Monday, December 12, 2016

Art in Santa Fe 1


If you noticed last Sunday's post about the blue gates in Santa Fe, and if you inferred that I'd been there recently on vacation, you would be right.  Got on a plane the morning after the election to meet up with my brother (from Australia) and sister (from Michigan) in a place where none of us had been in many years, if at all.  Santa Fe is a big arts center, and we enjoyed our hours of gallery strolling, over three different days, in which we barely scratched the surface of what's available.



Blair Vaughn-Gruler, Accumulation paintings

At GVG Contemporary this batch of "accumulation paintings" caught my eye.  Six inches square and displayed in multiples, they are the simplest of all designs: bits of wood arranged onto a canvas to make a bas relief, and then painted in near-monochrome.  They reminded me of Louise Nevelson's all-black sculptures (although hers are more like ten feet across than six inches).

Several galleries had multiples on display, sized from six inches to maybe a foot.  The gallerists made a point of telling us how some people come in and buy four, or 30 to make a nice installation.  I wonder if that's true, or wishful thinking.

But it makes me think of a beautiful installation of multiples at my PYRO Gallery show that opened last weekend.  These pieces are rust-dyed fabric, stretched over 8x8" boards.  Wouldn't you love to have these on your living room wall?

Bette Levy, Fractured Icosikaipentagon (details below)



So I started in Santa Fe and quickly found myself back in Louisville!  I promise I will resist distraction and stick with Santa Fe in several future posts.


4 comments:

  1. My brothers, sister and I, all widely scattered met for a reunion in Puerto Vallarta. I, too, climbed on a plane the day after the election. We cried together, ranted and raved, and helped each other to deal with the unthinkable. Galleries and guacamole were part of the process. I hope the same for you.

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  2. yes, guacamole heals most wounds.

    cerveza also helps.

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  3. I can see you interpreting the Santa Fe accumulation paintings into quilt designs.

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