Welcome to Reports of the Art Guild's Recent Events!

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Becky Wilkes is the daughter of our member Mary Behrens. Educated as a chemical engineer at Texas A&M, she has “spent much of her life as a stay-at-home mother of four children who have now blessed her with a multitude of perfectly fantastical grandchildren.” She credits her parents with instilling the virtues of picking up litter, particularly things that might pose a hazard to children.

Her current vocation is a blend of urban archaeologist, anthropologist, sociologist, trash collector, and photographer. These areas are reflected in her body of artwork centered around lakeshore debris collected near her home in Eagle Mountain Lake,TX. She currently has several works on display at 500X Gallery in Dallas and will open a second solo show October 5 at the Fort Worth Community Arts Center.

She presented a great demo a couple of years ago, so our expectations were high. We weren't disappointed by her slide show about her unusual process for blending her photography of lakeshore debris. She had photographed each item separately in a creative way, and used Adobe software to build digital collages. She separated her photos into Categories such as, Fishing Gear, Tin Cans, Rusty Metal, Broken Glass, Plastic Bottles, etc. With the items jumbled together in these categories, she began to see totally different shapes and new pieces of artwork were born.

In Fall 2014, Texas was in the midst of a multi-year drought. Receding water levels in area lakes unveiled hidden shorelines and abundant debris. her walks on the beach became a treasure hunt, albeit of contemporary archeology. She documented each piece of debris as it lay, often not knowing what I was photographing until it was unearthed. Then she removed them.

“Initially, I set aside my biases about trash and focused on my “treasures”. But, with the abundant runoff of the May 2015 flood, and subsequent barrage of debris filling the lake, I began to understand the migratory nature of trash in our waterways flowing from our drainage ditches and roadways ... the countryside is being inundated on a massive scale by the individual fingerprints of personal irresponsibility – as indicted by the 5,585 pieces of trash collected.” During the presentation, Becky passed out copies of some of her found items and gave us time to draw and create something totally different around those objects. One by Mary Behrens is shown at the right.

Becky is an inspiring steward of the land. If more of us followed her example, we could truly have America the Beautiful! You can see some of her work pictured here. But to truly appreciate her work, visit her website: http://www.BeckyWilkesPhotography.com After Becky’s demonstration we enjoyed seeing the many paintings and drawings brought by members. Some of us also brought artwork to ask for advice, some of which is shown below. The critiques were appreciated by everyone.

Show and Tell:

                                  

 Dianne Harris           Charleen Isbell              Tim Lowe                Gloria Meadows

                   

Cathy Niekamp       Christine Niekamp       Chesley Smith

Marsha Wilson, a master at pyrography, has always loved working with wood, which began with cutting and creating objects including crosses. Seven years ago she began to burn designs into the wood, which is called pyrography. She decorated those crosses and created solid silhouettes and typography. Her journey led into her present pieces of art, which are highly shaded on wood, leather and paper. She creates many depictions of animals, people, buildings, and other intricate and unique designs from around the world and sites she sees around Waco.

She transfers her design onto the medium of her choice and burns with a Walnut Hollow Versatool (at right). This tool has different levels of heat, which along with the use of several brass tips (one shown at left), enable her to shade more effectively. To avoid uncomfortable heat, she recommends holding the tool further back on the handle. Most of her supplies can be purchased at local craft stores, but she orders some specialized brass tips online.

When burning paper, she uses Strathmore Bristol paper, on which she can get better tones than on wood. Plus, the tool does not burn holes into that kind of paper as she details and shades her pictures.  The work began at the right is based on the photo at the left.She also enjoys designing on leather, which is very responsive to her touch with the burning tool.

The art group gathered around Marsha to watch her shading a drawing of a Longhorn cow on a piece of wood. The photo at the lower right shows how far she got during the demo. As she worked, she remarked that it takes a long time to complete some pieces but that it was very relaxing for her to do so. She started burning with the darkest tone and also showed how she stroked the wood more quickly for the lighter tones.

Many of her pieces are shown on her website at: https://woodburningbymarsha.com. Another site with numerous designs is https://www.instagram.com/wood_burning_by_marsha. She also has studio space at Cultivate 7twelve Gallery in Waco, 712 Austin Avenue, where she has many of her items located. See https://www.waco7twelve.com/

We are so thankful that Marsha was able to take the time for bringing some sample work for us to view and for explaining the details of the process. She has a great talent for knowing which designs to use in her creations. Her demonstration was mesmerizing in its entirety! Thanks also to those who brought refreshments and art for Show & Tell, some of which are shown below.

Show and Tell:

                                 

  Pat Blackwell              Nancy Cagle            Cathy Niekamp         Christine Niekamp

 

          

 Sandra Scott             Chesley Smith (Please excuse the relections)

During our April 8, 2018 meeting, we were fortunate to have Judith Baker.

Judith has worked with colored pencils (CPs) for over a decade, and the foundation of her CP training was provided by Bet Borgeson – “…an awesome mentor”. (Judith explained that Bet, the “Godmother of Colored Pencil”, authored the groundbreaking first book about the CP medium in 1983 --followed by five more books in later years – holds many awards, and “…knows everything there is to know about colored pencils”.)

Judith’s particular interest is in botanical art, and she holds a diploma from the Society of Botanical Artists (UK) botanical illustration course. Both of her pieces appearing here have botanical subjects. The bromeliad above is entirely watercolor CPs. The ornamental corn at the left uses watercolor pencils for underpainting, with both wax- and oil-based “dry” CPs layered on top. The ornamental corn piece is currently appearing in the Conroe Art League’s 3^rd Annual National Invitational exhibit that runs through March 31^st. You can view all 101 pieces in the show, including Judith’s, by clicking on the following link: www.conroeartleague.com/now-on-view.html

Judith uses artist-grade water-soluble pencils. She explained the different characteristics of the sets and brands that are available in the USA. She demonstrated techniques in their use, including dry on dry (then wet), dry on wet, wet on wet and blending. She uses sets of 8 different brands of watercolor pencils

She added that water-soluble pencils blend well, are cost effective, and are convenient for use in the home and for travel. She also discussed water-soluble blocks, bars, crayons and sticks, along with three- value wash pencils.

Judith said that watercolor pencil brands vary in price based on characteristics such as type of wood and lacquer coatings of the pencils, and other differences, including high pigmentation and dissolvability. She suggested staying with the same brand for consistent shades and recommended avoiding student-grade (scholastic) pencil brands due to less pigment and thus lesser quality.

She told us that water-soluble bars are good for making backgrounds in a quick and efficient manner. She then made a temporary palette by rubbing a swath of color onto dry scrap paper and dabbing it with a wet brush. A more permanent palette is made by using a 3x5 piece of Aquabord. When the puddle of pigment dries on that, it can be saved and simply re-wetted to use again.

As Judith showed a variety of techniques, she handed around examples as further illustrations. She demonstrated vignette and soft focus methods, starting with dark line or ring and spreading and teasing the color out with a wet brush (Make a thicker ring to spread more color.) She also showed artistic tricks such as stroking a pencil against a kitchen sieve or an art shop grater for differing sizes of spots to be then blown, sprinkled, or spattered onto wet paper. Baker also demonstrated small misting vials, available in art shops, to pour or squirt color.

An additional helpful tip that Judith gave to the Guild members was to create a personal color wheel for the pencil sets you use. Another tip was to make color reference samples: prepare a grid of strips and paint a color in five values, dark to light, on each strip. After they dry, cut the strips apart and attach to a ring to provide a handy color reference of your pencil set.

Thank-you Judith for a well-organized and interesting demo.

And thanks to all Art Guild members that brought such wonderful works of art to show at our meeting. Some of those are shown below.

 

Show and Tell:

                                       

Mary Behrens             Pat Blackwell              Nancy Cagle               Jo Forbus                  Linda Green

                                       

Gloria Meadows       Cathy Niekamp       Christine Niekamp        John Perdichi           Chesley Smith

We have another excellent exhibit in the foyer of the Ball Performing Arts Center at MCC. The images below are photos of the entries from left to right, but you really need to see them in person to appreciate them. It's best to come in the evening when there is no glare from the windows on the opposite wall. Besides, there are many good evening programs, and most are FREE. A list of scheduled programs follows. All begin at 7:30 and are free, unless noted otherwise. Enjoy a performance and see the exhibit, a two-fer that makes the trip worthwhile.

 

April 6 & 7: La Fille du Regiment (musical performance)

April 10: Student Jazz Band Concert

April 12: Chorale Concert

April 16: Country Ensemble and Cotemporary Christian Music Concert

April 17: Rock Ensemble Concert

April 23: Vocal Tech and Guitar Ensemble Concerts

April 26: Wind Ensemble Concert

April 27: Wind Band Concert

April 29 (3 pm): Concert Band Concert

April 30: Waco Jazz Orchestra Concert

May 8: Waco Community Band Concert

 

                   

 Pat Blackwell                      Frank Gutierez                                 Cathy Niekamp

 

                   

                            Christine Niekamp                                                  Mary Brehens

 

              

                  Sue Moore                                  Kay Lamb Shannon

 

              

                Nancy Cagle                                    Jackie Holmes

 

                   

                               Chesley Smith                                                      Tim Lowe

 

         

                           Santos Maldonado

Our Art Guild of Central Texas meeting was highlighted by a demonstration of landscape painting in acrylic by Art Guild member Pat Blackwell.

Pat started painting in 1979, and opened an arts and crafts store in 1990, Pat’s Art at Brazos Craft Mall, with a large area for paintings. She also displayed and sold many other people’s work. She closed the store in about 2006 or 2007 and now operates out of her backyard workshop, with the main product being stained glass windows. Pat gives lessons in stained glass and painting. If you are interested, you can reach her at patsyruthb1@yahoo.com, or call her at (254) 756-3854

She emphasized how one should always have fun while painting and it was fun for us also, watching her have fun creating the painting!

Pat used a Styrofoam paper plate palette loaded with 5 simple acrylic colors. She used several different bristle brushes and applied colors of black, white, blue, yellow, red and yellow ochre. From time to time she used plain water to spray the palette and canvas lightly to keep the acrylic paints from drying too quickly. This helped to facilitate blending until she was ready for it to dry. The photos below are just thumbprints. Click on any of them to enlarge them.

She suggested beginning a painting with the farthest background area--in most cases, the sky. Pat used blue and white for sky and adding more white for clouds (at left), and adding some black to gray down some areas to create the look of distance (at right). She advised that mixing additional black into the lower clouds will help highlight the upper clouds.

Using a stippling technique, Pat used her green and yellow and red to create greens and browns for trees and bushes below the horizon (at left). She also had bushes at the bottom of canvas but then decided to have water in the painting. Quickly she overpainted those bushes to create a pond (at right).

Pat then double-loaded blue on one side and white on the other side of a small flat edged brush and dabbed with each color to create some Texas bluebonnet wildflowers. She then dabbed on additional spots of red and yellow, saying that where there are bluebonnets you usually will also see Indian paintbrush wildflowers (at left). Blackwell finished off her creation by painting a few high-flying birds over the then-dry canvas and highlighting the water with white palette knife strokes to reflect the brightness of the sky (at right).

We asked Pat many questions during the presentation and learned a lot from her. Of special interest, she used a Reducing Glass. She explained how she liked to sit while painting and demonstrated how the Glass made the painting look further away, so a person, while still sitting, could judge how it would look from a distance.

Thanks, Pat Blackwell, for such and interesting and fun demonstration! Thanks also to those who brought refreshments and art for Show and Tell, some of which are shown below.

Show and Tell:

                             

 Pat Blackwell           Gloria Meadows     Christine Niekamp       Chesley Smith

Our exhibit at the Carleen Bright Arboretum will run from February 7 to March 11. Many of our members saw it at the reception on February 11. If you weren't able to attend, be sure to see it. There are many wonderful works on display. The first three photos below show some of those in attendance. The rest show the exhibit starting at the right of the front door and continuing around to the right. While they provide a hint of the excellence of the art, the resolution is too low for a close examination. Besides, a close up look at the actual art is far better than any photo.

 

 

Santos Maldonado, Cathy Niekamp, Christine Niekamp

Nancy Cagle, Christine Niekamp, Kay Lamb Shannon

Mary Behrens, Cathy Niekamp, Gloria Meadows

Nancy Cagle, Pat Blackwell, Mary Behrens

Jackie Holmes, Tim Lowe

Sue Moore

Chesley Smith, Larry Garza

Larry Garza, Tim Lowe

Sue Moore, Frank Gutierrez

Frank Gutierrez

Kay Lamb Shannon, Jackie Holmes,

Janet Martinez, Santos Maldonado, Pat Blackwell

Chesley Smith, Janet Martinez

Judi Simon

Most attendees showed up with drawing tools and material to work on. Sandra provided materials for those who didn't. Nancy arranged some objects as possible subjects, but those who brought reference materials were encouraged to use them. We had a good time drawing and sharing what we produced.

 

Those who wanted to have their art used for the Arboretum exhibit postcard brought their entries. There were many excellent choices, but we voted to use Larry Garza's Peacock. Some of the art brought is below as Show and Tell. Our thanks to Nancy, those who brought art, and those who brought refreshments.

 

Show and Tell:

                   

 Mary Behrens       Pat Blackwell       Suzi Etheredge    Karen Groman         Larry Garza

 

              

Jackie Holmes        Sue Moore         Cathy Niekamp     Chesley Smith

There was a good turnout for the luncheon. Unfortunately, President Sandra Scott and her husband, Mark. were ill and could not attend. Sandra has been a great President for the last two years, and has agreed to take the role again for 2018. It would have appropriate for us to thank her at the luncheon for her past service and her willingness to continue.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Everyone had a great time with our popular “Show and get Help” program that we held at our November 12th meeting which we have at least once a year.  Some members chose to show their finished artwork, not asking for help. 

 Chesley Smith brought 2 paintings for show-only and explained how he used to paint portraits in the past but has since moved in the direction of Abstract artwork. Nancy Cagle, Gloria Meadows, Christine Niekamp and John Perdichi also brought paintings just for show.

 Jackie Holmes brought 2 paintings and did ask for help, as did Tim Lowe, Mary Behrens and Janet Martinez.  A lot of good advice was given and fun was had by all!

 The slate of Nominations was not amended and everyone on the list was elected as officers for 2018:

President…Sandy Scott

Vice President/Program (demo) chair……………. Nancy Cagle

Recording Secretary/demo write-ups........ Mary Behrens

Treasurer…… Cathy Niekamp

Exhibit Chair………... Santos Maldonado

Co-Exhibit Chair (publicity, newspaper postings) …….. Sandy Scott

Yearbook Chair………. Karen Groman)

Hospitality Chairman…….. Charleen Isbell

Hospitality Co-Chair……….Gloria Meadows

Webslave………..Bill Franklin/Mark Scott

AGCT Facebook page…….Janet Martinez

Be sure to see our exhibit in the foyer of the Performing Arts Center at MCC. There are wonderful works, 30 by 9 artists. Although photos of the works are below, they are best seen close up, and in the evening when there is no glare from the windows behind you. Combine a trip to see the exhibit with taking in one (or more) of the events scheduled there. A list is below. All are at 7:30, except as noted, and all are FREE!

 

Nov 16 - Wind Ensemble Concert

Nov 19 - Concert Band Performance - 3 pm

Nov 20 - Contemporary Christian Band Concert

Nov 21 - Rock Ensemble Concert

Nov 27 - Guitar Ensemble Concert

Nov 28 - Vocal Tech Concert

Nov 29 - Student Recital

Dec 4 - Waco Jazz Concert

Dec 8 - Choral & Wind Ensemble Christmas Concert

Dec 12 - Waco Community Band Concert

 

Photos of the entries are shown below, from left to right.

Sandra Scott, 3 by Santos Maldonado

3 by Santos Maldonado

Santos Maldonado, Cathy Niekamp, Christine Niekamp

2 by Christine Niekamp, Jacqueline Holmes

2 by Jacqueline Holmes, Chesley Smith

3 by Chesley Smith

2 by Judi Simon

3 by Tim Lowe

2 by Nancy Cagle

2 by Nancy Cagle

2 by Nancy Cagle

We had a nice time visiting with one another and those who stopped by. We had much art on display and several members tending the both, including Sandra Scott, Nancy Cagle, Charleen Isbell and Santos Maldonado. Pat Blackwell and Kit Travis were in the booth next to us. A couple of photos are below.

    

“Retrospective Part 4 - Small Wood Sculptures, 1980-2017”

Danville Chadbourne was the Texas artist for this exhibit. His earliest sculptural works were predominately made of clay, then he began combining clay and wood in his designs, “the notion of contrasts became an important part of my visual vocabulary.”

Danville moved from New Mexico to San Antonio in 1979 and taught at the San Antonio Art Institute. Along the years in his work, he began creating small, carved, whittled or constructed wood sculptures.  He feels it important to use wood that is normally discarded or rejected, like warped lumber with knots, cracks or stains, also using woods most easily available to him.

While living in the northern mountains of New Mexico he began using wood from Aspen Trees. Then he also began to use red cedar from his father’s farm in Central Texas. He liked the red cedar because of the varied colors and its scent brought back strong memories of his childhood. Presently, Danville mostly uses Ligustrum and Chinaberry wood, which are common in the areas of San Antonio. In this exhibit the types of wood are pine, cedar, pecan, mesquite, hackberry, fir, sycamore, mahogany, oak, cypress, bois d’arc, yaupon, redwood, ebony, poplar, cardinal wood, teak, maple, acacia, pear, purple heart, cryptomeria and bamboo, along with numerous unidentified found pieces of wood.

In the beginning, his idea was to produce small objects with natural wood, but through the years the sizes grew as he started to introduce color by using different types of found objects.  This change caused his wooden pieces to be more complex and larger in scale. Presently he has found his balance in the creation of small and large objects.

It was a very interesting exhibit, causing many of us to linger and wonder at the delightful ideas presented in the pieces! We were fortunate to be able to see these works of Danville Chadbourne, which will be on display until November 12th.

The Martin Museum of Art is located in the Hooper-Schaefer Fine Arts Center on the Baylor University campus. Admission and events are free and open to the public. Museum hours are Tuesday-Friday: 10am-5pm, Saturday: 10am-4pm, and Sunday: 1-4pm. The museum is closed on Mondays, during Baylor University holidays, and between exhibitions.

The Art Guild of Central Texas was pleased on Sunday, September 10, to welcome Lance Magid from Studio Gallery in Waco as our demonstration artist. Lance’s father, Mike Magid began to build frames for his brother/Waco artist, Don Magid’s paintings and Don’s art students in 1969. Mike and his wife, Pat Magid, both Certified Professional Framers, opened Studio Gallery in 1970. Through the years, they and their son, Lance, have developed new ways to perfect their crafts of building of frames and producing frames that are in themselves, works of art. Their framing literally hangs on walls all over the world. From modern apartment walls in New York City, to 300 year old walls of a Tuscan villa, and even inside the Swedish Embassy.

They also restore old or damaged frames and paintings, as well as old photographs. Lance restored a painting that sunk with the Brazos Queen into our Brazos River and stayed there for 3 months. He said there was silt and lots of other lake debris covering the painting and frame, but eventually, after several careful processes, the painting emerged from the shop looking like new! For our demo, Lance explained his process in building "Custom Frames", and showed us some of his framing materials. He also explained his method in making closed corner frames.

PROCESS:

1. Cut and put together the 4 pieces of molding to make the frame

2. Add any "compo" if desired

3.Gesso the frame with/without compo

4. If you plan on gold leafing the frame, you have to paint on the "sizing" (glue used for gold/silver leaf)

5. After the sizing has set for 12 hrs, you may start putting the leaf on the frame

6. Use steel wool to take off some of the shine of the gold and reveal some of the gesso

7. Shellac the gold leaf

8. Paint on the Super Saturated paint

9. Take off some of the paint to reveal gold/gesso

10. Wax the frame with paste wax

11. Rottenstone and polish

He uses Compo, which is kept in the freezer until use. It is a clay-like material that molds to the frame after heating, and covers the seams. He uses a Red Clay colored Gesso to cover the frames, then a sizing which enables metal leafing to stick. He passed around some examples of gold colored metal leafing sheets, a very fragile substance. Sometimes he even uses real gold leafing, depending on the requests of customers. After the leafing process, he buffs with steel wool, enough to reveal some of the red clay color. It is possible then to use Stage Paint, Blackout Black with water in various mixtures from 1 x 1 to higher percentages of the water. Lance explained that, presently, the gray frames are still popular, along with floating frames.

We were so fortunate to experience this demonstration by Lance Magid. Our thanks to him, to those providing refreshments, and to those who brought their art for Show and Tell, some of which is shown below. We are especially happy to welcome new member Jackie Holmes among those who brought art.

                             

 Pat Blackwell              Nancy Cagle              Larry Garza              Jackie Holmes

                                       

Charleen Isbell              Tim Lowe             Santos Maldonado      Janet Martinez         

                                       

Gloria Meadows     Christine Niekamp          Judi Simon               Chesley Smith

 

The Art Guild of Central Texas was pleased to welcome Richard Skurla as our demonstration artist on Sunday, May 7. Mr. Skurla is a 1979 graduate of Texas A&M University. He worked as a computer programmer, and began to paint in his spare time. In the late 1980’s, Richard decided to work full time as an artist. Richard received his BFA from the University of Texas Arlington. In 2011, he received his MFA from Stephen F. Austin State University, and through his extensive study of the great artists of the German Expressionists, French Fauvists and New York School of Abstract Expressionists. He has developed his own unique style of expressionism and terms himself as a “Neo-Expressionist.” He also enjoys experimenting with form, material, texture, and color in order to create vibrant and exciting 3-D works of art that he calls Volumetrics.

During the demonstration, Richard showed us his method for creating his small paintings. He also shared many gems of wisdom, including which areas geometrically to avoid when laying out your painting sketch, limiting your use of white, and to bring your Primary and Secondary paints along with you when traveling. He also suggested that we learn how to build a webpage for our artwork. He also addressed the concept of “critique”, and how, as artists, we must learn to keep in check our “egos” and remember that critique is a vital learning experience for all artists. He stated, “we should not worry about having our feelings ’hurt or attacked’, and embrace the benefits of critique as a critical pathway to artistic learning and improvement”.

Richard does not use an easel for this type of small painting. He chooses to paint on a flat surface. He creates his own painting supports. These supports are a special type of constructions made of paper (Strathmore Acrylic 246 lbs attached to Crescent Perfect Mount archival board). He then applies 3 coats of Golden Black Gesso with a 2-1 mix of Gesso with Golden Pastel pumice onto a taped area (using Delicate Painter’s Tape) on the paper. After the 3 coats are completely dried, about 72 hours, he has a surface on paper that will accept oil paints.

Richard and his wife were in Paris and purchased a painting from a gallery that was the 1^st one to exhibit works of Pablo Picasso. His palette is a piece of plywood that was used to pack and ship a painting they purchased while in Paris. The painting was NOT A PICASSO, but a landscape by a local artist. Once the support is ready for paint, Richard would tape off a portion of the Gessoed surface leaving a small black square. He used Carpenter’s Delicate Release tape to cover the white unpainted border and extended the tape over about 1/8 inch of the edges of the black center portion.

At this point, he begins to apply his oil paint over the exposed black, using various brushes and palette knives to build up layers of oil paint, starting with the translucent colors. He usually uses 13 colors. He is not a fan of earth tones, but does favor the cadmium colors and mixes the paint with either Liquin or Liquin Impasto.

 

Before the paint was dry, he very carefully peeled the tape straight up and away from the border, he was careful not to tear the paper, which left a white border around the painted section in the middle. The 1/8 inch strip of black gesso showed at the edges of the oil paint, gave the art a 3-D illusion. He stores his leftover mixtures in foil packets, pressing out all the air, which allows the paint to stay fresh for a long time

 

We learned so much from Richard Skurla. It was an extremely interesting demo! He sold his Demo painting (shown at the ight) to Myrl Luper, who then carefully took it home to dry.  If you want to see more of Richard’s work, he has a website: http://richardskurlafineart.weebly.com/bio.html.The Waco Tribune did a piece about him at: http://www.wacotrib.com/entertainment/accesswaco/art/bold-color-customer-s-sensibility-drives-waco-artist-s-solo/article_88f901d9-cf44-5b87-9e6c-c8f41094d23e.html

Thanks to all of you that attended! Although we didn't have time for Show and Tell this month, some the art brought by members is shown below.

                                         

  Nancy Cagle            Cathy Niekamp        Christine Niekamp       Andrew Nystrom        Chesley Smith
 

A number of Art Guild members exhibited in the Art on Elm exhibit. The works of some were scattered about on several panels, so the photos below don't show all, and some of the works shown are by other artists. The sixth photo shows works of a former member.

         

        Bill Franklin (all 3)     Judy Franklin (bot L & mid R), Judi Simon (bot R)     Sandra Scott (top 2)

 

         

       Judi Simon (2 on R)                     Chesley Smith (top R & bot 2)                   Julie Cash (all 3)

 

In addition, a newly returned member, Harley Johnson, had a booth on the street, where he had dozens of paintings on for sale. The photos below show his kin attending the booth and some of his art.

    

 

There was also an separate exhibit of children's art, a couple of which are shown below.

         

 

The reception on Friday evening was very nice. Shown here are the food table and Jeff Horton, who provided music throughout the evening.

 

    

Annie Mathis, a junior computer science major at Baylor, and a former student of John Perdicci, explained and demonstrated her work in graphic design and digital art. The tools which she used were her computer, and a programmable wireless Wacom tablet and pen. She explained that the pen has two buttons which can be used for a variety of functions. The tablet's four buttons can be set to any keyboard combination. She also uses Photoshop which comes with most tablets. The tablet can be customized to all the different applications on the computer. She makes use of keyboard shortcuts also.

Annie said that graphic design and digital art are quite different and are employed for different purposes. Graphic design is created for communication or display, often for commercial purposes. Characteristics of a successful logo are simplicity, an edited or original font, clean lines, and color related to content. An example is shown at the left. Frequent consultation with the client throughout the design process is important. She frequently uses a layering technique, so she can experiment with different options without losing the original design. There is a functionality for masking in Photoshop, whereby the interior design cannot stray beyond defined borders.

Digital art and illustration are a cross between free hand drawing and graphic design. First a free hand sketch is made on the tablet and dimmed. The lines are then cleaned up using a layer through which the dimmed sketch can be seen. After that colors are “painted” on to achieve the desired effect. To illustrate this technique, Annie sketched a dog on the tablet. She carefully corrected the sketch to feature the exact lines which will appear in the final drawing. (Shown at right.) The base layer of color was then applied. By changing the opacity of the pen and altering the color, she created shading and highlights. (Shown at left.)

For creative art many different digital techniques can be employed to build the unique style the artist desires. Annie showed her “painting” of Eponine of Les Miserables in which she used a base color and shape for the hair, then added random colors for depth. Varying the pressure of the pen she drew individual strands of hair which tapered to a sharp point at the end. For the arms and shirt, she started with the shadows to get the contours, then added highlights and the basic colors. She used “smudging” to create an undefined background. She used Photoshop techniques to vary the width and opacity of the “brush” strokes. She showed how she mixed colors by overlapping them.

While a sophomore at Baylor, she won a prize for the computer painting of a bear shown at the top right. She completed the drawing with an Apple iPad Pro, which was within the confines of the rules for the contest. She drew in each hair of the fur by hand. For her dog (Shelby), shown at the left (where the left half is a photo and the right half is her painting), she put on the base color, then drew each individual hair. She compared the dog with a wolf she had done earlier, shown at bottom right, which she considered too static, showing improvement in her ability to create realism.

She showed us other examples of the art including a graphic art poster that she designed for the short film, The Tenor, shown at the right. Also, a dog portrait on which she drew the fur by hand, which is shown at the left. The dog painting won 2nd place in the Waco Top Young Artist competition when she was a sophomore in high school. We were all in awe of Annie's talents, are grateful that she shared her art with us, and wish her well as she continues her creative work. You may want to see more of her work on her web site www.anniemathis.weebly.com. If you have questions, you may email her at annie_mathis@baylor.edu.

We want to thank those who brought refreshments, and those who brought art for Show and Tell, some of which is shown below.

Show and Tell:

                             

  Nancy Cagle               Bill Franklin               Judy Franklin         Santos Maldonado

                             

Christine Niekamp    John Peridichi               Judy Simon             Chesley Smith

Try to drop by the foyer of the Performing Arts Center at MCC to see our current exhibit. Although the number of members participating was fewer than usual, there is still a lot of good art to see. A preview is shown below, but it's best to view it in person, and at night when there is no glare from the day lit windows. To get more than visual art, you can also take advantage of the music and drama events in the evenings. The events all begin at 7:30. The concerts are all FREE! There is a modest price for the dramas. A list appears below.

 

March 31 & April 1 Opera: Hansel and Gretel

April 4 Student Jazz Concert

April 10 Country Band Concert

April 11 Rock Band Concert

April 17 Guitar Ensemble Concert

April 20 Wind Ensemble Concert

April 24 Vocal Tech Concert

April 26-29 Drama: Henry V by Shakespeare

 

Works shown in order from left to right

 

Chesley Smith

 

Tim Lowe

 

Mary Behrens

 

Santos Maldorano

Christine Niekamp

 

Charleen Isbell

 

Janet Martinez

 

Pat Blackwell & Nancy Cagle

Cheryle Chapline's watercolor paintings have a depth and luminosity that give life and interest to her work. She demonstrated the underpainting technique that she employs to achieve that result. She paints with a limited palette from which all her colors are derived. For the underpainting she uses lighter paints that can be lifted with water; Aurelian yellow, cobalt blue, and permanent rose. For the darker topcoat, which is called local color, she uses New Gamboge, alizerin crimson, and French ultramarine blue. Burnt sienna and cerulean blue are also added to her palette. She typically uses Winsor & Newton paint and Silver/Black Velvet squirrel and synthetic brushes which she orders online. Her paper is Arches 140 lb. Cold press. She uses an industrial chamois cloth to absorb excess water.

Cheryle begins with a detailed pencil drawing of her subject. She uses masking fluid to preserve white areas if her subject calls for it. She holds a large, pointed brush in each hand (one with color, the other with clean water), although she trades them since she only paints with her right hand. She lays hard edges with the color brush, then uses the water brush to soften one side of the color stroke. She begins by applying Aurelian yellow to areas of the work which will be the lightest. After that is dry, she applies cobalt blue to areas she wants darker. Lastly she applies permanent rose. Since it is a staining color it can only be lifted off if it's put on top of the other paints. Each layer must dry completely before another is applied so the colors don't run together and become muddy. She then adds the local color allowing the underpainting to show through in strategic places.

She passed around examples of finished paintings which showed how the underpainting created depth and a glow that would be absent if she had just applied flat color. Two of her paintings were featured in the periodical Splash, and those were shown to the group. One of these was a painting of her calico cat, Emma. Her underpainting colors were glazed over each other to create an optical mix. She skillfully used masking fluid for some of the fur and the whiskers. Each new color was laid on with just one stroke.

For today's demonstration, Cheryle began with a pencil drawing of a Japanese magnolia blossom. She said that determining the focal point is an important first step, and that in a floral it is usually the center of the blossom. She applied Aurelian yellow on the side where the light came from. Cobalt blue was applied next, then permanent rose. After applying paint on one side of the paper, she moved to another side so the colors would not combine to create unwanted color. She then used local color to darken some areas to add variation in value.

Cheryle worked slowly and deliberately, and it was a joy to watch the painting assume shape and life as she applied the underpainting and local color. She sent an update of the demo painting (at right). It's still not completed, but you can see how the local color is influenced by the underpainting. (Click on the thumbnail to enlarge the image - for this and almost all images on our site). Cheryle teaches and demonstrates in the Waco area, and it is easy to see why her work has achieved national recognition. If you are interested in taking lessons from her, write her at cachapline@yahoo.com. Many thanks to Cheryle for her intriguing demo. Thanks also to those who brought refreshments and art for Show and Tell, some of which is shown below.

Show and Tell

                              

  Bill Franklin               Judy Franklin             Charleen Isbell              Tim Lowe

                             

Janet Martinez         Cathy Niekamp         Christine Niekamp       Chesley Smith

Everyone seemed pleased with the show. Refreshments were provided by the Arboretum and Mary Behrens. David Smith, shown at the right, the Trib arts columnist, critiqued the entries, pointing out good features that might well have otherwise escaped notice - even by the artists themselves - and enlightening us all. He selected five favorites for merit awards, shown below with their ribbons.

                                       

  Mary Behrens                  Bill Franklin                  Larry Garza              Santos Maldonado          Janet Martinez

We have a very nice exhibit, with 31 pieces by 16 artists. The Artists' Reception will be our February meeting. It will be Sunday, February 12, 1:30-3:00. David Smith will critique the works during roughly the last half of the meeting. Please come at 1:30 so that there will be time to view the exhibit, converse, and nibble snacks prior to the critique, which needs to have our attention.

A preview of the exhibit follows. It begins to the right of the front door and proceeds to right around the room. Some of the images have been assembled from several photos to eliminate windows and other interruptions. The works cannot be fully appreciated from this preview. They need to be seen up close.

Karen Groman top, Christine Niekamp below, 2 by Tim Lowe in the center, Pat Blackwell top, Nancy Cagle below

Nancy Cagle top, Santos Maldonado below, Sandra Scott, Sue Young, Pat Blackwell top, Santos Maldonado below

Judi Simon right & left, Christine Niekamp in the center

Mary Behrens left & center, Nancy Cagle right

Sue Young, Larry Garza

Larry Garza, Gloria Meadows

Judy Franklin left & right, Sandra Scott center

Bill Franklin left & right, Janet Martinez center

Chesley Smith left & right, Janet Martinez center

2 by Kay Lamb Shannon

 

In 1998, Jo Anne began taking classes in Russian iconography from Vladislov Andreas. She explained that she begins with a plaque of recessed wood which represents the Tree of Life. Linen cloth is then applied, representing Life itself. Next comes a coat of gesso, representing the Light of God. A layer of clay (which symbolizes that man was made from clay) is spread on parts of the gesso. It is the base for the gold, and is burnished to allow the gold to stick to it. The many layers of paint are applied to the remaining gesso. The  paint is made by combining pigments with a binder, which is made by combining the egg yolk inside the yolk membrane with wine. The pigments are all derived from natural elements. In the finished icon there will be 22 very thin layers. Each layer has a religious meaning, contributing an important aspect to the finished work.

Jo Anne uses specific religious designs from the 11^th Century. She uses carbon paper to lay the design on the prepared board. Then she draws the images with India ink. When a thin layer of paint is applied; it is pooled, not brushed, so that the pools run together to mix the paint. The first layers of paint incorporate the grit in the pigment. These layers represents the Chaos of Life. She uses a pipette to get paint for the top layers with no grit. Highlights are then applied in three layers, each covered with a layer of finer, more delicate paint layer to obtain a lighter and softer image paint to tone down the image. In contrast to much Western painting, the light source comes from within the figures, representing the Soul. Gold leaf is applied, parts are burnished with agate mounted on the end of a stick, and parts are left unburnished. She forms the circular halos with a compass. A partially finished icon of Christ is at the right. A completed one is at the left.

Icons are meant to be thought-provoking, and are found in Christian churches of many denominations. Two of Jo Anne's works hangs in St Matthew”s Lutheran Church in Waco. The finished works are called “writings” not paintings. They are meant to glorify God, and not the artist, so they are not signed on the front. Jo Anne received permission to sign her works on the back, using the following wording: “Written to the Glory of God by Jo Anne Norwood.” Jo Anne's finished works are exquisitely rendered. She gave us all an appreciation for the symbolism and inspiration that these beautiful icons contribute to the worship of God.

We were honored that Jo Anne shared her works with us, and greatly enjoyed hearing her describe the many steps required to produce them. Many thanks, Jo Anne. Thanks also to those who brought refreshments, and to those who brought art for Show & Tell. We voted on Which of those would be on the postcard invitation to the Artists' Reception at the Arboretum on February 19. The winner was Larry Garza's Eagle, shown at the left. Judi Simon and Judy Franklin tied for 2nd place. All of the entries are shown below.

 

Show & Tell:

                             

 Pat Blackwell              Bill Franklin               Judy Franklin               Larry Garza

                             

Karen Groman              Tim Lowe            Santos Maldonado    Christine Niekamp

                   

Sandra Scott               Judi Simon              Chesley Smith

We met at BJ's at 11 am & ordered from the menu. Happily, Sandra had printed up BOGO free coupons for everyone, so it was an inexpensive treat. A lot of visiting went on, but in relatively small groups, since we were spread down a long table, and there was a fairly high level of background noise. Still it was a pleasant end of the year get-together. See photos below.

         

Barbara Bessire is an instructor at the Just Because Bead Boutique in Temple. She also gives classes for her ice dyed fabric and her precious metal clay jewelry at her studio in Hewitt. Her daughter, Michelle, helped Barbara at the presentation by setting up and assisting in many ways throughout.

This was a much anticipated meeting! Members and guests were very deeply focused during Barbara’s demonstration. We learned a lot, asked many questions and viewed and handled many beautiful pieces of jewelry and ice dyed fabrics. When making the soft and pretty ice dyed scarves, she folds them in half before tying and dying, so the two sides will be the same. She also showed some of her colorful ice dyed wall hangings. Barbara was wearing a cotton dress that she also ice dyed. She uses reactive dyes, ice and soda ash in the process.

She brought examples of her beautiful fused glass jewelry. If we were interested in learning the technique, she recommended for us to take classes where she teaches in Temple, “Just Because Bead.” They have a larger and varied supply of specialty glass and bigger kilns recommended for the process. Barbara presented a large assortment of her gorgeous silver jewelry. She also showed us a little silver foot that she developed after making a mold at the hospital of a newborn baby’s foot. What a keepsake for that family!

She told us that metal clay was developed in Japan in the 1990’s. It is made of microscopic particles of pure silver or fine gold powder etc., mixed with an organic, nontoxic vegetable binder that burns off during firing. This was first achieved with gold and later silver. In 1995 metal clay was brought to the United States.

She had packages of different metal clays as you can see pictured at the right. Each package of clay had specific firing instructions on them. She mentioned that when firing glass with metal clay, a lower temperature must be used or the glass will melt. Original Precious Metal Clay (PMC), now referred as Standard, shrinks 30% after firing. PMC & PMC Flex have 15% shrinkage, PMC3 has 10-12% shrinkage. PMC PRO is a harder product with more silver content, it must be kiln fired in activated carbon. PMC Sterling has 10-15% shrinkage, has some copper content and requires a 2 step firing process

The clay is first rolled and shaped and then imprinted in various ways. Michelle worked at readying small disks/charms of the silver clay for our projects. Some of us used the decorative buttons she supplied for us, first spraying a lubricant onto the button so it wouldn’t stick to the clay. After imprinting, Barbara used an Exacto knife to cut away any stray pieces (it can then be recycled.) The clay must first dry and then she fires the jewelry in the kiln. She uses a tumbler to polish the metal after firing.

She took our imprinted silver discs/charms back to her studio for firing and will return them to us at a later date. What a treat! Many thanks to Barbara and Michelle! We look forward to a return visit to show us more of her work! If interested in taking Barbara’s classes, you can contact her at “Just Because Bead” or by email at bbbessire@yahoo.com. We also thank those who brought refreshments and those who brought art to share, some of which are shown below.

Show and Tell:

                   

Nancy Cagle          Christine Niekamp            Tim Lowe

We have 30 works by seven members on display at in the foyer of the Performing Arts Center at MCC. We prefer to have more artists represented, but some of those who participated brought extra works, so the space is nicely filled. The entries are shown below as hung from left to right. Of course they are best seen in person, preferably in the evening when there is no glare from the windows. You can do that by attending one of the free musical events held there. Those currently posted on the mCC web site are below. Others will probably be added. You can look for them at www.mclenan.edu/calendar.

Dec 2 7:30 MCC Wind Ensemble Concert

Dec 5 7:30 Waco Jazz Orchestra Concert

Sandy Scott

Chesley Smith

Christine Niekamp

Santos Maldonado

Santos Maldonado

Mary Behrens

Nancy Cagle

Nancy Cagle

Tim Lowe

Shown are a few photos of the Art Guild booth. One shows Sandra Scott. Also helping were Karen Groman, Ellen Foster, Myrl Luper, Kit Travis, Charleen Isbell, and Chesley Smith. In addition, Pat Blackwell and Tim Lowe had their own booths.

                  

         

This month for our demo, we focused on our own art rather than have something brought to us by a presenter. There was so much enthusiasm and good interaction between our artists. We had fun with each of us presenting some of our completed pieces of art, or those in progress, and musing over the suggested ideas.

Nancy Cagle (left) showed two acrylic paintings, an abstract and a small wooded scene.

Ellen Foster (right) presented an oil painting of a bluebird, some members suggested that she darken the area around the belly of the bird, creating more contrast.

Kit Travis (left) brought an acrylic painting of a covered wagon being driven through a river. She wanted to know if she should paint the sky lighter, and the consensus was that she should lighten the clouds.

Pat Blackwell (right) brought an abstract design etched mirror, many correctly guessed that it was a man lifting barbells. She also had a very cutely painted mouse that used to be a rock.

Mary Behrens (left) showed us a painting of a big golden seashell and wanted to know how to make the seashell look more lustrous. Some suggested dry brushing yellow-tinged white in areas for highlight, and darkening the dark areas. One suggested to varnish only the shell, leaving the other part of the painting unvarnished. Myrl Luper is shown making a suggestion.

Charleen Isbell (right) had an unfinished oil painting of Elvis, she was having trouble getting the features to look like the original photo. Many suggested changes to placements of features and more shading on the face.

Chesley Smith (left) brought some finished and unfinished acrylic works of art, some with a combination of acrylic and watercolor. He starts with his colored pencil sketches to work out his designs. He is shown with a painting of African women carrying baskets, and the sketch he began with. We gave color ideas for one part of this painting. He also had some unfinished wood plaque paintings of different objects.

Christine Niekamp (right) proudly presented a completed oil painting of her parent’s scenic driveway. She also had a small wooden box and on the side she had painted an oil portrait of a woman wearing sequined jewelry.

John Perdichi (left) had 2 items made with urethane Foam. The plaque was one of 1500 that he made for the Stitzel-Weller Brewer in Louisville, Kentucky. The other piece was sample of the hound dog figure that he made for the Hush Puppy shoe company.

Gloria Meadows had an unfinished pastel drawing of an eagle, she wondered if she could use hair spray to protect the top part from smudging while she worked on the rest of it. Some thought that would work, or also a workable fixative spray.

She also showed a lovely painting of cactus and a bird on top of a front gesso-coated burlap canvas.

Tim Lowe brought an unfinished painting of the “Last Supper.” He is trying to learn how to get faces painted correctly.

He also showed us some beautiful shots taken as an MCC photography lesson, with his new camera.

Sandy Scott asked for advice on placement with her under-painted, unfinished oil painting of her son and grandson. Chesley Smith suggested she make the fishing rod more obvious and put a float on the string, which would help to move the eye across the canvas. John Perdichi is shown offering a suggestion.

Should we do this once a year in the future? Let us know what you think in November, when we elect new officers for 2017.

Christine was born and raised in Waco, Texas. She has been doing artwork since she was a child and eventually earned a B.S. in Elementary Education and Art from Baylor University. For most of her career, she produced fashion advertising ink drawings as well as wrote copy for many department stores including Cox's, Monnig's, Goldstein's, and Holt's. When the fashion industry changed and artists with her talent were no longer in demand, she became a touch up artist for Olan Mills Photography Company until she retired.

Christine brought a few examples of her quick sketches, landscape paintings and oil portraits including the “Glamour Portraits” that are born of her own imagination. She also brought a few examples of her painted rock critters. They are shown at the right.

When doing a sketch for a painting, Christine never uses a pencil directly on the canvas, as she says it can cause more destruction to the surface. She also never uses charcoal because it dirties the paint and makes the colors dull. Instead she draws a very simple sketch on a piece of properly scaled/measured tracing paper and rubs the back side with the side of the pencil. Then she tapes and presses the back of the paper onto the canvas and goes over her drawing with a dull pencil, which transfers the lines to the canvas.

For this Art Guild demonstration, Charleen Isbell volunteered to be Christine’s model for a Quick Draw pencil sketch. Christine used a 2B graphite pencil, drawing paper and she had a gummy rubber eraser that she did not need to use.

She is a good judge of where to start her drawing on the page without needing to draw partition lines or ovals. She began her portrait sketch by drawing one of the subject’s eyebrows and one eye, then the bridge of the nose and down. She then proceeded to the other half of the face, leaving the perimeter outline for later. When working on the hair, she uses the side of the pencil for a soft effect and also to show shadows in the face.

Christine answered questions from the attendees and finished the drawing in 30 minutes. It’s always instructive and enjoyable to watch the way that others develop their drawings, and this was no exception.

We want to thank Christine for taking the time to give us an interesting demonstration.

And thanks to all Art Guild members that brought such wonderful works of art to show at our meeting. Some of the contributors are shown below with their paintings.

Show and Tell:

                             

  Nancy Cagle            Charleen Isbell               Tim Lowe            Santos Maldonado

                             

Gloria Meadows        John Peridichi           Chesley Smith               Kit Travis

 

Born in Waco, Chesley Smith has been involved in art education for 40 years as a teacher in Waco schools and as head of the art department at Paul Quinn College in Dallas. He holds both bachelors and master’s degrees in art education, and he has exhibited widely across Texas and elsewhere. Since 1986 he has had 13 solo exhibits in numerous venues around Texas, has contributed to dozens of other exhibits, and has produced a number of commissioned works. He has also exhibited at the Hippodrome in Waco, which has bought several of his works through the years.

Chesley shared several of his art collages with the group. There were 4 different categories; Silhouette Collages, such as the one in the above paragraph, Repurposed Collages, like that at the left, Mixed Media Painted Collages and Celebrity Paper Collages. He always starts with picking the color of the background for his artwork, he uses Acrylic spray paint and sprays a piece of stiff paper. Then he selects pictures that go best with that background.

With the Repurposed Collages, he often uses torn bits of his old paintings arranged in an interesting matter onto a textured paper background. With his Mixed Media Painted Collages, like that at the right, he often paints over the connecting pieces of collage with designs, or uses another small piece of collage to break the lines.

With his Celebrity Paper Collages, like that of Elvis Presley at the left, he draws outlines of famous people onto his already painted background paper, then he paints the inside the outline of the face with his desired color and uses interesting bits of torn or cut magazine pages to fit the borders, and to shape into facial features. Chesley chose to demonstrate for us a simple standard Silhouette Collage. He always selects a picture with an interesting outline, such as an interesting face, horse, eagle, etc.

For this demo he presented an outline of a horse, similar to that at the right, that he had drawn onto a heavy drawing paper. He had previously flipped the drawing onto a light table and traced the drawing of the horse from front to back. He says he prefers to use watercolor pencils for this because the lines behind the drawing are less discernable from the front than if using regular pencil.

He took a couple of pages out of an old magazine that he felt looked interesting and cut them into strips. He flipped these strips onto a protected surface and sprayed with Adhesive and then pasted them onto the drawing, being sure to cover the outline, as shown at the left. He then cut out the image from the paper, using the lines on the reverse side, with scissors and an Exacto knife, leaving a collage-covered image of the horse. The cut out horse is shown in the paragraph below. This image would then be glued onto a painted stiff paper background, before matting and framing.

With his years of experience, Chesley has found that what many buyers desire in a painting is some type of emotional attachment to the picture, perhaps capturing a moment of time in their lives. Our thanks to Chesley Smith for giving his time to share this most interesting and very enjoyable demonstration with the Art Guild. Thanks also to those who brought refreshments and those who brought art for Show and Tell, some of which is shown below. Many thanks also to Sandra and Mark Scott, who provided the narrative and photos for this report.

Show and Tell:

                             

Karen Groman      Charleen Isbell   Santos Maldonado   Gloria Meadows  Christine Niekamp      Kit Travis

Violet Piper began our program by showing us a box of pastels which were her mother's. Even though they were over 100 years old they were still perfectly usable. She also uses pastel pencils which she keeps sharp with a strip of sandpaper, as well as pastel sticks which can be purchased at art supply stores. She used black pastel paper and white transfer paper which she purchased at Hobby Lobby. She said a pastel artist may use paper made for charcoal drawing, but it is lighter in weight than pastel paper. Her pastels and paper are higher quality artist grade, not student grade. She said there are differences of opinion regarding the use of fixative spray. She doesn't use spray, but others said that Aqua-Net Hairspray does a good job without much effect on the look of the work.

She had a completed pastel work of a cat inside an overturned bucket with apples that had spilled out, shown at the left. She also had a series of the same subject in sequential stage of development. She began with a drawing placed on black pastel paper using white transfer paper, shown at the right. Beginning at the top of the drawing, she avoided dragging her hand through anything she had just colored. She carefully filled in the light areas with a white pastel pencil.

She added some dark with a black pastel pencil. She smoothed and blended the chalk with a Q-tip to achieve a soft effect, shown at the right. She then added and blended the colors of the apples, using her palette of red, blue, and yellow. She continued to work on her drawing, explaining her techniques and answering questions as she worked. At the left is the image at the end of the demo, although it wasn't completely finished.

We thank Violet for showing us the versatility of pastels in creating beautiful works of art. We also thank those who brought refreshments and those who brought art for Show and Tell, some of which are shown below.

Show and Tell:

                                

 Pat Blackwell              Nancy Cagle                 Bill Franklin                Judy Franklin    

                                         

  Larry Garza                 Karen Groman       Santos Maldonado    Christine Niekamp            Kit Travis

An artists' reception Friday evening provided time to view the art, visit with artists, and eat scrumptious finger food. Free for exhibitors, $15 for others. The exhibitors included Judi Simon, Chesley Smith and Judy and Bill Franklin. Some of their work and a few other pieces are shown below.

              

  Judi Simon          Chesley Smith       Judy Franklin          Bill Franklin

                            

Victoria Gonzales      Genaro Barron      David Rosenbaum          Mark Kieran

We have a great show at MCC in the foyer of the Ball Performing Arts Center. There are 28 works by 11 artists. It has wonderful variety and plenty of artistic merit. A catalog appears below, but to see it best come in the evening when there is no window glare and the spots light the art nicely. The time to come is when there is an evening performance. The concerts are of high quality and are all FREE! The opera and theater performances are inexpensive. They all begin at 7:30, except as noted. The schedule includes:

April 1&2: The Magic Flute (Mozart opera) $12 Adults, $10 Students and Seniors

April 5: MCC Jazz Orchestra

April 7: Faculty Duet

April 11: Country Music Ensemble

April 12: Rock Music Ensemble

April 14: Wind Music Ensemble

April 18: Vocal Techniques

April 20: Percussion Music Ensemble

April 21-22 Theater "Doubt" (also April 23 at 2 pm) $10 Adults, $8 Students & Seniors

May 2: Waco Jazz Orchestra

Others may be added.

Our Exhibit, beginning at the left end and proceeding to the right:

Chesley Smith

Karen Groman (1), Judy Franklin (2)

Mary Behrens

Santos Maldonado

Sandra Scott

Christine Niekamp

Charleen Isbell (2), Nancy Cagle (1)

Bill Franklin

Judi Simon

 

Julian Rosas presented a fascinating program featuring cyanotypes, a process by which a surface is coated with a mixture of chemicals and when dry, can be used to make photographic prints. A reference such as a print on transparency film or other object is placed directly on the treated surface. The photosensitive paper then is exposed to UV light or sunlight to produce the cyanotype print, which is typically a cyan-blue color as shown at the right.

Julian gave a detailed explanation of the historical development of this unique art form. He mentioned Sir John Herschell, who experimented with photosensitive emulsions of vegetable pigments. Henry LeSecq made cyanotypes of Chartres Cathedral in France. Anna Akins published a work containing 250 captioned cyanotypes of types of algae in a book, British Algae. Digital technology has advanced so that cyanotypes can be made in a variety of colors. Mike Ware is famous for his work, and he treats his paper with a solution of iron compounds: Potassium ferricyanide and ferriammonium citric.

There are many safety precautions that need to be followed when using the chemicals because they are extremely toxic. A well ventilated work space, and eye and skin protection are critical. The process is as follows:

1. Fill both containers of powdered chemicals with water to create A and B solutions. Shake until dissolved. Let sit for 24 hours.

2. In low light mix equal parts of both containers. Mix only what you need right away, because the sensitivity when mixed is only 2-4 hours.

3. Coat the surface of paper or fabric with the mixture. Allow to air dry in a dark place for 24 hours.

4. Once it is dry, you can create an image by laying a transparency of a photo or an object (Leaves and flowers are often used.) on top of the surface and making an exposure under a UV light or in sunlight. Leave for several minutes.

5. Remove the objects and wash the surface thoroughly. Blot dry.

6. You might need to repeat the process using more or less light or exposure to get the desired results.

Julian had treated and dried paper for participants to use as a surface. He had made several transparencies from which to choose or we could gather botanicals from outside. We made our prints on the sidewalk in the bright sunlight. We then took them inside, and Julian washed them. The image appeared on the paper as if by magic! It was a delightful presentation, and we wish Julian all the best as he heads off to study art at Texas Tech. Our thanks also to those who bought refreshments and art for Show and Tell, some of which is shown below. We had a bumper crop this month!

Show and Tell:

                       

 Pat Blackwell         Nancy Cagle           Bill Franklin           Judy Franklin       Gloria Meadows

                      

   Tim Lowe                Myrl Luper     Santos Maldonado   Cathy Niekamp   Christine Niekamp

                       

  Violet Piper           Julian Rosas            Judi Simon          Chesley Smith           Kit Travis

David Smith, who writes a weekly arts column in the Trib, critiqued our art again this year. His insights were greatly appreciated by our those in attendance, especially those who had works in the exhibit. He selected the following five works for merit awards:

Mountain Lion by Judi Simon

Phoenix by Bill Franklin

Lake Travis by Christine Niekamp

Mary Beard Smart by Sandra Scott

Guitar Player by Chesley Smith

Of course, selecting favorites is a matter of personal choice, and another person might make very different selections.

Kay Reinke, demonstrated her techniques for abstract painting using fluid acrylics and pouring medium, media which were new to most of us. Kay began painting as a child, taking lessons at the art school of the Houston Museum of Fine Arts. Until recently, she painted mostly landscapes in oils, then went to acrylics for more flexibility. In an effort to paint more loosely, she recently took up flow acrylics and fluid acrylic inks. These produced abstracts that she really pleased her, and which she has greatly enjoyed. An example is at the right.

Kay passed around samples of her work with fluid acrylics and pouring medium. She said that the paint should dry slowly. If it dries too quickly, it will develop cracks (crazing), although this can be interesting also (example at the right). She often applies several layers, letting each layer dry thoroughly before applying the next. She had some ink works on yupo paper which she didn't consider very successful, so she cut them up into 1” strips, wove them into a square, and mounted the square onto cradle board (example at the left). Sometimes she puts different kinds of paint and medium into a ½ egg carton, turns it upside down, and pours it out all at once.

She showed us an example of her work entitled “Aquifer Rising," shown at the right, which was featured in the book Acrylic Works 2 – Radical Breakthroughs. The original of this work was recently on display as part of the WOMEN IN THEIR ELEMENTS exhibit, at Art Center Waco. Featured were Kay's works and those of two other artists. Her work will appear in Insight Forward, a book to be published soon.

She showed a chart which she created testing the flow rates of various types of fluid acrylic. The chart is at the left. Clicking on it enlarges it enough to make the labels readable. From most viscous to least, the samples were Holbein and Golden fluid acrylics, Golden high flow acrylic, FW acrylic ink, and Liquitex acrylic ink. The substrate can be watercolor paper, yupo paper, canvas, canvas board and glossy photo paper. Glossy surfaces are needed for the inks. Adding a pour medium can increase the fluidity (reduce viscosity). Adding water is not a good idea, since it dilutes the color. Many of the above materials can be found at Hobby Lobby or Michaels, others can be found on the web.

For her demonstration, Kay placed a piece of parchment paper on top of an upside-down baking sheet. She placed a sheet of yupo paper on top of the parchment . (The baking sheet was so she could move her work around easily, and the parchment was so the yupo paper would lift off without sticking.) She shook the acrylic, then let it rest a bit, so the bubbles would settle out. She poured out different colors on separate areas of the paper and added pouring medium which helped the colors flow gently into each other. The pouring medium will dry clear and shiny. Kay emphasized that the paper must be kept level and the paint left to set up and dry on its own.

A few stages of her demo are shown here. Since she had to move it when it was still wet, it changed during transport, and she added additional pours.  She sent the image at the right, saying that she might not yet be through, but it has clearly changed a lot since the demo. During the break everyone was encouraged to come to the front to see her work up close. While she was working a video camera projected the process on a wall. After the break she showed how the fluid could be spread further using a straw or stick. Several people experimented with these.

Kay encouraged us to blow through a straw or use canned air. Also, you can use a scraper, palette knife, old motel room cards, and anything for texture. You can also make skins for collage by pouring fluid acrylic paint or ink onto plastic wrap, or a plastic sack, waiting for it to completely dry, then peeling it off. Kay brought a unique experience to the Art Guild, and we appreciate her willingness to share her time and talent with us. Thanks also to those who brought refreshments and art for Show and Tell, some examples of which are shown below.

Show and Tell:

                   

 Nancy Cagle          Bill Franklin          Judy Franklin        Charleen Isbell         Tim Lowe

                        

  Christine Niekamp    Sandra Scott          Judi Simon         Chesley Smith        Kit Travis

 

We have a great show! Thanks to all who contributed art. We have great items from both old standbys and new members. Unfortunately three works were not hung because they were not properly framed or lacked hanging wires. A word to the wise.

Since the reception is February 21, you might want to wait until then to see it, but it's available M-F 9-4, Saturday 10-2, and sometimes Sunday, when there isn't an event going on. There are many events, however, so call before driving over there (399-9212).

A quick look appears below, starting to the left of the entrance and moving to the right around the room. The resolution is too low to allow a real appreciation of them. Go to the Arboretum for that.

Chesley Smith

John Perdichi & Judy Franklin

Sue Young

Pat Blackwell & Judy Franklin

Charleen Isbell & Christine Niekamp

Kay Lamb Shannon

Christine Niekamp

Gloria Meadows

Bill Franklin & Pat Blackwell

Bill Franklin, Christine Niekamp & John Perdichi

Mary Behrens

Sandra Scott, Tim Lowe & Judy Franklin

Judi Simon & Sandra Scott

 

Our presenter this month was Pat Blackwell, a well-known local artist. She showed several of the techniques she uses to create commissioned pieces for windows in homes, businesses, and churches, as well as articles for sale. She brought several of her finished pieces for us to enjoy, some of which are shown here. She had on display several different types of glass, many of which were in glowing colors of cobalt blue, and bright red. Some pieces were textured in various ways. She gets clear glass from local home improvement stores and usually purchases her specialty glass from Hollander Glass Co. in Houston.

To create her pieces she first designs and draws her patterns on paper. Then she uses a Sharpie to mark the design on glass. She cuts out the design using glass cutters and glass cutting oil. She breaks off large pieces with running pliers. Grozing pliers enable her to trim off small bits of glass without breaking the whole piece. She uses a grinder to smooth the edges, wetting them to keep them cool.

After the design is cut, she uses copper foil or lead to wrap around the piece. The foil is pressed down after it is wrapped. Different forms of wrap-around lead are applied with lead nips. She places the wrapped piece on a tile and solders the lead at the joints to hold it in place. For this she uses 60/40 solder and classic gel flux. For hangers she forms a loop by wrapping pre-tinned copper wire around a small paint brush, removing it snipping off a partial circle, and soldering the resulting loop onto the lead or copper-wrapped glass piece. After the piece is finished she cleans off flux with Kwik Clean and glass cleaner.

Pat displayed several kaleidoscopes, which she loves to make from Pringles or coffee creamer containers and bits and pieces of colored glass left over from her larger works. She purchases mirrored glass at Home Depot or Hollander.

She drills a hole in the metal end of the container and inserts an electrical grommet into the hole. After removing the plastic lid, she inserts a circle of clear glass all the way inside the container. She measures and cuts three strips of mirrored glass each about 1 1/2 inches wide and tapes them into a triangle, wiping them to remove impurities. She inserts the triangle into the container, leaving room for the glass pieces at the lid end. It is secured in place with cardboard circles with triangular holes for the mirror group or with styrofoam pieces wedged between the mirrors and the can. A second circle of clear glass is inserted to rest on the triangle and glued into place with E6000 glue. Then on top of the clear glass she puts enough colored glass pieces that the view will mostly be colored glass, but leaving enough space for the pieces to move around as the tube is turned. After the plastic lid is replaced, the kaleidoscope is ready for use.

Thanks to Pat for showing us all the steps in the process - making it look easy! Thanks also to those who brought refreshments and those who brought art for Show and Tell, some of which are shown below.

Show and Tell:

                   

 Pat Blackwell        Nancy Cagle        Charleen Isbell          Tim Lowe      Christine Niekamp

              

John Perdichi        Jukian Rosas        Sandra Scott     Chesley Smith (chosen for the postcard!)