Tag: rocky neck holiday art & fine crafts festival

Artist Spotlight Series – Jenny Rangan

Posted on by God's Morning

spotlight_jenny rangan

Spotlight on Jenny Rangan

Jenny grew up in Northern New Mexico in an adobe house with a woodstove, an outhouse, and a well for water, so her first experience of clay was living in it, with all its colors and curves and glorious decay.

Jenny officially fell in love with clay in college and earned a degree in Fine Art from UNM with an emphasis on Ceramics. Following graduation she created outdoor sculpture from adobe, apprenticed with Avra Leodas (current owner of Santa Fe Clay) in Santa Fe, NM, and made pit-fired pots from micaceous clay with Felipe Ortega in La Madera, NM. She then spent 20 years as a Bodyworker and Counselor, barely touching clay.

Inspired by classes at Cynthia Curtis’ Studio in Rockport, she has re-emerged over the last four years with full passion. Jenny loves to work sculpturally, combining thrown and handbuilt elements, aspiring to a combination of spontaneity and grace. Currently she enjoys creating functional art that can bring beauty, pleasure and meaning to everyday life.

This past August Jenny co-created and co-curated the first Cape Ann Ceramics Festival with Susan Hershey and Seyrel Williams at the Cultural Center at Rocky Neck, an amazing and very successful event.

Over the holidays her work will be in the Rocky Neck Holiday Art and Fine Crafts Festival 11/30-12/29, in Feast at Flatrocks in Lanesville through 12/29, in the Wearable Art and Home Décor Show and Sale at the Sawyer Free Library 12/14-15, and at Cynthia Curtis Student and Studio Pottery Show 12/13-12/22. Jenny’s work can also be seen at Artitudes in West Newton, MA

http://www.rockyneckartcolony.org/winter.php

E.J. Lefavour

Artist Spotlight Series – Susan Hershey

Posted on by God's Morning

spotlight_susan hershey

Artist Spotlight on Susan Hershey

Susan’s wood kiln is fired several times a year. Firings take anywhere from 15 to 25 hours to complete and require constant feeding of the fireboxes. A group of potters work together, and the firings are joyous events that can last late into the night or early morning. Before it can be opened, the kiln must cool for at least as long as it’s been hot. Some of the markings on the pots are a result of the ash and flames that swirl around inside during the firing.

Ben Ryterband, Susan’s first teacher at Mass College of Art & Design, introduced her to Japanese glazes. She feels very fortunate to have taken workshops and classes with Rockport potter/teacher, Cynthia Curtis, as well as Lanesville’s own potter par excellence Anni Melançon, Welsh potter Phil Rogers, Minnesota potter Linda Christainson, the Shino Warrior Malcolm Davis, North Carolina potter Michael Kline, wood fire guru Jack Troy, Tim Rowan, hand builder extraordinaire Hayne Bayless, Robert Briscoe, Ken Matsuzaki, Shoji Hamada’s grandson Tomoo Hamada, living legend Warren Mackenzie and New Hampshire wonder potter Karen Orsillo.

As Susan says: “Pots that look as though they’ve been dug up from the earth touch my soul; the Japanese aesthetic influences my work, as well as the powerful and beautiful ocean and granite that make living on Cape Ann so special and spiritual. I produce useful vessels and ceramics to please the eye and the heart in the belief that we all must give to the world love, honesty and beauty.”

You can see more of Susan’s work at The Cultural Center at Rocky Neck, 6 Wonson Street, East Gloucester during the Rocky Neck Holiday Art & Fine Crafts Festival

Saturdays and Sundays, Noon-4 PM

November 30 – December 29

http://rockyneckartcolony.org/winter.php

E.J. Lefavour

Artist Spotlight Series – belle + me

Posted on by God's Morning

spotlight_belle+me

Spotlight on belle + me (Anne Malveaux and Lisa LeVasseur)

Created by Anne Malvaux and Lisa LeVasseur, belle + me is a French-inspired line of cool scarves and cooler jewelry. Their hand-made pendants are one of a kind and they use “repurposed” metal, beads, and fabric when possible. These pendants are designed to be worn on their unique line of scarves, in a multitude of colors and designs.

belle + me’s fall/winter collection is very textural. Anne and Lisa have been working with unique stones, recycled glass, and great fabrics plus a fresh new line of scarves made of “re-used T-Shirts” exclusively made by Ipswich resident, Kate Dwyer.

You can see a great selection of belle + me scarves and jewelry at The Cultural Center at Rocky Neck, 6 Wonson Street, East Gloucester during the Rocky Neck Holiday Art & Fine Crafts Festival

Saturdays and Sundays, Noon-4 PM

November 30 – December 29

http://www.rockyneckartcolony.org/winter.php

E.J. Lefavour

Artist Spotlight Series – Deb Schradieck

Posted on by God's Morning

spotlight_deb schradieck

Spotlight on Deb Schradieck

A lifelong artist, Deb studied Illustration at Mass College of Art in Boston, graduating in 1981.

A resident of Westborough (central) MA, she has always craved the sea, and first came to Gloucester as a boater seeking a fun place to spend the weekend, and fell in love with Cape Ann. Now, she and her husband keep their boat at Pier 7 Marina in East Gloucester. This provides a seasonal base and a stepping-stone to living here year-round. This close proximity to the harbor creates good opportunities for photography, which then become references for artwork done later in the studio.

Her first summer in Gloucester, Deb walked into the Weaver Gallery and was so moved by Jeff’s work that she decided right then and there to make painting a priority. Inspired by the island’s natural beauty and dramatic light, and encouraged by the vibrant community of artists and support for the arts, she got to work. She has since produced dozens of watercolor paintings in a realistic style characterized by vivid color and dramatic light.

A full-time Realtor, Deb has, for many years, drawn house portraits in pen and ink that are given to clients as housewarming gifts. Using the same detailed technique and extensive experience in the medium, she created a 2014 Calendar featuring familiar Gloucester scenes in pen and ink.

Deb is an artist member of the North Shore Arts Association and the Rocky Neck Art Colony. Her work is on display seasonally at the Khan Studio/Good Morning Gloucester Gallery and at the Gallery at the Accommodations, also on Rocky Neck. Visit her website at http://www.DebsArtGallery.com.

You can see more of Deb’s work and find her amazing Gloucester 2014 Calendar at The Cultural Center at Rocky Neck, 6 Wonson Street, East Gloucester during the Rocky Neck Holiday Art & Fine Crafts Festival Saturdays and Sundays, Noon-4 PM November 30 – December 29

http://www.rockyneckartcolony.org/winter.php

E.J. Lefavour

Artist Spotlight Series – Regina Piantedosi

Posted on by God's Morning

spotlight_regina piantidosi

Spotlight on Regina Piantedosi

Regina, a lifelong resident of the North Shore and member of the Rocky Neck Art Colony for two years, has been painting for seven years, but has been a “creative” her entire life. She has lived a full and art filled entrepreneurial life writing, and working as an interior designer and florist.

Regina describes her art as a creative extension of herself, and believes each artist’s work is their fingerprint, unique to them alone. She has always been a non-representational/abstract painter, which is how she interprets her emotions.

Regina is currently using Yupo paper, a treeless synthetic product originally produced for printing. Having vast possibilities, it is resilient, eco-friendly and colors explode on it. Ink, gouache (semi-solid watercolors,) acrylic and gold leaf are her mediums of choice, and her art is created with one or any combination thereof.

You can see more of Regina’s work at The Cultural Center at Rocky Neck, 6 Wonson Street, East Gloucester during the Rocky Neck Holiday Art & Fine Crafts Festival Saturdays and Sundays, Noon-4 PM November 30 – December 29

and look for her during one of the fun parties:

Friday, November 29, 5-7 PM Gala First Choice Preview Party

Saturday, December 7, 2-4 PM High Tea

Sunday, December 15, 3-5 PM Happy Hour

Saturday, December 21, 2-4 PM Winter Solstice Party

Sunday, December 29, 2-4 PM Pre New Year’s Party

E.J. Lefavour

Artist Spotlight Series

Posted on by God's Morning

Spotlight on Carol McKenna

spotlight_carol mckenna

Carol is a Gloucester native who lived away for 22 years and has happily been back on Cape Ann for 14. She has been a member of the Rocky Neck Art Colony for two years.  A renegade from the traditional work worlds of Education and Psychology, Carol is now being true to that little girl who was given her first camera at the age of six, primarily spending her time photographing nature around Cape Ann with her little yorkie, Zoe.  Carol also writes Japanese haiku, tan rengas and posts her photography, poetry and a bit of art on her blog http://www.acreativeharbor.com.

You can see more of Carol’s work at The Cultural Center at Rocky Neck, 6 Wonson Street, East Gloucester during the Rocky Neck Holiday Art & Fine Crafts Festival

Saturdays and Sundays, Noon-4 PM November 30 – December 29

and look for her during one of the fun parties:

Friday, November 29, 5-7 PM Gala First Choice Preview Party

Saturday, December 7, 2-4 PM High Tea

Sunday, December 15, 3-5 PM Happy Hour

Saturday, December 21, 2-4 PM Winter Solstice Party

Sunday, December 29, 2-4 PM Pre New Year’s Party

E.J. Lefavour

 

Artist Spotlight Series

Posted on by God's Morning

This will be a series of artist spotlights, showing the work and giving a little inside look into the artists who create it.  The first spotlight is on lifelong Gloucester artist, Theresa Testaverde.

spotlight_theresa testaverde

Theresa’s art is often a collage of whatever stirs her as interesting and challenging. Some of her work is inspired by loved ones, family and friends.

Theresa is a native of Gloucester, has been drawing since the age of 5, has a BFA with her principle focus in Printmaking, and has worked in the commercial field of Specialty Printing since college.

She is the daughter, granddaughter and great-granddaughter of Gloucester fishermen. Her maternal grandfather, Joaquin Codinha, was deeply involved in the business side of the Fishing industry. Her paternal grandfather, R. Salve Testaverde wrote, “Memoirs of a Gloucester Fisherman.” And Theresa’s great-grandfather (her mother’s grandfather) was Antonio Santos Cortina, who while on a fishing trip on the Laura Goulart, was lost at sea in 1924. “Passionate followers of the heart; fishers of the sea.”

On Fisherman’s Wharf, her family’s FV, the Linda B, would have schools of fish hauled up in a net and loaded on trucks for market. Her most recent drawings, “Fish Faces, A Series of Drawings’ is dedicated to her young years of growing up – “we had all the fish and more!”

In addition, Theresa’s artwork for her “Daily Fish” Coasters is a salute to the life of a fisherman. “I recognize that a fisherman’s life is a noble and valued life, a dangerous life which requires dedication, heart, strength, intense work during stormy days and an immense respect of the sea from which he earns his daily bread.”

All of this was a way of life for Theresa growing up. In her words, “I embrace all of them, their memory, their stories. The women and men from which I am part. I could not create any of my artwork without these reflections. This life had heart, purpose, was hard working, honest, diligent and had love. To remember us young is to examine the heart of family, in our little town, Gloucester. My family members required the sea to maintain their everyday needs. This “fish” artwork is for them.”

You can see more of Theresa’s work at The Cultural Center at Rocky Neck, 6 Wonson Street, East Gloucester during the Rocky Neck Holiday Art & Fine Crafts Festival Saturdays and Sundays, Noon-4 PM, November 30 – December 29.

E.J. Lefavour