24 Works on Paper - 2013 Exhibition Catalog

PR E S E NTE D BY I N DIVI DUAL ARTISTS O F O K L AH O MA & O K L A H O M A VI S UA L A R T S COA LITI O N

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Curator’s statement The many submissions to 24 Works on Paper attest to the richness and resurgence of paper as an artistic medium, which made my task as curator immensely challenging. Numerous deserving artworks could not be included, due to size, space, thematic and other concerns. The 24 works selected here represent just some of the most engaging and inventive practices on paper in Oklahoma today.

Almost all the included artists’ work demonstrate a renewed engagement with artistic process, investigating traditional uses, subverting expectations, issuing novel juxtapositions, or relishing in the sensuousness and purity of the chosen medium. We see this especially poignantly in the tactility of RockettTodd’s monoprint, the scumbled conte crayon lines of Gulick’s Barbara, and the contrasting layers in the works of Mitts and Hogue. In Thomas’ self-portrait, torn paper pieces usurp line’s function, unseating the basic tenets of drawing.

Waltman returns to the darkroom in Collide, where glass bottles meet their doppelgangers in criss-crossed arrays. Photography’s fundamental capacity—to picture the world through another’s eyes—is literalized in Burns’ images, which dramatize what most of us take for granted: seamless binocular vision.

Within this attention to medium, several artists investigate the long connection between paper practices and craft, exploding their conventional associations.

With deft hands and great verve both Litzau and Artus tackle gender conventions and social myths, whether from sports, ladies’ magazines, or home-ec and science classes. Whimsy governs Vuong’s fanciful bird rendering, a sentiment tempered with nostalgia in Wood’s American Gardens. And the relationship between word and image is also probed, integrated into the composition in Piper’s graphic woodcut and as caption in Tucker’s cheeky One of these is not like the others.

Another leitmotif that shapes a majority of the works is the meditation on the past and our access to it, whether through heritage, rituals, or tender moments.

Puapuaga’s and Bobby Martin’s works express how such connections, both real and tenuous, can be found in our relationships with and memories of people. In its recreation of a tattered letter rack, the collage Once We Played betrays our collective desire to fix the past, to contain it in souvenir objects, only to have it slip away. The photographs of Knox, Gulilat, and Walters convey this longing, in sometimes piercing and uncanny ways.

The attention to the past manifests itself especially poignantly in the exploration of place and space: Burian’s, Alexander’s, and Kesler’s works all convey the distance of a seemingly disappearing way of life, with the latter punctuated by acid pops of unnatural hues. In Wanderlust, Reese recounts how “with red-runny noses we look back through the fog,” adrift from home. This sense of evanescence, of the passage of time clouding our vision, is simply, beautifully captured by Traci Martin’s charcoal rendering of smoke.

These works all celebrate the potential for art to engage deeply within its own histories and future, while tapping into the most universal aspects of the human condition. Please join me in thanking the IAO and OVAC for their commitment to exhibiting the best of contemporary Oklahoma art.

Kirsten Fleur Olds, Ph.D. // Tulsa, OK

VENUES July 12-August 3, 2013: Individual Artists of Oklahoma, Oklahoma City August 5-September 27, 2013: Redlands Community College, El Reno September 27-November 25, 2013: Goddard Center, Ardmore November 25, 2013-January 4, 2014: Ponca City Art Center, Ponca City January 4-February 9, 2014: Northern Oklahoma College Eleanor Hays Art Gallery, Tonkawa February 9-March 21, 2014: East Central University Shirley Pogue Art Gallery, Ada March 28-April 28, 2014: Graceful Arts Gallery and Studios, Alva May 31-June 28, 2014: Tulsa Artists’ Coalition, Tulsa June 28-August 25, 2014: Oklahoma State University Gardiner Gallery, Stillwater August 25-October 27, 2014: University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma Nesbitt Gallery, Chickasha October 27, 2014-January 2015: Leslie Powell Foundation & Gallery, Lawton

For more detailed exhibition information, visit www.24Works.org.

MJ Alexander // mjalexander.com From a distance, the abandoned farmhouse looked forlorn. Close-up, however, it pulsated with life, creaking and sighing under a massive thunderhead.

Surviving shingles, each anchored to the decaying roof by a single rusty nail, ruffled and rippled in the wind, pumping up and down like keys of a ghostly pipe organ. Its remaining ribs inhaled slowly and exhaled deeply, breath rasping in and out, a great wooden fish beached on the plains of Kiowa County.

M.J. Alexander, Oklahoma City Cloud Cabin: Kiowa County Photography, 24” x 16”

Marilyn Artus // marilynartus.com They say create what you know. I find my journey through life as a female one of my greatest curiosities. I often use the universal woman image in my work. Colliding the low brow with the high brow interests me. Within most of my works are opposing female stereotypes: the virgin and the fallen woman, and all the ladies in between. This image includes hand & machine embroidery as well as layers of tulle.

Marilyn Artus, Oklahoma City You and Me Mixed media with machine and hand embroidery, 16” x 20”

Deborah Burian One cold Colorado day, I saw this shanty from across a fallow field. Hiking toward it brought me to a frozen slough. The near ice, distant mountains and frigid breeze reminded one of what a trial it was to cross the prairie in pioneer days. It was easy to imagine even this decrepit building providing shelter from the elements. The Long View of the title thus references past and present; seeking adventure, and finding refuge.

Deborah Burian, Oklahoma City Long View Transparent watercolor, 15” x 22”

Zach Burns // ZCHBRNS.com I am legally blind in my left eye. My view of the world is both focused and blurred. This unique vision inspires my work.

I point my camera outward, but my photography points back toward me, both figuratively and, as in the case with Duncan 63, quite literally. I reveal myself to others through my images, inviting the viewer to know my work, and to know me.

Zach Burns, Oklahoma City Hotel Duncan 63 Photography, 12” x 24”

Marsha Gulick // osagegypsy.com This is a 20 minute sketch. Barbara is a lovely lady; I wanted to show that one does not have to be young to be beautiful. I left her hair unfinished because the tan paper provided the mid-tone, I liked the line quality of the hairline, and I wanted the viewer to get a feeling for the process. It’s so interesting to me that the brain fills in information that the artist leaves out.

Marsha Gulick, Hominy Barbara Conte crayon on Strathmore toned tan sketch paper, 7” x 10”

Eyakem Gulilat // eyakem.com The project is mainly self-portraits created as a reenactment of my memories of growing up in Ethiopia. I want to explore those critical events which helped form my character as well as my history. These events are deeply rooted in spirituality, politics, farming, and creative play. This process of recalling enables me to anchor myself within my Ethiopian identity. It forms my own unique understanding of and appreciation for what it means to be Ethiopian.

Eyakem Gulilat, Norman Untitled 1 Archival pigment print, 11” x 14”

Jeff Hogue // jeffhogueart.com A Conversation With Ghosts is a continuation of a sort of long term inquiry into death, loss and decay. A number of times I’ve come upon billboards on the side of highways and been struck by their beauty. When in the midst of certain peak experiences, I have been aware of the relationship between sheer beauty and death. The painting is in a field of pinks, which for me symbolize peace.

Jeff Hogue, Bartlesville A Conversation with Ghosts Gouache and ink and acrylic ink on mylar taped to watercolor paper, 12.5” x 16”

Marcus Kesler // marcuskesler.com Self Service is from a series that explores the agricultural roots of Oklahoma and the struggles faced by Oklahoma farmers. From the Great Depression to the Dust Bowl and from the Great Recession to the Drought of 2012, the soil has been broken by Oklahomans and at times it has broken them. This image captures the tools used by farmers that relied on their own skills, labor, and resilient spirit to work the earth.

Marcus Kesler, Edmond Self Service Photography, 16” x 24”

David Knox // knoxphoto.com This composite, an archival pigment print with oil, was created from photographs I took in New Orleans. It combines Southern iconography in the form of taxidermy, architecture, and historical Daguerreotypes.

Through symbolism this piece offers Southern interpretations of religion, resurrection, home, ritual, the fleetingness of life and the permanence of death.

Influences include Flemish Baroque paintings of hunting scenes and game from the 16th Century and American still life painters of the late 19th Century.

David Knox, Oklahoma City Quarter Photography (Archival pigment print with oil and varnish), 22” x 16”

Michael Litzau // michaellitzau.com I am interested in acts of devotion. This is because they are physical manifestations of one’s affinity and dedication to something else. It is interesting to me the need to prove one’s devotion through acts or objects.

I am a huge Green Bay Packers fan and this piece is a tribute to them and a player, Casey Hayward. Through time spent and hard work I make an object worthy as a gift for them.

Michael Litzau, Edmond Tribute to Casey Hayward the Packers 2012 second round draft pick. #62 overall Hand cut scrapbook paper, 8.5” x 11”

Bobby C. Martin // bobbycmartin.com Old family photographs have long been inspirational resources for my artwork. They are icons for me, symbols of a Native American identity that is not seen as “traditional,” but is just as valid and vital to me—a tradition of Indian Christianity. The folks in these images, like my feisty Aunt Kate, are lifelines to a history that I didn’t discover until well into adulthood, but now realize are a source of inspiration and pride.

Bobby C. Martin, Tahlequah Aunt Kate McCombs 3-color screenprint on paper, 24.5” x 16.5”

Traci Martin // tracimartinstudios.com Smoke #13 is an exploration of two-dimensional form and composition. It is an important and rewarding challenge for me in both design and technique.

Van Gogh said, “One may have a blazing hearth in one’s soul... yet passersby see only a wisp of smoke.”

This quote inspired a theme for the series. I love the idea that a source exists beyond the viewer’s perspective. There is always more to a story than what one sees.

Traci Martin, Ardmore Smoke #13 Charcoal on archival paper, 20” x 28”

Brandon Mitts // brandonmitts.com I hope the viewer will look at I Kind of Remember Forgetting and see beauty emerging from chaos. For me, this work on paper is a metaphor for life.

I see life as layers of conversations, experiences, and relationships. As we journey forward, these layers overlap, pile up and form an unavoidable mess.

The beautiful thing about life, however, is that we have the opportunity to balance, create and bring order out of the disorder.

Brandon Mitts, Stillwater I Kind of Remember Forgetting Mixed media collage, 10” x 12.5”

Eric Piper // ericpiper.com Eric Piper is a southwest artist with punk, occult, and existentialist roots. Concepts span from “creating black-holes in the audiences subconscious persona” to the tragedy of not having enough money for cigarettes. Trying to pull all the words and preconceived ideas we as humans have about ourselves and the world away from it, allowing us to stare into the chaos and meaninglessness of the universe, reapply meaning, and connect passionately with the everything.

Eric Piper, Norman Abandon / Construct Woodcut, 13” x 18”

Saumo Puapuaga Alofa is my interpretation of witnessing the love and bond between grandfather and grandchild. As they neared the moving stream, her smile slowly turned into a look of fear, not expecting the water to be moving so rapidly.

With his strong arm stretched out, beckoning her to come, she slowly stepped toward her grandpa’s direction---And with his assured embrace, instantly she felt peace like a river.

Saumo Puapuaga, Oklahoma City Alofa Charcoal and oil pastel, 23.5” x 18”

Laura Reese // LauraReese.net Using the traditional technique of letterpress, Wanderlust draws from my own spiritual connection to the land and a physical connection to my body. I write to the way humans interact with the world around them, through my introspective lens, looking outward. I always wanted to leave Oklahoma, and when I did, I wanted to return. Wanderlust discusses my oscillation between places, and immaterial experiences with place and identity.

Laura Reese, Norman Wanderlust Letterpress and screen print, 8” x 8”

Amy Rockett-Todd // rocketttodd.com I find art in everyday events, particularly when my kids are involved. A glassblowing class for my 12 year old son inspired my desire to create a work that would parallel the unique results found in both glassblowing and monoprinting. The painterly yet primitive results of the monoprint contrasts with the crisp lines of the finished piece of blown glass. Both are unique, yet both stand as a fragment of the same event.

Amy Rockett-Todd, Tulsa Hot Glass Demo Monoprint, oil/toned paper, 9” x 11”

Clarissa Sharp // clarissasharp.blogspot.com That dimly remembered era (almost like a dream) when childhood was a tactile, earthy thing; more time, fewer gadgets, and all the imagination in the world. A garden, a swing set, tadpoles in summer puddles, a friend down the alley, golden days of roaming the neighborhood making adventures.

The flicker of street lights winking into life the signal to go home for dinner.

And nothing to fear.

Clarissa Sharp, Oklahoma City Once We Played Mixed media, 12” x 9”

Cathryn Wallace Thomas // cathrynthomasceramics.com It is a gift to be able to reassemble a life that has been torn apart. This self-portrait is a celebration of that gift. The imperfections of each shred represent a physical response to life events and changes. The reassemblage never ends.

Cathryn Wallace Thomas, Tulsa Torn Paper and ink, 18.25” x 27.5”

Thomas Tucker // thomasrtucker.com The photo One of These Is Not Like the Others is from my urban exploration series of the Oklahoma City downtown area. The simplicity of the circles with the contrasting lines is what attracted me to the subject and the smaller drain pipe seemed almost comical.

Thomas Tucker, Edmond One of these is not like the others Digital photography, 16” x 20”

Elizabeth MD Vuong // elizabethvuong.com In Elizabeth MD Vuong’s work, she references the roles drawing has played using the authority and detail of old scientific and botanical illustrations combined with the precision of architectural drawings -- thus bringing drawing full circle from the prehistoric to the post-apocalyptic.

In this case, a hybrid creature is the focus. This creature represents the end of the autonomous relationship between flora and fauna and reveals a creature where they are unified into one being.

Elizabeth MD Vuong, Tulsa Birds of Paradise III Pen, ink, illustration paint, 12” x 12”

Crystal Walters Disconnected is a double negative film print that reflects on the reality of death. While death is often an afterthought, it is a harsh reality. Death is an event that not only disconnects the living from the dead, but also has the power to disconnect the living from the living. We live with death, and a disconnect will always occur.

Crystal Walters, Pryor Disconnected Analog photography, 9” x 14”

Blair Waltman // the-f-stops-here.blogspot.com If video killed the radio star, digital photography killed film. The new format has all but replaced film, but it’s spurred distrust—photos are routinely considered ‘Photoshopped.’ Ironically, film-which has always been manipulated--is now, in comparison, considered more ‘real,’ more ‘organic,’ since it’s not computerized. My film photography is a play on that mentality, working film to create looks that would be considered ‘Photoshopped’ all within the confines of the emulsion.

Blair Waltman, Oklahoma City Collide 35mm photography, 9” x 14”

Betty Wood Americans treasure their personal gardens as “tranquil spaces for the mind.”

Gardens are nurturing places where one can seek solice from a hectic world yet enjoy satisfaction in observing nature’s beauty coming to life.

American Gardens conjures up memories of old gardens-perhaps in the South--where vintage vines wind through old fences overtaking the landscape. The rusted screen and simplistic house remind us of a tranquil time gone by.

Betty Wood, Norman American Gardens Monotype with mixed media, 9” x 12”

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About IAO and OVAC

The Individual Artists of Oklahoma is committed to sustaining and encouraging emerging and established artists in all media who are intellectually and aesthetically provocative or experimental in subject matter or technique. iaogallery.org

The Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition is a non-profit organization that supports visual art and artists and their power to enrich communities. With funding, education, and exposure, OVAC empowers artists throughout the state to realize their potential. ovac-ok.org