Just a reminder--Artist Journals and Books class this coming Saturday!

There is to be Mixed Media class in "Artist Journals and Books" this Saturday, January 24th. The instructor is Kathleen Mattox and she and the class have been written about in previous posts. Participants should bring mixed media supplies, any collage papers they have, drink coasters (if they have any), and perhaps a small purchased notebook or journal to embellish.

Suzie Stach, Pastel Class, Sunday January 18th

Suzie Stach is an outstanding local pastel artist, nationally-known for her "fire art", depicting scenes of firefighters in action. She also does wonderful watercolors and oils. She planned, designed, and executed the "new look" on the doors and the signs at The Art Stand Gallery. 

She strives to put the viewer into her paintings by evoking a memory or experience. Her paintings are consistent award winners at juried shows and she has been recognized in national magazines as well. For more information and to see photos of her work, go to her website at fire-art.com

For Sunday's pastel class, Suzie will teach how to create strong pastel paintings through underpaintings and the use of rich color. She will demonstrate each stage of a painting and provide individual help to students. Come out and be prepared to learn a lot about painting a pastel painting if you are new to the medium or gaining additional knowledge if you are already a pastelist. 

Kay Owens, Pastel Class on Saturday January 17th

Kay Owens is a well-known artist in the Fresno area. She paints in watercolor, pastels, oils and makes jewelry. She will be teaching a class in pastels this Saturday. In her class, she will be having students work with hard and soft pastels on a variety of supports. She will demonstrate and give information on the medium and equipment and then students will paint and have fun!

Kay has taught for Clovis Adult Education for many years and many artists have studied with her. She serves in key positions in many art organizations. She is a demonstrator and a juror, proficient in many media and skillful in executing various techniques and subjects. 

Go to her website for more information about this well-known local artist.

The classes this weekend

This weekend, The Art Stand Gallery had the first 2 Winter classes of 2009. Yesterday was Jeri Burzin's photography class and today was Elaine Towne Lane's glazing class. Both were well-received and productive. Today's photos were taken with an iPhone and the glare of the sun--once it came out!--was very strong. This morning's fog was terrible, most likely because yesterday was such a gorgeous sunny day. Next weekend, Kay Owen's and Suzie Stach's pastel classes! More biographies and photos to follow in the next few days.

Elaine Towne Lane, Instructor on Sunday, January 11th

On Sunday, January 11, 2009, Elaine Towne Lane will offer a class called "Tile Glazing for Potters and Painters", a new offering on the roster of classes given at The Art Stand Gallery. In the class, participants will experiment with different glazes and techniques to produce a variety of colorful, interesting, decorative, and painterly designs on different clay items. A sense of imagination and adventure will be helpful to the participants in this exciting new class.

During the past year, Elaine has produced several new "series": teapots and teacups, tiny lidded pinch pots, "beaded" pots, new nativity sets, and many animals and figures--all are very creatively executed and beautifully finished. Elaine's work and Tiwi Wood's work add a much needed 3D element to the work at the Art Stand.

It is very obvious in Elaine Towne Lane's pieces that the 20+ years she and her husband spent in Southeast Asia, Africa, and Central America have had a great influence on her work, inspiring her creativity and the frequent use of certain cultural icons, textures, patterns, and colors. Her love of pre-Columbian art is admittedly a dominating influence for her works in ceramics, glass, and jewelry. Her work is very popular at The Art Stand Gallery, at local art shows, and at the Kingsburg Art Gallery. You will enjoy seeing Elaine's work and adding it to your collections as well as meeting her at upcoming Art Stand events.

Jeri Burzin, Photographer

Today, Chieko, Elaine, Tiwi, myself, and my husband convened at The Art Stand Gallery to set up the space for our winter classes which begin this weekend. If you haven't taken a class at the gallery, you really should try it. Classes are small and well-planned and presented, with a lot of personal attention and interaction between students and teachers--they are also a LOT of fun! It's not too late to sign up and you can find details below in an earlier post. 

The first class, to be held on Saturday,  January 10th, is a photography class taught by Jeri Burzin. Jeri lives in Visalia and is one of the newer members of The Art Stand Gallery. She takes wonderful photographs of different areas of California, focusing particularly on Yosemite and the mountain areas, ocean scenes (often with birds and animals), and local area scenes. Natives of Visalia area will certainly appreciate her personal views of the area, as will Sanger and Reedley natives love her Blossom Trail photographs. In addition to photographs of California, on her website you will view wonderful panoramas of Italian vistas and the American southwest. Please go explore what she has available online and at The Art Stand Gallery in Minkler and the Wooden Indian Gallery in Visalia.

On her website, she tells about her past and current artistic accomplishments, and explains how valuable a communication tool photography has been in her work as an educational therapist with children.

In this weekend's class, "Photography: The Basics and Beyond", Jeri will focus on the basics of light, composition and the camera. It is open to beginners and anyone else who wants to learn more about taking a "good" picture consistently, using either film or a digital camera. Hands on activities will be provided and we hope you can join us for an enjoyable, productive Saturday!

Kathleen Mattox, Mixed Media Artist

Kathleen Mattox is a native of the San Joaquin Valley who specializes in watercolor and mixed media paintings. At the end of college, at Fresno State, she took a few exciting painting classes and then didn't paint again until 2000. She was apparently "mentally painting" during the whole 30+year hiatus, because since 2000, she has been prolific! A lover of color, line and texture, she applies the basic elements of design in everything she creates. Thriving on exploring alternative subjects and approaches, she describes her work as "wet, wild, witty, and whimsical" and expects that all her pieces be interesting and fun for both the artist and the viewer. Each venture is looked upon as "just a piece of paper", but she loves the challenge of trying to rescue paintings that she doesn't feel are her best works. Each new painting is a thrill in itself as well as a jumping off point for the next step in the creative process.

Recently retired, Kathleen now has time to paint more frequently, go to workshops, and gather inspiration for new paintings. She is greatly enjoying having time to pursue her passion with energy and enthusiasm. Her creative life used to begin at 5 PM; now it can happen at any hour of the day or night.

Kathleen currently belongs to the Alliance of California Artists, the San Diego Watercolor Society, and the California Watercolor Association. She currently shows her work at The Art Stand Gallery, the Madera Arts Council Circle Gallery in Madera, and at Timberline Gallery in Oakhurst. She teaches a limited number of classes in mixed media and collage, both to groups and individuals. Her home studio gallery may be viewed by appointment.

Her blog is mixedmedia.kathleenmattox.blogspot.com and on her blog are links to gallery and club associations.