Turning Wood Into Art: The Jane and Arthur Mason Collection
April 3 - June 14, 2009
Read more about the exhibition here.
Wood Student + Faculty Exhibition: April 3-29 in the Commons
Related Programs:
Louise Hibbert - Wood Artist in Residence
Open studio hours:
May 11-15 & May 18-22: 10:30am - 7:30pm, M-F
May 16 at ART:24: 10:00am - 6:00pm
Born in Southampton, England, Hibbert graduated from the University of Brighton in 1994 with a BA (Hons.) degree in 3D design. Inspired by patterns and forms in nature, she has been particularly drawn to the microscopic forms of plankton and formed a design partnership with Sarah Parker-Eaton. Her ideas derive from an exploration of form, texture, colour and symmetry and originate on the lathe. She carves, airbrushes inks, and applies resins to create the required effects. Her work has been exhibited at the Berman Museum of Art, Collegeville, PA, the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, England, the Brookfield Craft Center, Brookfield, CT and at the World Conference on Phytoplankton Productivity, Bangor, England.
Visit Louise Hibbert’s website here
InGrained - Women and Wood Art : May 29-31
The InGrained – Women and Wood Art symposium will focus primarily on the creativity and achievements of women artists working with wood. Beginning with Friday night’s wine and cheese reception (6:30-7:30 PM), Arthur and Jane Mason will talk about their passion for collecting turned wood pieces. On Saturday from 9 AM to 6 PM artists Virginia Dotson, Michelle Holzapfel, Connie Mississippi, Merryll Saylan, Betty Scarpino and Hayley Smith will present artist talks and demonstrations. Admission fee for Saturday is $20. Sunday will be a free Community Day from 1 PM to 4 PM with talks and demonstrations by VisArts wood faculty Barbara Dill, Doug Finkel, Tom Crabb and Nick Pollok. The symposium and visiting and resident artists are supported by a grant from the Windgate Charitable Foundation.
View the Symposium schedule here.
Art & Coffee:
Tuesday, April 14 ~ 9:30-10:30
Nancy Hugo: Author of Remarkable Trees of Virginia Green Thoughts: the art and craft of combining passion, pictures, and prose.
Tuesday, April 28 ~ 9:30-10:30
Metro Modern: What is sexy in mid-century wood?
Tuesday, May 12 ~ 9:30-10:30
Wood Cut Prints with Dennis Winston
Second Friday Sampler:
Friday, May 8 - Louise Hibbert
“CUT!” Film Series: Films about Wood:
In conjunction with the themes of the exhibition
MATERIAL AESTHETICS: Saturday, April 4 @ 2pm
Hand and Eye: Touch Wood
(55 min) 1988
Middle school through adult
Whether making a chair or carving a magnificent totem pole, an artist lets the individuality of the wood express its own characteristics, along with his or her personal vision. Artisans George Nakashima and Wendell Castle are among many who enrich this program with their thoughts about wood as a creative medium.
PROCESS + IMAGE: Saturday, April 18 @ 2pm
African Carving: A Dogon Kanaga Mask
(19 min) 1975
Middle school through adult
The Kanaga mask is used in sacred rituals of the Dogon, a people who live in the Republic of Mali, West Africa. The very carving of the Kanaga mask is an important ritual. The carver must find a proper Tagoda tree from which to make the mask; prayers and offerings are presented so that the tree-spirit will allow the carver to use its sacred wood. This film, by noted photographer Eliot Elisofon, sensitively documents the mask-carving ritual and the use of the mask in a sacred ceremony.
Japanese Prints: The Floating World
(22 min) 1997
High school through adult
The exquisite artistry of Japanese “Ukiyo-e” woodcuts, made in the 17th-19th centuries is legendary. This program shows how life of the period was revealed in the images and traces the development of the printing technique from single block black-and-white to full color prints. Works by masters such as Moronobu, Sugimura Jihei, Masanobu, Harunobu, Shunsho, Shaqraku, Utamaro, Hokusai, and Hiroshige are shown as well as examples from the Torii and Kaigetsudo Schools.
STORY TELLING: Saturday, May 9 @ 2pm
Tangible Spirits with Alison Saar
(27 min) 1994
High school through adult
Alison Saar is an African-American sculptor who is interested in making art that can be understood by all people. She uses common materials that she finds-wood, metal, pieces of glass, nails-to create figures that express strong human emotions such as loneliness, pain, and joy. Many of her works are influenced by African and Native-American cultures. This video presents a beautiful mixture of poetry, close-ups of Saar’s compelling work, and her personal reflections on her heritage and artistic development. It is enriched with sensitive dance performances by Norvell Robinson, Jr., and a soundtrack by composer Butch Morris.
It’s One Family: Knock on Wood
(23 min) 1982
Four generations of an Italian family in New York, the Manteos, carry on a revered craft tradition by making life-size marionettes and presenting them in public performance. In the film, we meet Papa Mike and Ida Manteo, their children and grandchildren, a family bound together by a craft that dates back to the 16th century.
DESIGN: Saturday, May 23 @ 2pm
Cut Loose: New American Furniture Makers
(29 min) 1993
In this visually stimulating and upbeat video, viewers follow four furniture makers in their daily lives and as they work in their studios. Visit Philip Agee and see his colorful bent plywood furniture, strongly influenced by American design of the 1930s-1950s. Walk through a junkyard with Jeff Benedetto as he scavenges for the castoff industrial materials he uses in his visceral, unconventional furniture. Garry Knox Bennett opens his home and studio to show us his eccentric furniture made of plated metals, colored woods and plastic, built with a strong dose of irreverence and humor. See how Gail Fredell’s elegant and beautifully crafted work is inspired by the ruggedness and solitude of California countryside. Throughout this video, the underlying theme reinforced by all the furniture makers is the power of the creative process to enhance the spirit and activate individual imagination.
Greene & Greene: The Art of Architecture
(57 min) 2003
During the early 20th century heyday of the Arts and Crafts movement in America, Brothers Charles and Henry Greene took an intensely artistic approach to the design of houses and interiors. More so than peer Frank Lloyd Wright they took special interest in environmental details such as woodwork, furniture, lighting fixtures, tile, rugs, and art glass. They blended American, European, and Asian architectural concepts. 15 of their masterpieces are here including the Gamble and Blacker houses in
TREE LIFE: Saturday June 16 @ 2pm
TBA
