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Jam Side Down: Mosaics by Isabel Margolin

Oct 12, 2016

Hope & Feathers Framing and Gallery hosts Jam Side Down, mosaics by Amherst artist Isabel Margolin, November 2nd through 23rd.

Isabel Margolin’s path to mosaics was a result of several paths not taken. Specifically, had her second grade teacher not cited her artwork as a demonstration of how not to draw; had her lack of manual dexterity and 20/20 vision not prevented her from competency in a jewelry course; and had her attempts in pottery not resulted in unintended malformed objects, she might never have signed up for a weekend course in mosaics, where her native inclination for creating patterns with color, texture, and materials found fruition. Add a risk factor — because her mosaics are done in the indirect method — and the synergy between artist and medium is complete.

Isabel creates mosaics via the indirect method: materials are placed face-side-down on sticky paper, then turned over onto a bed of cement. It is through a certain controlled randomness, a willingness to cede expectations to gravitational forces and sticky tape, that she applies the indirect technique to expand the boundaries of this art form. It is a process of chance, choice, and discovery.

Isabel’s mosaics are also available for purchase in our online shop.

About Isabel Margolin:
Isabel has been creating mosaic art since 2009, and exhibiting her work since 2011. Her art has recently shown in juried exhibits at the Society of American Mosaic Artists in San Diego, CA, and Philadelphia, PA; and the Museum of Biblical Art in Dallas, TX. She currently resides in Amherst, MA. www.isabelmargolinmosaics.com

Q&A with Isabel

What inspires you?
Wallpaper, fabric, sewer covers, fashion, art, marbles, and the list continues. It is inspiring to look at the arts in different cultures and at different times: samplers from the 1800’s, modernist jewelry by Al Smith, ceramic decoration by William Morris, or the dynamic Memphis Movement. Some of these artists were products of their environment, others changed their environment.

Where do you work?
I work in my son’s old bedroom. It can feel fairly cramped with a large bed and five bookcases filled with jars containing glass. Even the cat has trouble navigating the narrow path to my work desk. That said, not having designated studio space has not impeded my work or creativity.

What is your creative process like?
I use a technique called the indirect method. This means that I place pieces of cut glass face-side-down on sticky paper. Because much of the glass I use has a black film on the back, it makes it difficult to figure out the effectiveness of my color choices. It is also difficult to judge whether the pattern is well-executed, or a mish-mash of ideas. Where most artists’ shun the indirect method, and I am sure you understand why, it gives me permission to be daring. In other words, it really ups the learning curve. I usually begin a piece with enthusiasm; but after a few evenings, my initial confidence turns to anxiety. My faith is slightly restored by the end of the process, but I am never really certain whether the piece is a success until the cement has dried and the grout has been applied. When it works, it is magic.

Advice to old artists:
Art, any type of art, enhances your daily life. Just the act of going to a museum makes your world view expand. Don’t let limits like age, race, gender, or class, stop you. Find a medium that inspires you and get to work.

Earthlings: Paintings by Perry Carter

Sep 13, 2016

Hope & Feathers Framing and Gallery hosts Earthlings, paintings by Northampton artist Perry Carter, October 6th through 29th

As an artist, Perry is inspired by the unique personality and spirit of her subjects, and she strives to convey what speaks to her, and perhaps amplify some aspect of their individuality through the medium.

Sometimes it’s downy feathers or soft fur juxtaposed with a tough, weathered spirit that ignites her curiosity… or the subtle combination of emotional vacancy and fear flashing in the eyes. Maybe she’s magnetized by the hard angles and dramatic intensity of a creature’s aura, or the evolutionary wonder of the spectacular palettes of wings. Rather than merely capturing a likeness with her brushes, she strives to express something ineffable in her work.

Color, or its absence, is inevitably part of a subject’s unique ‘atmosphere,’ and for her, oils provide the ideal medium. The world teems with fascinating creatures we so rarely take the time to fully appreciate, given today’s nonstop pace, in which doing is valued over being. And yet we are all part of one invisible, sacred web of being. Perry’s paintings are her attempt to explore and convey facets of these worlds-within-worlds.

An opening reception will be held on Thursday, October 6th, in conjunction with Amherst Arts Night Plus, from 5pm to 8pm.

About Perry Carter:
Perry Carter is a self-taught painter with a background in photography and interior design. She primarily works in portraiture, inspired by Earth’s many creatures. Her work has appeared in magazines, newspapers, websites, and CD artwork. She recently received a grant from The Turkeyland Cove Foundation for a painting residency on Martha’s Vineyard. In addition to her painting career, she maintains a private psychotherapy practice in Northampton, Massachusetts, where she lives with her talented musician husband and their two kooky spaniels.

 

 

Q&A with Perry

How old were you when you created your first artwork?
My father was an architect and my mother had a degree from RISD in illustration, so I grew up in a family focused on art and design. I picked up photography at a very young age and followed our family pets around taking photos of them. Some of the families in my neighborhood had had professional family portraits taken by a local photographer named Arthur Whitty who liked to shoot in natural lighting with very New England-y settings. I started copying his style, making my 8 year old friends pose against birch trees or stretch out in the grass pretending to be in a field of flowers. It was very corny, but it’s interesting to me now to see how those seeds are still evident in my creative work, through my focus on nature, people, and portraiture.

When did you know you wanted to be an artist?
As young as age 6, I knew I wanted to “find my passion”–something I loved and was good at. I was aware that if you loved your work, life would be much more interesting. I also felt very insecure as the youngest of six children, and wanted reassurance that I had value as a a person because I was “good at something.” So if I tried an art form for fun, I quickly put a lot of pressure on it to be “my passion.” I approached my interests obsessively but also commitment-phobically, like a bachelorette who’s afraid to settle down. It took me a long time to untangle that.

Why did you choose your medium?
I studied writing, music, photography, ceramics, the healing arts, and interior design before discovering painting. I took a break from my psychotherapy practice to pursue interior design training about 6 years ago, and finally took my first drawing and rendering class! We had to learn to convey our interior design ideas using markers and gouache. The teacher was a painter, and somehow I moved from the class assignments to buying canvases and paint. Like my first photographs, my first little painting was of my dog. Something clicked for me about the freedom, simplicity, and privacy that painting offered, which I hadn’t found in other mediums. I started with acrylics and moved on to water-miscible oil paints, which I adore. I have still never taken a painting class!

Where do you work?
I work out of a studio space in my own house. I find it easier to weave painting into the fabric of my life by living where I paint. My husband Russell (“Lord Russ”) is a musician and works out of a studio space in our house as well, so we both prioritize creative expression. I think I might have abandoned painting like everything else if Russell hadn’t been so encouraging of me from the start.

What is your creative process like? How do you work?
The only consistency in my process is that I inundate myself with images while gestating ideas for a new painting. I like to stay inspired, but ideas can come from anywhere, and often have no connection to what I thought I was setting out to do. If I start a new painting and it doesn’t feel right, I might abandon it early on. Other times, I push myself to finish things for the discipline. Sometimes I meditate for guidance on a painting!

What do you like about being an artist in the valley?
Being an “emerging artist” in the valley, I’m still discovering the riches of the art community. I really appreciate the wealth of interesting, creative people here–the writers, musicians, painters, and other artists–and the wide range of opportunities to see or share art in galleries spaces both large and small, humble and prestigious. It’s inspiring to live in a place where so many people prioritize their creative work above material wealth, often living very simply in order to do what they love.

RETURN: Illustrations by Aaron Becker

Jul 22, 2016

September 1 – October 1, 2016

RETURN to the world of JOURNEY, with an exhibit celebrating the artwork behind the award winning wordless picture book trilogy by local author and illustrator, Aaron Becker. Lauded a “masterwork” by the New York Times and selected as one of the newspaper’s best illustrated books of 2013, JOURNEY went on to win a prestigious Caldecott Honor. The series continued with QUEST in 2014, and this August concluded with RETURN, which debuted at #1 on the New York Times Best Seller List. The show will include original artwork, sketches, artist proofs, and giclée prints from the series.

Prints, original sketches and watercolors, and artist proofs are available for purchase in our online shop.

About Aaron Becker: Aaron Becker was born in Baltimore and moved to California to attend Pomona College where he scored his first illustration job designing t-shirts for his water polo team. After attending the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, he worked in the Bay Area as a concept designer for film companies such as ImageMovers, Disney, and Lucasfilm.  “JOURNEY”, his debut picture book, was the recipient of a 2014 Caldecott Honor. Aaron spent the 2014-15 school year with his family living abroad in Granada, Spain where he finished work on his picture book trilogy’s final chapter, “RETURN”, publishing this August. Upon his  return to the states, his family added two cats and five chickens to their Pelham home.