Artista Vista Returns

Carolina Arts Article regarding Artista Vista

See Kirkland Smith's television interview regarding Artista Vista HERE.

Vista Studios Artists Present

Vista Studio’s 13 resident artists invite the public to view “Prima Vista: Fresh Art at Vista Studios”, which will be on display April 26- May 10, 2011. There will be an opening on April 28^th, from 5:00-9:00pm, during the Artista Vista Celebration. Come see our new exhibition at VistaStudios/Gallery 80808 located at 808 Lady Street in the Vista. The artists will have their studios open for you to get a look at their newest work and processes.

                           

Non-objective painter, Ethel Brody, continues experimenting with structure and color in her “stripe” series. Taking visual clues from her daily life, she creates colorful, highly organized compositions with strong graphic qualities.

Stephen Chesley continues to offer the results of his dedication to painting. In “Orsman”, he alludes to Walter Inglis Anderson, after his following of Ralph Albert Blakelock and Albert Pinkham Ryder- a notation of the incredible art spirit of all three. In “Trees, Slight Wind”, Chesley experiments with George Inness’ application of the Swedenbourgian esthetic.

Pat Gilmartin's ceramic sculpture is presented as figurative works in contexts provided by found objects, making for interesting and ambiguous narratives. In "Magic Potion," for example, two people interact with each other as well as with their own images as seen in a mirror. The meaning of this narrative is left to the viewer to interpret.

Fiber artist, Susan Lenz, will present a new art quilt called “Endless Life” in the ongoing Grave Rubbing Art Quilt Series. Constructed from crayon-on-silk grave rubbings made in Lydford, England, the state of Maine and the District of Columbia, the series focuses on a profound sense of time, personal and universal mortality, and the ache of remembrance through passing generations. “Genius” was inspired by just one of dozens upon dozens of donated, mateless socks given for a public art project called "Looking For a Mate", sponsored by the Congaree Vista Guild at River Runner during last autumn's annual Vista Lights event.  Lenz will also display an installation of tagged keys called “Wall of Keys”, including “The Key to Happiness”, “The Key to Knowledge”, and “The Key to the Future”.

Sharon Collings Licata, sculptor, will exhibit works using Orange Utah Alabaster. In “Hand Aflame”, she creates an abstract where one can see both finger and flame shapes speaking to the color of the stone. In “Mountain Sunset”, the curves of the “hills” and ridges capture the orange light. 

Laurie McIntosh's new series of work, “Unspoken Communications”, invites the viewer to consider what our body’s movements are saying. These oil

pastels on paper are about body language and the idea of expressing and capturing an idea of a particular communication in a single image.

Michel McNinch is working on a fresh crop of new landscapes depicting the beauty of our state, from the mountains to the coast.

Kirkland Smith continues her work with post-consumer waste to create “3-Dimensional paintings” that from a distance appear representational but as the viewer moves closer become abstract- and the materials used come into focus.

Artists Jeff Donovan, Heidi-Darr Hope, Robert Kennedy, Laura Spong, and David Yaghjian will also present new work and open their studios at Vista Studios. The exhibition will be from April 26- May 10. Gallery hours are weekdays 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and weekends 1-4 p.m. Please call the Gallery 80808 at 803-252-6143 to confirm hours. Their website is: www.VistaStudios80808.com.

Another Great Happening

Matt Matthews is the author of Mercy Creek, winner of the 2010 South Carolina First Novel Prize. The book will be released in hardcover in May 2011 from Hub City Press.  

Vista Studio Artist, Michel McNinch's work was chosen for the cover art.

Matthews will attend the SC Book Festival at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center on May 14 and 15, 2011. All events are free and open to the public.  Order your copy HERE.

OPEN STUDIOS BACK IN COLUMBIA

SATURDAY + SUNDAY, MAY 21-22, 2011

701 Center for Contemporary Art (701 CCA) is excited to announce the return of Columbia Open Studios! During the weekend of May 21-22, 2011, we are reviving Open Studios in the City of Columbia and Richland and Lexington Counties, showcasing many of the talented visual artists in the South Carolina Midlands.

What is Columbia Open Studios, and what is its mission?

This weekend-long, self-guided tour of artists’ studios allows the public to meet the artists and see their working process. By letting people into artists’ studios, get a sense of how they work and interact directly with artists, 701 CCA Columbia Open Studios hopes to:

• Provide easy access for the community to the visual arts;
• Expose the public to the wealth of fine artists in Columbia and Richland and Lexington Counties;
• Create new marketing opportunities for artists;
• Generate excitement about area artists among seasoned collectors and first-time buyers 
• Further establish Columbia, SC, as a top destination for cultural tourism.

What’s the story?

In 2007 and 2008, 70 to 80 local artists opened their studios for Columbia Open Studios. The event then was held under the auspices of the now-defunct Columbia Festival of the Arts. After a two-year hiatus, 701 CCA is resurrecting the event. Columbia Open Studios fits 701 CCA’s mission of enhancing the enjoyment and understanding of contemporary art. 701 CCA is adding Columbia Open Studios to its broad range of activities, which include contemporary art exhibitions, an artist-in-residence program, concerts, dance performances and literary events. 

About 701 Center for Contemporary Art

701 Center for Contemporary Art in Columbia is South Carolina’s newest art destination for artists and art lovers alike.

701 Center for Contemporary Art (701 CCA) is a nonprofit, visual art center that promotes understanding, appreciation and enjoyment of contemporary art, the creative process and the role of art and artists in the community. 

The center also encourages interaction between visual arts and other art forms.

701 CCA offers:

• Exhibitions with a regional, national or international scope in the center’s 2,500 square-foot gallery

• An artist-in-residence program in a 1,200-square-foot live/work unit, where artists can concentrate fully on creating art during six, ten or twelve-week residencies

• The 701 CCA Plus program at the gallery, in between exhibitions, for performing, literary and media arts

• Educational programs for adults and children, including workshops, lectures, open studios, panel discussions, group tours, school presentations, etc.

Located in the former community center in Olympia, an historic mill village, all exhibitions and residencies during 701 CCA’s inaugural year, 2008-2009, engaged the legacy and materials of the textile industry, mill villages and mill workers.

Moving forward, 701 CCA maintains this focus while reaching out to bring contemporary artists and works of regional, national and international acclaim to Columbia, South Carolina. Join us!