“Time, memory, and the natural world always play a key role in my work.” – Marcia Lamont Hopkins

By applying a poetic and often metaphorical language to her photographic images, Marcia Lamont Hopkins opens the door to the unknown, to multiple realities, both real and artificial, so that one questions what is really happening.

Her images establish a link between the landscape’s reality and the artist’s imagination. While this could, to some extent, be said to be true of any artist using landscapes, Hopkins pushes the limits of our perception of what is real. Each object or environment seems entirely natural and plausible, yet the juxtaposition within the artist’s gauzy, dreamlike atmosphere creates an uneasy sense of mystery. Is our understanding shifting in relationship to time, memory, or some other reality that we can’t quite define?

"Casaubon" by Marcia Hopkins, 17x22in, digital archival print (2017), $500 | BUY NOW — *"Casaubon" by Marcia Hopkins, 17x22in, digital archival print (2017), $500 |* *BUY NOW*

In her artist’s statement, Hopkins explains it this way: “The series, Causabon’s Illusion, crafts a series of metaphorical vignettes rooted in elements of magical realism and the mind’s tendency to search for all-inclusive answers. In George Elliot’s Middlemarch, Edward Causabon spends his life in a futile and absurd attempt to find a comprehensive explanation for the whole of civilization’s knowledge and mythologies. Deluded, he believes that he alone has the key to humanity’s searching, an illusion which may be reflected in our culture today.”

"The Beekeeper" by Marcia Hopkins, 17x22in, digital archival print (2017), $500 | BUY NOW — *"The Beekeeper" by Marcia Hopkins, 17x22in, digital archival print (2017), $500 | BUY NOW*

As part of her 60WRD/MIN project, Art Historian and Chicago Tribune art critic Lori Waxman wrote of Hopkin’s work: “We like to control animals and nature, but when they get beyond our understanding things tend to get interesting. Hopkins envisions overgrown forests, historic graveyards, farm animals, and occasionally people, often in combination, in impeccable digital prints that blend multiple shots into believable wholes. The weirder and more convincing, the better: a sheep enmeshed in a dense forest seems as if it and the trees are made of the same stuff, a lama in a rolling meadow becomes one with the horizon and the clouds.”

Hopkins currently has a solo exhibit at Gratz Park Inn in Lexington, KY.

*Burnaway: The Voice of Art In The South, March 27, 2017

Hometown: Lexington, Kentucky
Education: BFA in Film and Fine Art and a Ph.D. in Psychology.
Website: http://www.marcia-hopkins.squarespace.com/

"Cemetery Sheep" by Marcia Hopkins, 17x22in, digital archival print (2017), $500 | BUY NOW — *"Cemetery Sheep" by Marcia Hopkins, 17x22in, digital archival print (2017), $500 | BUY NOW*

"Wedding" by Marcia Hopkins, 17x22in, digital archival print (2017), $500 | BUY NOW — *"Wedding" by Marcia Hopkins, 17x22in, digital archival print (2017), $500 | BUY NOW*

"Pyramid" by Marcia Hopkins, 17x22in, digital archival print (2017), $500 | BUY NOW — *"Pyramid" by Marcia Hopkins, 17x22in, digital archival print (2017), $500 | BUY NOW*

Are you interested in being on Artebella? Click here to learn more. — *Are you interested in being on Artebella? Click here to learn more.*

Painting

Vignette: Susan Dworkin

Josh Jenkins · June 22, 2017

“You must open yourself to communing with the desires of the paint and flow with it.” — Susan Dworkin

*"Tangled Up In Blue" by Susan Dworkin, 32x24in, vinegar paint (2015)*

Susan Dworkin has been experimenting with colonial painting techniques for fourteen years. Her current endeavor is adapting vinegar painting from its traditional use on flat wooden surfaces to other mediums. Historically used as a means of making common and inexpensive woods appear to be more valuable materials, such as metal, Dworkin experiments with the technique to create unique abstract compositions.

To date, she remains one of the pioneers in this venture, continually exploring and adapting the technique via artist board, foam core, metal, paper, glass, and mirror. “The nature of vinegar paint produces a multilayered spectrum of color that combines elements of impressionism, surrealism and lyrical abstractionism, explains Dworkin. “To work with this medium you must open yourself to communing with the desires of the paint and flow with it.” Her paintings are suggestive of rich landscapes and fantasy realms that allow the viewer to formulate their own personal vision. In one of her previous lives, Dworkin was a private estate gardener in Rhode Island and Massachusetts and finds color inspiration from those gardens and settings, as well as her many travels. She has lived in Lexington, Kentucky since 1989.

*"Joy" by Susan Dworkin, 15x12in, vinegar paint (2017)*

2017 has been a busy year for Dworkin, with solo exhibits at The Bar Complex, and the Hunt Morgan House, Bluegrass Trust for Historic Preservation, both in Lexington, Kentucky, and for the month of September she will have another solo show at the John G. Irvin Gallery, also in Lexington. In April 2018 she will be part of a group exhibit at ArtConnects in Lexington.

Dworkin has work in private collections in Lexington, KY, Chicago, IL, St. Petersburg, FL, and Tryon, NC.

Hometown: Lexington, Kentucky
Education: BA, Roger Williams University, Bristol, RI
Social Media: www.facebook.com/DesignsbyDworkin

"Toska" by Susan Dworkin, 28x23in, vinegar paint (2017), $650| BUY NOW — *"Toska" by Susan Dworkin, 28x23in, vinegar paint (2017), $650| BUY NOW*

"Play" by Susan Dworkin, 25x37in, vinegar paint (2017), $650 | BUY NOW — *"Play" by Susan Dworkin, 25x37in, vinegar paint (2017), $650 | BUY NOW*

"The Call" by Susan Dworkin, 33x27in, vinegar paint (2017), $850 | BUY NOW — *"The Call" by Susan Dworkin, 33x27in, vinegar paint (2017), $850 | BUY NOW*

Photography, Mixed Media

Vignette: Melissa Hall

Josh Jenkins · June 13, 2017

“Integrating my photography with encaustic processes blurs the line between reality and narrative.” — Melissa Hall

"Look Outward" by Melissa Hall, 24x36in, photography, encaustic, oil paint (2017), $820 | BUY NOW — *"Look Outward" by Melissa Hall, 24x36in, photography, encaustic, oil paint (2017), $820 | BUY NOW*

Melissa Hall is “drawn to locations and objects that are patinaed, worn, and wear their age like a badge on their surface, displaying their history. These decaying spaces spark my imagination and allow me to tell stories of the lives that could have been lived between the walls.”

"The Weight" by Melissa Hall, 24x48in, photography, encaustic, oil paint (2017) $940 | BUY NOW — *"The Weight" by Melissa Hall, 24x48in, photography, encaustic, oil paint (2017) $940 | BUY NOW*

We see female figures that are literally imprisoned within physical circumstances: a mermaid struggles inside of a ticket booth aquarium. The cubical is ludicrously small for her, but even if it were more spacious, it would remain confining. And another woman occupies an attic space, her body disappearing into a window, and even if we cannot see her face, we might, without too much difficulty, imagine a look of longing in her face. In any event she seems ready to depart; she clutches ropes tied to a brace of travel cases, her life further confined within even smaller spaces.

“My imagery evokes conceptual undercurrents from myths, twisted fairy tales, and simple aspects of everyday life. My work is built by combining photographs with translucent layers of encaustic medium, oil paint, and pastels. Integrating my photography with encaustic processes blurs the line between reality and narrative.”

In the work we see here, that layered effect is perhaps most obvious in “Stand,” an image in which the woman is not constrained by space. She stares out at a horizon filled with the ocean, typically a symbol of boundless freedom. Yet how is it that even in this instance, this figure also feels somehow limited? Hall plays with our expectations, crafting a tension and speaking to troubling issues of identity.

Hall has a solo show, Aggressively Fragile, running June 13 – July 21, 2017 at the MS Rezny Gallery in Lexington, KY. There will be a Coffee & Artist Demo on July 8th, 11am-1pm, and an Artist’s Closing Reception July 21st, 5-8 pm, in conjunction with the LexArts Gallery Hop.

Hometown: Lexington, Kentucky
Education: BS Computer Science & Mathematics
Gallery Representation: MS Rezny (Lexington)
Website: http://www.melissathall.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/melissathallstudios/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/melissathall/

"Endure" by Melissa Hall, 21x36in, photography, encaustic, oil paint (2017) $820 | BUY NOW — *"Endure" by Melissa Hall, 21x36in, photography, encaustic, oil paint (2017) $820 |* *BUY NOW*

"On Display" by Melissa Hall, 24x36in, photography, encaustic, oil paint (2017) $820 | BUY NOW — *"On Display" by Melissa Hall, 24x36in, photography, encaustic, oil paint (2017) $820 | BUY NOW*

"Hurry Up and Wait" by Melissa Hall, 24x36in, photography, encaustic, oil paint (2017) $820 | BUY NOW — *"Hurry Up and Wait" by Melissa Hall, 24x36in, photography, encaustic, oil paint (2017) $820 | BUY NOW*

Painting

Vignette: Andrea Alonso

Josh Jenkins · June 8, 2017

"Birth of immortality" by Andrea Alonso, 48x36in, oil on canvas (2016) $1200 | BUY NOW — *"Birth of immortality" by Andrea Alonso, 48x36in, oil on canvas (2016) $1200 | BUY NOW*

Artist, Andrea Alonso — *Artist, Andrea Alonso*

Andrea Alonso’s painting, “The Birth of Immortality,” represents the birth of the tradition of Day of the Dead. The iconic celebrations now occur all around the globe, but started with the pre-Hispanic culture and Aztec mythology. Mictlantecuhtli was a god of the dead and the king of Mictlan (Chicunauhmictlan), the lowest and northernmost section of the underworld. The arrival of Spanish colonialism and the transforming influence of Catholicism brought about a merging of the beliefs that resulted in the Catrina, the Saints Day, and the Day of the Dead.

“The painting also shows that death can occur to any of us, elder and children, rich and poor,” says Alonso. The story is told by the old man of the corner, who lost his wife and is waiting for death to come for him.”

“My style emphasizes the universality of visual abstraction in highly developed compositions of patterns and forms, I try to suggest space within these geometric arrangements, and my main object is try to establish a sense of place within the painting. I think this is not common in most abstract paintings.”

"Solitary thoughts" by Andrea Alonso, 36x36in, oil on canvas (2017), $600 | BUY NOW — *"Solitary thoughts" by Andrea Alonso, 36x36in, oil on canvas (2017), $600 | BUY NOW*

Currently Alonso is one of the many Louisville artists featured in the Alley Gallery public art program sponsored by the Louisville Downtown Partnership and unveiled by Mayor Greg Fischer on May 11, 2017

Alonso was one of the five finalist in ArtPrize Pitch Night in Louisville with the sculpture project “The Hole,” and is or will be exhibiting work in the EKU Center for the Arts, Lexington KY, the Andersonville 14th annual show at Chicago, IL, the “O” Gallery, Nashville TN, 5-0-LOU Gallery and, Tim Faulkner Gallery Winter show 2017, in Louisville, KY. She has paintings featured in Art Yellow Book #2, by CICA Museum, South Korea.

Hometown: Monterrey, Mexico
Age: 31
Education: Architecture degree University of Monterrey, Mexico; MBA in Administration, Rioja University, Madrid, Spain.
Website: http://www.art-ark.com

"Paranoia" by Andrea Alonso, 48x48in, oil on canvas (2017), $950 | BUY NOW — *"Paranoia" by Andrea Alonso, 48x48in, oil on canvas (2017), $950 | BUY NOW*

"The Date" by Andrea Alonso, 36x36in, oil on canvas (2017), $600 | BUY NOW — *"The Date" by Andrea Alonso, 36x36in, oil on canvas (2017), $600 | BUY NOW*

"Winter Storm" by Andrea Alonso, 30x24in, oil on canvas (2016), $260 | BUY NOW — *"Winter Storm" by Andrea Alonso, 30x24in, oil on canvas (2016), $260 |* *BUY NOW*

Photography

Vignette: Sid Webb

Josh Jenkins · May 30, 2017

“I think of art as making a statement about the artist’s time and place and/or turning points in techniques and tools that give the next generation of artists a new outlook.” — Sid Webb

"Skipping" by Sid Webb, 10x27in, photograph (2011), $89 | BUY NOW — *"Skipping" by Sid Webb, 10x27in, photograph (2011), $89 | BUY NOW*

Sid Webb creates in a variety of mediums, and today we see some of his photographs. “I have taken nearly 100,000 photographs,” claims Webb, “and although I am tempted by beaches, mountains, sunsets, and sunrises and their breath-taking beauty as much as anyone, I rarely find lasting substance in such images. We can count the significant landscape photographers on one hand. Landscape painters fare a little better because technique and interpretation come into play.”

Webb prefers people as subjects for his camera. Here we see a young boy approaching a large 17th-century canon at Castillo de San Marcos in St. Augustine with appropriate trepidation, sheepishly inching his foot forward, a look eager anticipation mixed with supreme caution on his face. The shot is from a distant, raised point-of-view, and if the child had a clue he was being photographed, would he have been so expressive?

"Cigar Roller" by Sid Webb, 11x17in, photograph (2013), $45 | BUY NOW — *"Cigar Roller" by Sid Webb, 11x17in, photograph (2013), $45 | BUY NOW*

The locations here cover a range of territory, from Germany to Portugal, and Webb’s camera finds the ordinary, universal truths of people instead of the divisive artificial barriers that arise from nations and politicians. Webb sees people experiencing the wonders of the world as a respite from their normal, daily existence.

“It is my feeling that about 80 percent of creating art is the process of making it,” says Webb. “By which I mean just being focused and absorbed in the process of creation. Another 15 percent or so has to do with skill and craft, and 5 percent is drawn from our sensitivity to the world around us and how finely tuned we are to form and balance and color. Somewhere in this mix is a bit of rational thinking and reasoning that lead us in deciding subject matter and content. Generally, artists are thought of as being creative and original. And artists think of themselves in those terms, too.”

Hometown: Lexington, KY
Education: Majored in journalism and political science, University of Kentucky; Atlanta School of Art (High Museum)
Website: http://www.sidwebb.com/

"Boys and Guns" by Sid Webb, 11x17in, photograph (2014), $45 | BUY NOW — *"Boys and Guns" by Sid Webb, 11x17in, photograph (2014), $45 | BUY NOW*

"Fairy Dust" by Sid Webb, 11x17in, photograph (2013), $45 | BUY NOW — *"Fairy Dust" by Sid Webb, 11x17in, photograph (2013), $45 | BUY NOW*

lexington

Vignette: Marcia Lamont Hopkins