Issue Magazine - May 2015

THE ARTS MAGAZINE OF THE ART STUDIO, INC. MAY 2015

A WINNER’S RETURN SEE PAGE 8

INSIDE: TAM KIEHNHOFF AUDUBON AT STARK, TASIMJAE RECAP, AND MORE

, t r A Fiinnee Food F

r

Two Magnolias e

s

t

a

u

r

a

n

On On view v iew tthrough hrough JJuly uly 225, 5, 22015 015 V i sit Tuesdays Tuesdays – SSaturdays, Tu at urdays, 9 aam m–5p m Visit pm

t

in the Art Museum of Southeast Texas

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

Wedding Receptions • Rehearsal Dinners • Meals to go

10% discount for artists 500 Main Street in downtown Beaumont, Texas

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

John James James AAudubon udubon (1785-1851), (1785-1851), aartist; r tist; RRobert ober t Havell, Havell, JJr.r. ((1793-1878), 1793-1878), engraver; e n g r av e r ; John Passenger Pigeon, PPiigeon, 1829, 1829, etching etching aand nd aaquatint quatint on on ppaper, aper, hand-colored, hand-colored, iinn The The BBirds irds of of America, America, Passenger Volume Museum Volume IIII, II, Stark St a r k M useum of of Art, Ar t, OOrange, range, TTexas. exas. 11.1.2.C. 11.1.2.C. PPhotograph hotograph by

by Will Will France.

F r a n c e.

April 1111 (9 (9 aam m – 2 ppm) m) Slow Slow A rt D ay* April Art Day Experience art art sslowly, lowly, view view selected selected works works iinn tthe he Museum Museum ggalleries, alleries, Experience then di scuss dduring uring aann off-site off-site lunch lunch then discuss April 1166 (3:30 (3:30 – 6:30 6:30 ppm) m) T April Turning urning tthe he Pages Pages Pa Members’ oonly nly sspecial pecial event* event* A Members’ April 2255 (3 (3 – 5 ppm) m) April Happy B ird-Day ay,, JJo ohn JJa ames A udubon!

Happy Bird-Day, John James Audubon!

(4 pm) The The Legacy Legacy Lives Lives On On student student art art eexhibit xhibit aw aaward ward ceremony ceremony (4 April 2277 (9 (9 aam m – 3 ppm) m) W April onders of of Na N ature Jo JJournaling ournaling Wonders Nature A te acher workshop workshop led led by

by JJohn ohn Muir Muir LLaws* aws* teacher M ay 9 (11 (11 aam m – nnoon) oon) Artist May Learning with Audubon Artist and and Educator, Educator, L earning wi w ith A udubon The The fourth fourth iinn a sseries fo eries ooff the the Gallery Galler y Conversations Conversations pproject roject *Advanced ssign-up ign-up nneeded eeded *Advanced

712 Green Ave., TX 712 G reen Av A ve., Orange, Orange, T X 77630 77630 / 4409.886.2787 09.886.2787 / starkmuseum.org starkmuseum.org program off tthe C.. and H.J. Rights Ap rogram o he Nelda Nelda C and H .J. LLutcher utcher Stark Stark FFoundation. oundation. ©2015 ©2015 All All R ights Reserved.

Reserved.

ISSUE Vol. 21, No. 8 Publisher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Art Studio, Inc.

A View From The Top Greg Busceme, TASI Director

Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Andy Coughlan Copy Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tracy Danna Contributing Writers . . . . . . . . . . . Caitlin Duerler, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Kyle Swearingen Contributing Photographers . . . . . . Caitlin Duerler Distribution. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jac’Quor Williams

WHAT A FANTASTIC SHOW it was for TASIMJAE this year. We took in 99 pieces of art, the most ever recorded.

The daunting task of culling this great number of works was bestowed on local sculptor, David Cargill, who had his work cut out for him.

Thus began a three-hour jury process to pare down the show to a workable level.

He searched for meaning in each piece and if it came through he kept it.

Note: All jurors are human beings and as such are organic about their choices. I’ve always said when I chose a show that at a given time, that’s the show — give me lunch and I may choose a totally different exhibition.

Choosing is a visceral activity combined with the library of knowledge the juror holds. Each juror has their method of selection — work that relates to a theme, work that is synergistic with each other, work based on each individual piece’s own merit, work based on a certain level

The Art Studio, Inc. Board of Directors President Ex-Officio . . . . . . . . . . . . Greg Busceme Vice-President. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Angela Busceme Chair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . John Roberts 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 info@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 Collector Tam Kiehnhoff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 4 “Listen To Your Mother” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 6 TASIMJAE 2015 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 7 Riah Lee Explores The Nude . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 8 Audubon at Stark Museum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 10 “Birth”. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 11 Trio at High Street Gallery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 11 Around & About . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 14 Thoughtcrime . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 15

Cover photo: Riah Lee by Eunjung Kim

of expertise based on formal rules, etc.

The important thing to remember is, your work is as good as it always was. Acceptance or non acceptance has no bearing on the quality of your work.

As much importance as it has to artist’s sense of acceptance, it is the same work that could be accepted or even win other juried exhibitions.

Participation is the key.

Of those artists accepted, 67 works were put in the show. A large show to be sure, but with so much participation, it seemed totally acceptable.

Congratulations to our winners, especially first place Avril Falgout, our youngest first place ever at 17 years old. Second place went to Marilyn Manson-Hayes and third place went to TASI tenant Beau Dumesnil. Honorable mentions were awarded to Inez Alvidres and new studio

See VIEW on page 13

UPCOMING EXHIBITIONS AT THE ART STUDIO MAY

JUNE

Riah Lee, TASIMJAE 2014 Winner Opening. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . May 2

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

Name(s) Address City/St/Zip Phone

email

Credit Card Type: Visa MC Amex Disc Number

MAKE CHECKS PAYABLE TO:

Exp Date Day Phone

THE ART STUDIO, INC.

email SUGGESTED MEMBERSHIP AMOUNT

Individual: $35 Family/Group: $50 Friend/Business: $100 Sustaining: $250 New?

Renewal?

Patron: Angel: Benefactor Life Member: Artist?

$500 $1,000 $2,000 $10,000

for office use pd in comp issue thanks

If yes, list medium

The Art Studio, Inc. 720 Franklin, Beaumont 77701

$

Piecing Patchworks of Perspectives

4 • ISSUE May 2015

Volume 21, No. 8

TAM KIEHNHOFF’S TEXAS ART ONLY PART OF ECLECTIC COLLECTION Story and photos by Caitlin Duerler

This is the fi firrst in an ongoing series about Southeast Texas ar t collectors.

SITTING IN HER STUDY with a quilt-inprogress sprawled across her lap, Tam Kiehnhoff threads a needle while describing what attracted her to the craft.

“The cool thing about a quilt is all the different possibilities of colors that go together,” she said. “If you make a quilt too matchy-match, it’s bland, it’s boring.

You have to have spark in a quilt — you got to have some light color and dark to contrast, to make your eyes move.”

The spark lighting up the quilt in her hands is a micro-

cosm of the interior of her Houston home. Splashes of color, textures, patterns, forms and figures are arranged salon-style on the walls, a spectacular kaleidoscope of Keihnhoff’s extensive collection.

The former Beaumont resident began collecting modern and contemporary art decades ago with her husband, Tom, and the collection today includes an impressive survey of major Texas artists.

“Before we lived in Beaumont, we started collecting in Colorado,” Kiehnhoff said. “We had two really good friends there that were mid-century/modern art dealers who came to visit us and liked a lot of our collected stuff, but they said we were missing art. They suggested looking at contemporary regional art and mid-century regional art.”

Tam Kiehnhoff works on a quilt in her Houston home surrounded by her collection of Texas art, just a small part of her eclectic collection.

Tam’s initial interest can be traced to childhood memories of holidays with her grandfather visiting the Art Institute of Chicago. This interest was cultivated by reading art publications and eventually a coming-of-age trip hitchhiking across Europe.

“When I went to Europe, I just went from one city full of museums to another city full of museums,” she said. “I went to all the museums. It was just something I really loved.”

Although admiring the works of big-name artists, Kiehnhoff considered the pecuniary and intrinsic advantages in collecting works by local artists.

“I think our friends in Colorado, who had started us on buying regional art, made me realize that I could save for a

Volume 21, No. 8

May 2015 ISSUE • 5

long time, spend a whole bunch of money and get a mediocre print by a major American or international artist, or I could spend much less money and buy really wonderful, original works by regional artists,” she said.

“When you are collecting regional art, you are out of the big art market scene. Another thing that is interesting about researching these works, is the potential to meet and become friends with some of these artists. I have just gotten to know a lot of interesting folks in their eighties and nineties.”

Keihnhoff’s collection is the result of decades of networking with local artists and dealers, as well as researching works and artists in forgotten catalogs.

“Through the names of the artists’ works I would buy at the estate sales, I would try to track them down or talk to Lynne Lokensgard, who taught art history at Lamar for several years, and was the former director at the Dishman Museum of Art,” she said. “Lynne hooked me up with some of these older artists who had been associated with Lamar, so I did a lot of detective work and shopped for 23 years in Beaumont.”

While touring her home, she spills names of significant figures in the Texas art world — she is on first-name terms with many of them. Curators often approach Kiehnhoff to borrow work for exhibitions. Art by Maudee Carron, Forrest Bess and Robert Preusser has been featured in retrospectives on Texas modern and contemporary art.

Part of the fun in collecting is not just the final result or the goal in adhering to a certain category, but the search, Tam said.

“I am a pretty spontaneous collector and circumstantial collector,” she said. “I’m a much more, ‘I see it and like it and buy it.’ I certainly have an aesthetic that I am going after and even though I have a lot of different styles, most of it looks good together. I have a point of view that is aesthetically based rather than fitting a category.”

Gifts from loved ones and her circumstantial collecting habits often lead to smaller collections that fall outside the Texas art theme which dominates the larger collection. In one room, African art stands out against abstract canvases.

“Our friend Russel Prince has a nice African collection and he has given us some things as gifts,” she said. “I’ve bought a couple as well. We have a few African masks I got at ‘Paint the Town Red.’ That’s what I mean by circumstantial collector. They are really cool and on sale, but I am not really a collector of African art. I’m not knowledgeable about them, but I loved them and I bought them.”

In another room, dozens of souvenir butterfly plates from Brazil sweep across the wall. A lucky find at a local rummage sale ignited a passionate search for more pieces.

“I had found one at an estate sale in Beaumont and I went to eBay searching for more,” she said. “The one that I found in Beaumont was all blue, but when I started looking on eBay, I found that the solid blue ones were a little expensive but the ones with the patterns were not. I thought they were so much more wonderful and I went after it because I wanted a whole wall of them. The compositions are made

See TAM on page 12

Tam Kiehnhoff’s house is packed to the brim with pieces from her collection.

6 • ISSUE May 2015

Volume 21, No. 8

Mothers & Monologues ‘Listen To Your Mother’ event set for May 9 at Lamar’s University Theater AUTHENTIC. THAT IS THE best way to describe the celebration of motherhood that is, “Listen to Your Mother,” a live reading performance sweeping the nation. “‘Listen to Your Mother’ is live readings by local writers — they are reading their stories that they wrote about motherhood,” Jennifer Williams co-director of the Southeast Texas LTYM, said.

The performance will be held May 9, in the University Theatre at Lamar. A portion of the proceeds will benefit the Julie Rogers Gift of Life Program.

Williams said that LTYM started when founder Ann Imig noticed there were not a lot of events that celebrated Mother’s Day. “So she decided to start this show and that is where it kind of blossomed into what it is now,” Williams said.

“My friend Elaine (Alguire) and I had a couple of friends that did the Austin show, and that is how we originally heard about it a few years ago. We sent in a piece and we didn’t get an audition, so the next year we decided to have our own show.

“We applied and we know several people involved across the 39 cities, and we were able to get the show and bring it to Beaumont.”

Williams said she and co-director Alguire sent out audition requests to writers from as far away as Houston and Lafayette, La. “They sent in their stories and they would come in and read for us,” she said. “From that, we selected the stories we wanted to show.”

The cast includes amateur and professional writers from all walks of life.

“It could be anything,” Williams said. “I started out blogging and my friend Elaine started out blogging, too.

We also have Lauren Van Gerven, who is the editor of the University Press, and we had several people in the area who like to write. We also have a few people in the cast this year who are part of the Houston Writers Guild.”

Williams said that mothering can be thankless.

“You do a lot and you don’t get a lot of recognition, and the show really recognizes all that motherhood encompasses — from the very highs to the very, very lows,” she said. “It is a way to let mothers know that they are not alone and they are not the only ones who are going through these problems.”

Williams said that motherhood connects everyone, even those who are not mothers, and the show reflects all

Story by Kyle Swearingen

The cast of “Listen To Your Mother,” back row from left, Jennifer Williams, Nicole Huffman Hollins, Betty Davis Pruitt, Andy Coughlan, Summer Lacy, Christina Morales, Lauren Van Gerven and Elaine Alguire. Front row from left, Tiara Little, Tassie Kelas Hewitt and Donna Gail Ellis. those experiences.

“It connects us. Even if you are not a mother, it gives you insight into what being a mother is all about,” she said.

LTYM is a half live show, Williams said.

“We do the stage, and everything is recorded and put on YouTube afterward, so it is half social media event as well,” she said. “So we don’t just connect with the immediate audience at the show, but we are also able to connect with everyone else who watches the video after the show.”

Summer Lacy is part of the Houston contingent in the show.

“Motherhood is something we can all talk about, laugh about, cry about — either from the perspective of being a mother or from the perspective of having a mother,” she said. “On one hand, motherhood is such a common experience, but on the other hand, it can be such an isolating experience. Us mothers can be hard on ourselves and each other. We can judge quickly and harshly, we sometimes compete and compare.

“That made it all the more meaningful to sit in a room full of people from such different backgrounds, with such a vast array of experiences, and to laugh and cry together over the one thing we all have in common — motherhood.”

Cast member Christina Morales said she is deeply touched by the men and women who are participating in

the event.

“The stories make me feel everything in the range of a heart-swelling joy to a soul-tearing sob,” she said. “These are real people with real situations that create what is, in the end, an incredible message of hope — real hope, the kind that makes you giddy for what is to come.

“A world full of this much hope is an exciting place to live.”

Rounding out the cast are Donna Gail Ellis, Tassie Kelas Hewitt, Tiara Little, Nicole Huffman Hollins, Betty Davis Pruitt and Andy Coughlan. Ramona Young will emcee the show.

The event is sponsored by Divergent Theater, Whole Mothering Center and Flora Padilla Photography.

Williams said the show is something everybody can connect with.

“Everybody has a mom, everybody knows a mom, and everybody has some type of mom figure in their life whether they are good or not good — so everybody has a story about motherhood,” she said.

The show will start at 7 p.m.

Tickets are $15 and are available at www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1189043 or at the box office the day of the show.

For more information, visit listentoyourmother show.com/southeasttexas, or like the Listen To Your Mother-Southeast Texas Facebook page.

Volume 21, No. 8

TASIMJAE THE ART STUDIO, INC. MEMBERS JURORED ART EXHIBITION

AVRIL FALGOUT CLAIMS PRIZE IN RECORD MEMBERSHIP SHOW A RECORD 99 ENTRIES were received for TASIMJAE 2015, with 67 accepted works for The Art Studio’s annual membership show. First prize was awarded to” Louise and Betty,” 17-year-old Avril Falgout’s life-size paper maché sculpture of dancing flappers. Juror David Cargill awarded second place to “Noble One,” by Marilyn Manson-Hayes, and third place went to Beau Dumesnil’s illuminated manuscript. Honorable mentions were given to Ines Alvidres and Yolanda Perez.

May 2015 ISSUE • 7

8 • ISSUE May 2015

Volume 21, No. 8

NUDE SOUTH KOREAN RIAH LEE, TASIMJAE 2014 WINNER, RETURNS FOR SOLO SHOW AT

ART STUDIO IN MAY

WHEN RIAH LEE DECIDED to spend a semester as an exchange student at Lamar University in spring 2014, she didn’t expect to be back in Southeast Texas just a year later — especially Photos by having to transport a series of paintEunjung ings for a solo show of her paintings.

Kim But the Seoul, South Korea native took full advantage of her time in Beaumont and entered The Art Studio, Inc. Member Jurored Art Exhibition (TASIMJAE), earning first place and winning a solo show. Lee’s work will be on display, May 2-23, at The Studio, with an opening reception, 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., May 2.

The show will feature a series of nudes painted over the past year.

“Recently, I’ve been interested in how the way we interpret images of female nudity has changed throughout histor y,” Lee said in an email inter view from Seoul. “For example, in the Renaissance era, female nudity in paintings was from the male’s perspective and showed a fantasized female body. But a lot of histor y has passed, and now nudity has become a common theme or even expectation in painting, and with that, sexual tensions are diffused and our concern with the identity of the nude subjects has also faded.

“We are living in a time in which the ‘image of the nude’ is read as a mundane little icon.”

Lee’s latest work puts the figure in a specific location, rooting them in a real space.

“With this series I focused on depicting not only the figures, but also the air and the room, and the situation that’s unfolding, like a photographs does,” she said. “I hope that viewers see the figures and the atmosphere first, so I remove the most identifiable feature of the human body — the face — by cutting them out, blurring them, or hiding them on purpose. It also preser ves my subjects’ anonymity in the image, but for each work I do note the name of the model, as well as a date and location, in order to give the viewer a sense of their reality. I then show the faces of the mod-

Story by Andy Coughlan

Volume 21, No. 8

May 2015 ISSUE • 9

INTERPRETATION

TASIMJAE 2014 winner Riah Lee, opposite, poses in her Seoul, South Korea studio.

Lee will present an exhibition of recent nude paintings at The Art Studio, beginning May 2.

els exclusively, under the same names as in the figure paintings, hoping that the dialogue between the figures and faces challenges viewers’ perceptions of each. For example, after l reveal that some of the nude paintings are in fact my-

self, accompanied by a self-portrait, I hope viewers’ interpretations of my face is affected by the image of body, and vice versa.”

Lee recently graduated with a BFA in Painting from Seoul National University of Science and

Technology. Making art runs in the family, it seems.

“My father was an architect and so is my sister,” she said. “My mom used to be an art teacher, and my father loved art as well. So, naturally, I was exposed to a lot of art,

and creativity was encouraged as I grew up. My father sadly passed away when I was quite young.

In that environment, it is no surprise that Lee said she always loved creating.

“When I was little, my favorite things to do were sculpting my own toys out of clay or making paper dolls,” she said. “When I turned 16, I fell in love with cinema and wanted to be a production designer or work on art direction in films.

That focus on aesthetics eventually led me to major in furniture design, but after my sophomore year in college I realized that course of study didn’t really fit me. Luckily my school was one of the few in Korea with a Fine Arts undergraduate major, so I transferred my credits without knowing anything about the major other than it was supposed to offer a wider array of coursework than furniture design — I was just hoping to broaden my perspective and take in more of the liberal arts.

“That was the first time I opened my eyes to the canon of art histor y, and since then I haven’t looked back.”

The 25-year old said she came to

See LEE on page 12

10 • ISSUE May 2015

Volume 21, No. 8

The Stark Museum of Art hosts “Drawn to Life: Audubon’s Legacy” through July 25. The exhibition features work from the museum’s collection of the artist/naturalists work.

Stark Museum explores Audubon’s legacy THANK GOODNESS YOUNG JOHN James Audubon was not very good at business. If he had been more successful at finance, we would never have had the phenomenal collection of images that have influenced the way we see nature for nearly 200 years.

The exhibition, “Drawn to Life: Audubon’s Legacy,” on display through July 25, offers a detailed examination of the artist/explorer John James Audubon’s life and work. The exhibition features work from the Stark Museum of Art’s collection of Audubon’s art including pastels, engravings, lithographs, printed books and manuscripts.

Born April 26, 1785, in what is now Haiti, Audubon was the illegitimate son of a French sea captain and a French chambermaid. When his mother died, his father took him

Review and photos by Andy Coughlan

to France. Audubon spent much of his time hunting, fishing and studying wildlife, especially birds.

In 1803, Audubon’s father sent him to manage his property at Mill Grove, Penn. After marrying Lucy Bakewell, he and his wife moved to Kentucky. Audubon was not a successful businessman and was even jailed for debt.

Luckily for us, this prompted him to devote himself to the study of birds.

The works in the exhibition reveal Audubon’s vision to document all the birds of North America. The artist was keen to present not only representations of the animals, but also a glimpse into the personality of the animal itself.

The images in the exhibition show the birds swooping for prey, or nesting in their natural habitat. Audubon frequently showed groups of birds, all in different positions, as if to give us the full range of the creature’s life.

Some of the images seem slightly disingenuous, as Audubon seems to ascribe human personality to the ani-

mals, but his artistic license is forgivable.

The display also offers a fascinating glimpse into the craft of the printer, and Audubon’s tinkering between editions. Three versions of the female turkey hang next to each other. Each is obviously from the same engraved plate, but the coloring (much of which was done by hand) varies slightly. There are also three versions of the male turkey.

There are three images of the “Purple Martin” — one black and white, one with the birds colored, and one with the background filled in. Each image is fascinating on its own, but the chance to compare the different states gives the reader insight into the process, and into the bird itself.

In separate images of the Yellow Haired Tropical and Bullock’s Oriole, one can see significant changes in the

See AUDUBON on page 14

Volume 21, No. 8

May 2015 ISSUE • 11

Divergent Theater to present ‘Birth’ at Logon Café DIVERGENT THEATER WILL PRESENT “Birth,” a play

by Karen Brody, at the Logon Café, 7:30 p.m., May 29 and 30.

Open seating tickets are $15 online and are available at http://birth.bpt.me.

“Birth” is a documentary-style play based on more than 100 interviews Karen Brody conducted with pregnant mothers across America about their birth experiences. It tells the true birth stories of eight women and paints a portrait of how low-risk, educated women are giving birth today.

“This play is a wonderful look at the birthing process,” Ramona Young, Divergent Theater artistic director, says. “It is moving, and at times hilarious, as we see these different women tell their stories of joy and struggle.”

Proceeds benefit the Whole Mothering Center, a women’s advocacy organization serving the childbearing community of Southeast Texas with education, support, and resources through their transitions into new parenthood.

WMC members will host a BOLD talkback discussion following each performance, giving an opportunity for the audience to discuss the

themes of the play with local birth activists.

These discussions will point consumers to local resources, and help birth activists connect and form networks and alliances for changing the culture of birth both locally and on a larger scale.

The cast is composed of local actors including Chloe Sullivan, Tiana Hailey, Brandi Crawford, Stephanie Flatten, Theresa Ravenscraft, Stephanie Perez, Rachel Melonson-Reed, Alicia Cortez, Harry Reed and Andy Coughlan.

“This play really fits Divergent’s mission to bring quality stories by and for women to Southeast Texas stages,” Young said. “We have some wonderful people involved, and we are all delighted to partner with the Whole Mothering Center for this entertaining and informative production.”

The Logon Café is located at 3805 Calder Ave. in Beaumont.

For more information, visit divergenttheater.com, or like the Facebook page.

For more on the Whole Mothering Center, visit http://wholemotheringcenter.org, or on Facebook.

TRIO TO SHOW AT HIGH STREET, MAY 8

“Untitled” by Gabriella Capello, top left, “Untitled” by Savannah Hardy, left, and “Untitled” by Ian Grice.

THE HIGH STREET GALLERY will host an exhibition of paintings by Ian Grice, Gabriella Capello and Savannah Hardy, 7-10 p.m., May 8.

The gallery is located in Victoria House, 2110 Victoria St. in Beaumont.

“Ian has been creating amazing art work for many years while growing up in the area,” Olivia Busceme, gallery director, said. “He has also invited two up-andcoming artists to show along with him.

We’re very excited about all of their beautiful paintings.”

Entry is free and the work will be for sale.

Beaumont-native Grice said he gets his education from all that surrounds him. He said his work is “varied, sincere, and adventitious.”

“My influences are family, friends, acquaintances, strangers, and driven by the winds of change throughout our shared and universal existence,” he said.

“I would love for the eyes of the beholders to leave knowing that art is just.

Just as life. Everything that one could

like and dislike. The strive to make things better and the content of knowing that our imperfections deserve just as much if not more solace and serenity.”

Gabriella Capello, a freelance model and Lamar University student, loves to explore different media including watercolor, acrylic, and woodburning.

“I admire the fine fibers and filaments holding life together in the most intricate and mysterious of patterns,” Capello said. “I also find staggering emotion accessible through depictions of the loss of something beautiful.”

Savannah Hardy studies at Glassell School of Art and is influenced by the work of Alex Grey as well as life’s experiences, reality, and mystery.

“Art is within and without you, real and unreal, natural and unnatural; it is everything,” she said.

For more information, email victoriahousetx@gmail.com, visit the High Street Gallery Facebook page, or visit www.NakedDads.com.

12 • ISSUE May 2015

LEE from page 9 painting after experimenting with different forms of art.

“While I was in college, I explored many different media — from all the classical methods, such as sculpting, to more modern media, like photography, installation, video art and performance art — but none of them appealed to me as much as painting did,” she said. “So, I decided to stay with painting.

But that doesn’t mean I’ll be an artist who works exclusively with paint forever. It is certainly possible that someday I’ll find that other media suits me better, but now isn’t that time.”

Lee’s influences cross the entire art histor y spectrum.

“I find inspiration in so many different places,” she said. “With this current series, I’d say that I was inspired most by the neoclassical paintings of Ingres and Goya’s later works, the stillness and narratives found in Hopper, and the atmosphere of Hockney. In a more a general and personal sense, I’ve always enjoyed Francis Bacon, René Magritte, and the concepts of Mondrian.”

Volume 21, No. 8

Lee said her time in Beaumont helped her open up to other cultures and possibilities.

“The time I had in Beaumont certainly was different from what I thought about Southeast Texas,” she said. “People are living with different values from where I come, and it is something nicer and generous. It is ver y easy to judge things before experience, and I found it is not the right attitude to have after the time in Beaumont. Now I understood more of the different standards in cultures, that supports the main philosophy of my work stronger.”

Exploring different perspectives is the central theme to her work, Lee said.

“With my works, I’m always attempting to reveal the difference between perspective and the real,” she said. “I believe images are one of the more direct ways to reveal that difference, because we all see mainly what we want to see, based on our own experiences. Human figures have always fascinated me, and I like to employ them as my visual language to (hopefully) make my work more relatable.”

The Art Studio is located at 720 Franklin in downtown Beaumont.

For more information, call 409-838-5393, or visit www.artstudio.org.

Even the bathroom is Tam Kiehnhoff’s house displays her eclectic art collection.

TAM from page 5

Riah Lee, TASIMJAE 2014 winner, will exhibit her work at The Studio beginning May 2.

up of butterfly and moth wings.”

Her collection continues to grow and regardless of some other collectors’ impulses to reassess and trim the fat in their collections, Tam is adamant in retaining her works for personal reasons.

“There are collectors who are way more disciplined than I am who will get rid of things they consider their lesser things in order to upgrade their collection,” she said. “I really admire that, but that’s not me.

“Even though there are works in my collection that I know aren’t as good as other works, I might love them for one reason or another. I might love them for the story, I might love them for the artist. I might love them because I remember when I bought them.”

Tam was at Triangle Aids Network in Beaumont for many years. Her passion for collecting regional work has led her to her current position as chair of the Center for the Advancement and Study of Early Texas Art. Tam’s collection is truly a cabinet of curiosities — designer plates are displayed in the kitchen, PreColumbian miniature figurines rest on a table, and textiles are folded and stacked on shelves against walls covered with canvases and prints.

Her collection is not just an accumulation of objects, but an accumulation of perspectives, experiences and facets of her subjectivity.

Volume 21, No. 8

May 2015 ISSUE • 13

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.

‘Miss Representation’ to kick off YWCA film, panel discussion series YWCA BEAUMONT WILL PRESENT a four-part film series dedicated to bringing awareness to issues aligning with the YWCA national agenda for domestic violence and violence against women, women’s health, and racial justice issues affecting the community.

A different community host will screen each film with a panel discussion following.

YWCA Beaumont will kick off The Miss Fearless Women’s Film Series May 18, with the screening of “Miss Representation” at the Antioch Missionary Baptist Church Youth Center, located at 3720 Cardinal Drive, 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.

After the screening, there will be a community/panel discussion led by local community media professionals.

“Miss Representation” includes stories from teenage girls and provocative interviews with politicians, journalists, entertainers, activists, and academics like Lisa Ling, Condeoleeza Rice, Katie Couric, Nancy Pelosi, Rachel Maddow, Rosario Dawson, Jackson Katz, Jean Kilbourne, and Gloria Steinem.

The film offers startling facts and statistics to leave audiences shaken and armed with a new perspective.

“The goal of the Miss Fearless Women’s Film Series is to bring to the Beaumont community documentary films that provide critical perspectives on the most pressing issues facing women and girls today,” Bridget M. Johnson, YWCA Beaumont executive director, said.

Admission is free For more, email Donica Beckett, YWCA program coordinator, at dbeckett@ywcabeaumont.org, or call 409-899-1011.

VIEW from page 3 resident, Yolanda Perez.

Thanks to Nathaniel Welch who is putting a facelift on our back porch and garden area.

Along with a grill and table (already in), he has plans to plant vegetables and flowers and create a walking garden. Also in the plans is to revitalize handicap accessibility by building a gate and fixing the sidewalk to access the ramp.

A big thank you to Alex Murphy for patching our roof and stopping the flood of water down in the clay room. It’s just a trickle now and soon will be fixed completely.

In other improvements we hope to get awnings over our front and back door to keep rain out of the entrances and improve our curb appeal. Since we focused on that aspect of The Studio, we have seen a increase in traffic from people just wondering what went on in here! A tour is always in order and during the tour, I hear the “Oohs” and “Aahs” and “Wows” of people seeing their first artist space. It’s very exciting to me, and tells us there are so many more people who have never heard of us, and if they do, they will like it.

By our calculations there is 80 percent of the local population who have never heard of The Studio. I would hope at least half would be willing to join up and be a part of this organization. We just need to reach them.

RECENT ART STUDIO NEW OR RENEWING MEMBERS INDIVIDUAL Ines Alvidres Marty Arredondo Molly Atkinson-Hauk Margaret Baertl Sheila Busceme Susan Chu Andy Coughlan Stephen S. Derrick Ashley Galassi Ian Grice Roxanne Hayes

Luis F. Hernandez Victor Higginbotham Greg Landry Nathan McCray Melinda McWhite Marilyn A. Manson-Hayes Michael Mason Grace Mathis Melody Montero-Ortiz Nel Morrison Faye Nelson John T. Newman Annie Orchard

Alice Powell Chris Presley Beth Rankin Jody Reho Lisa Bell Reinauer Lynn Reynolds Victoria Ridgway Kelli Scofield Caleb Sims Alison Smith Tack J. Somers Merele Trares Julia Viator

Tom Windham FAMILY/GROUP Rex Alexander Michelle Cate The Elwell Family FRIEND/BUSINESS: Kathy Boudreaux Mark Jacobson Donna Rae Wisor

14 • ISSUE May 2015

Volume 21, No. 8

These pictures of a male turkey reflect the differences in the various editions of “Birds of America,” Audubon’s most influential work.

AUDUBON from page 10 images, as Audubon adds birds or foliage.

Without doubt, Audubon’s masterpiece is the elephant portfolio of “Birds of America,” which features 435 individual prints of birds which are life-size and life-like. Each image in the original is hand colored, and because of its especially large size is known as the double elephant folio.

When Audubon traveled to Louisiana in 1820, he traveled with Joseph Mason who provided drawings of plants. It was

important to Audubon that the birds be represented in their habitat.

Between the years 1826 and 1838 Audubon issued The Birds of America in parts, five prints at a time, printed in Europe by Robert Havell, Jr. The folios were offered by subscription at a cost of $10, which were later bound into volumes. About 200 sets were completed.

As well as the “Birds of America,” the exhibition features letters, contracts and drawings. The show also extensively features the work Audubon did with sons, “The Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America,” which included 150 prints of four-legged animals that bear their

young alive.

“Drawn to Life: Audubon’s Legacy” is not only full of exquisite drawings, but continues the Stark Museum’s run of exhibitions that combine visual aesthetics with historical and process education.

Audubon’s work transports the viewer to a time when the country was young and the joy of discovery meant more than simply clicking a link on a tablet.

The Stark Museum of Art is located at 712 Green Ave. in Orange.

For more information, visit starkculturalvenues.org/starkmuseum.

WE WANT YOU FOR BAND NITE Listen to 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.

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.

1.

2.

3.

4.

GOALS 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. To present 10 art exhibitions per year 2. To maintain equipment for artists in a safe working environment 3. To provide better access to artists for the public 4. To offer regularly scheduled adult and children’s classes 5. To develop and maintain public activities with all sectors of the community 6. To develop and maintain equipment to aid artists in their work 7. To provide a display retail outlet for artists 8. 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 21, No. 8

May 2015 ISSUE • 15

Thoughtcrime

A Short Vacation

Evening ease…

Sitting in the shade…feeling that breeze

Four Haiku

Erasure in sand

Searing pain inside,

I dated your sister before

Violent welts of hatred,

your family moved to Arkansas;

Chilling ecstasy.

your hair was as long as hers,

Spaghetti strap tank top…favorite capris Moving at a slow pace Kicking back at your place Relaxing without a care The smooth sound of jazz streaming in mid air

so it would be you I’d date now.

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.

Swirling clouds of light,

I took your girlfriend

Letting the mood take you there

Masking the darkest shadows,

to the beach after you left.

Don’t forget your drink

Death reveals itself.

The summer moon was low and orange,

Big tall glass, umbrella pink

and her breasts were nowhere

So you think you’re good to go

Velvety blue skies,

near as big as your sister’s,

You have nothing planned to do.

Blooms await the sun's caress,

but in the silence that we contracted,

Late and bitter frost.

she held my hand tightly

It’s just too good to be true.

A nudge from behind…

as we were sure the waves There goes my wandering mind.

Little boys don’t cry,

would erase the incriminating

Big boys never ask for help,

evidence of our four feet,

Grown men weep and beg.

even from far and absent eyes.

That was some kinda daydream!

Brandianne Hinton

Marti Martinson

Dorothy Sells Clover

Mrs. Silas Driving down 11th street, I see a ruckus on the side of the road. Cars are swerving to miss a person lying in the street. At first glance, it looks like a crazy person wallering in the mud or waiting on a bus. You can’t tell in this fucking town. Honking horns and very aggravated at this delinquent’s interruption, people holler from their vehicles at an old black woman flailing.

I said, self, this ain’t right even if she is crazy. I figured I could take her if I had to, so I stopped. Into the cash-acheck place I parked and prepared myself for what was to come. If you have an opportunity to cinch your hat in preparation for dealing with trauma- you should do so.

I holler, “You alright?!”

“Help me!” she cried.

I grab under her arms and pull her from this bog of stench-cars buzzing by, splashing us with muddy water.

She said she knew that the Lord was going to send someone to help her. I look across the street at Popeye’s Chicken and about 20 people there just watching, none helping.

She was on her way to the Dollar Store wearing plastic Crocs and she slipped in the mud where they dug up utility lines. She slid down the muddy hill to a mud hole

where traffic was making the hole deeper. They were honking at her when she was down there, and they honked at me when I helped her. She was terrified that she was going to die on the side of the road and equally as embarrassed that everyone was going to watch. They would have much rather videoed an old woman die than to prevent it. She was crying and thankful.

Regaining her composure, she held the bushes while I washed her shoes in the muddy water. With the other hand holding steady on my back, I wiped her feet with a shop rag I had in my back pocket and placed her plastic shoes back on her feet. She gave me $5 on the spot. “I got a paying job”, I told her- she wouldn’t take no for an answer.

Her name was Miss Silas and she lived across from the school. I offered to bring her to the store but she refused.

“I don’t want to get your beautiful truck dirty.”

After about 5 minutes of volley she succumbed to the idea of me riding her to the store and home. I lifted her into my truck because it was to tall.

She made me buy something despite my refusal. I finally allowed her to buy me a Tupperware container, and we drove home.

We talked about being blessed and thankful for beau-

tiful people on the right path, then she disappeared into her home.

Miss Silas made me think of old men trying to get up stairs while young people race by, or old women in line at Luby’s, frazzled as they try to get money out of their purse. I tell them, “ Take your time, aint nobody going to get past me. Ain’t nobody going to rush you while I’m standing here.”

And Ol’ Ray, a homeless guy from Seattle that used to hang out at Beaumont Fried Chicken across from the Stab and Grab, he died from smoke inhalation and burned up. He was just trying to keep warm and didn’t have enough energy to make it. Or people with drug addiction and PTSD, they are completely exhausted as well.

I know what it is to not have the ability to move and save your own life, and no one there to pull you from traffic. To not have the ability to climb that muddy hill before the next force extinguishes your life. To be so exhausted that all you had to do is stop breathing. One day it may be your turn in the mud hole. If I have the ability, I will pull out who I can.

Nathaniel Welch

720 Franklin, Beaumont, Texas 77701

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

RETURN SERVICE REqUESTED

INSIDE • TAM KIEHNHOFF: COLLECTOR • THOUGHTCRIME: MUSINGS FROM AREA POETS • RIAH LEE • ‘LISTEN TO YOUR MOTHER’

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 Rhonda Rodman Sue Wright Cyndi Grimes Rhonda McNally Andy Coughlan John Roberts Beau Dumesnil Karen Dumesnil Sheila Busceme Kailee Viator Gabe Sellers Abbie McLaurin Scott & John Alexander Heather Adams Terri Fox Avril Falgout B.J. Bourg Michelle Falgout Dana Dorman Stacey Haynes Olivia Busceme Joe Winston John Fulbright Mark Jacobson Gina Garcia Nathaniel Welch Tracy Danna

THIS MONTH:

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

RIAH LEE

TASIMJAE 2014 Winner MAY 2-23 GALLERY RECEPTION IS MAY 2, 7-10 P.M.

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

ISSUE DISTRIBUTION POINTS DOWNTOWN THE ART STUDIO, INC. 720 FRANKLIN ART MUSEUM OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS 500 MAIN BABE DIDRIKSON ZAHARIAS MUSEUM 1750 IH-10E BEAUMONT CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU 801 MAIN (IN CITY HALL) BEAUMONT ART LEAGUE (FAIRGROUNDS) 2675 GULF ST THE CAFE 730 LIBERTY JERUSALEM HOOKAH CAFÉ 3035 COLLEGE NEW YORK PIZZA & PASTA 790 NECHES SETAC 701 NORTH STREET, STE. 1 STARBUCKS EDISON PLAZA TACOS LA BAMBA 2005 CALDER AVE TEXAS ENERGY MUSEUM 600 MAIN SOUTH END/LAMAR UNIVERSITY CARLITO’S RESTAURANT 890 AMARILLO @ COLLEGE DOS AMIGAS 1590 FRANKLIN LU ART DEPARTMENT DISHMAN ART MUSEUM OLD TOWN ANNA’S MEXICAN BAKERY 2570 CALDER BEAUMONT FRIED CHICKEN 7TH AND CALDER JASON’S DELI 112 GATEWAY SHOP CNTR KATHARINE & CO. 1495 CALDER RAO’S BAKERY 2596 CALDER SIGN INTERNATIONAL EXPRESS 2835 LAUREL SUNRISE 2425 S 11TH SWICEGOOD MUSIC CO. 3685 COLLEGE THE TATTERED SUITCASE 2590 CALDER CENTRAL/WEST END BASIC FOODS 229 DOWLEN BEAUMONT VISITORS BUREAU IH-10 COLORADO CANYON 6119 FOLSOM GUITAR & BANJO STUDIO 4381 CALDER LOGON CAFE 3805 CALDER RED B4 BOOKS 4495 CALDER REED’S LAUNDRY 6025A PHELAN @ PEYTON STUDIO 77 6372 COLONNADE CENTER THIRSTY’S 229 DOWLEN PARKDALE RAO’S BAKERY 4440 DOWLEN ORANGE STARK MUSEUM OF ART 712 GREEN AVE.