.


• He's an award winner. Bryan goes to plein air festivals around the state throughout the year (which means he's a go-getter, too!) and not only is he showing his work, he's also getting the attention of the festival jurors. He has a couple of "Best of Show" awards under his belt, including one from the 2009 Laguna Beach Plein Air Invitational.


• His work is still affordable. Contemporary "masters" of plein air painting are asking for an upwards of $15,000 per painting. Why even spend $10,000 when you can get one just as good, or even better, for significantly less?

While many pieces have sold - here are two that are still available, along with reasons why they they shouldn't be.

Valley Farm Oil on canvas 16" X 20"

Valley Farm epitomizes Bryan's unique style with its obvious surface texture and fragmented brushstrokes. The sky, for one, is a testament to his ability to create the sense of atmosphere with ease, as it sets off the highly detailed buildings in the foreground.

California Coast Oil on canvas 11" X 14"

Bryan painted four coastal scenes for the show, three of which have sold. The spatial arrangement of the composition of this piece is especially noteworthy - a strong central diagonal makes its way from the upper left corner to the middle right side, drawing the viewer across the entire painting. The rocky formations on the coast are realistic depictions of weather-worn cliffs, further proving Bryan's rendering skills when painting en plein air.

Finally, if you're interested - click the link to Victoria's review of the show.

http://www.sacbee.com/2010/09/10/3014881/art-review-bryan-mark-taylor-captures.html

More to come.

- Michelle