Vignette: Carrie Johns

“I trust my instinct and try not to let expectations distract me." - Carrie Johns

"Wave" by Carrie Johns, oil, 24x24in, 2017, POR

Probably most laypersons – people who never draw, paint, or sculpt, can at least imagine making art in traditional forms; perhaps many such people at least doodle absentmindedly. But to create complex linear drawings with a toy we can all remember from our childhood seems most amazing. The Etch A Sketch, with its two analog knobs, one to control vertical movement and one for horizontal, would appear to be extremely limiting, but Carrie Johns proves that only the limits of our own patience  hold us back from realizing the full potential of the instrument.

"Reflecting Sphere (Escher)" by Carrie Johns, Full size Etch-a-Sketch, 2016

Of course, Johns uses the more traditional tools: paint and a brush, as well as many others, in the making of her art. And she meaningfully explicates why she is an artist: “Art has always been a friend. It makes sense to me; it has helped me through hard times, and is there for me to escape into when I am feeling out of control.”

I create realistic art because I feel like I can take a take a subject and have control over it, bring out the beauty in it that no one else may be able to see. I want my art to elicit a feeling of wonder. Wonder is such a childlike emotion, one that can make us feel hope, cause us to dream, and to see the beauty in the mundane. I believe my duty as an artist is to create a spark in people who are feeling disillusioned or depressed. I want to give people that sense of wonder they had as a child.”

Carrie Johns with her 2015 Gallopalooza horse.

“So much beauty can be found all around us and I think an artist’s job is to bring that beauty to people who can no longer see it. One way I have been able to do that is through public art. Public art is a great way to reach people who may not have access to art or who may not actively be seeking it out. I try not to limit my art to a specific genre or medium. I enjoy making all types of art: painting, drawing, signage, calligraphy, or even drawing on an Etch-a-Sketch.”

“I trust my instinct and try not to let expectations distract me. Color, light, and detail, however, are essential in my artwork and always present. I draw influence from the simple things in life: my children, pets, a simple flower, a couple in love, or a great work of art. There is so much that is still beautiful and joyful in this world, and in my own humble way, I want to be able to share this beauty with those who can no longer see it.”

In 2015 Johns won Best in Show Award for Gallopalooza, and just this year she was awarded First Place in the LVA Plein Art Paint Out at Botanica’s ReGeneration Fair.

Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
Education: BA, Art History, University of Louisville
Website: http://carriejohns.wixsite.com/painting
Instagram: @hotlines_art

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"Julie" by carrie Johns, acrylic, 12x12in, 2017

"Great Wave (Hokusai)" by Carrie Johns, Full Size Etch-a-Sketch, 2016

"Play Ball" by Carrie Johns, graphite, 16x20in, 2017, POR

"Frosty Mug" by Carrie Johns, acrylic, 5ftx3in, 2017

Written by Keith Waits. Entire contents copyright © 2017 Louisville Visual Art. All rights reserved.

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Vignette: Shawn Marshall - Open Studio Weekend Artist

“Painting is a restorative and meditative ‘practice’” – Shawn Marshall

"Rusted Edges" by Shawn Marshall, oil on canvas, 20x20x1.5in, 2017, POR

When Shawn Marshall speaks about ‘restorative and meditative practice,’ it is a clue to what lies behind the simplicity of her paintings. Previous work has been more complex compositionally, but the spare and uncluttered landscape form that she is preoccupied with here seems less a document of a time and place and more about an internal mental or emotional state.

Photo by Jessica Ebelhar.

“For me, painting is an outlet to release intuitive energy and let go of preconceived notions of self-imposed rules or judgments of how I and my work interpret and portray the world. Though my architectural background and training often manifests itself in my work, it doesn’t constrain the freedom of expression. Using palette knives and sharp edged tools I create a three-dimensional surface on the canvas, always striving to create a balance between the built-up yet refined impasto and the underlying landscape beyond. Painting is a restorative and meditative ‘practice’ as I create what I refer to as ‘inward landscapes.’”

The harmony achieved belies the type training and experience we might assume for an artist coming from the exacting and technical architecture training, and the viewer must ask how much of Marshall’s work is a journey in the opposite direction; the training providing foundation but the action of painting a break away from that rigor and formal discipline to achieve a peaceful resolve.

Professionally, Marshall has worked as an Architectural Designer for several years, but most recently has taught at public schools in the Louisville area, including her current position as Visual Arts Teacher at North Oldham High School in Goshen, KY.

"Shoreline" by Shawn Marshall, oil on canvas, 24x18x1.5in, 2017, POR

Marshall is a member of PYRO Gallery in Louisville, and recently was included in two group exhibits, Selfies & Self-Portraits: 21 C Artists… at Viridian Artists Gallery, New York, NY, and The Modern Landscape at New Editions Gallery, Lexington, KY. She will be having a solo exhibit at Craft[s] Gallery & Mercantile in March 2018.

Shawn Marshall will be participating in the 2017 Open Studio Weekend, sponsored by Louisville Visual Art and University of Louisville’s Hite Art Institute. Her studio in Downtown Louisville will be open the weekend of November 4 and 5. Tickets for Open Studio Weekend will go on sale October 16. Click here for more information.

Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
Education: 1992, Bachelor of Architecture, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY; 1996, Master of Architecture, Minor Fine Arts, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY; 2009, Master of Art in Teaching, Bellarmine University, Louisville, KY
Website: www.shawnlmarshall.com
Instagram: shawnmarshall

"Spark" by Shawn Marshall, oil on canvas, 12x16x1.5in, 2017, POR

"Phosphorescence" by Shawn Marshall, oil on canvas, 20x24x1.5in, 2017, POR

"rising Light" by Shawn Marshall, oil on canvas, 24x24x1.5in, 2017, POR

Written by Keith Waits. Entire contents copyright © 2017 Louisville Visual Art. All rights reserved.

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Vignette: Jill Baker - Open Studio Weekend Artist

The Importance of Light

"Gondolas" by Jill Baker, oil, 30x20in, 2017, NFS/Prints available $200

Jill Baker chooses many subjects, and her facility with a brush is informed by a lifetime of painting, but in the images captured when she is away from home we see a her most highly developed sense of composition. She travels to New York, France and Italy to paint and exhibit her work, and has exhibited her work throughout the world: Paris (Palais des Congres), Florence (Palazzo Strozzi), Seoul, South Korea (U.S. Embassy), New York (Goethe Haus, among others) and elsewhere.

In “Gondolas,” there is a confident exploration of the space, both expansive and intimate; a tight configuration of boats only one set of repetitious forms, nestled together in shadow, while the architecture fills out the frame with other shapes stacked up in the distinctive Italian sunlight.

"My Room In Arles" by Jill Baker, oil, 8x10in, 2017, $5000/Prints available $200

“My Room in Arles,” despite the change in location, feels like it could be the inside of one of those windows. Perhaps the light is more diffuse, but she once again captures the pattern and relationship of shapes within the room.

Betraying the restless itch of creativity that is characteristic of so many artists, Baker is also a writer who has been a journalist, a travel writer (“Elba Journal”). a novelist (“My Turn”), and a poet (“Poems of Accord and Satisfaction”).

As an artist, Baker has done numerous illustrations for publishing houses and major magazines and has worked in production for newspapers and for Institutional Investor magazine on Madison Avenue, in New York. She has illustrated several books, including eight by Lee Pennington, including his “Appalachian Newground,” published in 2016.

Jill Baker will be participating in the 2017 Open Studio Weekend, sponsored by Louisville Visual Art and University of Louisville’s Hite Art Institute. Her  studio in Middletown will be open the weekend of November 4 and 5. Tickets for Open Studio Weekend will go on sale October 16. Click here for more information.

"I am very proud of my new studio, which is a Department of Energy Net Zero building, the first one in Louisville, with 22 solar panels on the roof, radiant heated floors, all LED lights within, passive solar heating and cooling (I took inspiration from Bernheim Forest buildings), with huge windows on the north for indirect light. I designed it myself."

Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
Age: 74
Education: BA in Fine Arts, Baylor University (Waco, Texas); studied at the Academia di Belle Arti (Florence, Italy); MFA in Painting, Pratt Institute (New York City)
Gallery Representative: Manhattan Arts (New York City); Contemporary Arts Gallery (New Harmony, Indiana)
Website: http://www.jillbaker.com

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Jill Baker's studio

 "Lavaski" by Jill Baker, Watercolor, 18X24in, 2017, $600

"Guitarist" by Jill Baker, oil, 20x24in, 2017, $750 

"Man Entangled" by Jill Baker, Pen & ink, 11X14in, 2017, $1000/Prints available $200

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Written by Keith Waits. Entire contents copyright © 2017 Louisville Visual Art. All rights reserved

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Vignette: Sander (Sandra Chu) - Open Studio Weekend Artist

“I knew at an early age that art was going to be a strong influence,” – Sandra Chu

"River View" by Sandra Chu, mixed media, 20x24in, 2017, $450

For Sandra Chu, who paints under the nom de brosse “Sander,” art is a family tradition, beginning with her grandfather who painted cathedral frescos in Milan, cousin Leon Battista Alberti, artist and architect from Florence, Aunt Eleanor Marfisi, who was an author, artist, and musician, her Uncle Caesar Berra who encouraged her to paint as a child, and her mother who still painted at the age of 96. “I knew at an early age that art was going to be a strong influence in my life and I wanted to learn as much as possible. Whenever I travel I go to every museum and gallery to study and experience the work. Impressionism struck a particular chord with me because it broke the rules of academic painting by giving colors primacy over lines. Art has always been a passion of mine and now, I can pursue my dream full time.”  

"Sunkissed" by Sandra Chu, acrylic, 65x40in, 2015, $2600

“Nom de brosse” translates as “brush artist,” but Chu works her acrylic paints mostly with a palette knife, building layers through glazing and scraping. The results are classic examples of bold, abstract expressionist compositions that are sometimes minimalist: “My paintings are not representational allowing the viewer to use their imagination to tell their own story. My paintings reflect what I feel in my heart and imagination, not what I see in front of me, which translates not to a painting full of emotion and thought.” 

Sander will be participating in the 2017 Open Studio Weekend, sponsored by Louisville Visual Art and University of Louisville’s Hite Art Institute. Her studio in the Clifton neighborhood will be open the weekend of November 4 and 5. Tickets for Open Studio Weekend will go on sale October 16. Click here for more information.

After Open Studio Weekend, she will be participating in Arts on CityPlace in LaGrange, Kentucky, November 11 & 12.

Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
Education: BA, Cal State Dominguez Hills in Studio Art, specializing in sculpture.        
Gallery Representative: Manhattan Arts (New York City); Contemporary Arts Gallery (New Harmony, Indiana)
Website: www.artbysander.com/gallery

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Studio shot of Sander

"Shadow Hunter" by Sandra Chu, acrylic, 28x22in, 2016, $550

"Silvery Moonlight" by Sandra Chu, acrylic, 65X40in, 2016, $2600

"Believe" by Sandra Chu, acrylic, acrylic, 40x54in, 2015, $2000

Written by Keith Waits. Entire contents copyright © 2017 Louisville Visual Art. All rights reserved.

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Vignette: Dru Pilmer - Open Studio Weekend Artist

“In all existence, there is nothing truly static
—change is the only constant.” – Dru Pilmer

"Tumbling" by Dru Pilmer, acrylic on canvas, 14x18in, 2017, $375

Abstract art is very often a direct expression of strong emotion, and Dru Pilmer views those emotions as a meaningful connection to the natural world, particularly in the organic rhythms that are integral to our environment.

“My work is about the emotions and movement of energy that pulsates in the natural world. One way of thinking about energy is that it is the power to make something happen. In painting, I draw from my experience as a voice teacher, an actor, and a musical theatre dancer to communicate emotion through color and movement.   In all these forms, I'm most curious about improvisation and the energy that is ignited in discovery. Movement is central to improvisation. In all existence, there is nothing truly static—change is the only constant. There is a continuous exchange of sub-atomic particles in matter—matter that includes us, the things of this Earth, other planets, stars, and galaxies. This knowledge, at once disconcerting and consoling, speaks to a greater mysterious connection.” 

"Lovenado 2" by Dru Pilmer, acrylic on canvas, 12x9in, 2017, $175

“My hope as a painter is that the energetic feeling of improvisation and movement translated into color and form reaches the viewer, evoking something of the greater mysteries of existence, the natural world, and the struggles of human experience; and that my explorations transforms my experience first as a human being, and then, as a painter.” 

Pilmer currently has paintings on exhibit at the Hyatt Andaz Boutique Hotel, Savannah, Georgia, and in Louisville, Kentucky at Bistro 301 on Market Street and the Camel Gallery & Lounge, Bistro 1860 on Mellewood Avenue through August 31, 2018

Dru Pilmer will be participating in the 2017 Open Studio Weekend, sponsored by Louisville Visual Art and University of Louisville’s Hite Art Institute. Her pop-up studio at the Green Building Gallery in the NuLu neighborhood will be open the weekend of November 4 and 5. Tickets for Open Studio Weekend will go on sale October 16. Click here for more information.

Hometown: Blackwater, Mississippi
Education: MFA, University of Louisville; BFA Mississippi University for Women; extensive study with Shakespeare & Company in Lenox, Massachusetts
Instagram: drupilmerart

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"Eye of Calm" by Dru Pilmer, acrylic on canvas, 12x12in, 2017, $250

"Year of Battle" by Dru Pilmer, acrylic on canvas, 10x10in, 2017, $175

"The Conversation" by Dru Pilmer, acrylic on canvas, 30x30in, 2017, $1,430

"Year of Challenge" by Dru Pilmer, acrylic on canvas, 10x10in, 2017, NFS

Written by Keith Waits. Entire contents copyright © 2017 Louisville Visual Art. All rights reserved.

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