SKY

Group Exhibition

Adam Belt, Russell Crotty, Linda Ekstrom, Joanne Julian, Jon Ng Jacqueline Woods, Stephanie Washburn

Opening June 14, 5-7pm

• Artist/Member Private Preview 4-5pm

• Free Community Opening 5-7pm

The sky has long been a source of inspiration, mystery, and contemplation. In SKY, six artists interpret the vast expanse above us—its scientific, spiritual, poetic, and symbolic dimensions—through a diverse range of media and perspectives.

Gwynn Murrill
 Ceramics

Opening June 14, 5-7pm

• Artist/Member Private Preview 4-5pm

• Community Opening 5-7pm

From the Artist: My primary point of departure when beginning a new piece is the memory of a form that caught my attention; it could be a cat walking through the studio, a coyote jumping from the brush, a ballet dancer casually stretching, or the inferred three-dimensional form of the bodies in a Japanese woodblock print.
To recreate this imagined form, I begin the sculptural process by reducing blocks of wood or foam to a more recognizable shape. The manifestation of the idea takes on a life of its own which I see through until the end, even if it ends up in a slightly different form from the original imagined one.
I am most well known for my animal forms. As I am surrounded in my daily life by the fauna that inhabit the California countryside, it came naturally that I began to use their lines and shapes as the inspiration for my exploration of form.
My interest lies in using my chosen subject as a means to create a form that is simultaneously abstract and figurative. I enjoy the challenge of trying and take the form that nature makes so well and to derive my own interpretation of it.

Linda Ekstrom

Starry Offerings

Opening June 14, 5-7pm

• Artist/Member Private Preview 4-5pm

• Community Opening 5-7pm

Artist Statement:
Creating these mandalas is a meditation on the cosmos- the vast star filled universe into which we are born. Each mandala begins with a grid, a foundational structure that guides the bilateral and radial symmetries forming the intricate patterns. The grid offers a starting point of order—a framework we use to shape the worlds around us, from the massive scale of cities to the intimate art of domestic quilting.

Symmetry provides balance.  It quiets the body, calms the mind, eases tension, and draws the viewer inward, into the contemplative space of the mandala. It offers a gentle invitation to stillness.

These mandalas emerged in response to the political chaos surrounding us. They are my humble attempt to create order amidst disorder—to draw the viewer both away-from-and-in-to a space of respite and peace.

From a distance, one sees the individual patterns. Up close, the viewer’s reflection appears within the constellation of tiny stars—each face a part of the greater starry blue.

As a tribute to women, the mandalas are titled after stars in the universe that are also female names.

At the center of the installation is the hand embroidered artist book, Meditation on Blue (2022). The book is inspired by a quote from writer Rebecca Solnit, in which she reflects on the blue of distance, of nature, of water, sky and light.  The text can be found in her book A Field Guide to Getting Lost.

Join us on Saturday, June 14 from 5–8 PM for an evening of art and community at Vita Art Studios. Explore the 25 working artist studios, meet the artists, and get a behind-the-scenes look at their creative process. Free and open to the public. All are welcome!

Ruth & Joseph Reed Teen Exhibition Wall

Christopher Sullivan

Photography Exhibit

Opening June 14, 5-7pm

• Artist/Member Private Preview 4-5pm

• Community Opening 5-7pm