Issue Magazine

Life Drawing Wednesdays.

6-8 p.m. $5.

Open to everyone.

Join the facebook Figure Drawing group Become a member of the studio — it’s worth it.

SEE MEMBERSHIP FORM ON PAGE 3.

A View From The Top Greg Busceme, TASI Director

MARCH USUALLY ARRIVES AS a windstorm and The Studio is no different.

We are hosting an exhibition of local ceramics artists, past and present, along with the Beaumont Art League, the Art Museum of Southeast Texas and the Dishman Art Museum, in conjunction with the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts(NCECA), an annual conference of 5,000 to 8,000 ceramiphiles who will descend on Houston this March 20-23.

Thus the seeming coincidence is a wellthought-out plan to showcase the arts community to a national audience. We are part of the post-conference exhibit and I am thrilled to show off our studios and galleries to our clay peers.

We plan to have Cajun fare — crawfish, boudain, etc. — at a special reception on March 23, and will be open most of the day to receive visitors as they leave the conference heading home eastward.

Sandi Laurette and Linnis Blanton are handling the exhibitions for The Art Studio and the League, and I and my minions are jazzing up The Studio to look great for our guests. I hope to have clay available for those who need a clay fix before the long road home.

Note: watching people play with clay makes your hands itch just to grab some and roll coils, throw pots or whatever. I crave the smell.

ISSUE Vol. 19, No. 6 Publisher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Art Studio, Inc. Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Andy Coughlan Copy Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tracy Danna Contributing Writers . . . . . . . . . . . . Elena Ivanova . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Elizabeth Fontenot

The Art Studio, Inc. Board of Directors President Ex-Officio . . . . . . . . . . . . Greg Busceme Vice-President. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Angela Busceme Chair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . John Roberts Treasurer/Secretary . . . . . . . . . . . . . Beth Gallaspy Members at large: . . . . . . . . . . . . Sheila Busceme, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Elizabeth French, . . . . . . . . . . Andy Ledesma, Stephan Malick, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Heather Butler

The Art Studio, Inc. 720 Franklin Beaumont, TX 77701 409-838-5393 www.artstudio.org artstudio@artstudio.org The ISSUE is a monthly publication of The Art Studio, Inc. Its mission is to publicize The Art Studio and its tenants, and to promote the growth of the arts in Southeast Texas. ISSUE is also charged with informing TASI members of projects, progress, achievements and setbacks in TASI’s well-being. Further, ISSUE strives to promote and distribute the writings of local authors in its “Thoughtcrime” feature.

ISSUE is provided free of charge to members of TASI and is also available, free of charge, at more than 30 locations in Southeast Texas.

Regular features include local artists of note and reputation who are not currently exhibiting at TASI; artists currently or soon to be exhibiting at TASI; Instructional articles for artists; news stories regarding the state of TASI’s organization; and arts news features dealing with general philosophical issues of interest to artists.

Contents “Ultima” and Beauty. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 4 “Rabbit Hole” at BCP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 6 TASIMJAE Call for Entries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 7 Clay Shows in Beaumont. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 8 Kiki Smith . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 10 Victor Spinski Remembered. . . . . . . . . . . . Page 11 Around & About. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 12 Thoughtcrime. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 13

Cover photo by Andy Coughlan

This show means a lot more than just being seen. It reflects a four-year path to recovery from The Art Studio being on the edge of losing everything — be it through damage from two hurricanes or an economy that seemed to nosedive daily. We all ran for cover. The Studio was able to persevere, and it did so through the hard work of resident artists, a community and people who believe in the power of art and its primary importance to the growth of art culture.

It’s not only the production of art by our local artists that contributes to quality of life, but the contributions artists make to the collective mind of knowledge by the sheer act of creation. Creativity is a prayer each artist composes as they make seeable the events in their hearts.

We have gone from survivors to revivers with the concerted efforts of many silent volunteers.

The Studio is 30 this year and, though some might say it, it was no accident. We came out of adversity stronger, more autonomous and independent. We are not out of the woods, but lately it seems we are at least on the edge of the forest.

A quote from Michael Gregory: “I've been through some hard times, but through it all, I made it. Trouble don’t last always.”

The Art Studio will not let our troubles last always.

UPCOMING EXHIBITIONS AT THE ART STUDIO MARCH

APRIL

The Art Studio & Friends Opening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . March 2

TASIMJAE (The Art Studio, Inc. Member Jurored Art Exhibition) Opening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . April 6

BECOME A MEMBER OF THE ART STUDIO Membership in The Art Studio, Inc., provides invitations to all exhibitions and one year of ISSUE, the monthly arts magazine of The Art Studio. It also gives free eligibility for members to enter the annual membership art exhibition (TASIMJAE) and participate in various exhibitions throughout the year.

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4 • ISSUE March 2013

Volume 19, No. 6

‘Bless Me, Ultima’ and Wild Beauty Stark Museum of Art exhibit focuses on Taos artist community Story by Elena Ivanova

“The beauty of the llano unfolded before my eyes, and the gurgling waters of the river sang to the hum of the turning earth.”

— Rudolfo Anaya, “Bless Me, Ultima”

Ernest Leonard Blumenschein (1874-1960), MOUNTAINS NEAR TAOS, 1955, top, oil on hardboard, 12.125 x 27 inches, Stark Museum of Art, Orange, Texas, 31.30.11

Emil James Bisttram (1895-1976), THE END OF THE DAY, c. 1945, above, oil on canvas, 30 x 36 inches, Stark Museum of Art, Orange, Texas, 31.223.2

IT ALL STARTED WITH a broken wheel. In September of 1898, two young artists, Ernest Blumenchein and Bert Phillips, were on the way to Mexico in search of new “hunting grounds” for their artistic endeavors. A few years earlier, in Paris, they heard about an enchanted place called Taos in New Mexico from fellow American artist, Joseph Henry Sharp. However, had it not been for an accident on a rocky road, they might never have made it to Taos. Phillips stayed with the carriage while Blumenschein headed to town to get help. On his way, Blumenschein was so overwhelmed with the sight of Taos valley that the friends decided to stay in this beautiful town nestled at the foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains.

After three months, Blumenschein returned to New York while Phillips chose to settle in Taos permanently. Blumenschein spent the next decade in Paris, mastering his painting technique and working as an illustrator for American magazines. Upon his return to America, he spent his time sketching and painting all summer in Taos and exhibiting his work

Volume 19, No. 6

in New York in winter. In the meantime, New Mexico had attracted other artists. In 1915, Phillips and Blumenschein, together with Joseph Henry Sharp, E. Irving Couse, Oscar E. Berninghaus and W. Herbert Dunton, founded the Taos Society of Artists.

These artists were on the cusp of the first wave of migrations that brought to New Mexico people of artistic pursuits from all over the country and abroad. In the 1920s-early 1930s, Taos was home to English writers D. H. Lawrence and Dorothy Brett, Scottish artist John Young-Hunter, Russian artists Nicolai Fechin and Leon Gaspard. Along with permanent residents, art communities of Taos and the nearby city of Santa Fe counted among their members seasonal visitors from New York and Chicago. The latter included such famous artists as Robert Henri and John Sloan.

Already in the 1920s, the authority of the Taos Society of Artists was challenged by a new generation of artists — Emil Bisttram, Jozef Bakos, William Howard Shuster, Georgia O’Keeffe.

While artists like Sharp and Phillips adhered to the tradition of academic art, the newcomers conveyed their vision of New Mexico according to the principles of cubism, fauvism and expressionism.

A wave of new arrivals swept the region in the 1940s. During World War II and especially after in its wake, the region became an important crossroads in contemporary American art.

Artists from San Francisco and New York found in Taos a perfect retreat from the hustle and bustle of big cities.

A group known as the Taos Moderns — Andrew Dasburg, Thomas Benrimo, Louis Ribak, Beatrice Mandelman and Agnes Martin — laid claim to the beauty and mystery of the land and people of New Mexico. Their artistic language was shaped by European and American modernism and post-war abstract painting. Just like 30 years earlier, major artists of the time came to visit, among them Mark Rothko, Ad Reinhardt, Clyfford Still and Morris Graves.

What was so special about New Mexico that it captivated the minds of artists, generation after generation, notwithstanding the differences in their training, style and sensibilities?

Artists expressed their feelings differently, but in essence the reasons that attracted them to New Mexico were the same: the picturesque landscape, the unusual light, and the people who continued to live their traditional lifestyle, seemingly oblivious to the changing world beyond the realm of this timeless “Shangri La.” People coming from the fast-paced, industrialized and commercialized world in other parts of the country were anxious to identify the peaceful Taos valley

March 2013 ISSUE • 5

with “the lost horizon.”

However, this was the outsider viewpoint. American Indian and Chicano writers of the second half of the 20th century demonstrated that the local population saw themselves quite differently. The Indians — Pueblos, Comanches and Apaches — as well as the descendants of Spanish conquistadors were neither frozen in time, nor insulated from the outside world, as the newcomer artists imagined. Their traditions, customs and beliefs continued to evolve and they incorporated innovations of Western civilization into their lifestyle without giving up their heritage.

This spring, one of the most famous novels in Chicano literature, “Bless Me, Ultima” by acclaimed author Rudolfo Anaya, has been chosen for the Southeast Texas Big Read program. A project of NEA, Big Read has the purpose of engaging the whole community in reading and discussing one book from the list of American classics. The Stark Museum of Art, as a nonrecipient member of the SETX Big Read, brings to the community the exhibition “Wild Beauty: the New Mexico Setting” which will showcase a wide selection of works from the

Museum’s extensive collection of New Mexico artists.

There are many points of intersection between the paintings created by Taos and Santa Fe artists and Anaya’s novel. Both immerse us in the world of verdant pastures and valleys where people live in harmony with nature, the world of colorful fiestas and candlelight processions. Portraits of elderly women, such as Nicolai Fechin’s “La Abuela” and Ernest Martin Hennings’s “Old Spanish Woman,” remind of wise healer Ultima, one of the main characters in the novel. Images of ranches and farms in the paintings of Oscar Edmund Berninghaus bring to mind the family of another major character of the novel, young boy Antonio, who comes from the lineage of vaqueros on his father’s side and from generations of farmers on his mother’s side.

At the same time, the New Mexico of Anaya is not immune to the harsh reality of the outside world. Set at the time of World War II, the novel tells the story of the people who live near the small town of Santa Rosa. They worry about their sons who are in the military, experience a deadly confrontation with a homicidal war veteran suffering from a posttraumatic stress

disorder, work hard to provide for their families and strive to make the right choice when faced with a moral dilemma.

While the majority of the artists preferred to portray an idyllic look of New Mexico, some of them addressed the issue of modernity as well. For example, two Oscar Edmund Berninghaus paintings, “Taos Pueblo, World War II” and “Taos Tapestry,” parallel descriptions of war-time Santa Rosa.

One section of the exhibition deals with faith and spirituality. The Catholic church had a strong presence in New Mexico for centuries, however, various beliefs of local Indian nations left their mark on the ways Catholicism is practiced by both Indians and Hispanics.

Celebration of such holidays as Christmas and San Geronimo Day was a popular subject among Taos artists.

They also portrayed with fascination traditional Indian rituals, such as chanting to the beat of ceremonial drums.

Faith and spirituality play a crucial role in Anaya’s novel as well. Ten-year old Antonio is going on a spiritual

See ULTIMA on page 14

Oscar Edmund Berninghaus (1874-1952), TAOS PUEBLO, WORLD WAR II, c.1943, tempera on canvas mounted on hardboard, 30.25 x 36.25 inches, Stark Museum of Art, Orange, Texas, 31.24.23

6 • ISSUE March 2013

Volume 19, No. 6

DOWN THE ‘RABBIT HOLE’ BCP to present drama as part of ‘Theatre on the Edge’ series WHEN ALICE WENT DOWN the rabbit hole, she ended up in Wonderland, a place of confusion and misunderstanding. When Becca and Howie lose their fouryear-old son in a traffic accident, they disappear into a world not of wonder, but of grief.

Beaumont Community Players will present the Pulitzerprize winning drama “Rabbit Hole,” by David

Story and photo by Andy Coughlan

Lindsay-Abaire, beginning March 29.

“It basically shows you how people cope and deal with a tragedy of this sort,” director Donny Avery said. “How a marriage goes through this and survives — or how it doesn’t survive — the obstacles they face.”

Reece Ravenscraft and Jody Reho play Becca and Howie, Kristen Read plays Izzy, Pepper Thompson plays Nat, and David Nelson plays Jason. The play is Avery’s second stint as a director at BCP. “I read it when it came out and fell in love with

Kristen Read, left, Pepper Thompson, Reece Ravenscraft and Jody Reho rehearse a scene from “Rabbit Hole,” Feb. 17. Beaumont Community Players will present the play as part of “Theatre on the Edge” beginning March 29.

the script because it is extremely honest and extremely real,” he said. “That’s what drew me to it initially. To me, it’s a situation that no one really likes to talk about. Once you start talking about it, people may realize they have been in that sort of situation before — that they can really relate to it.

“I think it’s honest and I think it will make people uncomfortable when they see it — and that’s OK, because it’s real life.”

Avery said that despite the tragedy at the heart of the play, there are moments of lightness.

“Surprisingly, there are funny moments,” he said.

“Comedy seeps through the drama, through the characters. People tell me the show is depressing — it’s not depressing. ‘Les Mis’ is depressing to me. I love it but it’s people dying, people starving. That’s depressing, but this is about real life and coping and grief.

“The two leads, the couple, through their marriage, it shows how they cope in two different ways. I think people will not say, ‘Oh, she’s right, he’s right’ — I mean, no one’s right in this situation, but you’re going to see the struggle.”

The actors in the lead roles both said the challenge of playing characters who are in pain drew them to the play.

“It’s a very challenging role,” Reho said. “The whole piece is emotionally charged, and the characters themselves are in very vulnerable places and trying to find a way to communicate, which is a nice parallel to a lot of things, especially the process of acting. It’s going to be a very challenging piece just to access the emotional components that are necessary to communicate with the audience. I’m looking forward to that process.”

Ravenscraft said she sees parallels between herself and Becca.

“I find that she is freakishly like me,” she said.

“Very often she can be unlikable because she is in pain. I find myself wondering if I can be unlikable when I’m upset or worried. A lot of the things she does are passive-aggressive and snarky things she says, things that I would say.

Some of the conversations sound like conversations (her husband) Marcus and I have had.”

She sighed and paused for a moment.

“It’s been interesting.”

“What’s cool about a character like this, in a show like this, is that there are so many more layers to peel away,” she said. “You have so much more to work with.”

One word consistently peppers Avery’s enthusiastic discussion — “honest.”

“It lets you be part of the show,” he said. “When you have performers who are speaking in modern language, who are in a believable situation that could have happened, they will force you to come into their house, force you to come into their home, and force you to see this.

“When they force you, you don’t want to let go — you want to see what happens. When you have

See RABBIT on page 14

Volume 19, No. 6

March 2013 ISSUE • 7

THE ART STUDIO, INC. MEMBERS JURORED ART EXHIBITION

TASIMJAE

CALL FOR ENTRIES DEADLINE MARCH 30 PLEASE READ ALL INSTRUCTIONS CAREFULLY! ENTRIES NOT ADHERING TO THESE INSTRUCTIONS WILL BE DISQUALIFIED!

CALENDAR Entry dates........................................................March 26-30 Jury selection..........................................................March 31 Notification by mail ..................................................April 2 Pick-up works not accepted..................April 5 by 5 p.m.

Opening/awards reception....................April 6, 7-10 p.m.

Pick up exhibited work.........................................April 30.

ELIGIBILITY Open to all members in good standing of The Art Studio, Inc. (TASI). Membership fee of $35 may be paid at time of entry. Works completed within the last two years that have not previously been shown at TASI may be submitted. All two-dimensional work must be ready to hang (wires, not sawtooths). All three-dimensional work must have firm base. Work may not exceed two hundred pounds in weight or 10 feet in height.

Completed entry label must be firmly attached to the back upper left corner of 2-D work or base of 3-D work.

Amy Faggard won first place in TASIMJAE 2012 and will be the featured artist in May.

SUBMISSIONS Entries must be delivered to TASI, 720 Franklin, Beaumont, Texas, Tuesday-Saturday between the hours of 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. No works will be accepted after 5 p.m. on March 30. Works must be shipped prepaid and/or hand delivered. Limit two (2) entries per person.

RETURN OF ALL ENTRIES Work not accepted must be picked up by 5 p.m. on April 5. Works selected for exhibition must remain on display until April 28 and may be picked up April 30.

AGREEMENT Although the greatest possible care will be exercised in handling work, TASI accepts no responsibility for loss or damage to work submitted, while in transit or on premises. TASI reserves the right to photograph submitted works for publicity purposes. All sales during the exhibition will be handled by TASI for which a 25% commission will be taken. Submission of entries implies the artist’s understanding and agreement to the rules and conditions of the exhibition.

AWARDS 1st. place: $100 and a solo exhibition at TASI in May 2014 2nd. place $75, 3rd. place $50 JUROR Megan Young Director, Dishman Art Museum at Lamar University

LOOK FOR A PROSPECTUS IN THE MAIL, DOWNLOAD ONE AT WWW.ARTSTUDIO.ORG, OR PICK ONE UP AT THE ART STUDIO

8 • ISSUE March 2013

Volume 19, No. 6

Old Friends, TASI, AREA MUSEUMS

FEATURE DIVERSE CERAMICS EXHIBITIONS WHEN THE NATIONAL COUNCIL on Education for the Ceramic Arts decided to hold its 2013 convention in Houston, the (potters) wheels were set in motion.

Area clay artists, many of whom spend their hard-earned coin on traveling to far away convention sites decided it would be a great opportunity to host a clay show that would show off the best Southeast Texas has to offer.

“For about 20 years, we have tried to have a Beaumont clay show for our friends at that conference,” artist Sandra Laurette said. “But it was never possible until now. Otherwise, you would have to shlep stuff to Seattle or Philadelphia. I have friends that do that, but I have always had another job to do. This year it happened to work out.

“This is our opportunity to let people know how wonderful our clay community is.”

The exhibition “The Art Studio & Friends,” opening with a free reception March 2, will showcase the work of a diverse group of artists who have associated with TASI over the years, including tenants, NCECA members who have been tenants, and about a dozen friends of The Studio.

“We will be showing the Bob Willis collection,” Laurette, who is organizing the show, said. “There will be three separate parts to the exhibition, although separating tenants and friends who have been tenants will be hard.”

Willis left his collection to The Studio and Laurette said this is the first time the collection will be shown in its complete state.

“There will also be work of instructors, past and present, from Lamar, and the work of people from Maine to Arizona, in terms of past visitors,” she said. “The British potter John Eden will be here. He is connected through networking. He is married to Constant Albertson, who Greg Busceme went to graduate school with. Their portaits are on the wall of The Studio.

“We would like to show off the strength of our clay community.”

Tenant Dana Dorman said she is excited about the chance to show off the clay artists in the area.

“Our show at The Studio will showcase the best ceramic artists that Beaumont has to offer,” she said. “The show will feature local artists choosing from their strongest works. Because our area is rich with style and technique, the show will include many types of work including wheelthrown vessels, figurative pieces, slab work and an Story by Andy Coughlan

ISSUE photo by Andy Coughlan

Volume 19, No. 6

March 2013 ISSUE • 9

New Ideas assortment of other surprises.”

There will be a special reception on March 23, when NCECA closes, for people from the conference.

Members of the community are invited to come and meet the visiting artists.

“If they want to come and meet ‘NCECers,’ as we refer to ourselves, they are welcome,” Laurette said.

“We will be passing out invitations at the conference for our friends,” she said. “We have friends from Alaska and the West coast who we hope will come by.

“We are on the list of ‘other’ exhibitions for NCECA. There are something like 90 clay exhibitions related to the show in Houston. It’s a field trip or a stop on the way home opportunity for our friends in the conference.”

Laurette said area ceramicists attend the conference on a regular basis, and she expects more to attend this year as it is so close.

NCECA is an international show, despite its national tag, and draws 8,000 to 9,000 every year, Laurette said. Tenant Suzanne Garrett has attended every year, with Laurette, for more than 25 years.

“I wouldn’t miss it for anything,” she said.

Dorman said NCECA is something that all clay artists aspire to attend.

“The NCECA conference represents the collective “soul” of some of the most important ceramic work in the world,” she said. “ The ceramic exhibition, titled “Earth/Energy” is testament to years of study, practice and refinement within the field. I can hardly wait to see this work in person.”

Dorman said she has a strong reaction when viewing such top-level work.

“My first reaction is, ‘What does this work say to me?’ I become inspired, moved, or assaulted, or I am presented with content I have not experienced before,” she said.

“My second thought is, ‘How’d they do that?’ The dialog opens up the inner pupil in me. I want to learn about new textures, firing methods, glazing techniques and the artist’s vision.

“My third reaction is, ‘Let me go get busy creating my own voice through my work.”

Dorman said she is always inspired by seeing the work of some of the world’s leading practitioners of the ceramic arts.

“It is this rare exchange of ideas, and this once-ina-lifetime experience has this small-town Texas artist excited beyond measure, chomping at the bit to be a part of NCECA 2013,” she said.

Anyone who has ever worked with clay knows you had better make more than one, so there are four shows at three venues for the ceramics aficionado to choose from in March.

The Beaumont Art League will host “Lamar Then and Now,” with an opening reception March 2.

“Current students and alumni of Lamar University’s ceramics program from 1980 to present will join together to exhibit a broad range of works in

See CLAY on page 11

Photo courtesy Sandra Laurette

UNTITLED (above) by Sandra Laurette

ANTICIPATION (left) by Dana Dorman

10 • ISSUE March 2013

Volume 19, No. 6

Kiki Smith turns ever yday objects into mystical creations Editor’s note: This is the first in an occasional series of articles by area artists on some of their favorite artists.

KIKI SMITH IS AN American artist who was born in Nuremburg, Germany in 1954. The next year, her family moved to South Orange, New Jersey where she lived with her two younger sisters, mother and father. Her father, Tony Smith, was a minimalist artist, known for his large polyhedron-based structures. Smith and her sisters often spent time assembling paper models of his sculptures.

She was exposed to the art world: Abstract Expressionism, Minimalism, and significant contemporary artists including Pollock, Rothko, and Newman from an early age.

Most of Smith’s work revolves around the human body and individual identity. She explores the fragility and resilience of life, the permeability of human skin, and narratives through a variety of media. Images and sculptures of iconic women, many literary, are used to invoke a universal humanity through their female experiences and stories. Beginning in the 1980s, her art utilized the human body as a format for discussing social and political issues such as race, gender, sexuality, and as a way of responding to the newly recognized AIDS epidemic. Her work represents a return the human figure, representation, and spirituality in the art community, themes which were neglected and even frowned upon during the reign of “modern” painting.

Smith produces work in bronze, wax, paper, plaster, glass, and many other media. She believes that all artistic methods are equal in value and significance.

There is no material too lowly for artistic use. Paper, for example, is thought of as a delicate and feminine material, and it is often placed on the bottom end of art materials. Paper tears, creases, and is in greater danger of deterioration than many other substances. Smith points out that paper can be a strong, malleable, and archival material. Much like human skin, it is simultaneously fragile and strong, and it acts as a barrier that is permeable to light. She uses papier-mâché to create sculptures and joins many small sheets of paper together to support large-scale prints and drawings.

The artist also takes advantage of materials and techniques side-lined by the art world as lowly or feminine forms. Doilies, beads, ceramics, and plaster are not associated with fine art or high art forms. Smith takes these instruments, the discarded remnants of high art culture, and imbues them with deeper meaning throughout her work. Glass beads become the fluids of life, representing blood, urine, tears, and semen.

Lustrous, metallic doilies mimic snowflakes and celestial bodies. Smith claims that “there is power in art forms that are neglected,” and she taps into that hidden power of the everyday and shares it with the audience.

Some people describe Kiki Smith’s artwork as a journey from the body’s hidden inside to the body’s relationship with the outside environment. Smith explains that she wants to reclaim our bodies from fragmentation within society and art history. People Story by Elizabeth Fontenot

ST. GENEVIEVE (1999) by Kiki Smith are divided into oppositions between male and female and between mind and body through society and culture. In the art world, the Cubists formally fragment the human figure to illuminate the varying facets of form.

Her work has also been discussed in the context of feminism and attempts to redefine the images of women through their own experiences. In the beginning, Smith presents the audience with situations with which all women must come to terms. She carefully avoids direct relationships to challenging issues like abortion, gender identity, and sexuality by centering her work around biological functions of the female body.

Kiki Smith’s artwork reflects a feminine point of view. The majority of her creations depict women and events specific to women, such as menstruation and pregnancy. She says that she wants to show that the experience of being a woman is a universal human experience.

One criticism that applies to many of Smith’s female figures is that they are vulnerable, weak, and in a state of suffering. These abject women are often constructed from wax, their facial features left softly modeled. In several cases, they are not in control of their bodily functions. Sculptures such as “Pee Body” (1992) and “Tale” (1992), are modeled after a universal woman. In “Pee Body,” a female figure squats low to the ground, her legs splayed out to the side to allow

beaded trails of yellow urine flow out. The beaded strings are arranged in a simple wave pattern. They are simultaneously repulsing and beautiful. This universal woman is meant to evoke feelings of embarrassment for both the exposed sculpture and the voyeuristic viewer.

Some critics view her use of iconic and archetypal female figures, such as the Virgin Mary and Mary Magdalene, as a return to stereotypical female roles.

But Smith’s “Virgin Mary,” produced in 1992, is by no means a stereotyped representation. This Virgin Mary is formed from a combination of beeswax and microcrystalline wax, and the impermanence of these materials challenges the idealized renderings of the Dormition and the Assumption. The removal of the figure’s skin reveals the humanity of her flesh and connective tissue. This sculpture shows the audience that the Virgin Mary was, at one time, a real and physical human being.

Kiki Smith herself appears as a figure in her work.

The artist sometimes casts her face and body for sculptures and uses her portrait in several prints. In “Pietà” (1999) Smith shows herself in an iconic role, imitating the Virgin Mary who holds the body of her crucified son after his descent from the cross. In Smith’s version, the artist appears seated on a chair cradling the

See SMITH on page 11

Volume 19, No. 6

March 2013 ISSUE • 11

“Spilled Coffee Cup,” a ceramic sculpture by Walter Spinski.

IN MEMORIAL

CLAY from page 9 clay,” Sarah Hamilton, BAL director said.

“Many have gone on to teach others in schools and universities.

“Over the years, (Lamar’s) program has caught the imagination of students of other university disciplines and even those returning to the university after a long hiatus. Many of these students spend several semesters developing a great skill working in clay.”

Laurette is also curating “The Next Generation: K-12 Clay in Southeast Texas” at BAL. “Many public and private school educators in this region offer their students an opportunity to begin investigating ceram-

ics as they learn about art in 3D,” Hamilton said. “Most emphasis is placed on hand building and electric firings. Even fewer high school students have the opportunity to create works of art in clay, but ceramic objects are entered each year into competitions for high school seniors of this region.”

The exhibition will offer the opportunity to view some of these beginners’ works.

“Everybody should see the shows because the work is phenomenal,” Laurette said.

The Art Museum of Southeast Texas is currently hosting “San Angelo Ceramics,” representative pieces from the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts’ permanent collection.

The exhibition features works by multiple artists displaying a variety of techniques and manipulation of the media.

For more on that show, visit www.amset.org.

Ceramicist Jim Leedy created the piece, left, during a workshop at TASI. The electric kilns and wheel are located in The Studio clay area.

VICTOR SPINSKI, NOTED CERAMIST, humorist and general gadfly to the establishment, has gone to the Great Clay Studio in the sky.

I was honored to meet Victor at NCECA through his many students who seemed to be everywhere at the conference. He was short, shy, quiet but persistent. He had the determination it takes to do phenomenal things and advanced his form of imitative ceramics — making ceramics that imitate other objects. In our office area we have a Spinski piece that looks like a spilled cup of coffee. He produced it during a workshop at The Studio with Vern Funk from Texas Tech.

Victor was generous with his time and was an open heart who was easy to approach. He gave all his research in the art of slip casting and fabrication. His humility belied his vast knowledge that came from knowing his material inside and out.

I felt like he was my uncle. Through him, a host of amazing people revealed themselves and we have continued that relationship throughout the years. We will miss him.

— Greg Busceme

SMITH from page 10 body of her deceased cat. This image also highlights the interjection of the artist’s personal life into a more universal narrative.

“Lying with the Wolf” and “Wearing the Skin” present the viewer with unknown women. These figures are not an example of what it means to be a good or bad woman or even an ordinary woman. The images do not refer to a specific event in any existing narrative. Instead, the scenes come from Kiki Smith’s own mythology and symbolic language. The women in these two drawings are based on St. Geneviève, the patron saint of Paris, who persuaded the Parisians to remain in their homes and pray in order to protect themselves from the army of Attila the Hun in 451 CE. The prayers of Paris were answered: Attila and his men were diverted and attacked the city of Orléans. Kiki Smith recalls seeing a portrait of the patron, whose purity and gentleness caused both wolf and lamb to lay down in peace.

The combination of woman and wolf is a frequent occurrence in Smith’s artwork, and this repetition starts to build a history for these two figures. The pair appears most frequently as characters from the Little Red Riding Hood tale.

As Kiki Smith incorporates neglected and sometimes rejected art forms and themes, her work transcends some of the contemporary social and political issues. By making work that is about a specific individual, Smith invites the viewer to experience a personal and emotional connection with each work. Iconic figures like the Virgin Mary are made human, and everyday people, including the artist herself, fill the roles of more universal narratives. Ordinary and commonplace materials are transformed into mystical and symbolic representations of everyday life.

12 • ISSUE March 2013

Volume 19, No. 6

Around & About If you come across any interesting exhibitions, museums or other places on your travels, share them with us. Call 409-838-5393, or contact us through our web site at www.artstudio.org. Be sure to include the location and dates of the subject, as well as any costs.

The BEAUMONT AR T LEAGUE will host the 2013 POR TRAIT SHOW, beginning with a reception 7-9 p.m., March 2. The show runs through March 23 in the Brown Galler y.

If you are a painter of portraits, representational or non-representational, this is the exhibition you won’t want to miss.

This judged exhibition is open to all artists working in any medium.

The 2013 Portrait Show chair is Alice Powell.

The Beaumont Art League is located at 2675 Gulf Street.

For information, visit www.beaumontart league.org. ______________ The AR T MUSEUM OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS invites ever yone to GO GO FOR THE GOLD on March 7 for a chance to win $10,000 in gold or other fantastic prizes at this disco-themed bash. During this most popular and entertaining fund-raising event, one lucky ticket-holder will turn their $100 entr y into $10,000 in gold in just one night.

“So break out your bell bottoms and go-go boots, and boogie on down to the grooviest shindig that Southeast Texas has ever seen, the 18th Annual Go for the Gold Party and Reverse Drawing!” Monique Sennet, AMSET spokeswoman, said in a release.

“The emcees for the evening will be Craig Escamilla, executive director of the Symphony of Southeast Texas, and former television news reporter Jennifer Gordy Swantner.

“Guests are highly encouraged to dress in their funkadelic ’70s attire of tie-dye, leisure suits and polyester, and enjoy delicious food donated by Johnny Carino’s of Beaumont and Two Magnolias Café.”

For the ticket cost of $100, guests receive admission, dinner and cocktails for two along with one entr y into the drawing.

Only 500 tickets will be sold for the event, and advance purchase is recommended. Go for the Gold is a reverse drawing, meaning that the last three ticket stubs drawn from the hopper are the winners of: 3rd Place $1,000 in Gold 2nd Place $1,500 in Gold 1st Place $10,000 in Gold The gold prizes are given in American Eagle coins and have a value that depends not only on the price of gold, but also their value on the collectors’ market.

“Go for the Gold is such a thrilling event because of the chance to win such fantastic prizes, and the process of the reverse drawing is such fun,” said AMSET Executive Director L ynn Castle.

“But most importantly, this event raises funds to benefit our educational programs and exhibitions.”

For more information, contact AMSET at 409832-3432 or visit www.amset.org. ______________

The MENIL COLLECTION exhibition THE PROGRESS OF LOVE is on display through March 17.

“Numerous scholars have addressed the ways media, technology, and capitalism have affected Western notions of love over the last few centuries,” a Menil release states. “Little attention, however, has been paid to the impact of these forces on the conception of love in Africa, or even to the subject itself. ‘The Progress of Love’ explores romantic love, self-love, friendship, familial affect, love of one’s country, and other bonds in and around the continent. Though the exhibition is weighted towards art produced specifically about love in Africa, works that might otherwise be considered more ‘Western’ in orientation are included as well, calling attention to the global exchange through which such concepts develop, and to both the shared and distinct aspects of the experience of love.

“Bringing together the work of more than twenty artists, and ranging in media from painting and photography to installation, video, and performance, ‘The Progress of Love’ considers how technology, economic systems, and other forces have shaped — and continue to shape — ideas about love and their expression. In doing so, the exhibition seeks to ask what part of love is universal? What part is timeless and what is a cultural construct?

“Yinka Shonibare’s ‘The Swing, 2001,’ calls attention to the way Western notions of romantic heterosexual, monogamous love were brought into being through an increasingly globalized economy and reproductive technologies such as the printing press. Mounir Fatmi’s ‘Connections (Conspiracy), 2008,’ an installation of seminal Western and Arabic books wired together, speaks to the international circuits through which love travels, and of the

transformative, sometimes even explosive, effects of the dissemination of religious and philosophical texts on ideas of the self and other. Artists such as Zoulikha Bouabdellah and Kendell Geers consider the effects of language, how one’s primary or secondary tongue affects the way one conceives of this dyad, and raise questions about the ability to be understood across a linguistic or cultural gap.

“While many works in the show explicitly address the subject of love, others can be understood more indirectly as acts of love in their creation or in the experience they provide. Created specifically for this exhibition, in Romuald Hazoumé’s new project, the artist has founded a nongovernmental organization based in Cotonou, Benin, and is inviting his fellow Beninois to express love for self and others by making contributions to Westerners in hopes of helping them live better lives. In so doing, he offers a critical reevaluation of charity and the intersections between love and money.

The Menil Collection is located at 1515 Sul Ross in Houston.

For information, visit www.menil.org.

INDIAN DISH FRIDAYS at

BEAUMONT FRIED CHICKEN Corner of 7th and Calder

Different delicious Punjabi dish each week

409-813-1200

L L R E S U O Y

K R O W T R A

@

JOIN TODAY!

C A X SETORG .

Volume 19, No. 6

March 2013 ISSUE • 13

Black Mother

Thoughtcrime

Mother Goddess,

Your strong hands

Submission Guidelines and Disclaimer ISSUE solicits and publishes the work of local authors. Poetry, short fiction, scholarly works and opinion pieces may be submitted for review. All works must be typed or submitted on a disk (using approved word processing software), or may be sent to TASI by e-mail.

All works are subject for review by our editor, and may be rejected or edited on the basis of grammar, spelling or content.

The opinions expressed in “Thoughtcrime” do not necessarily reflect the opinions of TASI, its Board of Directors, ISSUE’s editorial staff, or donors to TASI.

Can lift the

Father, Daughter, Son. Mother Goddess, Your clay thighs Can awaken

The newborn who

Cries in desperation.

Earth Mother,

You can know The secrets

Of the Spring

And you can know

The hated rot of wood

Turned bad And good.

Though you will never Turn away

From your wormwood children, Though you will never

Forget their springtime loveliness.

Mother Earth Goddess, You remember

The infant who

Suckled at your heavy breast.

Do not forget that

Wormwood sapling.

She is

The Experience I was good enough then with my thick thighs, brown eyes and small waist but after that plus sign came I was nothing more than a number to ignore. My love was genuine only to you but that didn’t matter because you weren't true. Your actions scraped my heart like a knife peeling fruit, but that last day you pierced right through. You watched me bleed out & my soul turn blue. My smile faded away but to you that wasn’t anything new. When I woke up in that hospital bed alone & sore your face was nowhere near the door. Once again I healed & walked away but this time to never look back at that day. I still think of you with revenge but in the end my heart can't kill. So I have no choice but to let it go and wonder will you ever know?

Send typed works to: ISSUE 720 Franklin, Beaumont, TX 77701 or e-mail: artstudio@artstudio.org Authors must submit a daytime telephone number along with all submissions. Pen names are acceptable, but authors must supply real names for verification. All submitted works become property of TASI, and whether rejected or accepted, are not returned to the author.

ISSUE does not notify of rejection by mail or telephone.

I Have A Dream I have a dream,

America we are the team.

I had a dream last night, We took flight.

To the heavens right above, God is love.

Sweet Jesus in the manger, I fear God,

I fear no danger.

Regina Wilson, poet

Client of Beaumont Hope Center

Myoshi Price

Easter A fear of death A lack of breath And incense in my mouth A sudden cough A perfumed trough A slimy feeling throat I lie upon A filthy bed And look about the room

You.

To find that in My sleep I’ve died And, now, am in a tomb

Chance Henson

Jesse Doiron

God He is the positive side of my life.

He helps me to be strong and real Through prayer and faith in him.

Step out on Faith.

God is someone who will never leave your side or your family.

He helps my self-esteem,

helps me get up when I am down.

I am a prayer warrior.

God is there watching me.

Connie Walker, poet

Client of Beaumont Hope Center

14 • ISSUE March 2013

Volume 19, No. 6

EXPERIMENTAL DRAWING CLASS Tuesdays, March 12-April 16 • 6-8 p.m. • $80, materials not included • ages +15 Experimental Drawing is intermediate level course that pushes students to expand upon their own definition of what constitutes a drawing.

Students will explore non-traditional drawing methods, materials and tools, the sculptural aspect of drawing, and the relationship between the pictorial form and content.

The course aims to help students build a suitable foundation for further artistic development in a variety of media.

ULTIMA from page 5 quest tr ying to reconcile the Catholic faith with the worship of nature which he learns from Ultima. This old woman is a curandera — a healer and a medium for the world of spirits, like Indian medicine men and women. “For Ultima, even the plants had a spirit, and before I dug she made me speak to the plant and tell it why we pulled it from its home in the earth,” Antonio says about their herb-collecting trips. Ultima is a guardian of the ancient wisdom which is based in viewing humans as an inseparable part of nature. The secret of carr ying on a spiritual relationship with the land, animals and plants is the message which Ultima passes to Antonio.

The theme of the mystic power and intense spirituality of nature is echoed in such paintings as Georgia

RABBIT from page 6 those kind of performances, an audience really gets engaged.”

As a director, Avery said that when he sees that honesty on stage, it makes him really pay attention.

“I get all these emotions when I watch the show,” he said. “Even in auditions, I teared up quite a few times because it’s just so powerful. I think your average playgoer who doesn’t know what the play is about, or is scared of the subject, I say, ‘Give it a chance.’ These performers are going to pull you into their world.”

Ravenscraft said she expects the audience will experience a catharsis through the play.

“Everybody has something,” she said. “You may not have lost a child, but everyone has a relative who has been ill, and they can relate to all those situations.”

Reho said that everyone has a sense of empathy for grief and grieving.

“This piece is really, at its core, about how we go through that process and how we rely on each other, but can’t always communicate with each other,” he said.

“We’re not always in the same place. And the conflicts that come out of that are tangible to people. Hopefully, that’s

O’Keeffe’s “Gerald’s Tree II,” Emil Bisttram’s “The End of the Day,” and Ernest Martin Hennings’s “Reflections.”

Although different in content and style, these works allude to the same ancient concept of the world as the one that Ultima epitomizes. It is noteworthy that the wild beauty of New Mexico made the painters of such diverse artistic interests and pursuits open up to the spiritual message of nature.

“Wild Beauty: the New Mexico Setting” is on view at the Stark Museum of Art from March 16 through June 8.

The Museum will host renowned writer Denise Chávez who will present a free lecture “Ultima: A Healer for Our Times” on April 25, at 6:30 p.m. at Lutcher Theater.

For more information about this lecture and other Museum events in relation to Southeast Texas Big Read, visit www.starkmuseum.org.

To see the full list of Southeast Texas Big Read events, visit www.bigread.lsco.edu.

what will be communicated through it — that struggle to remain whole in the aftermath of such a traumatic loss.”

The show is part of BCP’s “Theatre on the Edge” series. Avery said that people go to see a play, to a movie or watch a TV show to escape from reality, but “Theatre on the Edge” aims to bring more modern, less standard fare to area audiences.

“A comedy will make you laugh, make you walk outside with a smile on your face and that’s wonderful, that’s great, I love comedies,” he said. “But this is going to make you sit and think about real life, about what you would do in this situation. Or if you’ve ever been in this situation before, you might see yourself on the stage. That’s what’s important for some people. Even if you’ve never been in that situation, you can say, ‘I can see myself doing this.’”

“Rabbit Hole” is rated R. Show times are March 29, 30, 31, April 5, 6, 11, 12, 13 at 7:30 p.m., with a matinee April 6 at 2 p.m. in the McMillan Theatre in the Betty Greenberg Center for Performing Arts, 4155 Laurel in Beaumont.

A panel discussion will follow the April 12 performance.

Tickets are $18, $16 for seniors and students.

For tickets, visit www.beaumontcommunityplayers.com.

Mission Statement Founded in 1983, The Art Studio, Inc. is devoted to: providing opportunities for interaction between the public and the Southeast Texas community of artists; furnishing affordable studio space to originating artists of every medium; promoting cultural growth and diversity of all art forms in Southeast Texas; and providing art educational opportunities to everyone, of every age, regardless of income level, race, national origin, sex or religion.

PURPOSE The purpose of The Art Studio, Inc. is to (1) provide educational opportunities between the general public and the community of artists and (2) to offer sustained support for the artist by operating a non-profit cooperative to provide studio space and exhibition space to working artists and crafts people, and to provide an area for group work sessions for those artists and crafts people to jointly offer their labor, ideas, and enthusiasm to each other.

GOALS 1.

2.

3.

4.

To present public exhibitions To provide educational opportunities To provide accessible equipment for artists To provide peer feedback through association with other artists and crafts people

OBJECTIVES 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

To present 10 art exhibitions per year To maintain equipment for artists in a safe working environment To provide better access to artists for the public To offer regularly scheduled adult and children’s classes To develop and maintain public activities with all sectors of the community To develop and maintain equipment to aid artists in their work To provide a display retail outlet for artists To expand programming and activities with increased facility space

Volume 19, No. 6

March 2013 ISSUE • 15

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED The Art Studio is looking for energetic people who have a few hours a month to help us in the following areas:

OFFICE SUPPORT BUILDINGS & GROUNDS SPECIAL EVENTS • MAILOUTS If you are interested in one or more of these opportunities or if you know of anyone who might be, give us a call at 409-838-5393

WE WANT YOU FOR BAND NITE Hear original music by local musicians at For upcoming gigs, visit the studio’s facebook page

$5

admission

All ages welcome • 21 and up BYOB and have your ID.

720 Franklin, Beaumont, Texas 77701

Non-Profit Org U.S. Postage PAID Permit #135 Beaumont, TX

RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED

INSIDE • NCECA-THEMED GROUP SHOW • THOUGHTCRIME: MUSINGS FROM AREA POETS • TAOS COMES TO ORANGE • ‘RABBIT HOLE’ AT BCP

When you support The Art Studio with your membership, you receive ISSUE, Southeast Texas’ and Southwest Louisiana’s alternative press as well as class schedules, invitations to opening receptions and various Studio functions.

Volunteers These people are the life blood of our organization.

WE COULDN’T DO IT WITHOUT YOU! To volunteer, drop by The Art Studio, Inc., or call 409-838-5393.

Elizabeth Fontenot Bryan Castino Heather & Adam Butler Andy Ledesma Rhonda Rodman Sue Wright Cyndi Grimes Rhonda McNally Andy Coughlan Ben Jennings Beth Gallaspy John Roberts Beau Dumesnil Karen Dumesnil Sheila Busceme Kailee Viator Haley Bruyn Bryan LaVergne Gabe Sellers Ian Grice Abby McLaurin Samantha Wheeler Scott & John Alexander Heather Adams Terri Fox April Falgout B.J. Bourg Michelle Falgout Dana Dorman Reagan Havens Anna Buchele Nick Wilcox Stacey Haynes

JOIN US FOR ART OPENINGS ON THE FIRST SATURDAY OF THE MONTH THIS MONTH:

THE ART STUDIO & FRIENDS AN EXHIBITION IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE NATIONAL COUNCIL ON EDUCATION FOR THE CERAMIC ARTS CONFERENCE

MARCH 2-30 GALLERY RECEPTION IS MARCH 2, 7-10 P.M. SPECIAL RECEPTION MARCH 23, 7-10 P.M.

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