the RED CROW anthologies

See you Later

2009-03-14T11:07:00.000-07:00

We still have some gorgeous artwork on display...stop by before the end of the month! Like this beautiful collage by Hollie Chastain.

Leaving the Nest

2009-03-14T11:06:00.000-07:00

Dear Friends,

After much consideration and a short, but rewarding 4 months, we’ve decided that we have to close up shop. We’d like to thank everyone (especially the art buyers and artists themselves) for their wonderful support. We are leaving the space at the end of the month and the show ‘For the Birds’ will be pulled down on the 28th.

For those of you who have yet to see the space or are still contemplating on a piece in the gallery, please come by or contact directly. 530.272.4154. We're open 11-6 most days. Sundays 12-4.

Timing is everything, as we know. After leasing the space for two years, the Gallery was my last little hope to hold on to it, but it may have been a bit futile. My hope is that I will refocus on my other projects, work from home again and that maybe in the future, I will be able to bring the RED CROW back in a new way.

For those of you who want to continue to follow the artists we’ve carried in the shop, you can still link to the blog and buy from the artists directly.

Here’s to a prosperous and healthy 2009.

Don’t forget to support the arts!

Kindest,

Ingrid Nelson

The Lieutenant General, The Diver, and A Pocket Full of Rye

2009-03-02T14:11:00.000-08:00

DoubleParlour Interview

2009-03-02T13:46:00.000-08:00

Name: Ernie and Cassandra Velasco aka Doubleparlour
Occupation: Ernie- Artist/Pastry Chef Cassandra- Artist/Pharmacy Technician
Location: San Francisco, CA

How did you first become interested in creating art together?
Our collaboration grew out of the desire to both sell artwork on-line and create work together. We formed Doubleparlour in 2007. We were curious about the effect of creating paintings and prints together where we both shared the process from start to finish.

What do you find most rewarding with the collaborative process?
It is most rewarding being able to bounce ideas off of each other and have someone to critique a work in progress. Each of our individual ideas and approaches to creating vary greatly and at times we inspire or surprise each other. We also balance each other's strengths and weaknesses as far as the business aspects of customer service, shipping, and promotion.

What are your artistic influences?
We are both influenced by nature, human emotions and reasoning, architecture, decay and the irony in everyday life. We also find inspiration from many different artists. Here are a few: Tiffany Bozic, Tara Tucker, Alex Gross, Eva Hesse, Andrew Schoultz, Swoon, and street art.

What have you used/learned from another artist lately?
Well, we would like to give credit to artist John Casey for his polymer clay tutorial on the art and culture website FecalFace. His tutorial described his process of working with polymer clay which lead to our own experiments with this medium which we now embrace.

What are you trying to communicate with your art?
I think we are trying to create a subtle narrative with a sense of mystery. Any one object, conversation, etc can be interpreted in so many different ways.

You do both sculpture and two-dimensional works. How do you decide which
process will work best for your expressions. Do you ever have crossover
characters, ones that end up as both illustration and sculpture?
There have been a few crossover characters between illustration and sculpture, one example is the Shohin character. A Shohin is a small bonsai under 10 inches. See samples here: Sculpture & Illustration . I think for both of us, sometimes the idea dictates the medium and other times the need to create a sculpture or print for a gallery show or our on-line store will fuel the project. Our individual process of creating varies greatly. Ernie delves right into creating a piece once the idea has formed in his head and makes decisions on colors and final composition as he goes along. Cassandra prefers to plan a piece completely beforehand which involves sketches, references and decisions on placement, color and composition.

We just opened the "Bird" show on Valentine's Day and people were immediately drawn to the 3 sculptures we have here in the Gallery (see photos above). Could you tell us a little about how you make them?
All three pieces are made of polymer clay which is hand formed and baked at a low temperature. They are then finished with acrylic paint and matte and/or gloss varnish. Some of the pieces are mixed media incorporating such items as twigs, antique doll parts, antique keys and architectural elements, and railroad miniatures.

I think what draws me in most to your work is the sense of CHARACTER there. One gets the feeling that there are individual stories behind the pieces. Small fictions that accompany "the Diver" and "Hoagie" for example. I'm curious if you have a personality in mind when you create them, or does this form after the creation?
We do enjoy creating characters and that usually begins with a idea and basic form. A lot of times it is a matter of putting different elements together to create a piece. I think the story grows our of the character's development as it is being created. Usually there are parts of a story in each piece of artwork, like a movie without an ending. We like to leave some of the interpretation to the viewer. The Hoagie character was inspired by the wondrous world of Edward Gorey's characters. Hoagie is meant to be a somewhat odd and contemplative creature. He is like one of those people who don't need the approval of others yet whose gentle nature make them quite likable. People always try to guess what Hoagie is, some comments we've heard is that he looks like a worm, pickle or seal, or a character from Eraser Head movie.

How important is humor in your work?
Although it is not an aspect of all of our work, it is very important sometimes in order to express hidden meanings or to just have fun with the work. With art, the beauty of it is that it doesn't have to make sense. This is part of what allows viewer interpretation.

My favorite piece that we have here at the shop is 'The Diver'. How did this particular character come about?
Ernie created the Diver while imagining how it would appear as a large sculpture in a public space, if the miniatures where scaled to human size. There is also the small human figures in the cave. What are they running from or to and what is the relationship with the albatross? We will leave the answers to the viewer, it is nice to create a sense of mystery.

You both have 'Regular' jobs outside making artwork. What influence does your daily life play in your creation process?
Well, it does eat up a lot of time that could be spent creating. Really, both of our regular jobs are completely separate life from creating artwork. Although, some ideas for projects do form out of activities or conversations from work.

And our completely RANDOM question to end it all: In honor of our love of
poetry and posting here at the crow bulletin board. What is your favorite
poem of all time (to each of you individually)?
Ernie-
Dorothy Parker's "Resume"
Cassandra-
T.S. Eliot "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock"

Dorthy Parker and TS Eliot

2009-03-02T13:00:00.000-08:00

Résumé

Razors pain you;
Rivers are damp;
Acids stain you;
And drugs cause cramp.
Guns aren't lawful;
Nooses give;
Gas smells awful;
You might as well live.

By Dorthy Parker
1893-1967

The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock

S’io credesse che mia risposta fosse
A persona che mai tornasse al mondo,
Questa fiamma staria senza piu scosse.
Ma perciocche giammai di questo fondo
Non torno vivo alcun, s’i’odo il vero,
Senza tema d’infamia ti rispondo.

LET us go then, you and I,
When the evening is spread out against the sky
Like a patient etherised upon a table;
Let us go, through certain half-deserted streets,
The muttering retreats
Of restless nights in one-night cheap hotels
And sawdust restaurants with oyster-shells:
Streets that follow like a tedious argument
Of insidious intent
To lead you to an overwhelming question …
Oh, do not ask, “What is it?”
Let us go and make our visit.

In the room the women come and go
Talking of Michelangelo.

The yellow fog that rubs its back upon the window-panes,
The yellow smoke that rubs its muzzle on the window-panes
Licked its tongue into the corners of the evening,
Lingered upon the pools that stand in drains,
Let fall upon its back the soot that falls from chimneys,
Slipped by the terrace, made a sudden leap,
And seeing that it was a soft October night,
Curled once about the house, and fell asleep.

And indeed there will be time
For the yellow smoke that slides along the street,
Rubbing its back upon the window-panes;
There will be time, there will be time
To prepare a face to meet the faces that you meet;
There will be time to murder and create,
And time for all the works and days of hands
That lift and drop a question on your plate;
Time for you and time for me,
And time yet for a hundred indecisions,
And for a hundred visions and revisions,
Before the taking of a toast and tea.

In the room the women come and go
Talking of Michelangelo.

And indeed there will be time
To wonder, “Do I dare?” and, “Do I dare?”
Time to turn back and descend the stair,
With a bald spot in the middle of my hair—
[They will say: “How his hair is growing thin!”]
My morning coat, my collar mounting firmly to the chin,
My necktie rich and modest, but asserted by a simple pin—
[They will say: “But how his arms and legs are thin!”]
Do I dare 45
Disturb the universe?
In a minute there is time
For decisions and revisions which a minute will reverse.

For I have known them all already, known them all:—
Have known the evenings, mornings, afternoons,
I have measured out my life with coffee spoons;
I know the voices dying with a dying fall
Beneath the music from a farther room.
So how should I presume?

And I have known the eyes already, known them all—
The eyes that fix you in a formulated phrase,
And when I am formulated, sprawling on a pin,
When I am pinned and wriggling on the wall,
Then how should I begin
To spit out all the butt-ends of my days and ways?
And how should I presume?

And I have known the arms already, known them all—
Arms that are braceleted and white and bare
[But in the lamplight, downed with light brown hair!]
It is perfume from a dress 65
That makes me so digress?
Arms that lie along a table, or wrap about a shawl.
And should I then presume?
And how should I begin?
. . . . .
Shall I say, I have gone at dusk through narrow streets
And watched the smoke that rises from the pipes
Of lonely men in shirt-sleeves, leaning out of windows?…

I should have been a pair of ragged claws
Scuttling across the floors of silent seas.
. . . . .
And the afternoon, the evening, sleeps so peacefully!
Smoothed by long fingers,
Asleep … tired … or it malingers,
Stretched on the floor, here beside you and me.
Should I, after tea and cakes and ices,
Have the strength to force the moment to its crisis?
But though I have wept and fasted, wept and prayed,
Though I have seen my head [grown slightly bald] brought in upon a platter,
I am no prophet—and here’s no great matter;
I have seen the moment of my greatness flicker,
And I have seen the eternal Footman hold my coat, and snicker,
And in short, I was afraid.

And would it have been worth it, after all,
After the cups, the marmalade, the tea,
Among the porcelain, among some talk of you and me,
Would it have been worth while,
To have bitten off the matter with a smile,
To have squeezed the universe into a ball
To roll it toward some overwhelming question,
To say: “I am Lazarus, come from the dead,
Come back to tell you all, I shall tell you all”—
If one, settling a pillow by her head,
Should say: “That is not what I meant at all.
That is not it, at all.”

And would it have been worth it, after all,
Would it have been worth while,
After the sunsets and the dooryards and the sprinkled streets,
After the novels, after the teacups, after the skirts that trail along the floor—
And this, and so much more?—
It is impossible to say just what I mean!
But as if a magic lantern threw the nerves in patterns on a screen:
Would it have been worth while
If one, settling a pillow or throwing off a shawl,
And turning toward the window, should say:
“That is not it at all,
That is not what I meant, at all.”
. . . . .
No! I am not Prince Hamlet, nor was meant to be;
Am an attendant lord, one that will do
To swell a progress, start a scene or two,
Advise the prince; no doubt, an easy tool,
Deferential, glad to be of use,
Politic, cautious, and meticulous;
Full of high sentence, but a bit obtuse;
At times, indeed, almost ridiculous—
Almost, at times, the Fool.

I grow old … I grow old …
I shall wear the bottoms of my trousers rolled.

Shall I part my hair behind? Do I dare to eat a peach?
I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon the beach.
I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each.

I do not think that they will sing to me.

I have seen them riding seaward on the waves
Combing the white hair of the waves blown back
When the wind blows the water white and black.

We have lingered in the chambers of the sea
By sea-girls wreathed with seaweed red and brown
Till human voices wake us, and we drown.

T.S. Eliot
(1888–1965). Prufrock and Other Observations. 1917.

Bits and Pieces

2009-02-24T16:07:00.000-08:00

To see more of Suzanna's work you can link to her Etsy site. A few samples to tease you with here.

Red Crow Interview with Suzanna Scott

2009-02-24T15:37:00.000-08:00

Name: Suzanna Scott
Occupation: Artist
Location: Manhattan, Kansas

How did you first become interested in making assemblage & collage work?
Looking back I've always appreciated art that involved a mixture of mediums but I would have to say there are 2 events that stand out to me as a turning point or shift in my own work. The first was an exhibit in early 2003 of collage work by the architect Bernard Hoesli (1923-1984). I had the privilege of installing this show because I was working for a gallery that featured a traveling exhibition of his work. At the time I was working primarily in stone but I was really drawn to collage in an irresistible way after experiencing Hoesli's work. The second event was moving south to Mobile, Alabama in August 2003. My first job in Mobile was working as an artist for the "Mirth Company", a company that built floats for Mardi Gras parades. By the time my nine month stint at this company ended my personal work had completely begun its evolution towards the assemblage and collage work that I create today.

How long have you been doing this?
I've been working as an artist since 1997 but my current business, "Sushipot" began in 2006.
What are your artistic influences?
Even though it sounds kind of cheesy I must admit that everything or anyone around me influences me artistically. It can be something on the evening news, an object I find while taking a walk, an off-the-cuff comment by my hairdresser or an image in a magazine.
What have you used/learned from another artist lately?
"Work hard, play hard."

What are you trying to communicate with your art?
I tend to infuse timeless archetypes with new meanings and juxtapose a mix of old & new, East & West, youth & age and last but not least humor & irony. The result is a quirky mix that viewers tend to either love or hate.
Where do you find all your wonderful bits & treasures?
Everywhere and usually where least expected! I shop at antique stores, thrift shops, estate sales, yard sales and junk yards. When I'm out "treasure hunting" (as my daughter has coined it) I don't look, I dig. The best finds are buried in boxes under the tables, out of the way.

Do you search for specific items before you create your artwork, or does the art emerge from more random discovery?
Working with found objects; it's definitely more of a random "give and take" discovery. Many processes that I employ were initially the product of a "happy mistake".

We have two pieces from your ‘Dollhouse’ series here at the Gallery. The combination of the medical illustrations, the classic house shape & the doll arms is such an incongruous mix. Is there a specific story or reasoning behind this assemblage of archetypes?
As a child I remember drawing repetitively the image of a house. Each house would be very tall with a "grid" of rooms in which I would spend hours filling in each room with different domestic activities. Soon after the birth of my daughter, I began collecting little wooden house forms abandoned at thrift shops and yard sales. One day I decided to attach some arms to one of these forms and didn't stop till all my adopted homes had appendages. The earliest doll houses were adorned with old buttons but after a while I was struck with a "what if" and replaced the buttons with the image of a heart. The odd and somewhat grotesque juxtaposition of old anatomical imagery has been fascinating to me and to my collectors. I've created almost 300 pieces in this series.

I would just like to say that your pieces in person are even more lovely than in photographs, carefully done, and they ‘feel nice’ to hold. I notice that much of your work can be placed in the palm of one’s hand. Do you do any LARGE work?
Yes. I used to only create large scale and pedestal size sculpture. In fact the largest sculpture I've created stands almost 7 feet high! When I began selling work on Etsy I started creating small scale, intimate "art objects" that are a bit easier to ship around the world!
Have you ever made anything that you just couldn’t part with?
No. Although we do have a rule in our home--my husband Patrick and daughter Elizabeth can veto the sale of anything I create and it becomes part of our personal collection. We have kept the first pair from the "doll house" series and at least one piece from every other series of recent work.

What inspires you?
My inspiration comes from all things old, chipped, cracked, worn, dusty, used, found, buried, designed, loved, pieced, intricate, aged and transfigured.

And our completely RANDOM question to end it all: In honor of our upcoming poetry readings what is your favorite poem of all time?
I loved this poem as a child and have a renewed love for it after recently reading it to my daughter.

My Shadow
By Robert Louis Stevenson, (1850–1894)

I have a little shadow that goes in and out with me,
And what can be the use of him is more than I can see.
He is very, very like me from the heels up to the head;
And I see him jump before me, when I jump into my bed.

The funniest thing about him is the way he likes to grow—
Not at all like proper children, which is always very slow;
For he sometimes shoots up taller like an India-rubber ball,
And he sometimes gets so little that there’s none of him at all.

He hasn’t got a notion of how children ought to play,
And can only make a fool of me in every sort of way.
He stays so close beside me, he’s a coward you can see;
I’d think shame to stick to nursie as that shadow sticks to me!

One morning, very early, before the sun was up,
I rose and found the shining dew on every buttercup;
But my lazy little shadow, like an arrant sleepy-head,
Had stayed at home behind me and was fast asleep in bed.

Thanks!

2009-02-17T10:09:00.000-08:00

Just a note to thank everyone for coming out on Valentine's Day. It was a great opening and the response to the art work was wonderful. The show will be up for the next 4 weeks and for those of you who were snowed in, please drop by during our regular gallery hours (11-6 and 12-4 on Sundays)

Last Minute Preparations

2009-02-12T21:16:00.000-08:00

We've been getting new art in all week...two gorgeous photographs from Sharon Montrose, some new Jennifer Phillips oils, and some lovely little Gouache paintings by Lissa Herschleb. We're almost ready for the big event on Saturday, and the buzz around town is that it will be a packed gallery....so come early if you really want that chocolate and champagne. If you can't make it for some reason and see something here on the blog that interests you, please call Ingrid at 530.272.4154 for more information.

The Show is almost UP!

2009-02-12T21:05:00.000-08:00

2009-02-12T21:02:00.000-08:00

Only Two more Days Until the Opening!

2009-02-12T21:00:00.001-08:00

LOVE is in the AIR

2009-02-06T20:51:00.000-08:00

This show will contain works from: Jennifer Phillips, Jen Garrido, Laura Ball, Lena Wolff, Sharon Montrose, Lucrecia Troncoso, Hollie Chastain, Pamela Klaffke, Linda Galusha, Double Parlour, Ingrid Blixt, Arleigh Wood, and many MORE

For the Birds

2009-02-06T16:44:00.000-08:00

We are gearing up for our next show and it's going to be a good one. We've got quite a few new artists participating and along with Julie's collection of talent we promise something for everyone. It's been a busy month of searching and working. We are hoping that even with the nutty economic climate, people will still support the things they love. I can't tell you how many people have come into the Gallery lately, so excited to see something new and inspiring in downtown Grass Valley and we appreciate all the wonderful feedback.

Please make a note that we've got several new links on our Artist sidebar. You can link to them directly on your right. Let us know who you like and who you'd like to see more of. The show 'For the Birds' will be up from February 14th through March 14th. Click on flier above for full view. And I'm still working on more interview questions, so stay posted for that as well.

Save the DATE

2009-01-22T10:19:00.000-08:00

Just a heads up that the RED CROW anthologies will be teaming up with Julie Baker Fine Art for a Valentine's Day event. LOVE is in the Air...from 4-7 PM at 122 Mill Street in downtown Grass Valley. Art. Chocolate. Champagne. Jewelry. Mark your calendars...it's Date Night.

Congratulations Mr. President

2009-01-20T10:10:00.001-08:00

Tonight!

2009-01-15T06:46:00.000-08:00

Don't forget ... tonight we are having our Winter Landscape opening. Wine & Friends. The weather is supposed to be wonderful. Meet with photographer Gabe Cano and painter Linda Galusha. 122 Mill Street Downtown Grass Valley. 6-9 PM.

Sleeping Walnuts

2009-01-12T10:32:00.001-08:00

Red Crow Interview with Linda Galusha

2009-01-12T10:21:00.000-08:00

Name: Linda Galusha
Occupation: Artist
Location: Davis, CA

How did you first become interested in making Art?
I have memories of making things from about the age of six or seven. I have memories from then on of varied experiences of being considered 'gifted'. There were teachers in grade school who would take me aside and have me do the sample piece for the class art project. I could draw very well at a very early age and seemed to have a natural sense of space, I did not have the language to know of what I was doing until I attended classes in Form and Composition in Junior College. Then of course creating things only got more complex and seductive. I guess it could be said that within my earliest memory to now, that I have always been attempting to respond as best as I could to those 'how and what if' questions that come to me. So the answer for me is a stroll through my memories, always.

What are your artistic influences?
My artistic influences have varied over the years and are in continuous review. I pull them up when needed for whatever project I'm working on. Lately that is what I have been doing, pulling up my past ways of doing things and layering with my present visual concerns (which seem to be in a rapid state of flux lately). So anything that communicates the mystery that inspires a question, that holds me long after the encounter is probably an automatic an integrated influence. Influences are ongoing.

What have you used/learned from another artist lately?
About 4 or 5 months ago I had one of the most complete 'art' experiences that I can say that I have had in a long time. A friend of mine and I attended the Louise Nevelson show at SFMOMA. I am still feeling the awe of the presence that her installations held for me. I am still processing that experience in seeing how essential editing is and how simplicity and complexity can occupy the same place.

What are you trying to communicate with your art?
The truth of simplicity and complexity, the truth of the parts of a finished piece as well as the whole, the truth of the story within the piece, the truth of the process to reveal the piece, the truth that the one who witnesses the piece receives within themselves.

Many of your paintings are done on old fence boards or dismantled buildings pieces. How did this come about?
I have been intrigued, probably forever, with what happens when the context is changed for a thing, or a person or what ever and how it can be almost not recognized. I also am drawn to things that can 'wear their history' in such a way as to almost retrieve their original form. Painting or drawing trees on these antique boards is a way to comment on this cycle that I see.

Quite a few visitors have commented on how much they like the Old Wood Old Wood series. I enjoy the simple composition and repetition both in the artwork and the title. Would you tell us the story behind these two antique panels?
Those two panels actually are my most recent pieces in drawing on the old boards. The panels themselves came from an old building in Winters, CA that was converted to an art gallery (Briggs and Company) where I also show. I have been working on this paneled surface for about a year now, drawing mostly crow imagery with graphite sticks. I had one of those 'what if' moments to see just how detailed of a drawing these boards could support. Trees keep it simple for me because of the cycle that is represented with the discarded boards. And old trees on old boards, they practically draw themselves.

Trees and Branches are found in most of the work we have here at the shop. Do they symbolize something for you or do you just enjoy drawing them?
I just enjoy drawing them. They are some of the first images that I made as a small child. I have learned and continue to learn a lot about drawing from trees.

You are known in the central valley for your mural work, what have you learned from large-scale painting that you apply to smaller works?
I have learned that size is an illusion revealed by the viewer's perspective relative to space. Scale and/or size are elements or tools in the composition of a 5 story mural as they are in a 5x5 oil painting. An artist has to know his tools fully to create comprehensively.

You describe yourself as a mixed-media artist. What are your favorite mediums?
It seems lately that my favorite mediums are the ones I can mix. Graphite, acrylics, colored pencils, conte, water colors, gosh it goes on and on, but the other part of it is the surfaces that the mediums can be applied to or challenged to that need to be accounted for. It is the phenomena of resistance in making a mark that has me intrigued.

What inspires you most of all?
That all my challenges are opportunities to do my best. I'm doing my best to keep this in mind everyday and be grateful that I recognize it. And also all the old fairy tales that I read as a child.

In 5 words or less, tell us what wee can expect from you in the future.
More questing than answers.

And our completely RANDOM question to end it all: In honor of our upcoming poetry readings what is your favorite poem of all time?

I don't currently have a favorite poem but came across a small quote by a favorite artist of mine, Marcel Duchamp. " I have bee forced to contradict myself in order to avoid conforming to my own taste."

2009-01-04T12:17:00.000-08:00

Some advance notice on the Gallery OPENING that will happen January 15th at 122 Mill Street in Grass Valley, CA. Photographer Gabe Cano and Painter Linda Galusha will both be present to meet and discuss their work. Mark your calendars!

The Red Crow is on FACEBOOK

2009-01-03T15:55:00.000-08:00

Welcome 2009 and welcome Facebook! Connect to the Gallery and become a Fan. We've got some great plans for the New Year. The poetry readings start this month and we're having an encore opening in two weeks. The Blog & Facebook page will also contain information on submissions, upcoming shows and events.

Here's to a healthy and prosperous twelve months.

The Hanging Man

2008-12-26T12:29:00.000-08:00

Red Crow Interview with Gabe Cano

2008-12-26T12:02:00.000-08:00

Name: Gabriel Cano
Occupation: Co-Owner of Specialty Color Services Custom Photo Lab/ Artist
Location: Santa Barbara

How did you first become interested in Photography?
Ever since I was nine or ten years old I was fascinated by how a camera worked especially the sound of the shutter. The more I started to find out about photography like the idea of printing in a darkroom, the more I became interested. I started taking photography courses as a sophmore in high school. My studies continued from there.

How long have you been taking pictures?
About 19 years now.

What are your artistic influences?
I think the biggest influence on my work would be music. In fact I discovered music before I discovered photography. It's always been an important part of my life. Music has always been an escape while photography has always been more my dialogue. Photographically, I've found the work of Duane Michals to be quite a big influence on me. Luis Gonzales Palma was somone I looked at for inspiration as well. Most recently Masao Yamamoto, Jack Spencer and Keith Carter are photographers I consider to have very meaningful work.

What have you used/learned from another artist lately?
By nature, I tend to like and make things complicated. Masao Yamamoto has taught me how being understated can be so much more powerful and memorable. Simplicity sometimes reveals something completely more significant and accessible and in turn more honest. I guess with age I'm learning to let go a little bit. I think by looking at his work I was able to take that rationale and use it in my own work. The interesting thing to is that when I look at my work as a whole now, the complexities do reveal themselves still. So I guess by looking at the work of Yamamoto I was able to be more intuitive and instead of trying to communicate, I simply let go and let the work come out and start my own dissection of the work after it was done instead of before. I let myself be.

What are you trying to communicate with your art?
I'm looking to make images that look like what I feel like. So it's really less about subject and most about mood. Regret, longing, nostalgia, mystery are all very powerful feelings that I have always been drawn to and try to capture in my work. I like the idea of making work that is very accessible. It's important for me to make work that is both aesthetically beautiful but also thought provoking, meaningful and most importantly very personal to me.

Your photographs have such an ethereal quality to them. Can you tell us a little about your approach to the landscape?
With the landscapes I am looking for something very specific. I'm fortunate enough that the area I live in has many places nearby that have the qualities I love. I don't like grandness. Not in the work anyways. What I look for is more of the non-landscape type of landscape. I like areas that look uninhabited however show traces of life. I look for very simple composition but most importantly, I'm looking for gorgeous morning light.

Was the “path’ series all done in a single shoot or over several days?
Was it a single location? The path series was done at several locations over a course of several months actually. I started shooting in the Ojai, CA area and then worked my way up a bit to Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo and Monterey area.

What do you dream about?
My dreams get recycled quite a bit. I tend to dwell on things so most of the time I'm dreaming about whatever I'm dwelling on, or something related to it. I often dream of going somewhere, usually at some point in the dream I'm either lost or didn't do something well enough, or let someone down. You know, happy things. My most vivid dream is being lost as a kid in this city, and for some reason I go in this doorway which ends up being some sort of cliff that I'm hanging onto.

We have a large 38”x48” print on canvas here at the shop and the path in the image is calling for us to walk down into it. Yet, I find that the much smaller pieces invite the same reaction. Does print size matter?
Yes print size is always an important aspect of my work, and it either works really very small so that the viewer can't just glance at it, instead has to get up close and intimate with the image, or very large so that it puts the viewer in a scene.

My favorite print that we have here at the Gallery is of a bare branched tree and a man hanging upside down in the trunk. He blends into the bark as if the tree and man are ONE. Could you elaborate on the history of this photograph?
For this image, a friend of mine asked to create a dream that he had for the cover a CD. The idea morphed from what he described as somewhat of a pleasant dream into more of a nightmare maybe. The image took some time to create actually, and we struggled sometime to find a tree that would work, however I became so consumed with this project that I started to dream the scene in my own way which was more of a nightmare. In my nightmare there was a battle going around the tree, with canons, rifles and horses. And at some point in the dream this man gets hung upside down.

The time of day that the photograph was taken is very important. Since so much of this image was inspired from dreams I wanted to illustrate or convey a moment in a person's psyche when you just awaken from a dream and you're not quite sure how much of it was a dream and how much of it was real life. That moment where the dream you just had starts to fade and reality starts to creep in. That's why that first morning light was so important and the man is fading into the tree. The dream is getting washed away in a sense.

What do you shoot with?
I shoot with several different cameras. Most of the work that I'm showing here at the Red Crow Anthologies was shot either with a Hasselblad or a Polaroid Land Camera that I broke and made into a pinhole camera.

And our completely RANDOM question to end it all: In honor of our upcoming poetry readings what is your favorite poem of all time?
It's a refrigerator magnet poem that my friend created. It went like this. "You-and-me-beneath-the lake-come-to me-boy-it's-only-water" That grouping of words holds magic.

Christmas in Grass Valley

2008-12-24T10:58:00.000-08:00

Wanting to wish everyone a very MERRY CHRISTMAS here in Nevada County. May your stockings be full of Love and Joy. from everyone at the Red Crow.

Stay tuned for an interview with Photographer Gabe Cano on boxing day.

Barack and the Queen

2008-12-21T15:25:00.000-08:00

Even though the snow kept many of you away on our first opening, it was a roaring good time and a few key invitees made their way through the cold and sleet to enjoy some free wine!

In all seriousness....we will be having an encore opening sometime in January so STAY tuned!

Gallery OPENING

2008-12-15T20:55:00.000-08:00

We are having our first official opening this Thursday Evening from 6-9 PM. Feel free to stop by anytime & bring a friend! It's the Winter Landscape show. We'll have a great selection of unique holiday gifts and original art appropriate for the season. If you have any questions call 530.272.4154

Red Crow Interview with Beth Cyr

2008-12-14T20:44:00.000-08:00

Name: Beth Cyr
Occupation: Jeweler/Metalsmith
Location: Athens, GA

How did you first become interested in making jewelry?

Oddly enough, in high school I started making beaded and hemp necklaces (it was the 90's), though I didn't really think of making jewelry as a living. I was just making them for fun and selling them to my friends b/c they liked them and want one too! I had planned on being a photography major when I went to college. Life didn't go quite as planned. To make a long story short, in my distraught emotional state, a good friend of mine pointed out how great I had done in the metalsmithing class we took together. So I decided that would be my major! I had loved working with the torches and the hammers. I also have a really practical nature, so it seemed more 'marketable' than being a painting major. I also work much better 3 dimensionally than 2 -so there was really no looking back.

How long have you been making custom pieces?
I've been doing custom metalwork since I was in school, so maybe about 7 years ago? A friend of
mine was a fireman and wanted me to make a piece for a fellow fireman that was retiring. I think that was the first custom sterling piece that I did.

What are your artistic influences?
Sometimes I feel like I am influenced by too much!! Its easy to say nature. Trees and leaves are most dear. I go through different phases though where I am influenced by different things around me. I like going to the library and checking out a bunch of books on a particular subject - usually science related. Bugs, weather, outer space, geology, people and relationships and the human body, but I always come back to trees, leaves, vines, flowers, plants in general!

What have you used/learned from another artist lately?
A good friend of mine, Christine, creates amazing jewelry. She has been going through some
restructuring of her work. She created a mini collection of 3 rings that were all really beautiful and simple. I have been feeling similar in wanting some change and being tired of some things I've been working on. So I created a mini collection of 3 rings, quite different from hers, but I was just really inspired by her drive and the way the three rings went together. Within a week or so I sold one of the rings!

What are you trying to communicate with your art?
I want people to feel something when they either look at or wear my jewelry. Being in nature makes me feel connected and at peace. I hope that people feel something similar to that when they look at my jewelry. I hope that it brings the wearer much happiness, either in the way it makes them feel to wear it or the compliments they receive! What woman doesn't want to be
complimented?!

We have sold several pieces from your ‘Organic Vine’ and it seems people are almost instantly drawn towards the pendants and the earrings. Is there a specific story behind the vine pieces that we could share with your admirers?
I wish I had some really great story behind it. I don't know that I do. Its been sort of an evolution or I guess you could say it has 'grown' in to something all on its own. I try to not come up with an idea and execute it - I much prefer to just having things happen. One of the first similar pieces I created was using regular sterling silver (which doesn't fuse all that great). It had a patina and sold within 30 minutes of listing it. That particular piece reminded me of an old garden gate
that had lots of vines growing up and over it. When I started experimenting with argentium sterling silver - the way the collection is now really came to life. I use a lot of circles and the collection is basically lots of incomplete circles fused together to create a look that reminds me of brambles. It also is similar to laying on the ground and looking up through the branches and leaves. Once I started noticing how popular the collection was, I've continued to experiment and branch out and try new things with it. I'm still working on the cuff bracelets which are gorgeous, but need some tweaking to really be as sturdy as I would like them to be. The rings are fun, especially the wider they get. But the earrings and pendants are by far the most popular, so i continue to make more of them.

The more I grew as an artist and started having interest in perhaps doing wholesale - I wanted to create collections that were never the same twice.I was very resistant to recreating something over and over again. I like the idea of one of a kind pieces for everyone. And with this collection, I feel like I can get that. Depending on the day or the batch of silver I am using, the pieces might look a bit more airy, other days, they are more compact or dense looking. It makes it fun for me and it makes me happy knowing that every customer truly has a one of a kind pieces.

I know nothing about making jewelry so this may sound like a silly question, but how hot is the metal when you work with it? Do you wear a cute little pair of goggles?
Depending on what I am doing the metal ranges any where from around 1000 to 2000 degrees (depends on what metal, if I'm just soldering or fusing or if I'm casting the metal has to be completely molten) Most of what I do, I don't need tinted goggles. But I wear glasses - so most of the time I don't bother putting my contacts in and just wear 'real' glasses as protection. I do have an oxy/acetylene torch and if I'm using that I wear dark tinted glass to protect my eyes, though
I would say they are far from cute! :)

What is your dream metal to use?
I've worked with platinum once and really enjoyed it. Gold is a lot of fun, but there are things i can do with Argentium Sterling silver that I can't do with anything else. So I really suppose it depends on what I am doing. I haven't worked with 24k gold, so maybe I should put that in my 'dream' category. I think it would do some really lovely things when meeting with my torch!
Do you have a favorite piece of jewelry that you wear?
Hm... I have two pairs of earrings I wear a lot. One is a pair of organic vine earrings that have a patina. Most people seem to prefer that collection all shiny, but I particularly love the pair I have with the patina. I also have a little tiny pair of earrings that are kind of hard to describe in words.
I don't make them very often, though i don't know why. They are the one pair I can grab in an instant and throw in. Which is usually what happens most days! I tend to stay pretty simple with what I wear.

One of my favorite pieces here at the shop is ‘Stick Necklace with Handmade Chain’. Could you tell me a little about this piece?
I had a good jewelry customer request one, so I cast about 10 different sticks and made a
couple different necklaces for her to choose from. They are fun to do, but quite time consuming, so I don't make them very often. Each twig is one of a kind so every one turns out a little different.

And our completely RANDOM question to end it all: In honor of our upcoming poetry readings what is your favorite poem of all time?
My favorite poem of all time is Robert Frost's The Road Not Taken. I had to memorize it in 7th grade and have loved it since then. Perhaps the only poem I actually learned and didn't just memorize and forget. I love the imagery AND the content. I think its quite the perfect poem and could write an essay about why its my favorite!

--
Beth Cyr Fine Art Jewelry
www.bethcyr.com
706.208.0084

The Road Not Taken

2008-12-14T20:01:00.000-08:00

Beth...Thanks for the great interview and insight! it makes your jewelry even more special. And because Robert Frost is one of my all time favorite's too. We'll include your favorite poem here:

The Road Not Taken

TWO roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

-Robert Frost 1920

Grass Valley

2008-12-12T08:10:00.000-08:00

A few of you may stumble upon this blog who've never been to Grass Valley. So I figured I would include a couple informational links for those who haven't been here. We're about an hour outside of Sacramento to the North East. It's a picturesque little town with a big Gold Rush History. I moved here a little over 3 years ago along with quite a few other Bay Area transplants (it seems we meet one every day). The Gallery is fitting in well with it's neighbors, adding to the choices that bring people downtown. A local Nevada City guy created this new website that allows you to view some of America's most charming towns...it's called In Town Live and I'm glad to say that both Nevada City and Grass Valley are featured. We're right down Highway 49. We've got the Yuba River, tons of Lakes, great places to eat and shop. Come visit! & while you're in town, come by The RED CROW anthologies too.

Drenched in Light

2008-12-07T16:00:00.000-08:00

Red Crow Interview with Jennifer Phillips

2008-12-07T15:50:00.000-08:00

One important part of the RED CROW mission is to share our wonderful artists with those who come into the Gallery. Our first online interview is with Jennifer Phillips. & We'd like to thank her for giving us her time and thoughtful answers. ENJOY!

Name: Jennifer Phillips
Occupation: full time artist/painter
Location: Seattle, WA

How did you first become interested in painting? How long have you been painting?
There are so many ways I could answer these two questions... The simple answer is a little over 16 years now. The real truth is though, that I have been painting and exploring my creativity since I was a little girl. It is an honor to say that I blame my parents for my current artistic bliss!

My mom and dad always encouraged me when I was young to creatively express myself. I also grew up around a father that was a full time illustrator working from home. So naturally, I always wanted to be like him when I grew up! I chose to go to school for illustration in 1991 at the Savannah College of Art and Design in Georgia and it was there that I was exposed to all the wonderful techniques that art had to offer. After graduating, I illustrated for a couple years, but I quickly learned that I enjoyed painting for myself rather than trying to please a client for a particular ad or editorial piece. So my career turned a different path towards fine art after that and I have been at it ever since!

What are your artistic influences?
I tend to "drool" over the work of the following artists on a pretty regular basis... George Inness, Edward Hopper, Wolf Kahn, Jim Dine, John McCormick, Lyle Silver, Marc Bohne, and the list could go on and on.

What have you used/learned from another artist lately?
I recently went to a lecture that an artist friend of mine was giving and walked away with one of the most inspiring pieces of advice... It was during a time that I was really struggling with my art. He said (and I roughly quote), "In life and art, if you are having a difficult time and what you are going through is really bringing you down, and you feel like quitting, DON'T! Never stop, never give up, keep on going. It is during these times when we struggle with our selves and our artistic process, that we have a major break through! If you "throw in the towel" when times get rough, you rob yourself of this break through and you may never know what you could have discovered if you had just stuck with it! Literally that night, I spent several hours with my painting, and ended up with a whole new technique!

What are you trying to communicate with your art?
Whether it is a large piece or a miniature, I want the viewer to experience a sense of serenity and sometimes a little whimsy. Often we move through life not taking a moment to stop and enjoy the world around us. My images are a result of a moment in time when everything seems to slow down around me and I can actually begin to see... moments of calm allow me to find things in the landscapes that normally would get over looked. Like taking time to stare a a tree and wonder what it would say if it could talk? They have such history - they have been standing there forever!

We have quite a few of your miniature paintings and your ‘landscape in a pocket’ paintings here at the shop. What makes a piece ‘miniature, besides size?
Something precious, and intimate. The word miniature to me is an understatement... my new motto is small is the new BIG!

Do your landscapes exist in the real world?
All of my work is highly influenced from my local surroundings, the many road trips I have taken through Eastern Washington, and the Midwest. When I sit down to paint my miniatures I am often in my studio, painting from memory. During the warmer months I often venture outside with my little canvas's to paint in the moment... you can see me live in action this past summer on my blog or just click on this link HERE The larger works you can find on my website are both from life and creative brain. Washington is so full of beautiful landscape and greenery, that I can't help but be inspired by nature that surrounds me!

Do you paint what you see outside your window or are they purely imagined?
There are several locations that I frequent for inspiration. I travel outside when the weather is good, to sketch or paint "en Plen Aire" (outside) or to journal a bit about what I am looking at. Sometimes shooting a few photos to capture the moment and take back to the studio to continue a larger painting.

en Plen Aire

2008-12-07T15:45:00.000-08:00

2008-12-07T15:20:00.000-08:00

What is your idea of perfection?
I think I am a perfectionist when it comes to presentation. Mom always said, "Presentation is everything", in her song-like voice... with that said though, nothing is actually perfect in this world, it's all relative. With my work, I often fight myself on the perfectionist issue. It can really be debilitating, I want my painting to turn out exactly as I imagine in my head EVERY TIME. But that is not always the case. Not every painting is a success. What I choose to take away from my experience though, is that I learn more about my process with every unsuccessful painting and use this knowledge to create the next!

Your work and presentation is so meticulously done. Each painting is a true gem and very tactile. I’m curious to know if your studio is organized or in disarray. Are you detail oriented by nature, or only with art?
Ironically this question comes at a time when my studio is in the most disarray from a recent move. I love STUFF. And after working for an art supply company for over ten years, I accumulated A LOT of it. My studio is two stories and since the move I have managed to organize my work area on the second floor so far. The first floor (my soon to be frame shop) is a mess... boxes everywhere and a narrow walkway between them. I would have to say I have an organized mess!

Knowing myself, I would have to say I am pretty detail oriented in all aspects of my life. Not obsessively though. It is important for me to keep an organized studio for the very least, to enable me to find materials when I need them in a pinch. I can't stand having to climb over things to get what I need. That doesn't mean though, that my studio would look organized to anyone else, it isn't "Martha Stewart", but it works for me!

Jennifer's Studio

2008-12-07T15:19:00.000-08:00

2008-12-07T15:18:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite pieces here at the shop is ‘Drenched in Light’. Could you tell me a little about this painting?
This scene is a classic example of the imagery I experienced during several trips I made through Eastern Washington. A simple view from my driver's side window. Warm yellow fields with the afternoon light splashing across it. I love finding breaks in the landscape where one group of trees would end and reveal another open field in the distance. Or how there would be a little cluster of brush in the middle of a field almost abandoned in a way... or maybe this small cluster of trees just stands there as if they own the land they stand on.

And our completely RANDOM question to end it all: In honor of our upcoming poetry readings what is your favorite poem of all time?

Not sure that I can list just one poem of all time, but Shel Silverstein played a huge role in my childhood and this one really sits nicely with me... now that I am older and really relate to it on an adult like level. I can't wait to read his books to my future kids one day...

LISTEN TO THE MUSTN'TS by Shel Silverstein:

Listen to the MUSTN'TS, child, Listen to the DON'TS Listen to the SHOULDN'TS The IMPOSSIBLES, the WON'TS Listen of the NEVER HAVES Then listen close to me-- Anything can happen, child, ANYTHING can be.

Winter Landscape

2008-12-06T11:32:00.000-08:00

The show at the RED CROW for the months of December, January and February is themed around the winter landscape. Although our theme will stay the same for two months at a time, we are getting new work in daily. We have the perfect collection of winter holiday gifts...all handmade and original pieces. Box up a landscape as an unexpected present. Happy Holidays.

We're OPEN

2008-11-29T08:54:00.000-08:00

The Red Crow opened for the first time last night and what a night it was! Popcorn, art, music and Cornish Christmas. We got such a great response from locals and visitors and would just like to say THANK YOU to everyone who came through our store. We'll be open from 11-6 Monday through Saturday and on Sundays from noon until 4pm. Also by appointment.

Cornish Christmas

2008-11-29T08:52:00.000-08:00

The sign is UP!

2008-11-26T15:11:00.000-08:00

The RED CROW will be OPEN on FRIDAY NOVEMBER 28th

2008-11-26T14:55:00.000-08:00

The Red Crow Anthologies sign is up in the window. We are going to be OPEN for the first time on Friday the 28th of November just in time for the annual Cornish Christmas celebration here in Grass Valley. We have several featured artists already on display and will be doing some interviews with each of them over the next couple weeks, so be sure to check back soon. For a snippet of what's going on this week: Gabe Cano sent some wonderful landscape photographs, moody and rich! Jennifer Phillip's oils are absolutely GORGEOUS and will make the perfect & thoughtful holiday gift. Beth Cyr from Athens, Georgia provided a wonderful collection of nature inspired jewelry. Suzanna Scott graced us with a couple of assemblage pieces from her doll house series. And our own Linda Galusha painted a few winter-y scenes on old fence boards.

Stop by on Friday evening for some inspiration, gifts and POPCORN! Rain or Shine.

Our Mission Statement

2008-10-08T17:08:00.000-07:00

Our mission is to provide our customers with an individual & emotional experience when they walk into our retail gallery. Using both visual and tactile stimulation, we strive to showcase artworks that make an irresistible connection to our buyers. Our philosophy expands on the idea that through collaboration and collection, we can enthuse the community and support the handmade movement.