Up & Coming Weekly

Discovering Good Design in Local Arts Exhibitions by SONI MARTIN After visiting the Public Works exhibit at the Arts Council of Fayetteville/Cumberland County, and the Second National 2D Exhibition at the Cape Fear Studios, the domination of representational (often called realism) art in our area was reaffi rmed. Sponsored by the Fayetteville Public Works Commission, this year’s Public Works exhibit includes of the region’s 58 artists. Not a juried exhibit, anyone who practices the visual arts is able to exhibit their work in this unique public setting with a large 4th Friday audience. Selections for the winning awards in Public Works occurred after the tallying of public votes. Popular opinion voted the painting titled Tender Moments by Judith Stacey fi rst place; second place was awarded to Greg DeVore for his acrylic painting titled Church in the Wildwood; third place went to the oil painting titled Blue Zwartkop by Drota Quiroz. Honorable mentions were given to A. Jones Rodgers watercolor titled Nina Simone, Vocalist and Pianist and Wick Smith’s digital photography of Moon Over Frisco Pier. All the works selected for the awards are commendable; each artist used different approaches to subject, composition and technique. Visitors to the exhibit will enjoy the variety of images, in March. He has taken a mundane subject, a water tower behind a chain-link fence, and makes it signifi cant and monumental. He does this using a limited number of design elements and principles — value, line and shapes. Using a contrast of value to create mood, his dark water tower is back lit by daylight on the right side of the picture plane. The variety of lines creates interest and we look more closely at the qualities of the lines. The lines in his drawing represent edges and create patterns. In addition, the lines create value, direction and movement, emphasis, rhythm and are also used to create depth! A fence line diagonally cuts the airy background space into two distinct shapes — the top shape is proportionately two- thirds larger than the lower shape. The larger background shape is in contrast to the smaller, repeating pattern of shapes created by the lines of the chain-link fence. The line has one more purpose as shape maker! The Second National 2D Tower Next to PJ Elementary School In March by William Hodges. see artists they may be familiar with, and see that people of any age can participate. Knowing there were very young artists in the exhibit, I was drawn to the beautiful drawings by Alexander Bradley — three separate drawings juxtaposed to become one interpretation of nature. I was somewhat amazed to fi nd out that he had drawn one of the three images, an arrowhead, when he was only 11. Now 15-years-old, Bradley still draws and is combining his multiple works into one. Many strong works are in the exhibit, but I had to ask myself, “Why do I prefer a very limited number of the representational works?” After some refl ection I realized it was not the dominance of representational art that is disconcerting to me — it is something much more illusive, and yet, really quite simple. The answer is too many representational artists in this area simply don’t apply design. I propose a widespread number of representational artists may be thinking about composition, but not in terms of design — design is the underpinning of a good composition. Selecting one work to fully critique in Public Works is a way for me to express why I thought it was one of the strongest and how the artist used design to do more than describe his subject but express an essence. William Hodges has a charcoal drawing in the exhibit titled Tower Next to PJ Elementary School WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM Competition at Cape Fear Studios is also dominated by realism. Thirty-one works of art were selected for the exhibition from 22 artists; 10 of those artists were selected from the immediate area. The juror for this year’s competition was L. Diane Johnson, a noted plein- air landscape painter and instructor. Johnson selected works from artists across fi ve states. Second place went to Silvana Foti. A local artist and art professor, Foti’s abstract mixed-media work titled Hot Water is an excellent example of an artist who has an acute understanding of design. Third place went to an artist from Pennsylvania, Carol Volz Begley, for her paining titled Alley Behind East Main Street in Carnegie, Pennsylvania. Honorable mention was a People’s Choice Award for Babu of the Ngorongora by local artist Paula Fitzpatrick. In the exhibit, I preferred Fitzpatrick’s painting titled The Odd On due to the use of color and, you know, composition with a design underpinning. As well, I really enjoyed the works by several other local artists: an abstracted painting by Myong Blades titled Modern Growth; the painting titled Bowen Hardware by Brian Steverson; and mixed media Day Dreaming by Maria Marois. Each of the above artists were exhibiting some very exciting works and all utilized strong design principles to express an idea about nature or a city scape. I had to agree with the juror on the fi rst place award, a pastel drawing by Ray Hassard from Cincinnati titled High Water. Hassard has created a well-crafted pastel drawing that is not over worked, but understated in an eloquent way. His masterful handling of mark making and color attribute to the overall competence of his High Water by Ray Hassard design. The large dark shape of the train trusses on the left side of this picture fi eld is in rich shadows of browns and deep greens with specks of colors. The large dark shape of the trusses moves across the expanse of a river, asymmetrically balanced a distant small colorful structure is a symbol for the depth of fi eld. The beauty of Hassard’s design is that the large dark shape, the close up of the trusses, serves as a container, a compartment for other visual elements — line, mark and texture. The overall shape is still and monumental; while the lines, mark and texture are active and vibrant — alive with nature. The distant light across the river creates a shape across the top part of the space; visually bringing the viewer back to the large dark shape. It is an exquisite pastel drawing which was patiently planned for success. I can’t leave the Cape Fear Studio’s national competition without commenting on two other works. The small oil painting by Todd McDonald from South Carolina titled Settle Down and the watercolors by Wilma Wethington from Texas. Settle Down, by McDonald is a small, exquisite oil painting. He has an impeccable eye for composition as design. He has based his entire minimal landscape on the close up view of a narrow vertical tree form to the left side of the composition, a small area of natural light spreads outward from the top right of the canvas, the remainder of the landscape is a series of abstract painted marks that infers leaves. His use of color is masterful, his painted marks are the unifi er in the composition; as well, his painted marks are a shorthand symbol for fallen foliage. Lastly, you won’t know the beautiful, colorful, minimalist watercolor of the full fi gure(s) in an environment, by Wilma Wethington, is actually the work of a 90-year-old artist. Beautifully crafted and well designed, Wethington is an example of how art can continue to be a creative and be a successful part of anyone’s life. Wethington’s work is contemporary and relevant in style. Artists and art patrons will want to see both exhibits. Public Works remains at the Arts Council in historic downtown until May 22, 2010. The Cape Fear’s national competition will remain up until May 26, 2010. SONI MARTIN, Contributing Writer COMMENTS? 484-6200 ext. 106 or Editor@upandcomingweekly.com. MAY 19-25, 2010 UCW 13

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