Jackson Hole Art Blog

A few months back–a few warmer, sunnier months back– toy photographer Brian McCarty came to town and introduced his neat-o, media activating work.   He is the step son of local philanthropist and producer Mickey Babcock; McCarty’s opening took place at Babcock’s new home.   The Jackson Hole Art Blog posted a story on his work, and McCarty keeps in touch.

Here’s one of his latest, “Moon Wanderers,” shot in the Tetons.  McCarty says the little guys are resin figures.  The toys are created by Russian Sergey Safonov, who, says McCarty, has “… hand-built a mysterious cast of characters that exist only at night. The Moon Wanders float along, sleeping and waiting.”

McCarty openly discusses his process, and in this case the process began with an imagined image of small figures afloat under a paper moon.  The toys were mounted on metal rods placed in soft mud, at Two Oceans Lake, in Grand Teton National Park.  ( Is this legal?  Not sure.  But I didn’t do it! )  A long exposure taken by a camera atop a semi-submerged tripod “…made the water seem glassy, except for the rippled reflection of strobe light off a paper moon suspended in the background.”

The Tetons can provide a lot of interference if they want to.   McCarty was challenged by nature a few times.

“Things started getting a little edgy with the growing army of leeches seen attaching themselves to my waders. A too-close-for-comfort moose followed in close succession, at first looking confused at the humans walking around his lake at midnight, then a bit annoyed. I’d like to think that we scared him off with our flashlights and noisemaking, but it may have been what followed next. Through the mist, something that sounded much larger than the moose was splashing around. Unable to see, I’m going to wager it was a grizzly bear or perhaps a sasquatch. Hard to say,” says McCarty.

I saw McCarty’s show with my (dear) artist friend Ricki Arno--who I haven’t heard from in like, two months.  Ricki, where are you?   Please call.   Have you gone back to Planet New York?

From Planet Laramie: Nationally known, Colorado-based artist James Surls will give a talk at the University of Wyoming’s Coe Library on Saturday, Oct. 24, beginning at 1:00 pm.  The University’s Art Museum blog says a reception will follow; all will celebrate the installation of Surls’ new work, “Rolling Flowers.”

What a great title!

UW’s blog says Surls is noted for his work with emerging artists–he’s a mentor.  He also works quite a bit with non-profits and he and his wife, Charmaine Locke, (Her website cover page shows a gorgeous shot of her large scale bronze, “Open Book.”  Please look.)  have large-scale pieces in that wonderful venue, “Sculpture: A Wyoming Invitational.” Check the above U.W. Art Museum link for more information.

From the Wyoming Arts Council:  Art Aid

Wyoming Entrepreneur, at the University of Wyoming, offers free web marketing counseling for small businesses, and the Wyoming Arts Council has an Individual Artists Professional Development (IAPD) grant program.   Grants provide funds for artists to hire web designers ( wow!!!! artists lose lots of precious creativity time working on websites.), pay for hosting and other needs.  A one-to-one match is required, and up to $500 can be awarded.

For info: Email mshay@state.wy.us.

Greg Woodard’s “Native Americana,” an exhibition of his new sculptural works, opens with an artist’s reception at Altamira Fine Art on Thursday, September 17, 2-4:00 pm.   The show, currently on display, remains up through September 21.

Woodard is largely self-taught. I’ve chosen to share his portrayal of a wolf, “Last Stand,” carved from apricot wood, because the continued successful sustaining of our region’s wolf population is, currently, at the top of conservationist’s lists.  But Woodard is widely known for keenly specific bird sculptures.   A master falconer, Woodard has been a contender in the Ward World Competition in Ocean City, MD, recognized as the most prestigious bird carving competition in the world.   That is big stuff.

The arts overlap with with conservation and conscientious hunting.  We can all co-exist if we are mindful and creative.   As Woodard notes, understanding environment, habits and characteristics of wildlife is crucial to us, crucial to survival.  His love of the wild is present in his work.

For information, email connect@altamiraart.com.

Item #2:

Chris Burch sends this headline:

“THESE ARE THE PEOPLE IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD: CENTER OF WONDER SHOW FOCUSES ON COMMUNITY DURING FALL ARTS FESTIVAL!”

Where: Lyndsay McCandless Contemporary, 130 South Jackson Street
When: September 11, 5-8 p.m.  (Palates & Palettes Night!)
Sponsors: Center of Wonder, LMC,  Art Association,  Community Foundation, Rocky Mountain Bank, Wyoming Arts Council, National Endowment for the Arts.

Many locals have a hidden–or not so hidden–creative side.  You probably know some of them, but others come as a surprise.   This exhibit, curated by Christian Burch, consists of 30 wooden silhouettes of these secret creative people.

Maybe they can be placed around downtown Jackson?   Our version of NYC’s bronze, life-sized sculptures of businessmen and other citizens, sprinkled around that city.   A nice echo of last winter’s cut-out wildlife figures spread around Wilson and its environs.

Says Burch, ” The show, … in collaboration with Bland Hoke and The Center of Wonder, consists of thirty wooden silhouettes of Jackson Hole citizens painted by an equal number of Jackson’s own local artists. The free-standing figures have been painted so that one side represents what is known of the person, while the other side is painted to reveal something that might not be known. “  Works will be auctioned off to benefit non-profits chosen by the artists.

Information about public art programs will be on display and computers will be available for people to comment on the Teton County Comprehensive Plan review.

Item #3  (excuse the black text…hey, it stands out!)

Teton Artlab spotlights favorite local artist Craig Spankie, on September 11.  Jackson natives Mark and Wade Dunstan and Abbie Miller contribute, too.  Mark and Wade are the children of Kaidi Dunstan and grandkids of Art Association founder Georgie Morgan. (Abbie is making a huge inflatable dress!  Heck yes. - TW) The opening takes place during the FAF festivities that evening.   But don’t call Travis, he has a new baby.  Call Spankie, now an old hand with babies: 699-0687.

Item #4

Came across a headline the other day about Scottsdale, Arizona’s Museum of Contemporary Art. Its attendance “surged” and grew by more than 6,000 visitors since the economic bomb fell, and the museum has enjoyed more than 40,000 visitors in the past fiscal year.  That’s more than last year, but less than its 2005-2006 high, a 47,291 visitor count. The link to that article is here.

If it seems to you as if a certain subject matter is visibly missing from Jackson Hole’s art scene, you’re correct.   Life drawing, the practice of drawing the nude figure, is art’s longest tradition.   Many consider it to be art’s purest subject, and the most difficult practice.

Even so, with all the superior artistic talent in and around Jackson Hole, nude portraiture is rarely publicly displayed.  That’s changing.

Body & Soul II, a group exhibit displaying life drawings by 13 local artists, opens at Galleries West on August 20, running through September 3.    A reception will be held Aug. 20,  5-8:00 pm.

Thirteen participating artists are:  Eliza Chrystie, Eliot Goss, Thais Graham, Lane Griffin, Alissa Hartmann, Jennifer L. Hoffman, Greg McHuron, Susan Nowlin, Lee Carlman Riddell, Shannon Troxler, Kathryn Mapes Turner, September Vhay, and A. A. “Sandy” Zvegintzov.

Gallery owner Debbie Bunch provides context for the history of nude drawing.

“The story of this drawing group has its beginnings in the long tradition of life drawing through the ages,” she says.   “The skill of drawing, and specifically drawing the human form, was considered a prerequisite for all art students in the 19th and early 20th Century academies. By the mid-20th Century, less emphasis was being placed on the craft and mechanics of art study in favor of expressionism and conceptual issues.  As the priorities of the academies changed, life drawing was no longer required study for students.  And less and less artists pursued the practice.”

Participating artist September Vhay notes that, “The intent of this show is to share our artwork with the public and to create an understanding and discussion about the roll that drawing skills play in fine art.”

Valley artist Greg McHuron quietly began holding group drawing sessions at his studio about eight years ago, taking a break while he dealt with a serious cancer threat. (McHuron, if possible, is even more productive post-treatment.)  As Bunch says, most of these artists are not professionally known for figurative work but they share “…a desire to hone their observational skills while studying the light, form, perspective, and proportion that the human body offers, and a belief that the basic skill of drawing is a vital foundation that is too often skipped over by artists today.”

Artists will be in attendance for August 20th’s reception. For more information, contact Galleries West Fine Art at 307-733-4412 or visit www.gallerieswestjacksonhole.com.

Item #2

R. Haworth at Full Circle Frameworks!

Ryan Haworth–whose last name is pronounced “Hayworth,” but who never starred in “Gilda,” or married Orson Welles–(Sorry Ryan, I’m in a strange mood this morning! Must be because it’s my day off.) opens a new group show at Full Circle Frameworks this Friday, Aug. 21.

“Us,” as described by Rocky Vertone, is “… a window into his thoughts during the most active time in his life..at least for now. It touches on fears, belief, humor, beauty, and the urge to do what we love.”    The show remains up through September 9.

For info, give a call to 307.733.0770, or email Vertone at: rockyfour4@gmail.com.

The Legacy Gallery hosts a two-man show for Western artists James Ayers and Jason Rich this month.  An opening reception will be held on Thursday, August 6, at the gallery, 75 N. Cache, on the Jackson Town Square southwest corner.   Both artists will be present.

Ayers, a Rhode Island School of Design grad, is noted for his portraits of Indians.  (John Byrne Cooke almost decapitated me for using the term “Native American,” a term, according to Cooke, coined by wrong-headed white men.) His travels and observations of Iroquois, Sioux and Hopi inform his works, oil paintings on canvas.  I’ve read that he’s influenced by a diverse group of great masters: John Singer Sargent, Gauguin, Klimt, and Henry Tanner.  That list encompasses myriad uses of light and paint; the latter artist’s painting style alone varied extensively over the course of his career.

Jason Rich also chronicles the Western life, but with a focus on cowboys and their horses.  Imbued with an illustrative golden light, Rich’s landscape-cowboy-horse portraits capture ranch life and individual moments of reflection, traversing the plains, resting the herd creekside, riding the range under endless skies fluffed by cumulous clouds.    His love of ranch life springs from his own childhood on a Utah farm.

For additional information contact Legacy Gallery at 307-733-2353 or maya@legacygallery.com.

Item #2 :   O’Connor at Galleries West

E.C. O’Connor’s solo exhibition, “Willing: Saying Yes to the Road Less Traveled,” is featured at  Galleries West, August 6-19. The show highlights O’Connor’s productive Joshua Tree National Park residency, as well as landscapes painted in the Greater Yellowstone region.

Talented Jackson Hole artists of all ilk often go about their day-to-day lives unnoticed.  O’Connor is one: she waits tables at Nora’s, landscapes, and does her fair share of outreach work in and around the valley.   But, as has previous posts have reported, O’Connor is an accomplished landscape painter recently awarded the coveted Joshua Tree residency.   At Joshua Tree, the artist created many new works–one painting will become a permanent part of that park’s collection.

“Many people perceive undeveloped areas as valueless and inhospitable,” says O’Connor.  “In no place is this more true than in our nation’s deserts. My goal is to show the inherent beauty within a very harsh environment.”

She is a passionate on-location painter; no painting from photographs for her.   As McHuron likes to do, O’Connor paints the “wow.” Her light recalls that of such master painters as Maynard Dixon, E. Martin Hennings and Edgar Payne.

An artist’s reception happens August 6,  5-8 PM.  O’Connor will be in attendance–yay, I finally get to meet her!–and  hors d’oeuvres, wine, beer, and the gallery’s hallmark chocolate fountain will be available.  Call the gallery at 307-733-4412 or visit www.gallerieswestjacksonhole.com.

Galleries West twitters.  You can also follow the gallery on Twitter (www.twitter.com/gallerieswest) and their page on Facebook (http://tinyurl.com/gallerieswest).

Item #3

Mary Roberson opens her new show, Nature is the Life of the Dream, at Altamira Fine Art on Thursday, August 6.  A reception will be held 5:00-7:00 pm.  More on this exhibit in my next post, but don’t miss what promises to be a good kickoff for a special show.  connect@altamiraart.com.

Item#4

Jackson Hole Center for the Arts’ founder John Tozzi and Center resident Dancers Workshop Artistic Director Babs Case are 2009’s Winners of the Award for Creativity.

Case’s 11-year devotion to Dancers’ Workshop has transformed a small, back-office company into a state-of-the-art outfit. DW provides dance classes and performances for all ages, all tastes; its electric current and constant vivacity are one of Jackson’s main creative arteries.   It’s all due to Case, who, in addition to  her dancing and directing, is an accomplished visual artist.  It could be said that Case ignited finding new venues for artists not able to appear in galleries, with her popular summer “Harpo’s Art Fair,” a day-long fun arts n’ picnic in Bab’s back yard.   Fun like Alice’s Wonderland fun.    Jodeen Tebay beautifully writes, “while dance is what brought Babs to the community, space is her true passion. On the stage, on paper, in textiles, in architecture, and in life she sees and creates beautiful compositions of space.”

Nobody deserves this award more than Babs Case.  Congratulations, Babs!

Congratulations to, to co-winner John Tozzi, without whom Jackson would not have the magnificent Jackson arts hub, the Center for the Arts.   Said Bruce Hawtin, “It is at times difficult to be creative and make a living. Because of John, the arts, all of the arts in Jackson Hole, have a home; therefore they have a place to be creative. That doesn’t spell success but it removes one of the obstacles.”

The Cultural Council of Jackson Hole invites everyone to attend the 15^th Annual Award for Creativity Celebration on Thursday, September 10 from 5 – 6:30 p.m. at Dancers’ Workshop’s Studio 1 in the Center for the Arts. 2009 recipients will be presented with awards made by a local artist. This year’s artist is Laurie Thal.

Jackson Hole is now the home of the International Film Academy (IFA), a school on a mission to teach professional filmmaking.  The valley’s relatively isolated geography makes it an improbable location for such an institution, but its unparalleled natural beauty and proximity to two national parks provide visual inspiration and myriad topics.

Recently the Journeys School campus served as base camp for the IFA’s week-long pilot course. Film director Danny Ledonne, aided by Jackson media expert and instructor Carl Shuptrine, led the class.   Ledonne is a third-year MFA candidate at Washington D.C.’s American University. The week’s course, geared for adults, included former JH Film Institute staff, Teton County Library employees, college students and broadcast media grads looking to improve skills. Students got hands-on experience with cool, high-end Panasonic P2 tapeless HD cameras and Final Cut Pro editing systems. With only a week to plan, shoot and edit, the class began shooting on Day 2, spending the first day considering possible topics, viewing documentary film clips and discussing story lines and emerging trends.

What is the definition of a documentary?  Ledonne says that as long as a film’s topic is non-fictional, it’s a documentary.  “There are as many possibilities for documentary topics as there are topics in a library’s non-fiction section.  Biographies, auto-bios, opinions, history, nature, it’s endless.”

For instance, March of the Penguins is more about people than it is about penguins,” notes Ledonne.  “The film’s nuzzling penguins suggest they’re romancing each other.  In fact, they might just be cold.”

The class discussed Blue Vinyl, a story told by a daughter trying to convince her parents not to vinyl-side their home, a large issue observed as personal experience.   Michael Moore, on the other hand, is a great example of an essay-style filmmaker, with one over-arching voice: his own. By contrast, director Alex Gibney’s Taxi to the Dark Side portrays the life of an Afghanistan taxi driver we know almost nothing about. But the film tells the story of his fate at the hands of U.S. government policies.

Jackson’s IFA class filmed and edited three short films: Paragliding the Tetons, Jackson Hole Rodeo Princesses and Yurt Simplicity, films touching upon three Jackson Hole lifestyle anchors:  adrenaline pumping adventure, historic cowboy culture and sustainable lifestyle.  The films artfully encapsulate each topic; all have potential for extensive story lines.  And, the short films spotlight places and people many Jackson Hole residents experience less often than we like to admit.  Rodeo is alive, thriving–and women aren’t rodeo window dressing; they’re competitors and expert riders.  Yurt life appears serene, beautiful and communal.  Paragliding presents as a bit terrifying, but in the hands of experts leaping off Rendezvous Mountain, paragliding is an “uplifting,” mystical experience.

Voice and perspective affect story tone. Point of view is the point of a documentary.  Considering a film’s plot and direction, a filmmaker intuits audience.

Danny Ledonne emphasizes knowledge of material. “Ask yourself large questions about your topic’s appeal.  What are the big unknowns?   Who are you speaking to?  What’s compelling?  Above all, know your story.”

For information, contact the Film Academy of Jackson Hole via info@internationalfilmacademy.com  or phone 914.774.1323.

Item #2

The University of Wyoming Art Museum has posted the date for its next 20:20 event: Wednesday, September 23, 7-9 pm,  at Cheyenne’s Little America.  This event is open to all Wyoming artists, arts organizations and educators. 20:20 is held in conjunction with the Wyoming Arts Council’s Arts Summit.

The program provides a super speedy platform for arts practitioners to alert the state to their own projects and ideas.  Presenters use Powerpoint, showing images for 20 seconds.   As the University notes, this is a great networking opportunity.  Sign up is first come, first serve and is open to all writers and performing artists as well as those in the visual arts.

Deadline for submissions is Wednesday, September 9. For more information or to sign up, please contact Art Museum Assistant Curator Rachel Miller at 307-766-6621 or rmiller@uwyo.edu.

Item #3

(The following is reproduced from Cayuse’s release! Time is/was of the essence.)

Event Info:

BOING!

Buoyancy.  Bounce.  Balloon. Toy photographer Brian McCarty revives all the fun, imaginative “B” words related to toys and childhood in his exuberant photos. This came to mind as my friend (NYC artist Ricki Arno, grandma with an urban art fetish) and I recently took in a show of McCarty’s work.

What a pleasure to laugh giddily, laugh out loud, at art.  And to know it’s okay.   It’s okay because with truly great toy art photography, one laughs with the toys.  Toy art photography lightly and blithely takes shooting’s potentially voyeuristic aspects to a new level.     

I didn’t get it until I saw this show.  And I’m still not certain how toy art photography came into being, but it’s very big.  And McCarty,– step-son of local arts enthusiast and philanthropist Mickey Babcock– is one of the art form’s masters.   He’s in love with art toys, creating images that “…blur the lines between art and commerce.”  McCarty brings designer toys to life, placing them in fantasy situations and photographing them. Think back to the days of playing in the sand with those miniature olive green army men.  We set them up in sand dunes, my siblings and I, making believe we commanded our tiny camouflaged troops, tossing dirt bombs, creating mini ambushes, tiny rescue missions.   The little figures took on a life of their own, and today’s toy photography movement riffs on that era of play.

Today’s toys are made of plastic, vinyl, plush fabrics and other materials.  They’re highly graphic and cartoon-like and have been in production since the 1990’s.  McCarty’s work connects to many enterprises such as advertising, music, publishing, and toy manufacturing.  Toy manufacturers often send McCarty prototypes; the toys allow him to push boundaries while creating on multiple levels. McCarty works with a variety of artists who have also chosen to view plastic and plush as a means of artistic expression.

What got him started on the tiny toy picture path?

“About the time I was supposed to grow up and stop playing with toys, they transitioned into subjects for my early, fumbling experiments with photography,” says McCarty.  “It felt natural to communicate through these objects that carried so much emotional and cultural weight. Toys are not just fun, they are how every child begins to find his or her place in the world. Through play, reality is deconstructed and recreated in smaller, safer bites. With this in mind, toys for me became a purposeful mechanism for perspective and artistic exploration. They have remained at the core of my vision.”

Each photograph tells a tiny story that is really a commentary on humanity, pairing up seemingly unrelated objects and place.  Even as we laugh at McCarty’s work, we wonder if we should be amused at certain messages.   Should we laugh at the plush, smiling Kaiser-Nutcracker-faced hand grenade being tossed into the air by a guy dressed in army fatigues?  We do laugh, but we get the intimation.   I laughed at the vinyl tree frog’s near escape from becoming road kill,  I laughed at the happy-go-lucky, candy-colored toys raining down on a sun-baked earth, engaging in a happy little invasion of their own.

McCarty is making fun of us, of our deepest foibles, our inconsistencies, our self-stereotyping.  We’re ridiculously silly, like really good toys.   We’re white rabbits on a lonely planet, we’re kinda ugly grunge musicians making music in the subways, we’re snaggy-toothed aliens landing–”kersplat!”–in chocolate cake.

How did we get here?    And where will we go?

Item #2:

Mark Nowlin, The Master’s Studio proprietor, opens his first solo show of recent drawings, paintings and “constructions” at the Artspace Theater Lobby tonight, at the Center for the Arts.

I haven’t seen his work, and I can’t match Nowlin’s own description of his art, so I paraphrase his summary here:

“The heads of Barbie dolls are replaced by weather elk vertebra for a macabre but humorous juxtaposition of the socially complex and naturally simple. A work of 18th-century music is seen through a rack of glass test tubes…. The rack of a deer is attached to a beautiful antique sewing machine, a provocative mounted specimen. Old and new, nature and science, the mundane and the sublime converse within Nowlin’s glass cases…”

The opening reception runs 5:30-8:00 pm tonight, at the Center’s Artspace Gallery.    For information, phone 307.733.6379

A number of Jackson Hole area artists are experienced in working for our two parks, Grand Teton and Yellowstone.  Ed Riddell, Greg McHuron,  and Dan Burgette are three examples.   Riddell and McHuron conduct workshops, often taking their students into the wilderness or abroad.

This month and next, sculptor Dan Burgette is the National Museum of Wildlife Art’s Lanford Monroe Memorial Artist-in-Residence.   Burgette will be on hand in Johnson Hall on Tuesday - Saturday, 10:00 am - 3:00 pm through August 1.   Demonstrations are free and open to the public.

Burgette’s artistry springs from his three decades as a Grand Teton National Park backcountry ranger.   He is a sculptor inspired by wildlife, particularly by birds and the aerodynamics of flight.  Burgette creates dynamic works depicting indigenous birds in flight; he visualizes spiraling air currents of beating wings, dissolving any separation of a bird and the air around it.   In some instances, Burgette’s birds become the air.   Burgette works primarily with wood, metal and stone–materials seemingly too weighty to produce a sense of flight.  Seemingly.  Burgette smashes barriers, suggesting speed, grace and space with every work.     For information, visit www.wildlifeart.org.

Item #2:  A New WSJ Culture Section?

Columnist Laura Collins-Hughes reports that the Wall Street Journal is working on a new NYC-only culture section.   The new section would compete with the New York Times’ predominant arts coverage.    Collins-Hughes reports that a budget is being worked up and the new section could debut as early as 2011.   She quotes one WSJ staffer as saying that the new section will be “…arts-and-culture-oriented…The ad side thought they could sell ads on a local New York basis, given the Broadway scene and the arts scene overall.”

Arts sell ads, baby.  By the way, did I tell you about the J.H. Art Blog’s incredible visitation stats?

Item #3  Altamira Fine Art Bends It

Altamira Fine Art has moved into its new, 172 Center Street (Suite 100) space.  And it’s pretty cool.   Altamira opened its doors with a Nieto ( check out the fancy dancer canvases, they are spectacular ) exhibit and now Amy Ringholz’s Storytellers is the gallery’s focus, through July 28.   Ringholz’s opening reception night was pretty rockin; music on 172’s street front plaza brought the crowds in.    Ringholz’s artwork kept them there, and Altamira’s relatively dark-hued interior creates a clubby atmosphere.   Check it out.

Next up at Altamira:  Mary Roberson’s “Nature is Life in the Dream” opens August 5.   Info:  307.739.4700 & connect@altamiraart.com.

Item #4:

Artist Ashley Collins is the focus at the Diehl Gallery this week.  See previous posts about her work, exhibit and resume.   Wednesday evening a special opening benefitting the Community School takes place,  6-9:00 pm.   20% of all purchases go to the school, supporting educational initiatives for children.   Call Karen Hodges at 307.733.5427 for more information on this special preview event.

It’s all about the light.  Landscape painter and pastel artist Jennifer Hoffman’s work is, as I’ve said many times, imbued with light so delicate it’s,…okay, I’ll say it: heavenly.

Hoffman, represented by Galleries West, debuts her new exhibit, “Transcending,” this month.  The show runs July 16-August 5 and is a compilation of new regional landscapes, as well as works depicting views of places recently visited by the artist. The show includes oil paintings and pastels.  An opening reception will be held on Thursday, July 16 from 5-8 PM during the Jackson Hole Gallery Association ArtWalk.

A painter and a sculptor, Hoffman first made her mark with her feminine, poetic pastel compositions.   She calls her palette muted, a description that under-serves her mastery of light.   It is, as she says, meditative.

“I’m a big fan of the Tonalists. I love the glowing light of dawn and dusk, and the subdued values of rainy and foggy days. I’m much more interested in the subtleties of a scene than in big contrasts.  I am equally interested in communicating the internal and external in my work. I think subject, composition, and palette are often more reflective of my internal state than the physical environment. Creating a work of art is, for me, a transcendent experience,” says the artist.

Hoffman has a devoted following, and Galleries West owner Debbie Bunch notes that Hoffman’s painting style is quiet and unassuming; it stands apart from most local painters’.   Hoffman often works alongside landscape painters Ned Jacob, Scott Christensen, Kathy Wipfler, Greg McHuron and others.

And, Hoffman’s pedigree is as long as my arm.   Her work has been included in the NMWA Western Visions Miniature Show, the Western Regional Juried Exhibit, the Rocky Mountain Plein Air Painters National Exhibition, and the 9th Annual Pastel 100, an international competition where she was awarded 3rd Place. Hoffman is a signature member of the Pastel Society of America and an artist member of the Oil Painters of America and the Rocky Mountain Plein Air Painters.

For more information or to see additional artwork by Jennifer L. Hoffman, contact Galleries West Fine Art at 307-733-4412. Or, visit www.gallerieswestjacksonhole.com and www.jenniferhoffman.com.

Item #2:  JACKSON HOLE ART FAIR!

Hey, it’s July!
So it’s time to share
‘Bout that annual gig
The Jackson Hole Art Fair!

Or “Art Fair Jackson Hole”
As it likes to be called;
Nobody asked me—I’m not involved.
No matter the title
It’s a time we’re aware
Of Art that is new,
And Art that is rare.
If it suits you, please dine
On big chocolate éclairs.

Hey, man
Don’t be bored;
Sometimes Harrison Ford
Comes to check out the art
And he brings Flockhart!

Buy ceramics, toys, fiber!
This poem’s the town crier
For an art fair weekend
Come rain or come shine-er.
Paintings, baskets, jewels, tents;
Sunscreen and some fivers
All make for a day
The whole family could die for!

See the Fair! Have fun.
This poem is so done.

What: Art Fair Jackson Hole 2009

When: July 17, 18 & 19

Friday and Saturday 10am- 6pm, Sunday 10am-4pm

Where: Miller Park, 2 blocks west of the Town Square

Admission is $3 and all proceeds support the Art Association
307-733-8792
amyf@artassociation.org

A nice family arts activity came over the ListServe wires:  Take part in the Community Mural Project this Sunday, July 19, 1-4:00 pm.   Head over to the newest Community Pathways tunnel under Highway 22, near the Teton Science School Jackson Campus entrance.   Sponsored by the NeWest Community, this tunnel mural project is an easy “paint by numbers” effort.

The mural’s design is completed, and all that’s required is your inner artist and a penchant for sharing conversation and creativity.   Once the mural is done, come back time after time to take pride in your contribution to our arts and pathways.

All paints and materials will be supplied.  This is a free and open family event.  And certainly, come on your own.

For more information email Kelli & Kasey Jones at highfivectrs@gmail.com.  Kelli is a Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist at Teton Adventure Camp.  Phone:  307.690.0571.

Trio Fine Art, a cooperative gallery featuring the works of Kathryn Mapes Turner, Lee Carlman Riddell and September Vhay, (the gallery also represents tonalist Russell Chatham) has sent news of each artist’s activities, as well as thoughts for the gallery’s summer season.

Vhay received the Fine Art Print Imaging Award for her painting “Afternoon Sun,” pictured above.  She placed fourth at the annual Ex Arte Equinus International Equine Art competition, sponsored by Horse Art Magazine.  Vhay  continues painting in oils, a departure from her well-known watercolors.  The artist looks forward to a summer of reconnecting with gallery visitors and friends after a long winter spent in studio.

Turner, recently returned from a painting trip to Italy, says her 2008 highlights include a week of painting with the Rocky Mountain Plein Air Painters in Winter Park, Colorado and a week in the Teton wilderness.  Her painting of a Belgian horse “Standing in the Light,” was accepted in Lexington, Kentucky’s  American Academy of Equine Art Show.  Turner’s Tuscany paintings are featured in  her current exhibition, “Practices in Presence, “  on display July 2 -18.  Come see!

Riddell has also enjoyed time painting in the Italian countryside and is looking forward to seeing friends and patrons at the gallery this summer.  Riddell participated in NMWA’s 2009  Out of the Box Show & Auction, and donated a painting to the Greater Yellowstone Coalition’s Silent Auction fundraiser.  Riddell is also teaching oil painting, a happy pastime for artist and student.

Trio Fine Art’s summer hours are Wednesday - Saturday, noon to 6:00 pm. Check the gallery out–you can link to all the artists’ websites via the Trio website–at www.triofineart.com.   Phone contact:  307.734.4444