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SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2009 ARt
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The art of ZACH SEEGER
Smokescreen
Head
Nightmare
Television
People Falling from the Sky
Starve
OK
... Can you call it Zach Seeger's work is the stuff dreams are made of. Whether or not you find them good dreams or bad really isn't of consequence. He's taken the concept of character in an entirely new and different direction, stretching the imagination with color and flow. Hidden in between those layers of figurative pigmentation are the big ideas that many artists either don't think about or fail to convey, so involved are they with "just the right" structure or classical style and form. What the viewer finds in Seeger's work he or she has to work for. The images for the most part aren't all that evident, and even when they are, they lend themselves to further interpretation. A recent installation at Spool Mfg. gallery in Johnson City, New York, had me wondering whether each piece was a stand alone, as in a walk-through sculpture gallery, or if they were there playing off one another like the corners of a room. Being that nothing is ever simple, it was the latter. Seeger grew up near Binghamton, New York, and graduated in 2001 from Binghamton University with a BFA in painting. Among his professors was artist Don DeMauro, founder of Spool, where Seeger has served on the board since its inception. Spool is "self-described" as "a contemporary art space committed to the existential, personal, social, and political dimensions of the contemporary moment." It's more than a gallery; it's an arts center where screenings, dance, poetry, music and other performances take place and take shape. In 1999, while still a student, Seeger had fellowship to Vermon Studio Center. "So, what I was working on was just making stuff -- experimenting and exploring paint. Up to that point, I was primarily a sculptor -- so I just set to work to make as many paintings as possible -- not worrying about style or finished product. I basically learned how to be an artist -- and how to socialize with other artists." Seeger is scheduled to return to Vermont Studio on a partial fellowship in November. This time, however, he'll be going as a working artist. You can see more of Seeger's work at www.zachseeger.com. The site also includes gallery affiliations and a listing of recent group and solo exhibitions. -- MRF
Lake Mist Triptych
Beth McCoy Evans Painting in Batik Beth McCoy Evans began doing batik in 1989. At that time she operated a gift/gallery shop in Cuchara, Colorado, which featured her paintings, hand painted clothing and accessories. After closing the shop, she was able to devote most of her time to her new passion -- batik. Entirely self-taught, she experimented extensively in her studio with waxes, dyes and a variety of fabrics. Beginning with simple decorative designs on clothing, she eventually realized that she could use her painting and drawing skills to a greater degree using the batik medium.
Pears and Turquoise Shadows Inspired by nature, travel, and just intriguing color and form, wherever it is found, her subjects are varied. She finds the batik process an endless challenge and still delights in the image gradually appearing on the cloth with each successive dyeing. Currently she is working on a pointillist technique in her paintings, studying the color theory used by painters such as Seurat, and adapting it for the batik medium.
Jam and Oranges Beth has exhibited in the U.S. and abroad at the Sangre de Cristo Arts Center, Pueblo, Colorado, the Aspen Arts Center, the Foothills Arts Center, Golden, Colorado, Jezebel Gallery, New Mexico, and the Gallerie Smend, Koln, Germany, among many others. She has taught batik to children at the Colorado Academy, Denver, and the LaVeta Children's Art Workshop, and adult courses at the Beacon, Hastings UK, Gallerie Smend, and with the Trinidad Arts Council, Colorado.
Ginger Cat Born in 1961, Beth is originally from Maryland, but has resided in Southern Colorado for much of the past 20 years. She and her husband, Jonathan Evans, also a batik artist, divide their time between homes in the Himalayan foothills of India in Village Ayarpani, and the foothills of the Rockies in Colorado City, Colorado. Beth's batik paintings of Dartmoor and Devon illustrate "Hotel Raj", an excerpt from the unpublished novel by Jonathan Evans, which appears on the fiction page of ragazine.cc. -- (Click here)
Collage: The
Works of Robert Hazzon by Phyllis Mass . Native
New Yorker and current
Times Square
Composed
from an assemblage of different forms which when completed create a new
whole, the word collage is derived from the French word coller,
meaning “to glue.” Its origins can be traced back to
Spinpeacock
“Beginning a collage is a wonderful experience because it frees your mind from your more disciplined training,” Hazzon says. “Painting and photography require a tremendous amount of focus, especially since you’re usually working with a single image. But collage construction is akin to the enfolding of one’s life -- especially if you believe in fate. Initially, there is the child-like discovery process wherein the end result is unknown even to the artist. It is his task to discover what the collage wants to become. And although instant gratification exists every step of the way, it is only when the artist adds each new element that a new sense of space, light and idea is born.”
Third Eye
Prior to owning a computer and the advent of Photoshop, all of Hazzon’s images were cut from photographs found in magazines and books. “The problem with all that work is that it can’t be shown commercially because there are copyright laws and I would be breaking every one of them. As a photographer with over 30 years of images, it finally occurred to me to use my own pictures. This way, I was not limiting myself to only the kind of images I enjoy working with. Though previously I was an expert cutter with Exacto knives and scissors, today, I cut out pieces of photographs with my mouse. Since I don’t use any textural elements in my collages, the computer is a perfect vehicle. Making collage the old-fashioned way also required expert gluing; however you were then faced with the problem of wrinkles, overlapping issues and the paper’s longevity.”
Hula
Working from printed material was extremely limiting for Hazzon, who had to use the existing images as they were, since he did not want to paint on paper. “In Photoshop, there are so many options in terms of changing an existing element; from the lighting, to the color and even to the shape itself. “Stamp 1 &2” are perfect examples. I was able to go into the image and create overlapping shapes with different light elements. While I’ve always enjoyed Surrealism, it never entered my work as a painter. Collage allows me to explore those Surrealistic realms and that is why I find it exciting.”
Hazzon admits that when he sits down to make a collage, it usually ends up being a series. He claims that once a “formula” for the composition presents itself, along with a “conceptual idea,” he can go for at least two weeks straight only focused on keeping that idea alive.
“Images like “Ballet”, “Peacock, “Dreaming” (the blue room) all fall into this category. “Pharoah” takes things a step further as explores a spiritual parody by means of showing the visual similarities between the Egyptian Gods and contemporary mankind.” “While doing these works, I feel I am being directed from an outside source. I can almost hear a voice telling me, ““Cut out that piece and put it there.”” A lot of it happens that way until later in the piece when I bring my critical designer self back into the picture. That’s when I make adjustments for the final image.”
Skyline
"Collage epitomizes a reality we experience in all of life. It is the placement of one element juxtaposed against another that will either enhance or diminish its qualities. In “Ballet,” a piece of driftwood, when positioned against what appears to be a torso, becomes an extended arm. When you are the orchestrator of your life, doing a collage can be a source of personal empowerment because it can extend into every facet of everything you do.” Artist Robert Hazzon can be reached at 215-251-5934 or by email at hazzonr@aol.com
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