Nearing Completion

Well, I am happy to say that the Thin Places body of work will be completed by the end of the year!  It has been such a wonderful process for me to strive to create work that offers a glimpse at my experiences of thin places while I was in Assisi, Italy.  Some of these pieces are currently in an exhibit in Assisi (opening December 2) and in the Dueber Cafe Gallery at the Timken Company in Canton, OH (until January 15).  The rest of the work will be on exhibit at The Art Spot in Minerva, OH, opening January 11, 2013.  Now my next goal is to try to find a venue for the entire body of work to be exhibited all together!

With that said, it feels a little sad to be nearing the completion of this project.  It has been such a fulfilling experience and I have been stretched and challenged in so many new ways-- I don't want that to stop.  I want to use this as a springboard to the next project...whatever that may be!  Though the next project has not yet emerged from the bramble of ideas in my head, I look forward to seeing what's next.

Thinking and Being

Two images are combined in this piece to capture experiences while in Assisi, Italy that made me want to just pause and “be.”

One image is of a weathered chair.  It was in an old Italian farmhouse outside of Assisi.  It captured my imagination with its distressed beauty and seemed to exude a sense of history that was embedded in this worn, yet sturdy chair.

The second image was a mountain view taken from the top of Mount Subasio, also in Assisi.  The vastness of the beauty made me pause to savor it.

Thinking and Being
Size (h x w): 24" x 30"
Media: Digital Photography on canvas
SOLD

Opportunity Knocks

I am thoroughly enjoying the long awaited process of sifting through my photos from my artist residency in Assisi, Italy!  As I am getting started (finally!) on my new Thin Places body of work I am feeling refreshed in the beauty and inspiration that I experienced in Assisi.  It was such a privilege to go and I am so very thankful for the opportunity.

While in Italy I was consistently drawn to ornate door knockers on charming wooden doors.  They seemed to capture the passage of time with such weathered beauty while also igniting my curiosity as to what was on the other side.

I am looking forward to making some smaller works for sale in my studio featuring some of these door knockers.  Stop by soon!

Artist Residency in Assisi

I have been accepted for an artist residency at the Arte Studio Ginestrelle in Assisi, Italy. While there, I will be working on capturing imagery for a new mixed media body of work that conveys thin places. A thin place being a time or place in which the veil between the divine and human feels mysteriously thinner, or more permeable. I will be using the imagery from the residency to create mixed media pieces that juxtapose different images together to create intriguing perspectives of a thin place. In addition, I will have a piece of my new work, created as a result of the residency, exhibited in Assisi this fall, along with the work of other artists in residence from throughout this year.

I will travel to Italy on March 21 and return on April 2, 2012. I am using Kickstarter as a funding platform to help fund the travel costs involved in getting to and from Assisi for the residency. Please check out my page on Kickstarter.com, my project title is: Assisi Thin Places. By funding my project, you are also funding the creation of my new body of work for exhibition!

Peering

This is a photo of a window in the Saint John Laterano basilica in Rome. It is a beautiful church full of amazing sculptural reliefs depicting very animated versions of Bible stories. This window photo, with its stark contrast, was one of my favorite from this church.

I am peering at Light, but never able to fully see or comprehend. Yet, I am drawn to the Light, toward wanting to be still, to look hard, to listen intently, to breathe deeply, and to somehow deeply sense my profound connection to Light more tangibly.

This piece was part of a group exhibit at Anderson Creative entitled "Into the Light," which used the metaphor of light to explore aspects ranging from physical to the spiritual perceptions and understandings of light.

Size: (h x w): 20” x 16”

Media: Original digital print on aluminum

SOLD

Insight

One of my favorite places in Rome was the Pantheon. It had such an historic feel to it and I loved the interplay of light shining through the oculus and magnifying the dimensional aspects of the architecture.

This shot of the Pantheon captured the multifaceted qualities of Light as it is experienced with limited, finite perception.

This piece was part of a group exhibit at Anderson Creative entitled "Into the Light," which used the metaphor of light to explore aspects ranging from physical to the spiritual perceptions and understandings of light. It is currently on exhibit in my studio, Michele Waalkes ARTS located in 2nd April galerie at 324 Cleveland Ave. NW, Canton, OH 44702.

Size: (h x w) 18" x 24"

Media: Original digital print, matted & framed

SOLD

Angel Fresco

This was such a graceful, faint remnant of an angel fresco on the wall of a house in Pompeii, I couldn’t resist photographing it.

Size: (h x w) 12" x 10" framed
Media: Original digital print
SOLD

Rome

I took this photo because I loved the structure and peeling paint of the old building and how the trees framed it. It looks old, like it has been hidden and is beckoning me to explore it. In actuality, I have no idea what this building is, I took the shot from Palatine Hill and never had the chance to check it out...maybe next time!

This piece was in Impressions of Italy show and is currently on exhibit in my studio, Michele Waalkes ARTS,  located on the main floor of 2nd April galerie and Studios at 324 Cleveland Ave. NW, Canton, OH 44702. Hours are Tuesday- Saturday 10am - 6pm.

Size: (h x w) 18" x 24" framed
Media: Original digital print
SOLD

Grand Entrance

The scale and beauty of the art and architecture I saw in Italy was awe-inspiring. Two images of a grand scale are unified in this piece to exemplify this. One is a photo of a large sculpture of a man and horse in the Piazza del Campidoglio (a courtyard that was designed by Michelangelo). The other is taken looking upward through an entrance into St. Peter’s Basilica.

Size: (h x w) 24" x 18" framed
Media: Original digital print
SOLD

Lighting the Way

This image is of two different photos taken of the colonnade in St. Peter’s Square in Rome, which form a base to the sculptures of the Popes which stand on top. I chose to layer the images of the colonnade to create a more pronounced passageway with additional columns and lighting to show the way.

Size: (h x w) 14" x 11" framed
Media: Original digital print
AVAILABLE

Reflection

This is an image of a side chapel in St. Peter’s Basilica. The chapel is behind glass. As a rule, anything off limits intrigues me all the more, so I peered in for a while. The sunlight shone so brightly through the windows, creating such a brilliant, reflective space.


Size: (h x w) 20" x 16" framed
Media: Original digital print
AVAILABLE

Pompeii Memorial

This piece visually tells the story of Pompeii.

Barely visible in the background on the far right is a sliver of Mt. Vesuvius, which erupted in A.D. 79 covering the city and its people with 30 feet of volcanic ash. The city, preserved by the ash, was rediscovered in the 17th century and excavated in the mid 18th century. This piece also includes an image of a plaster cast of an individual who died in the tragedy and an excavated street in Pompeii.

This piece was in my Impressions of Italy show and in Columbus, OH at the Riffe Gallery's Let's Get Digital exhibit.

Size: (h x w) 14" x 11" framed
Media: Original digital print
SOLD

Emergence

It is hard to believe just how much art I saw in Italy. The aesthetic beauty encompasses not just the large, famous pieces, but also, when you look closely, the smaller elaborate details that embellish the architectural landscape. This piece is made up of two such examples. One image shows the sculptural reliefs surrounding a fountain, called Fonte Gaia, in the Piazza del campo (city square) in Siena. The other image is of a small, rather insignificant dragon at the base of a grand sculpture in St. Peter’s Basilica.

This piece was in my Impressions of Italy show and is now on exhibit in Michele Waalkes ARTS  located on the main floor of 2nd April galerie and Studios at 324 Cleveland Ave. NW, Canton, OH 44702. Hours are Tuesday- Saturday 10am - 6pm.

Size: (h x w) 12" x 18"
Media: Original digital print on aluminum
AVAILABLE

Time Elapse

I was struck by the sight of poppies growing among the ancient ruins in Italy, particularly in the large amphitheater in Pompeii and on Palatine Hill in Rome. In some cases it looked like the poppies could slowly rise up and overtake the remnants of stone. This prompted me to create this time elapse image of the poppies.

This piece was in my Impressions of Italy show.

Size: (h x w) 16" x 20" framed
Media: Original digital print on canvas
SOLD

Columns

This piece was created using an image of a line of trees in Pompeii which I combined with an image of a colonnade in St Peter’s Square. The row of trees looked like natural columns, inspiring me to combine the two images to create natural and man-made columns.

This piece was in my Impressions of Italy show and is now on exhibit in Michele Waalkes ARTS, located on the main floor of 2nd April galerie and Studios at 324 Cleveland Ave. NW, Canton, OH 44702. Hours are Tuesday- Saturday 10am - 6pm.

Size: (h x w) 18" x 24" framed
Media: Original digital print on canvas
SOLD

Mortality

Everywhere you look in Roman statuary, you can’t help but notice how strength is optimistically portrayed, as seen by this image of a female sculpture from the Vatican Museum. To visually challenge that ideal, I have incorporated an image of a relief on a tombstone, in the Protestant Cemetery in Rome. The relief depicts a powerful scene of a woman being led away by an angel, while the husband and four children grieve.

Size: (h x w) 18" x 24" framed
Media: Original digital print on canvas
SOLD

Strata

I find layers of history fascinating, each stratum a witness to a different time in the same place. It is no surprise, then, that I like to use layering in my work, it offers me the opportunity to create simultaneous juxtapositions. Strata is created by layering an image from an ornate archway inside the Vatican Museum in Rome with an image of columns from Pompeii. The ornate present with the ruins of the past.

This piece was in my Impressions of Italy show ans is currently on exhibit in Michele Waalkes ARTS, which is located on the main floor of 2nd April galerie and Studios at 324 Cleveland Ave. NW, Canton, OH 44702. Hours are Tuesday- Saturday 10am - 6pm.

Size: (h x w) 16" x 20"
Media: Original digital print on stretched canvas
AVAILABLE

Inside Out

Inside Out is a result of overlapping images of an interior tunnel going under a large amphitheater and the exterior steps of a small theater, both located in Pompeii. I liked the result of seeing both perspectives simultaneously.

This piece was in my Impressions of Italy show and is currently on exhibit in Michele Waalkes ARTS  located on the main floor of 2nd April galerie and Studios at 324 Cleveland Ave. NW, Canton, OH 44702. Hours are Tuesday- Saturday 10am - 6pm.

Size: (h x w) 20" x 16" framed
Media: original digital photography
SOLD