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The Artists
(page 2)
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| Virginia
Holt's
watercolors reflect her love of the high country and the beauty
of nature. Her subjects range from open rolling foothill landscapes
or a stand of vibrantly colored aspens in the fall; to clusters
of wildflowers growing in a mountain meadow or the spring runoff
in a mountain stream. The outdoors is her inspiration and workshop. Virginia's background includes study at Sierra College and workshops with nationally known artists. Her watercolors fresh style have been recognized in Art Shows where she has received many awards. |
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| Ellen
Huls is
a whimsical person who makes whimsical art. Every piece is a
surprise, but each one always has a face. Her interest in ceramics
began when she was enchanted by watching someone throw a pot
on the wheel. She wanted to learn how to do that, but immediately
decided that every pot certainly needed a nose and almost always
required a hat as well. Eventually it dawned on her to forget
about the pots and just concentrate on the faces. She creates
people and animals with quirky personalities. Visit Ellen's web site |
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| Joanne Johnson's artistic talents include pastels and watercolor, as well as wood sculptures. Her paintings include local landscapes, still life and floral that combine softness with a high level of detail. In her wood sculptures she uses the ancient art of intarsia, which is the making of decorative and pictorial mosaics by laying precious and exotic materials into or onto a ground work of solid wood inspiring both marquetry and inlay. Much of her work reflects her appreciation of the unique charm of the foothill area. | |
| Dorene
Kidd, a founding member of the Auburn
Old Town Gallery, considers herself very lucky to have been raised in
the country outside of the Gold Rush town of Auburn. She began drawing
at a very young age and always knew that she wanted to be an artist.
She is a self-taught artist that draws just what she sees. Dorene has
tried her hand at many different mediums, such as ink, watercolors,
oils, colored pencils and using beads to draw a scene. She has won several
awards and her work is part of private and corporate collections here
and abroad. Read the article about Dorene that appeared in the Auburn Journal. |
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| Stacey
Lamothe creates unique hand crafted jewelry and accessories.
Her ever evolving line started with copper and sterling pins depicting
her dog, Frankie, and has grown to include a dozen dog images, a couple
of cats, a few chickens, a horse (of course), and a handful of tiny
houses. Stacey uses copper, sterling and patterned brass in her pieces.
The patina process she uses coaxes the richness out of the copper and
makes each piece unique. The contrast between the warm red-brown of
the copper and the cool crisp sterling makes these wearable treasures
noteworthy. The designs are all unique and images amusing. There are
messages on many pieces and a sense of humor to all. When she’s
creating in her studio, time is not relevant. She states “when
I finish a piece and it can make me laugh, elicit a fond memory or inspire,
then I know I’m on the right track. When I see this happening
to others, I know I’ve done my job!” Visit Stacey's web site |
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| Michael Larson uses primarily recycled metal, wood and glass, to create unique artistic expressions for gardens and home décor. He enjoys the challenge of taking discarded materials and giving them a new life as quality artwork. His work ranges from the whimsical to the serious, from simple wind chimes to complex weldments. | |
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| Don Lawson specializes
in woodcarving and woodturning. He has taught these crafts for many
years and is a member of the American Association of Wood Turners,
the National Woodcarving Association and the CA Carving Guild,
as well as local woodworking clubs and artist associations. He recently
served as president of the Gold Country Wood Turners and is an active
mentor and demonstrator. His work has won numerous
awards and has been displayed in professional exhibitions, galleries
and fine craft stores in Northern California. Don's work incorporates the natural elements of the wood, grain, figure, color, texture and voids into the design and flow of the project. These features add interest, uniqueness and excitement to the finished project. He likes to add little surprises: a semiprecious stone, a piece of moss or a band of inlay to make the work special and personal. Fine woodworking should produce an emotional response and a desire to touch and feel. |
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| Stephen
Gage Lentz forms each piece into a unique work of art using his imagination
as he
works the metal and
wire together. He has begun incorporating glass into some of his pieces,
feeling that when glass is added, it brings out the emotions that are
hidden in the metal. Stephen loves “the fact I can help the metal
find a life of its own, whether it’s steel, copper, brass or
found metal.” Visit Stephen's blog |
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| Lorelee Love has been working with clay for nearly 20 years. She has taken many art classes in places ranging from UNR in Nevada to numerous colleges here in California. She started as a painter but has found working with clay to be her love. Her creations are wheel thrown or hand built. Lorelee's signature pieces are her Raku fired vessels with carved leaves. She mixes her own glazes and applies them only to the leaves; the unglazed portions of the vessel smoke black, creating a striking contrast. Her studio in Granite Bay is open by appointment. | |
| Christian
Valley ceramic artist Anita Posey Lowe works
with many shapes, whether hand-built, wheel thrown or a combination
of both, she
plays with the forms to perfect concepts that reflect her personality
and each ceramic piece is one-of-a-kind. Her specialty items
are bowls,
cups and casserole dishes that are food, drink, microwave dishwasher
and oven safe. She notes that her glazes are lead-free and safe
for
food and drink. Among her favorite items are small scented pots that
are great gifts to use as car or room fresheners. Visit Anita's web site |
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| Michelle
MacKenzie has
flourished as a working artist after departing her career as a gallery
owner. She produces
large colorful abstract canvases with textured impasto surfaces. The
depth and complexity of each piece is a result of multiple layers of
paint as well as an infusion with collage elements of metal or paper
or her own writings. Demonstrating her versatility, Michelle also creates
serene watercolors of Koi, mixed media collage, as well as smaller
paintings and watercolors that feature word affirmations. Visit Michelle's web site |
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| Rebecca
Martinez often creates necklaces in sets of two or three companion
pieces. “Some days you feel more flamboyant than others. Wearing
all three necklaces is appropriate on those days,” she explains.
Using polymer clay to create her beads gives Ms. Martinez many options for color and texture combinations. She includes beads of glass, wood, pearl, bone and semiprecious stones from her bead “stash” in her jewelry also. A resident of
Colfax, she works as a designer for Blue Cat Studio, Inc. in Auburn. Her
work may be seen at Collections and
on the Arts
Registry. |
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| Linda
Miller loves painting
and miniatures, but she also enjoys paintomg large canvases and walls.
Fine detail
and brilliant colors are always
a part of her work whether it's a 1"x1" pin
or an 8'x10' wall. Some of her favorite subjects are flowers, birds,
landscapes, ocean scenes, dogs and cats. Visit Linda's web site |
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| Shannon
Jane Morgan creates beautifully colored hand blown art
glass vases, fairy balls, pumpkins, paperweights and more. Shannon also makes hand blown glass cane which her mother, Gail, strings together with Swarovski crystals and sterling silver findings to create one of a kind bracelets, earrings and necklaces. Visit Shannon's web site |
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| Heidi
Murray chose
clay as her medium because it is very tactile and its flexibility
allows her to create detailed and flowing forms.
The intent of her work is to create balance and a flowing line, so that the work is visually pleasing. Her work is classical in the sense that she uses symmetry with varying degrees of structure to allude to emotional states, which are subdued but complex. She renders figures
of women because her perceptions and emotions are intimately |
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Barbara
Newell lives in the community of Lincoln
Hills in Lincoln and her studio is open by appointment. She has worked
in clay for 25 years and her work has been exhibited locally and nationally.
The textured areas of her forms are made by an original carved woodblock
design impressed into a clay slab. The slab is formed and shaped over
a hump mold and the hand built section is joined with wheel thrown sections.
After bisque firing the piece is fired again to a temperature that is
compatible with her choice of glaze. The natural beauty of the desert,
the mountains and the lakes where she has lived influences the colors
and textures. |
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| Janet
& Rick Nicholson's dedication to
glass blowing is evident in the excellent quality of their work. The
emphasis in their small studio in Auburn is on creativity and innovation.
Each piece is a free-hand expression of the excitement and risk-taking
only found in an experimental glassblowing studio.
Originally from Hawaii and Ohio, respectively, Rick and Janet settled
in Auburn, California in 1982. Their work involves sculptural lighting
and elegant, asymmetrical platter, bowl and vessel forms. Many works
have been commissioned for hotels and private residences internationally.
Rick's current studies in metals have allowed the work to expand into
large scale sculpture. The marriage of glass, metal and light have
presented
exciting new challenges for future projects. Visit Rick & Janet's web site |
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Old Town Gallery, 2003 - 2012. Last updated November 2011 |
