Gallery Guide: Instructor Exhibition 2019

BCA CURATES

INSTRUCTOR EXHIBITION 2019 LOUIS BIBEAU NANCY BRANCA ROHWER DREA E. AMY EVANS CALLIE GLIDDEN ELISA GOMEZ JANE HAMLIN CHRIS HOSBACH MELISSA MICHEL STEVIE MORRISON KIA NEILL PAIGE P. SCHEUERMANN ERICA RAGUSA EMILY WAHL

Dec 5–Jan 5 Gallery@OMH | Old Masonic Hall FREE

This exhibition brings together works by the instructors from the Arts District Campus to showcase the incredible wealth of local creativity and talent in Breckenridge, Colorado.

DOWNSTAIRS LOUIS BIBEAU CHAIN CACTUS, 2019 found steel

Louis Bibeau has lived and worked in Breckenridge for the past 30 years. He learned how to weld from a book 20 years ago. He likes to work with found materials, especially steel, specializing in lift cable handrails and footrests, gates, lighting, signs and bike trophies. Bibeau is currently a welding instructor for Breckenridge Creative Arts.

ELISA GOMEZ CANOPY IN THE MOUNTAINS MURAL, 2019 indoor latex paint

Elisa Gomez a professional painter focusing on landscape through the lens of abstract expressionism. Her bright, floral palettes are often at odds with her chosen texture and gesture, resulting in works that create space through spontaneous and chance encounters. Gomez holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Utah and has gallery representation through Uprise Art in New York and The Loft gallery in Georgia.

MELISSA MICHEL SNAKES IN THE GRASS, 2019 hand-thrown ceramic ware

Melissa Michel has created ceramic work for over 13 years.

She earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree at the University

of Tennessee at Martin. Born and raised in Los Angeles County and the California Mojave Desert, Michel is inspired by simplistic desert landscapes and Mexican folk art and culture in Los Angeles. Over the past five years Michel has been traveling in her van, teaching ceramic classes and workshops, and producing ceramic work in various studios across the country. She has now found a permanent home here in Breckenridge, Colorado.

STEVIE MORRISON CHASING AFTER CHILDHOOD, 2019 watercolor, pen & ink NFS

Stevie Morrison prefers to make things that are weird, messy and unrefined. Chasing After Childhood is a dream-journal series, recalling visual and emotional information that surfaces in the confused moments of waking up. These pieces, created quickly and without editing, provide a unique opportunity for self-reflection. When she is not dreaming or making art, Morrison works as a graphic designer, refining visual ideas for other people. Morrison also likes to climb rocks.

KIA NEILL PORTRAIT OF AN EXPEDITION, 2019 mixed media collage

Kia Neill is a mixed media multidiscipline artist native to Chicago, Illinois. She holds a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of California San Diego and has taught art for more than 15 years, ranging from universities to non-profit art centers. Neill first came to the Breckenridge Arts District nine years ago and currently teaches at Breckenridge Creative Arts, The Colorado Photographic Art Center, and Think 360 Arts.

UPSTAIRS NANCY BRANCA ROHWER left to right

PINK AT NIGHT, 2019 THE BACKYARD, 2019 LAKE DILLON, 2019 GRIZZLY PEAK, 2019 oil on paper

Nancy Branca Rohwer came from Massachusetts to live in Summit County over 30 years ago. The mountain environment is emphasized in her monoprints. Because she loves to both draw and paint, this painterly printmaking method has become an integral part of her artmaking as it encompasses both processes.

DREA E. WORDS UNSPOKEN, 2019 mixed media

Drea E’s exhibition, Words Unspoken, is a mixed media project that navigates bereavement. Drea’s mother, the person whom she credits for her artistic spirit, unexpectedly passed in February 2019.

To process this sudden loss, Drea took to writing and folding 1000 letters into origami hearts. This has given her the opportunity to express all she wished she could have said and to honor her mother’s life in a creative way. Having personally experienced society’s disconnect with the inevitability of loss and the realities of grief, Drea chooses to display this work in an effort to normalize grieving.

She invites you to take a moment to write and fold a letter to a loved one. You may take it with you or leave it to add to the installation.

AMY EVANS left to right

A CHANGE IN SCENERY, 2018 SUMMER SOLITUDE, 2018 NATURE CALLS, 2019 JUST A HIKE, 2019 oil paint

Amy Evans is an award-winning nationally recognized artist who works in oils and whose paintings are in galleries and shows throughout the US. She teaches art workshops nationwide and has also served as a juror for national art shows. Evans holds a Bachelor of Arts degree with distinction from Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee. She is past president and a Master Signature Emeritus member of Women Artists of the West, Signature Member of Plein Air Artists of Colorado, and an associate member of American Women Artists.

CALLIE GLIDDEN INTERCONNECTIONS: TRAUMA AND NATURE, 2019 mixed media

Callie Glidden was born in Clear Lake, Iowa and studied at the University of Iowa. She currently works as a case manager at Mind Springs Health and in the Summit County Jail. In her work, Glidden explores the relationship between nature and the human brain as a tool to understand how a traumatic experience can affect a person, as well as how the brain can be retrained to heal and overcome the negative experiences. Glidden brings light to the conversation around trauma by identifying similar patterns within structures of lungs, the brain’s neural connections, and trees and leaves.

The artist has left information at the front desk for those seeking mental health resources in Summit County.

JANE HAMLIN MOUNTAIN REFLECTIONS, 2019 acrylic on canvas

Jane Hamlin feels entirely connected to the mountains surrounding Breckenridge that she has enjoyed for the past 34 years. They are constantly changing in subtle yet profound ways, which she strives to capture in color, shape and form.

CHRIS HOSBACH ceramics

Chris Hosbach took his first pottery class 21 years ago in a high school ceramics studio in southeastern Michigan. Inspired by line, pattern, symmetry and geometry, Hosbach works primarily in porcelain because of its smoothness and purity. His goal is to create functional works of art, pieces that can be appreciated for their aesthetics as well as their utility. Hosbach’s work has been exhibited in numerous shows and juried exhibitions in Colorado, Michigan, Missouri and New York. He currently persuades clay in Breckenridge, Colorado.

PAIGE P. SCHEUERMANN MAGNETIC POETRY II, 2019 wood + metal

Paige Scheuermann is an artist that is inspired by using reclaimed wood and reusable items to be upcycled into one of a kind interactive works along with creating fun, unique crafty items. These items spark creativity as each piece gives back a sense of wonder and enjoyment.

Scheuermann wants humanity to pause and to reflect on their feelings, to be “in the moment”, and to share with one another an experience that will generate a positive reaction.

ERICA RAGUSA (AMBIKA HERBALS) IN THE CAULDRON

essential oils, dried plants, cold-pressed oils, hydrosoll

Erica Ragusa is an herbalist who sources bioregional plants to craft holistic skin and body care products. With an educational background in chemistry and environmental biology, and a career as a holistic bodyworker, Ragusa seeks to integrate her love of the natural world with personal rituals that allow us to deepen our sense of connection to the cosmos.

EMILY WAHL left to right, top to bottom

BRECK ON MAIN READY TO RIDE RED CANYON AWAKEN POWDER BLAST watercolor

Emily Wahl is a resident of Breckenridge. She is inspired by the beauty of the Colorado mountains and the complexity of urban scenes. Wahl has studied watercolor as a passionate pastime and works in all waterbased mediums (watercolor, acrylics and oils). She enjoys plein-air painting and the study of how light and shadows can dramatically impact the emotion and mood of her paintings. Wahl has studied at the Art League of Houston, Glassell School of Art/Fine Arts MuseumHouston and the Watercolor Art Society- Houston. She has held board positions on the Summit County Arts Council, Women of Watercolor and the Watercolor Art Society- Houston. Wahl teaches workshops at the Breckenridge Arts District and provides private art lessons. She has had exhibitions in Houston, Texas and in Breckenridge, Colorado.

RELATED EVENTS HANDMADE HOLIDAY Dec 7 | 3–9pm Arts District Campus | FREE Come experience the Arts District Campus as it hosts a holiday open house.

BCA’s instructors will be showcasing their art work made on the Arts District Campus including jewelry, ceramics, candles, prints, and more.

Find the perfect gift and make an ornament, competitively build a snowman, create a luminary and decorate gingerbread.

Presented in conjunction with the Lighting of Breckenridge.

Front cover, image credit: Elisa Gomez Canopy XXI. 2019 Mixed media painting on panel Courtesy of the artist