Art and The word Giclee

Jim Meyer, Early Winter, reduction woodblock, edition 12

Regularly at my gallery, lots of the visitors are not folks who are experienced gallery goers. I find myself spending time chatting about favorite places to eat and what to do. Educating people about art is at times, the mainstay of the gallery. Explaining techniques, an artist’s vision. People are exploring the islands and all that we have to experiences.

I explain that waterworks gallery was founded by me in 1985 with the concept of showcasing artists based in the San Juan Islands and the Pacific Northwest including Washington, Oregon and British Columbia. The northwest experience is reflected in the work of the painters and sculptors represented by gallery. Artists and their visions are always evolving and changing reflecting the changing times we live in.

The question leads to the various media I show i.e. the traditional mediums including oils, watercolors, pastels, bronze, glass, ceramic and stone. Currently, a few artists create encaustic paintings in their particular style.

Stephen Mcmillian, Island View,Aquatint etching, edition: 250

I showcase printmakers whose works on paper are created using relief

(block printing), lithography or intaglio. These editions may range in size from 10 to 250 images. A few print makers embellish their wood cuts or lithograph with pastel or paint. These works are marked as E.V. (Edition Variety) All editioned works are called multiple originals; each one is unique in its hand work and might be slightly different.

The most important idea to remember when looking at works on paper is the intent of the artist. The artist chooses a medium to present their vision to the public. The artist creates the edition and the content. What is it the artist wants the work to look like?

In relief, lithography, intaglio and serigraphy techniques, all of these parameters are done by hand, as is the tradition of printmaking. Printmaking goes back to the first impressions created in the woodcuts of 14^th century China & Japan. Rembrandt and Durer were both master intaglio printmakers.

Today there is a medium that artists are choosing to use called a Giclee. Simply put, a digital photograph is taken of a painting. The image is uploaded to a computer, tweaked, saved and then printed on a large inkjet printer.

The Definition : Giclee (zhee-klay) - The French word "giclee" is a feminine noun that means a spray or a spurt of liquid. The word may have been derived from the French verb "gicler" meaning "to squirt".

Most time the giclee is an exact reproduction of the painting. No manipulation of the image is done. The painting may even be reprinted on canvas to simulate the original painting. Here's where I am having the problem. The content is not original. This giclee is an exact reproduction of the painting and is NOT original, but a reproduction.

Is it the artist's intent to paint a painting and then sell of reproductions of the painting?
The reproduction looks as good as the original. The giclee may be reproduced in an unlimited edition, as it is an image stored in a computer.

There are a few artists who are actually printing giclee that have original content and are highly manipulated imagery, which can be astounding. These are being presented as pigment prints. Again here the intent is to use this computer enhancement technique to create something new and different. I would consider this art.

Anne Belov, Sentry, Etching, edition: 175

For the novice art collector, it is hard to tell the difference between the two. Some artists and galleries do not disclose the difference. Using a 10x magnifying glass is the only way to tell. To some individuals buying the giclee would be fine. To others it would not be okay. Full disclosure is the only way. Let truth be the light.

I find it is important to educate collectors about the value of art. How it was made, who made it, what kind of technique is employed. What emotion does the art evokes from you?

Gail Gwinn, Fleur de lis, Color intaglio, edition:10

The value of art is in the educated eye of the beholder.

Stop by and educate your eye!

Local resources on printmaking

Seattle Print Arts

The guilt free zone

Calder mobile, Polychrome dots and brass on red, 1962

Last week I went to Seattle for a conference, finally had time to go the Seattle Art Museum.

I have been feeling guilty about NOT being able to renew my membership. My membership and support of the area museums has been important, but with the economy being what it is, and me owning an art gallery, funding of museum memberships has not been a high priority as it has been in years past. This year has been a year of figuring out how to get through the year and survive as a business.

Running across the street, between meetings and dinner, to SAM I went through the revolving glass doors, walking up the stairs directly to the membership desk and said to the woman behind the desk, "I want to renew my membership but at different level!"
The time was 15 minutes before closing.

Just enough time to take in the Calder exhibition, if I rushed through it. I thought at least I would get to see the show. As the membership clerk handed me my temporary card and a ticket to the Alexander Calder show, she said that I did not have to rush as tonight was a member night and they were open late! Hooray. Timing is every thing!

Taking the escalator to the top floor, noticing the amazing African figures were moved around, the drumming and chanting was still evident, but the whole corridor was no longer about African tribesman and their activities.

There at the end of the corridor was this huge amazing Alexander Calder mobile. It was all white. It was not reacting with the fans that were placed above it to move the air around and a staffer trying to get it to parts of the mobile to spin and sway in the air. It was magnificent. It had a whole room devoted to it. I wanted to blow on it, so parts would move. The mobiles are such beautiful works of movement. I wanted to be able to walk under it and look closely.

I do not remember the title of the mobile but it was marvelous, the sense of creativity and whimsy, just made me smile. I spent the next half hour wondering through this exhibition of large and small scale mobiles, stabiles and even a bit of jewelry. There are miniatures/maquettes of pieces that are wonderful small scale works Kudos to the Shirley’s for sharing this collection with the public.

In the last exhibition space is an old movie featuring the circus characters that Alexander Calder made. He loved the circus, making his cast of characters out of bits of wire and cloth. All these pieces had movement of some sort by either being pulled, pushed, or flying down a wire. Such simple wire toys were crafted with such imagination and simplicity. The film of the Circus has been restored, watching the movie one gets to glimpse the artist surrounded by the world he created. In one of the display cases is a wire toy.

If you are in Seattle, Take the time to see this show. Wonderful!


This is from the press release of the show


"From miniature maquettes, works on paper and jewelry to monumental sculptures and one of the artist�s largest mobiles, this exhibition offers viewers a sense of the range of Alexander Calder�s work from 1927 through the mid-1970s. More than forty original works of art—many of them from Jon and Mary Shirley's extensive collection, which is rarely seen by the public—trace the development and amazing creativity of the American master sculptor, with particular depth in his most celebrated period, the late 1940s. Alexander Calder: A Balancing Act is complemented by a related exhibition of photographs showing the artist at work, organized with the help of the Calder Foundation.
Alexander Calder: A Balancing Act
October 15, 2009–April 11, 2010
SAM Simonyi Special Exhibition Galleries Now on View

Youtube movie on the the circus from 1927Circus Movie
A few links on the works of Alexander Calder: Calder foundation

Notes from the gallery

Joan Stuart Ross, Little town, mixed media encaustic, 12 x 12

Artstock, this last weekend, the fall festival of the arts was a wonderful event.
The weather co operated. Looked to be a few new faces wondering around the galleries.
Lots of positive feedback on the educational aspect with technique demonstrations going on.

Have not heard much about how sales have been. To be continued.

At waterworks we had a great time with the smell of fresh molten wax. Check out a few photos at waterworks gallery.
Always exciting to have clients and the artist mixing it up, chatting, and most importantly for the public seeing how the artworks are created and get a glimpse of the inner workings the artist's mind. I have noticed the simpler something looks, the more complicated to create.

David Eisenhour,called the other day with some fabulous news, he will be having a show in NYC in November of this year. This is a very exciting event, as having a New York show is seen as very prestigious! The artist is exposed to a much larger viewing audience. If interested in seeing his show, contact me and I will get the details.

Catherine Eaton Skinner, has a show opening in Seattle with a new series of works.
Very beautiful and Zen like mixed media encaustic images.

Locally, at the IMA Island Museum of Art, a small sculpture show is currently up. This exhibition is a good cross section of the local sculpture scene with representation from all the islands in San Juan County including by Tom Small, Matthew Palmer to list a few. If in town stop by and visit.


As the weather is turning a bit cooler, and the fall foliage is making it's appearance, at the gallery I am starting to gather artists for the gallery's Annual Holiday Show, opening Thanksgiving weekend with new works by Island favorites Jaime Ellsworth [check this out, we are the fall back cover of Art Access [woo woo & thanks to Jaime] Tom Small.

www.artaccess.com

Enjoy the fall leaves and the golden light that is truly a Northwest experience!

Fall - It's here

Just returned from driving to Lake Chelan to deliver and install a painting.

For the client it saved shipping and for me it was an excuse for a fall drive.

My favorite drive in Washington State is Route 20. Once in the mountains, the islands left behind, the world seems so vast. SO beautiful and we travel thru it so fast.

Driving on this road is very Zen. The sky reflected in the lake water. The turquoise color glows, almost surreal. The way the asphalt curves flow, how the mountains seem to reach the sky. The forest is turning colors. A bit of yellow, not much red. Most leaves were still on the trees. Lots of shades of green but mostly that deep foresty green.

The house sits upon a hill overlooking the vast lower dog leg of Lake Chelan. It was finished a few years ago. The owners, a lovely couple with grown children, have taken up collecting art. Like many collectors, I have the pleasure of working with, they are eclectic and diverse in their tastes, but their paintings are about capturing the beauty of the land.

The painting, a fabulous large landscape by Tim Schumm was purchased for the living room, as the focal point over the fire place. Upon hanging the painting changed the room, bringing inside the natural exterior colors. This allowed me to rehang a major portion of their collection. With the introduction of a new piece of art, others paintings and objects needed to be moved around. This experience can be somewhat challenging, yet rather rewarding as a new perspective is achieved.

This brings me to the topic of rotating your artwork. I do this in my own home twice a year.

Here's the concept.

In the spring, you start to go outside more.The outdoor world is just starting to get all that color. I hang most of my black & white images and less colorful works on my prime walls.

In the fall, the indoor season with lots of shades of grey begins. Now is the time to hang the more colorful paintings.The more demanding works, as one will be spending lots of time indoors.

So I would suggest when we remember to change the batteries in our smoke detectors , we should also remember to rotate and rearrange the art in our homes.

So to the changing of the seasons and artwork!

Artist Collectors Appreciation Dinner

Last Saturday, I drove over to the studio of David Eisenhour located in Port Hadlock on the Olympic Peninsula. Leaving Friday Harbor on the 10.25 sailing, two ferry rides later I arrived on the other side via the Kingston run.

Driving the small highways and the crossing on the new and improved Hood Canal Bridge, the town of Port Hadlock was discernible by the 4 way intersection complete with gas stations and fruit stands.

The last fruits of summer were evident by the boxes upon boxes of fresh fruits and vegetables.

Almost there. I visited David's studio three years previous, things were starting to look familiar.

Two old dogs lay in the middle of the street. Drove slowly between the dogs, down the street, they did not bother to get up or bark.
They were tired, and besides, my car still smells dog.

On the right I notice this remarkable tall sculpture standing next to David's newly improved studio.
The new work, Unfolding Milkweed is worked cast steel with 15 ft tall 1/2 inch rods coming out of the top. Over a period of time, David will drive a wooden wedge into the rods to get them to spread out and unfurl.

The work was awesome.

So began the 1st Annual Collector Appreciation Dinner at the his studio. David and his wonderful wife Heidi, fabulous cooks that they are, planned a bountiful dinner with marinated lamb, white salmon, fresh vegetables, potatoes, carefully chosen cheese, and a delightful selection of wines. The kitchen crew was a labor of love. It showed.

I was curious. My impressions are of a solid base of friends and collectors helping to nurture an artist and his vision. I have represented David's work for 10 years. I believe in his portrayal and presentation of his world. His commitment to, as he says "make the invisible world of nature, visible".

Wondering thru the studio there are a few new works, the nautilus fountain, the orchid, and old favorites dock seed, the daisy seeds, the star pod. Out in the field next to the house there stands the magnificent Ibex.

David & Heidi, thank you for sharing.

PS the midnight boccie ball game rocked!

more photos are posted http://picasaweb.google.com/waterworksgallery/DavidEisenhourSStudioShow#

Caress the details, the divine details

I was reading the book, Writing down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg.

The quote, Caress the details, the divine detailsby Vladimir Nabokov.

Just made me stop. This thought made me tingle.

I thought about this.

I realized how true for me, this is.

It is all about the details.
The vividness of the details populate our stories.

The intersection of our lives.
The space between us that we meet in.
The sharing of each others present.
The resonance of touch.

It would be the journey not the end.
All this leads to a path.

SO many divine details in my world.

The way a painting is hung.
How this painting works with the painting next to it.

The way halogen light bounces off a surface.
The way incandescent light reacts with the color.

Natural light can be so harsh during the day. Yet so soft at twilight.
The way the pinks, gold, pale turquoises and violets light up the sky.

Sometimes lingering for minutes.

Color and light are such key components of painting and sculpture.

The way stone catches and edits its surroundings landscape.
The endless reflections possibly with polished surfaces.
The way a cut is crafted, the dark and the light of it.

Steel intersecting with stone.
Bronze edges with concrete.
Glass with the whole street reflected in it.

The flowers defining the windows
The sculpture defining the flowers.

In my world these divine details occur daily.

Stop by and see the new sculpture by Tom Small entitled Stargazer, Granite and Steel installed on the Argyle Street entrance. The gallery in creating a small outdoor space for sculpture, enables the details of three sculptors and their visions to be enjoyed on the street in uptown Friday Harbor.
http://aroundtheartsinthesanjuans.blogspot.com/

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