Issue Magazine - May 2014

THE ARTS MAGAZINE OF THE ART STUDIO, INC.

B I G & S M A L L PA GE 8

INSIDE: C.L.A.S.S., RODRIGUE, TASIMJAE RESULTS, AND MORE

MAY 2014

, t r A e n i F Food Fine Two Magnolias r e s t a u r a n t in the Art Museum of Southeast Texas

Weekday lunch, 11 a.m.-2 p.m.

Wedding Receptions • Rehearsal Dinners • Meals to go

1 0% discou nt for artist s 500 Main Street in downtown Beaumont, Texas

409-833-5913 www.2magnolias.org • www.facebook.com/TwoMagnolias twomagnoliascatering@gmail

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.

A View From The Top Greg Busceme, TASI Director

THE MEMBERSHIP SHOW IS up and I would like to thank Lynne Lokensgard for her excellent selection of art for this show.

The membership show has been an institution since The Studio started and has showcased many fine young, and not so young, artists through the years.

As the arts community diversified throughout the ’70s, there was a distinctive shift in theme and variety. Lamar University students became more involved in the membership shows of the local art institutions — Beaumont Art Museum, Beaumont Art League, Gold Coast Art League, Nederland Art Guild and others. This was the culture I was introduced to during my time with Lamar art department. There were some stand out upstarts in Shirley Peele, Frank Gerretts, Al Gaytan, David Cargill and Jerry Newman, but the majority held to bluebonnets and swamp scenes, and other agrarian, traditional styles.

This period was especially tumultuous with art as the center of a huge revival of interest and controversy, politically and socially, and this was reflected locally in the art that was being made.

Ultimately, the membership show took on a new face and art was coming from a more diverse collective of participants. Some organizations put restrictions on what could and could not be entered, but soon the new generation of artists made that point moot.

I see the same diversity in our membership show today. The new faces and new

ISSUE Vol. 20, No. 8 Publisher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Art Studio, Inc. Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Andy Coughlan Copy Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tracy Danna Contributing Writers. . . . . . . . . . . . Elena Ivanova, . . . . . . . . . Jacqueline Hays, Kara Timberlake Contributing Photographer. . . . . . . . JoLee Tanner Distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Daniel Dodson 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 C.L.A.S.S. at Finder’s Fayre . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 4 Summer ArtsKool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 6 TASIMJAE Recap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 7 Baskin/Reinauer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 8 Rodrigue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 10 YWCA ‘Mad Hatter’ Event. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 12 Around & About. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 14 Thoughtcrime. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 15 Cover photo by JoLee Tanner

works continue to mount, and older artists continue to evolve and perfect their craft. It’s not about doing the same thing well but about pushing one’s capabilities to the edge and doing that well.

I’ve watched moderately good artists become excellent artists and seen young immature artists bloom into conscientious and skilled craftspersons. Young artists are winning the top prizes locally and I’m sure it is happening in other areas as well. And this points to another outcome of this renaissance — sales.

It is not as important that we recognize the quality of work that our artists are doing as it is customers and patrons recognize the quality of the work even when presented in a less than perfect environment. Our sales have skyrocketed in the past few years and it can be accounted to higher quality of art and higher quality of presentation given by the organization. We have worked very hard to present The Studio as a professional organization that successfully carries out it’s mission everyday. We are thrilled that the community has recognized the regional artists as being worth investing in and the community’s new interest in young and emerging artists. It speaks of a healthy artist-community relationship.

We are encouraged by this, and hope the trend continues as The Studio continues to present the best the arts community has to offer.

UPCOMING EXHIBITIONS AT THE ART STUDIO M AY

JUNE

Ken Baskin/Lisa Reinauer (TASIMJAE 2013 Winner) Opening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . May 3

The Alternative Show Opening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . June 7

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 May 2014

Volume 20, No. 8

Artist Sarah Hamilton’s exhibition of cat paintings was on diplay at Finder’s Fayre Quality Antiques, located in the Mildred Building, in April as part of the Contemporary Local Artist Show Series.

Classic & C.L.A.S.S.

Finder’s Fayre antiques store shines spotlight on contemporary local artists AMIDST THE ANTIQUE DÉCOR of Finder’s Fayre Quality Antiques, a collection of “Serial Catters” peeks out eerily as they hang next to photos of their human doppelgangers, including Ted Bundy and John Wayne Gacy — an unusual combination of new and old.

Artist Sarah Hamilton created the feline paintings as part of the Contemporary Local Artist Show Series, the brainchild of Dexter Augier.

For more than 45 years, Augier’s Finder’s Fayre, Beaumont’s oldest antique shop with furniture, paintings, and decorative arts from the 18th and 19th centuries, has been located in the historic Mildred Building.

As part of the “First Thursday At The Mildred” events in September, December, February, and April, Augier invites local artists to show their work. The artists are on hand to meet

Story and photos by Kara Timberlake

Dexter Augier, pictured above with artist Sarah Hamilton, hosts the Contemporary Local Artist Show Series four times a year at Finder’s Fayre Quality Antiques.

visitors and discuss their work in conjunction with the First Thursday events which feature dinner, drinks, live music and shopping with sidewalk vendors offering clothing, jewelry, hats, art, photography, recycled and handmade items at the Mildred Building on Calder Avenue.

With the mission to promote talented contemporary local artists, Augier provides the venue at no charge to the artists with all proceeds from their sales going entirely to the artists.

Augier was inspired to create C.L.A.S.S. after visiting a grassroots event held by local artist, Nathan McCray.

“Nathan invited local artists to put their stuff in his backyard and would have food trucks, live music, movies, and different venues for local artists and craftspeople,” Augier said. “It was just a fun kind of thing. After I got to thinking about it the next couple of weeks, I thought, ‘You know it’s a shame that these kids don’t have a place to exhibit that is out of their ordinary circle.’ That’s how I came up with the idea of C.L.A.S.S.”

Volume 20, No. 8 Although Augier didn’t know what to name his new creation, he knew what he wanted to do and developed a mission statement. As an outsider, he said it seemed as though young artists were really only moving within their own circles.

“While there is nothing wrong with that, and they need that kind of encouragement from their peers, I wanted to see if I couldn’t make it possible for them to expand and get a different exposure of their work,” he said.

Augier describes the series as a fun and unintimidating way for these artists to get exposure to a different strata of people throughout the Golden Triangle.

“They’re not under any kind of pressure since it’s not costing them anything,” he said. “If they sell something, they get all of the money. All they have to do is show up. It’s an informal venue to build their confidence.”

Augier said his criteria for selecting artists doesn’t have to do with whether or not he likes the artist’s work, but if he thinks he can help the person out.

“Generally, I look at the artist’s work and make the decision whether I think they are a serious artist or not,” he said. “A lot of these artists are finding themselves.

My hope is that by exposing them to a wider venue it gives them a broader foundation to climb higher.”

Recently, Augier has featured three artists as part of C.L.A.S.S.: Ian Grice in December, Summer Lydick in February, and Sarah Hamilton in April.

“I saw Ian’s work at the grassroots event Nathan McCray had,” he said. “I would call his art expressive/surrealistic representationalism, because all of his paintings are an expression of what’s going on inside of him. His work is not pure abstract. You can identify what you’re looking at. With Summer, after seeing all her work together for the first time in her home, I really liked it. Her work is intuitive.”

Augier said the next artist to exhibit will be Carlo Busceme IV in September.

“His work is abstract,” he said. “He has quite a body of work that he created as part of his master’s thesis at Lamar. There were some works on paper, some ceramics, some drawings. He’s quite a multi-media, talented artist. His art is sophisticated as opposed to naïve.”

Having met Hamilton through her previous job as curator of the Art Museum of Southeast Texas, Augier ran across her cat paintings on Facebook and knew immediately that he liked them.

“There is a lot of emotion in her artwork,” he said.

“I think the textural aspect adds to that. Even if you don’t like cats, you can appreciate the expressive talent she has. They look like cats, but each one has their own personality.”

Hamilton is currently the gallery director for the Beaumont Art League. She said she has always loved animals since she was little and therefore wanted cats to be the first subjects with which to start her art career.

“My cats are what I love; they are like my kids,” she said. “I’ve only been painting for about a year, and a while back I was worried about what I was going to paint, and this was the most natural thing. I thought it’s the old adage, ‘Paint what you love.’”

Hamilton said the opportunity to exhibit her work was a great way to gain exposure and experience as well as let people know what she is doing.

“A lot of artists around here say there’s not a lot of places to show work, and I think this is a great venue to show my artwork,” she said. “This was my first real show and it allowed me to sell work, to become a professional artist and to become more serious about my artwork.”

Hamilton said she uses the cats as a medium to explore deeper material.

“With the serial killer cats, it was strange to see how

May 2014 ISSUE • 5 the cats really resembled serial killers,” she said. “They started to take on the characteristics of that person.”

With an attraction to the darker side of art, Hamilton said she doesn’t want to paint solely for the sake of her art being pretty.

“To me, that is just boring,” she said. “There has to be some undercurrent of deeper meaning, something beyond what you see just on the surface. Some of my

other interests are finding their way in there, like the serial killer thing. I don’t know if that’s what I want to always do, but it’s where I’m starting out.”

Finder’s Fayre combines old and new, proving that both are equally valuable.

Hamilton’s cats are on display through May 8.

For more information, call 409-833-7000, or visit the Finder’s Fayre Facebook page.

Finder’s Fayre Quality Antiques, located in the Mildred Building on Calder in Beaumont, hosts the Contemporary Local Artist Show Series four times a year. The exhibition on display through May 8 features Sarah Hamilton’s cat paintings, include a withy series of “Serial Catters” alongside photographs of their human counterparts.

6 • ISSUE May 2014

dress for mess

Volume 20, No. 8

TASI ARTSKOOL RETURNS

it’s awesome!

IT’S GETTING TO BE that time again.

The heat of summer is approaching and the kids are nearly out of school.

Imagine the scene: Kids whining about how bored they are, tormenting each other and making life miserable for parents everywhere.

Fear not, The Art Studio, Inc. has a solution.

The summer ARTSkool will be held July 14-18 and July 21-25.

Classes will be split into morning and afternoon sessions, with each session costing $100 a week. Students may take both sessions for $200 a week.

Morning classes, 9:30 a.m. to noon, feature drawing and printmaking. The afternoon classes, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., will feature ceramics and photography.

No two classes are the same and students attending both weeks will have a different experience each time.

The classes are for kids ages 10 and up.

“The fun part is that on Friday we set up a little show from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.” Elizabeth French, TASI administrator, said. “They really seem to enjoy that. They go home and get

dressed, and come back. It’s just like The Studio. “(The classes are) a lot like The Studio in microcosm — managing your time, dealing with different materials in different areas of The Studio.”

Scheduled to teach are drawing instructor Sheila Busceme, printmaker Elizabeth Fontenot, Ceramicist Greg Busceme and photographer Joe Winston. Each of the instructors is an exhibiting artist in their own right.

“The dynamics of the class are pretty much up to the students and where they want to take it — sometimes it’s the individual, but some groups have got together collectively,” French said.

One printmaking group decided to get together and produce their prints in comic book form, she said.

French said the classes are a lot of fun. But students should “dress for mess.”

For more information, call 409838-5393.

AMSET hosts Szyk exhibit through May 30 THE ART MUSEUM OF Southeast Texas hosts “Justice Illuminated: The Art of Arthur Szyk” through May 30.

A reception for the exhibition will be held from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., May 1, 2014. Curator, Rabbi Irvin Ungar will present a lecture addressing the themes found in Szyk’s artwork.

“Justice Illuminated: The Art of Arthur Szyk” is organized by The Arthur Szyk Society and exhibits reproductions as well as original art by artist Arthur Szyk focusing on three themes: World War II, American Response and Jewish Response. Szyk was a Polish Jew who escaped Europe in the wake of the Holocaust and immigrated to the United States in December 1940.

“Szyk worked in three distinct styles as an artist,” Monique Sennet, AMSET representative, states in release. “His use of medieval Persian miniature illumination was often used for individual portraiture or to illustrate an historical event. His political caricatures were graphic editorials often combining humor with

irrefutable evidence of madness in the world; but the third style was reserved for softness, for fragility, for fairy tales and innocence.

“An early whistleblower alerting the free world that tragedy was brewing in Europe, Szyk created posters and illustrated newspaper ads urging Americans to invest in War Bonds and was a devoted contributor to the campaigns to raise money for the relief of Jews. Much of his energy aligned with The Emergency Committee to Save the Jewish People of Europe. His drawings of young European (likely Polish-Jewish) children capture brilliantly the poignant plight of the innocent and were reproduced on poster stamps, broadsides, newspapers and magazine covers in an effort to raise much needed funds and awareness among the American people.”

AMSET is located at 500 Main St. in downtown Beaumont.

For more information, visit www.amset.org, or call 409-832-3432.

THREE JEWISH GIRLS by Arthur Szyk

Volume 20, No. 8

May 2014 ISSUE • 7

SELF PORTRAIT #1 by Riah Lee, was selected as the winning piece in TASIMJAE 2014, The Art Studio’s membership show.

LEE SELF PORTRAIT EARNS TOP PRIZE AT 2014 ART STUDIO MEMBER SHOW THE WINNERS OF TASIMJAE 2014 (The Art Studio, Inc. Member Jurored Art Exhibition) were revealed at the opening reception, April 5.

Riah Lee earned first place for “Self Portrait #1.” Lee’s prize includes a solo show at The Studio in May 2015.

Second place went to Melissa McWhite for “Found.” Carlo Busceme IV earned third place for “Crown.”

Honorable mentions went to Kailee Viator for “Perversions of Man,” Karen Dumesnil for “Life Cycle,” Michael Ray Reed for “Pollo Asado,” and Maurice Abelman for “Mind of Escher.”

The exhibition attracted 64 entries from 41 artists, with 46 works by 32 artists accepted.

This year’s juror was Lynne Lokensgard, retired art professor at Lamar University.

TASIMJAE THE ART STUDIO, INC. MEMBERS JURORED ART EXHIBITION

Avril Falgout’s paper maché contruction ANNETTE, was included in the works accepted for TASIMJAE 2014 at The Art Studio in April.

8 • ISSUE May 2014

Volume 20, No. 8

Diminutive Paintings Enormous Sculptures Reinauer, TASIMJAE 2013 winner, teams with sculptor Baskin for May show

“TEENY-TINY” PAINTINGS AND enormous sculptures.

At first, these two concepts may Photos by seem to be at odds.

However, painter JoLee Lisa Reinauer and Tanner sculptor Ken Baskin’s work shares common underlying themes.

“We are hanging it,” Reinauer said. “We want to think about how we place them in context in that space. I

Story by Jacqueline Hays

think it will be a really interesting juxtaposition of work.”

The TASIMJAE 2013 winner will showcase her work, along with that of her McNeese State University colleague, at The Art Studio, Inc., May 330. The show opens with a reception, 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., May 3.

Reinauer, a painter and professor of art, is sharing her show, the prize for winning last year’s Art Studio membership show, with her colleague, an associate professor of art.

“I think it will be really interesting

to see Ken’s and my work together because content-wise, there is probably more similarity than meets the eye — at first glance or casual glance,” Reinauer said.

The painter had just begun to create diminutive pieces when she won first place at last year’s Art Studio membership show — the first prize being this show. Reinauer is still pursuing the work, but has recently begun working in encaustic.

“There is nothing like a show to motivate you to get in the studio and

work,” she said. “There is nothing like a deadline.”

A friend of TASI for more than 20 years, Reinauer said she is showing a developing body of work.

“I am melding together several different directions in this series,” she said. “It is evolving.”

This series reflects a continued interest in ritual, myth and meditation, and their connections to image-making.

“The scale suits the intimacy of the content,” Reinauer said. “With

Lisa Reinauer explains to fellow artist Ken Baskin the historical significance of encaustic used to make mask-like art for mummies in ancient Egypt, while he looks on from one of his large sculptures.

Volume 20, No. 8

May 2014 ISSUE • 9

these diptychs and triptychs, I combine various subjects explored in earlier series — including trompe l’oeil, still-life and mandalas.”

The paintings in this show are studies, Reinauer said.

“These paintings are meditations — and the pairings create ‘conversations’ between often disparate imagery,” she said. “While my primary medium of acrylic is dominant, this series also includes a large number of encaustic and mixed-media works.”

Encaustic involves painting with wax. Reainauer recently received a grant to set up an encaustic studio.

“It is the oldest perfected painting medium,” she said. “Our first examples were in the first century in Egypt.”

Reianauer explained that Greek artists who were living there started doing encaustic paintings on wood instead of doing facemasks, similar to King Tut’s.

“They would insert the portraits of the dead into the mummy,” she said.

Reainauer has always loved the luminous quality of encaustics, she said.

“But now there is this whole encaustic revival,” she said. “I have never been able to play with it before, but now I have this stuff to set up an encaustic studio.”

While Reinauer paints and has been working on small pieces, Baskin creates large, ceramic sculptures.

“There are some similarities in the underlying themes of our work in a very broad way that may not be visible to the casual observer,” Reinauer said. “I know Kenneth talks a lot about how his sculptures are about form and texture and so on, but they are also about relationships and juxtapositions that create a relationship in a conversation. That is what I am doing with my work with the diptychs and the triptychs.”

Lisa Reinauer’s “Kundalini, Rising” 6”x12” acrylic on canvas, top, and Ken Baskin’s “Gear and Chains,” which is saggar and mid-fired stoneware and steel measReainauer said the separate pieces ures 30” x 96” x 12,” are featured in their upcoming exhibition of recent works. converse together to create something else. for all of my work.” that is the testing point for the sizes. He said that something relative“I think that in the way he puts Baskin said he formerly used his metaphors when I work.” ly small has every bit as much power together these modules, then creates work as a maintenance technician as a The investigative properties of the as something 20 times its size. a conversation — he very carefully creative outlet. He used to make 20th-century artifact series are “It is not the scale of the piece,” arranges them in what may seem like parts, and fix and solve machines. He focused on the mechanical objects or he said. “It is what is happening with a casual situation, but actually creates had to make the parts “work.” artifacts derived from the advent of the piece.” a more in-depth conversation,” she “I used all of the same tools that I the industrial revolution, Baskin said.

Big doesn’t necessarily mean said. use now, then,” he said.

“Through our capacity for invengood, it just means big, Baskin said.

Baskin said he worked as a mainBaskin uses air-driven extrusion tion, the anatomy of the machine — “But it goes by the same qualitenance technician in a high-speed fill- machines, various saws, rulers, laying bare its individual, yet integratties,” he said. “Just because it is small, ing corporation for 20 years before calipers, custom-made templates, ed mechanical components — became doesn’t mean it is less powerful, it just pursuing his advanced degrees and wooden cradles, PVC pipe, miter the means of mass production and an means it is small. If it is a really good becoming a professor. He uses indusboxes, levels, 45-degree triangles, pro- accelerant in the performance of piece, it has every bit as much power try as a starting point for all of his tractors, compasses and many other human tasks,” he said. as anything that is huge.” sculptures. tools in his work, which is primarily “This interdependence of humans His current body of work explores “I talk about the metaphors inside clay and sometimes steel. and machines altered cultural concepthe integration of actual and abstractof them,” he said. “I find the direct“The way I work with my ceramtions, and the two became intimately ness of machines beautiful. I take all ics is the same way I worked in the conjoined.” of those together and that is a start industry in a lot of ways,” he said. “So Baskin shapes his pieces in all See REINAUER on page 13

10 • ISSUE May 2014

Volume 20, No. 8

The Louisiana Rousseau THE LEGACY OF GEORGE RODRIGUE

WHAT IS THE MOST recognizable image of Cajun culture today? Some may say “a boiled crab,” and it’s probably true. However, if we forget for a moment about taste buds and reach into the depth of our visual memory, the first image to emerge most likely will be that of the Blue Dog, still and mysterious, with the piercing stare of its unblinking yellow eyes.

New Iberia-born, internationally renowned artist George Rodrigue initially created the Blue Dog as an illustration for a ghost story to portray le loup-garou, a Cajun werewolf. As time went on, the Blue Dog transcended its humble beginnings and developed a bigger-than-life identity of its own.

Over the past two decades, it has made its way into billboards, posters and street signs, into Absolut Vodka and Xerox advertisements. The Blue Dog is featured in the inaugural portrait of President Bill Clinton and Vice-President Al Gore, included by the artist at Clinton’s personal request. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, it became the image of the national campaign to raise funds for the disaster relief.

While the Blue Dog is Rodrigue’s most publicized image, it is not the only one that has achieved iconic status. Jolie Blonde, the golden-haired sweetheart from the 1920s song, has played an equally important role in promoting Cajun popular culture to the world, including such far-away places as Paris where it was exhibited at the prestigious exhibition at the Salon in 1978.

On Dec. 14, 2013, George Rodrigue died of lung cancer at the age of 69. He was eulogized as a great artist, educator, philanthropist and community activist. The George Rodrigue Foundation of the Arts, founded in 2009, raised over $2.5 million for post-Katrina relief and provides scholarships for Louisiana students.

Rodrigue’s artistic legacy is celebrated in three year-long retrospective exhibitions which are running simultaneously at his studios in Lafayette and New Orleans, and in Carmel, Calif.

The exhibition in Lafayette features works from the artist’s own collection and from a few private collections. Painted at different times of his life, they offer a representative overview of the artist’s remarkable career which spans over 40 years. The show is a living testimony that Rodrigue’s legacy Story by Elena Ivanova

FAMILY BUSINESS, acrylic on canvas, 2000. © Estate of George Rodrigue. 2000. © Estate of George Rodrigue.

Volume 20 No. 8

goes far beyond popular culture imagery, such as the Blue Dog and Jolie Blonde. His rich and diverse body of work includes landscapes, portraits and genre scenes on the subject of Cajun history and traditions.

Rodrigue’s endeavors in sculpture are exemplified in a small bronze piece titled Cajun Fisherman (1975.) However, to fully appreciate his talent as a sculptor one has to take a short drive to the Saloom Office Park to see his Longfellow Evangeline Monument, a 12-foot tall bronze sculpture featuring the poet reuniting Evangeline and Gabriel at the base of an oak tree.

A recurrent theme in all Rodrigue’s works is life of the Cajun community which seems to be intrinsically connected with and expressed through Acadiana landscape. His images are reminiscent of folk art, with flat shapes, simplified lines and local colors.

They also often convey a feeling of mystery or wonder, which prompted the French newspaper, Le Figaro, to dub the artist “the Louisiana Rousseau” when he exhibited at the Galerie Antena in Paris in 1980.

Rodrigue started painting at the age of 8 when he was bedridden for four months with polio. He majored in art at the University of Southwest Louisiana in Lafayette and then at the Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles. Since 1969 he devoted himself fully to painting.

Rodrigue’s early works were pure landscapes, with the space dominated by huge, dark oaks trimmed in the black lace of Spanish moss. The sharp silhouette of the wispy moss hanging from the branches is one of their most distinctive features.

Rodrigue always painted trees at a slightly tilted angle which allowed him to capture the light as it comes from underneath the foliage.

The palette of these landscapes is dark brown and green, as if painted with the soil of the land and the water of the bayou.

Anyone who has visited Acadiana will experience an instant memory flashback when looking at these haunting, emotional images.

Ironically, the same qualities that make Rodrigue’s landscapes so powerful and authentic today were seen as faults by some critics when the artist first exhibited his work at the Louisiana State Capitol in Baton Rouge in 1970. “His paintings are flat and drab rather than teeming with life. His bayou country is a shadowy, depressing place with none of the life and color that pulses there,” wrote Anne Price of The Advocate.

But there were other voices that expressed admiration and high regard for the young artist. Among them was Claude Kennard, director of the Beaumont Art Museum (today the Art Museum of Southeast Texas) under whose leadership Rodrigue’s one-man exhibition premiered in Beaumont in August of 1971. Commenting on the artist’s style, Kennard described his works as “austere and sober, limited in color but rich in range of hues, validly restrictive to the nature of the landscape of Lafayette parish and surrounding areas in South Louisiana and Southeast Texas...where white

May 2014 ISSUE • 11

LANDSCAPE WITH CABIN AND OAK TREE, oil on canvas, 1969. © Estate of George Rodrigue. is exotic and sky minimal.”

Rodrigue eventually switched from landscapes to figures and portraits. Inspired by old photographs in his mother’s album, he started painting them by projecting the slides on canvas. Then he had an idea: how would these people look if they stepped from behind an oak tree? Before long, he developed his signature style portraits, which give an impression of a cut-and-paste image held together by the shape of the tree. The exhibition features a few examples of such portraits, including “A Couple of Local Boys” (1981), in which Rodrigue portrayed himself with poet, playwright and political consultant Gus Weil.

Rodrigue’s first painting that included human figures dates back to 1971. “The Aioli Dinner” is a large-scale (32 x 46 inches) canvas, now in the collection of Ogden Museum of Southern Art in New Orleans. A later variation on the same theme, “Family Business,” (2000), is currently on view at the exhibition in Lafayette.

In these works Rodrigue refers to the old tradition of Creole Gourmet Societies which were popular in Acadiana in 1890s1920s. Both paintings show a group of distinguished-looking middle-aged men seated around the table, each with his own wine bottle. They are gathered to enjoy a six-hour meal. In “The Aioli Dinner,” the sumptuous feast is taking place on a plantation, under

See RODRIGUE on page 12

A COUPLE OF LOCAL BOYS, oil on canvas,1981. © Estate of George Rodrigue.

12 • ISSUE May 2014

Volume 20, No. 8

YWCA to host ‘Mad Hatter Tea Party & Fashion Show’ May 3 BEAUMONT — YWCA BEAUMONT a “Mad Hatter Tea Party & Fashion Show” Saturday, May 3, 10 a.m. to noon, at the Art Museum of Southeast Texas. Described as a “friend-raiser,” this is the first of several events commemorating YWCA Beaumont’s centennial, 1914-2014.

Tickets are $30 and are available at www.ywcabeaumont.org, or by calling 409-899-1011.

YWCA Beaumont has collaborated with local artist Abigail McLaurin and The Art Studio, along with volunteers, to develop a series of art workshops where young participants will design, create and model their creations.

The “Mad Hatter Project” integrates a form of art therapy where participants will explore hat building through up-cycling old clothing to create their own unique head accessories.

WILL HOST

RODRIGUE from page 11 the shade of magnificent oaks. The gender and class distinctions are underscored by the composition: the women who cooked the gourmet meal are portrayed standing in the back, barely visible, and the young men serving the dinner are respectfully standing behind the chairs of the formally dressed gentlemen.

In “Family Business,” everything is simplified and stripped of unessential details. The feast is moved indoors and the interior space is identified only by two widows on the flanking walls.

There are no women, no waiters, only grave-looking, moustached men who are ceremoniously seated around the table. The palette is dominated by black and white: the men are wearing white shirts and black ties, with black bottles standing in front of them on the white tablecloth.

The only bright spot in the composition is the Blue Dog. Placed in the foreground, unproportionally large, it does not seem to belong to the same space as the people behind it. Its round yellow eyes hold a question. Is it about the story unveiling in the painting? Or about the artist’s odyssey since he finished “The Aioli Dinner”? Maybe it is a question about ourselves...

All his life Rodrigue popularized Cajun history and culture. Between 1985 and 1989, he painted “The Saga of the Acadians,” a series of fifteen works chronicling the Acadian journey from France to Nova Scotia to Louisiana.

Five of these paintings are on view at the exhibition in Lafayette. Somber colors and static postures of the charac-

They will learn the basics of pattern making and clothing design.

Small “girl talk” group sessions will address current issues girls are facing such as, unhealthy relationships, honor, self-respect, self-esteem, in addition to providing resources and mentoring for a stable and successful life.

“Using a form of art therapy and expression, we hope to be an added support system for the girls to uncover some of the complex, deep-rooted issues they face and explore areas of self-identity, maintaining healthy lifestyles and relationships,” Bridget Johnson, YWCA Beaumont executive director, said. “We want to raise awareness of YWCA’s commitment to both direct service and social change. Our core focus is the empowerment of women and girls and the elimination of racism.”

ters convey the sense of dignity and monumentality.

Rodrigue’s accolades and distinctions are too numerous to be listed in this article. One especially impressive achievement is the Honorable Mention from the exhibition at the Salon of 1974 of the prestigious Société des Artistes Français in Paris, France, which he received for his painting “The Class of Marie Courrege.” Only five awards are presented each year: first and second place, and three honorable mentions.

Among the few American artists to receive the same honor was John Singer Sargent who won an Honorable Mention for the portrait of his mentor, artist Carolus-Duran, at the Salon of 1879.

Rodrigue believed that all good art asks the same questions: “Who am I, who are you, what are we doing here, what is life about?” The artist often stated that these questions were in the eyes of the Blue Dog, who became the artist’s inseparable companion on the journey of life. However, other Rodrigue paintings also move us towards quiet reflection, whether it is the seductive Jolie Blonde, the faithful Evangeline, dancing Cajun couples or moss-covered old oaks. It is the invisible presence of the artist in his work which makes us ponder the mystery of life.

George Rodrigue’s Memorial Retrospective is on view at Rodrigue Studio in Lafayette, located at 1434 S. College Road, through January 2015.

Open hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, and noon to 5 p.m., Saturday.

For more information, visit www.georgerodriguefoundation.org.

Johnson said she is looking for women and men of all ages in the Beaumont community who have a strong passion for YWCA’s mission to help in various areas, and help YWCA

Beaumont continue the legacy of service to the community.

For more information, contact Johnson at 409-899-1011, or email bjohnson@ywcabeaumont.org.

MACQUE CHOUX, from The Saga of the Acadians, 1985-89. © Estate of George Rodrigue.

Volume 20, No. 8

May 2014 ISSUE • 13

REINAUER from page 9 ed machine parts into homologous interrelationships.

“Metaphorically, my sculptures reflect aspects of these interrelations through balance and instability, domination and submission, tension and ease, opposition and compromise,” he said. “It is through this dynamic of push and pull, give and take, that the spontaneity and structuring of these interactions takes place.”

This Reinauer’s third show at TASI, but it will be Baskin’s first introduction to the Beaumont art community.

“I have been (in Southwest Louisiana) for almost nine years, but they don’t let me leave the art department often, so I don’t get out and explore my surroundings,” he said. “It is great to have an outlet where people from the community can come and create art, look at art, and just enjoy it — because if you don’t have those outlets, what do people do?”

Reinauer said the pair function at the university level, but TASI provides a public venue for these things — it is not relegated to a university or a school.

“Whenever anyone asks me what an active art community looks like in an artist co-op, I say, ‘Here is the number. Go see Greg Busceme and see what is happening at The Studio,” she said. “I think it is phenomenal.”

She said many in the Southwest Louisiana area have talked about a co-op, but they have yet to do it.

“I think it is fantastic to have an active venue with a lot of artists involved and I support that entirely,” she said.

Reinauer said many of her first-year students have never visited an art museum or attended an art show.

“Every semester I take my students to Houston on a museum trip, and I’m amazed how many have never been to a museum in person — some of them have never left the area,” she said. “Every year I get at least one person who will ask me the question, ‘Is that the real thing — is that a real van Gogh?’”

Reinauer laughed and said, “I just tell them, ‘Whatever you do, don’t touch it.’”

Artwork is not just about making people things, Reinauer said. There has been artwork around longer than there has been the word art.

“Art is a direct expression of what we do as human beings,” she said. “I think that we bring it into our lives daily.”

Reinauer said she loves it when non-majors go to the school’s art sale and buy a mug because they heard Baskin’s lecture about how it is a hand-made Lisa Reinauer, TASIMJAE 2013 winner, recounts colleague Ken Baskin’s influence on art students concerning the idea that handmade object and a vessel.

Baskin said the beauty of hand-made objects is objects are “vessels.” that they make one think about the artist when one have come from.” thinking in different ways — you are learning to uses them.

Art is also the recorder of history, Baskin said. think in different ways.”

All of his dinnerware at home is handmade. He “What do we study about ancient civilization? — Baskin said the many years he spent in indusreferences various pieces made by friends. we study their art,” he said. try were highly creative and required artistic think“Even though I haven’t talked to Doug in quite Baskin said our ancestors communicated ing. a few years, or Trish, every time I pick up that cerethrough art and used it as rewards.

“Learning that thinking, exercising that part of al bowl and have breakfast, I think about (them),” “Vessels were the prizes many years ago, even your brain, is very important and extremely marhe said. “There are old friends that I have pieces for with the dawn of the Olympics,” he said. “Art can ketable,” he said. that I eat with.” record what is happening in current events, what’s “Creative thinking is needed everywhere.”

Baskin said one of the things he loves about going on in a society. It does all of that — but more “Lisa Reinauer/Ken Baskin: Recent Work” work ceramics is keeping alive a tradition that has been importantly, it is a way of thinking. will be on display through May 30 at The Art Studio around since the dawn of humanity.

“To be an artist, you have to use and access Inc., located at 720 Franklin in downtown “We make art — we have made objects,” he that part of your brain that is creative. You are Beaumont. said. “I find it is necessary to remember where we

14 • ISSUE May 2014

Volume 20, No. 8

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.

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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.

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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 This project was funded in part by the B.A. & E.W. Steinhagen Benevolent Trust through the Southeast Texas Arts Council.

Volume 20, No. 8

May 2014 ISSUE • 15

Thoughtcrime 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 and may be sent to TASI by email or by messaging the ISSUE Facebook page.

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. Send typed works to: ISSUE 720 Franklin, Beaumont, TX 77701 or e-mail issue@artstudio.org Authors must submit a daytime telephone number and email along with all submissions. Pen names are acceptable, but authors must supply real names for verification.

All printed works are protected by copyright. The author retains rights to any published work. ISSUE does not notify of rejection by mail or telephone.

To celebrate National Poetr y Month in April, TASI hosted a ‘Blacked Out Poetr y event. The poems on this page were prodiced during the April 15 event.

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