May/June 2010
Frank Rochelle

I remember as a kid wondering how my father grew to be so big. The passage of time was a concept that I just couldn't understand. Now at age forty-seven, I understand the passage of time all too well, and after many years of being out of touch with my creativity I started painting and taking photos in earnest.

The turning point came in 2009, during a visit to the gallery of Jonas Gerard in Asheville, NC, where for the first time I actually felt the artist's energy conveyed through the painting. I walked through Jonas' gallery in awe. He talked about losing fear, not being afraid to make mistakes, about living and loving life. It was a message I needed to hear and I took it to heart. I made the decision to try to be more present for life, to pay attention, and to enjoy the journey a little more. That is how I've chosen to experience this life I've been given, my ride around the sun on this rock we call earth.

For me, painting is energy. I hope it comes through in my work and in some small way helps make your own ride on our rock a happier one.

Frank is a local, self-taught artist. He is a native of Durham, currently living in Raleigh with his wife, Jane. Franks work has been exhibited at the Art Guild in Fayetteville and the Visual Art Exchange of Raleigh. He enjoyed success in his first solo exhibition at a recent open house. You can e-mail Frank at frankrochelle8@gmail.com, and see more of his work at http://www.frankrochelle.com/

A portion of all art sales will be donated to arts related organizations or a non-profit of the artist's choice. This month's artist has chosen the Durham Rescue Mission as the recipient.

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April 2010
Lucia Marcus

Lucia Marcus was born in Cleveland Ohio. She received her BFA from the Corcoran School of Art in Wash. DC. Lucia also has an MFE with Supervision and Administration in the Visual Arts from Bank St. College of Education and Parson’s School of Design in NYC. Lucia lives and teaches in Durham, NC where she makes art in her downtown studio, Muse Alley.

Lucia has always delighted in the play of materials and forms upon surface. Sometimes the surface play is abstract, reveling in shape and pattern but often Marcus takes her cue from the natural forms around her, especially the human figure.

For many years Lucia has drawn and painted on paper and continues to be fascinated by the poetic possibilities of collage and mixed media. Marcus was recently inspired by a naive, reverse glass painting from a thrift shop and discovered the immediate and sensual satisfaction of painting on glass with acrylic enamels. The glass paintings are derived from photographs taken by the artist. Marcus is interested in the juxtaposition of the human form within various natural and man-made settings. Lucia also enjoys working on clay, exploring drawing with materials that are rich and finished. Finally the large scale paintings on canvas have provided a successful marriage of the artist’s divergent passions for figure drawing and pure design.

Lucia has had solo exhibitions at the Durham Arts Council and the Flywheel Gallery and has been in group shows throughout the area. Her work has been represented at the Blackwood Station Gallery in Chapel Hill, NC and the Transom and Arete Galleries in Durham. Her pieces are part of many private collections across the country.

A portion of all art sales will be donated to arts related organizations or a non-profit of the artist's choice. This month's artist has chosen the Central Park School for Children Sunshine Fund as the recipient.

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March 2010
Tom Dunne

Tom Dunne was born in Queens, New York, where he studied traditional drawing and painting. For many years he has worked as an illustrator and designer, most recently having illustrated a children’s book for HarperCollins. These days he has moved away from commissioned work to follow his own muse. Tom lives in Durham, North Carolina and works from his downtown studio.

Tom sees his work as autobiography, creating images from his world that resonate on universal and emotional levels. His images from past and present represent the roots of the human spirit. He draws much of his inspiration from nature. His work with the human figure extends beyond studio depictions in narrative settings.

Tom sees his work simply as drawings with color, no distinction between painting and drawing. His pieces are often created with conte chalk on gesso with a mix of watercolors, enamels, oils and glazes. Lately his work has become increasingly abstract, a further departure from the refined traditional skills he developed through the years, moving toward a more sponaneous, personal, and sensual communication.

Among the places Tom has exhibited are the Durham Arts Council, The Transom Gallery, Durham Arts Place, and Arete Gallery in Durham, The Blackwood Station Gallery and the Chelsea Gallery in Chapel Hill and has been a member of Triangle Concepts, an artists collective exhibiting at various other local venues. His work can be seen online at www.tomdunneart.com.

A portion of all art sales will be donated to arts related organizations or a non-profit of the artist's choice. This month's artist has chosen the M Okada Foundation of America as the recipient.

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February 2010
Heather Angelika Dooley

Heather Angelika Dooley is a local artist hailing originally from South Florida and has lived in Durham, NC since June 2007. She is currently a student at an all women’s liberal art college, studying and seeking a degree in Creative Writing. Beyond being an artist, she is also a writer/poet who is currently awaiting her third book to release to bookstore shelves in March 2010. Time Heals All Swoons is her third title and is in production at her publisher’s [office] at this moment in time. You will notice that some of the subject matter of her paintings are connected with, and compliment, this title like magic.

In Heather Angelika’s latest pieces, you can see her former art experience, and other trades, make their way onto the canvas. She was once a scenic artist who built things for Universal Studios, Foxwood Casinos, the Grossology traveling exhibit, and Busch Gardens, just to name a few. She was also a screen-printer and a tattoo artist, so she mixes a playful retro style with that of new school flash. She doesn’t pigeonhole herself into one style or approach of artwork, and everything in this series has a bit of a kittenish edge, even if the intrinsic message is more abstruse than meets the eye. Her next series may completely stray from this style and be the total inverse of the one you see on display now. Heather Angelika is constantly evolving and taking U-turns to find different regions to feel inspired —some simpler than others, as we see in this showcase.

Heather Angelika has a hand (or both hands, rather) in just about every creative and artistic medium there is. She writes, paints, draws, enjoys photography, screen-printing, building, crafting, making jewelry, home restoration, and refurbishes threadbare furniture she finds along the side of the road into collectible gems. She is the owner of KIDeidoscope Designs, which specializes in themed children’s bedrooms and playrooms. She is also a dancer, and spent over half her life dancing in companies, as well as was a DJ for many years in clubs. Presently she works at Red Beret Designs, LLC, as the local graphic designer, Claire Doyle’s, personal assistant.

A portion of all art sales will be donated to arts related organizations or a non-profit of the artist's choice. This month's artist has chosen Haiti’s Disaster Relief Fund - Yele’s Earthquake Fund - as the recipient.

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January 2010
Alisha Arneth

Alisha’s artistic life began when she was a child in Belmar, NJ.

At the age of 10 she moved to a Kibbutz in Israel, where she continued her education. In High School she took Art, Art History and Advanced Literature as her courses of choice. The 3 year course in art consisted of wood crafting, sculpting, charcoals, pastels, figure drawing and painting. She graduated in 2002 and decided to move back to the United States and travel.

On the road she suddenly took up painting again, after a period of frustration with art. She discovered a style of art that came naturally. She became inspired again and as quite a surprise; paintings were being finished in a mere couple of hours. Suddenly it didn’t matter what the paintings were about or how to paint them, but to enjoy art on an intuitive level and experience it as a therapy. The process itself is the art, not the result. This has been truly liberating for her.

She continues to paint prolifically to this day.  She has no particular method or technique, only a practice of surrender. She paints primarily with oils and acrylics. She likes to paint mostly abstract and surreal paintings with organic and cosmic symbols.  These images are of an inner world, perhaps even on a subconscious level.

Her art is spread all over Israel and across the US. Displays in galleries and public places have primarily taken place on the Jersey Shore and Durham, NC.
Alisha integrates her artistic life with her holistic life as a reflexology practitioner in Durham, NC.

For more info on Alisha’s art please call: 919-608-0822 or write an e-mail to:
alisha.artandsoul@gmail.com  or visit her website at: www.alishaarneth.com

A portion of all art sales will be donated to arts related organizations or a non-profit of the artist's choice. This month's artist has chosen Carolina Outreach Foundation as the recipient.

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December 2009
Mikel Robinson

About My Work
The Universe is not a random place- though there are those who may disagree. But yet, we often feel as though we are random and nameless, as we live out our lives, in a sometimes disconnected world. A world that often leaves us feeling separated from others by invisible walls of convenience and non-interaction. I, however, feel we are deeply connected to each other in more ways than can be understood, and it is these connections which give us identity, and meaning for our lives. My art explores these human interconnections- these "Life Stories"- and thereby seeks to serve as a reminder that existence is a precious gift not randomly given, and that our lives are more than an accidental set of days.

On Illumination
I work with light to illuminate both the physical and emotional darkness of this world. For me, light is more than a mechanical means of manipulation-it is literally a way to illuminate and explore the dark corners of the human experience. I have been creating mixed media work almost 20 years, but when I began using light to illuminate pieces, I discovered a strong, immediate connection with my audience. Viewers began to more closely approach and interact with my work. As a result, I have been able to more directly examine the under lit and sometimes taboo subjects of life; and using light has also helped to soften the hard edges of difficult questions we all face. After 20 years, I am still unsure as to why the light element makes such a difference, but I have certainly lived long enough to understand the power of illumination.

Biography
Mikel Robinson is a self-trained North Carolina artist who currently resides in Durham. For the past ten years, his work has centered on the use of light and turn-of-the century photography. Heavily influenced by the Outsider art movement, and prominent conceptual artists such as French artist Christian Boltanski, Robinson’s work is often very abstract in nature and hard to classify. Visually, however, Robinson’s art has the nostalgic qualities of days past, combined with the attempt to directly connect with viewers’ emotions. Thematically, his art discusses deeper universal aspects of human existence such as love, longing, and human mortality. Recent exhibitions include the Mint Museum of Art in Charlotte, NC, ARTSPACE in Raleigh, NC, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, CA, SUNY Brockport, Brockport NY, and Graceland University, Lamoni, IA.

A portion of all art sales will be donated to arts related organizations or a non-profit of the artist's choice. This month's artist has chosen Housing for New Hope as the recipient.

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November 2009
Amanda La France

VIVA SUDAMÉRICA!
Images by Amanda La France

Within every picture is an unspoken truth. The photographer exposes more that what is seen, for far beyond each image is a story.

For me, an image can make an impact in such a short time; it can cross boundaries and tell all without uttering a word. Simply put, I love imagery- whether it’s a cross-processed landscape taken with my Holga or a colorful graffiti piece on an abandoned building, visual stimuli excite me.

I have been travelling with camera in hand since I was sixteen years old, capturing images of the places, faces, and events that intrigue me. This past winter took me to South America for six months for a “walk about” of sorts through Peru, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, and Bolivia. It was one of the most exhilarating, exciting, albeit toughest, and at times scary, opportunities of my life.

The pieces in this series represent to me the dream-like meandering as well as the fierce realities I faced through travelling the truly diverse lands of Sudamérica. I invite you to not only interpret what you see at first glance but to also consider the stories behind the images, oh and do feel free to ask me about them!

Amanda La France
photographer, documentarian

A Midwesterner by birth and a Southerner by choice, Amanda La France made her roundabout journey from Minneapolis, MN to Durham, NC seven years ago, by way of the American West and Northwest. After graduating from the Center for Documentary Studies program at Duke she now heads a group of artists who call themselves Media Nomads. This rag-tag band of artists are bound by a passion to use their crafts to communicate, enlighten, and create a collaborative exchange for clients and the public alike.

A portion of all art sales will be donated to arts related organizations or a non-profit of the artist's choice. This month's artist has chosen The Jeremiah Program as the recipient.

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October 2009
Annemarie Gugelmann

Annemarie Gugelmann is a local artist (oil painting and printmaking) who is a graduate of Bryn Mawr College with a degree in political science and art history. Since graduating, Annemarie has been showing her art around the Triangle. In January, 2010, she will start graduate school at the Rhode Island School of Design in Providence, RI.

In Annemarie’s current work, she combines her interest in political science with art and investigates how cities and communities form and change. She is interested in the public domain and how people create an atmosphere and commonality within it. In her art, she wants to capture a city’s unique atmosphere and how it separates itself from other urban landscapes. The work she created for Broad Street focuses on New York City and Miami. More than in earlier work, she's been focusing on how humans interact and react to their surroundings.

Annemarie has most recently been recognized in local press for her work involving downtown Durham, New Glimmers of Old Glamour, Painting Durham. In a project made possible by the Emerging Artist Program of the Durham Arts Council, she has created 5 – 6 by 6 foot oil paintings of downtown Durham which are currently on display at the Durham Arts Council through November 1st.

A portion of all art sales will be donated to local arts related organizations or a non-profit of the artist's choice. This month's artist has chosen Doctors Without Borders as the recipient.

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August/September 2009
Saba Barnard
"Free Music"

Saba Barnard is a North Carolina native who has been painting with steadily increasing passion and vigor over the last 5 years. An avid observer of the human condition, her skeleton figures are portraits of people in various emotional states. As skeletons, the figures are representations of humans, without regard to race, age, gender, or physical beauty. A number of the paintings use the skeleton figures to illustrate the transcendental nature of experiencing music. Her medium of choice is acrylic paint.

In addition to skeleton figures, Saba Barnard also paints more traditional portraits in oil paints. She is available for commission work.

Saba Barnard lives in Durham, and is currently in school at North Carolina Central University studying Art Education.

A portion of all art sales will be donated to local arts related organizations or a non-profit of the artist's choice.
This month's artist has chosen the North Carolina Central University Art Museum as the recipient.

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July 2009
Bonnie Perron

A portion of all art sales will be donated to local arts related organizations or a non-profit of the artist's choice.
This month's artist has chosen UNICEF as the recipient.

Bonnie Marie has only been painting since March of 2008, but the colors run in her blood ~ her maternal Grandfather William Jones and Grandmother Joan Jones were painters, and her Aunt Nancymarie also is a painting fool. Her mother Karen Perron has the flame as well. Bonnie always loved using her crayolas to create rainbow patterns, since she was a small child. 'Color therapy' as her family would say. She dabbled in some sketching for fun, and always kept her eye out for a good coloring book, but never thought to paint untill one day in March.

While working at California Pizza Kitchen, Bonnie waited on a woman and commented on how fabulous she looked in green and brown, and that she loved how yummy dark brown and red look when paired. The woman said "Are you a painter? You sound like a painter? You should paint." After a brief chat and some encouragement, Bonnie went to get her supplies as soon as she left work, went home and painted, and has been doing it like crazy with acrylics ever since. With her first piece she realized that she could use her fingers better then a brush, and the majority of her work is done with only her fingers.

None of her work is any Thing, but mostly a Thought or Feeling or Presence. Music is always playing while the fingerpainting goes on, and it is usually written on the back of the canvas. The peices take from 10mins to one hour to create. She welcomes commisions. Just tell her how big and what colors you want, or maybe just give her a word, and you'll have it in two days. Hopefully the art brings Joy, Peace and Hope into people's lives, or at least a warm smile ~

Bonnie works at California Pizza Kitchen at Southpoint Mall, finds time to babysit some pretty awesome kids, and has also done lots of theater over the years. Email her if you'd like, she'd Love to have your thoughts:

bonluvsjesus@hotmail.com

More of her work can also be found on myspace: 'Bonnie who quotes movies with a passion'

Bonnie would like to dedicate this art show to her Grandmother Joan, who passed away may 9th after a long battle with altzheimers. Joan never got to see any of Bonnie's art, and they never were able to have a great talk about blending colors, but Bonnie knows that she truly can see it all now.

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June 2009
Stephen N Foster

A portion of all art sales will be donated to local arts related organizations or a non-profit of the artist's choice.
June 2009's artist chose Special Olympics as the recipient.

Stephen Foster has been painting abstract, gallery-ready work for over 7 years, with intermittant formal training. Most of his work is highly intuitive and relies on the shape/concept to emerge once the colors begin to hit the canvas.
He works mostly in acryllics but also in oils and mixed media.

Foster grew up in Burlington, NC, and is in the investment management business, which he says, "only pays the bills so I can paint." He has sold numerous abstract works--including web-based graphics--through his website.

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May 2009
Danielle Riley

A portion of all art sales will be donated to local arts related organizations or a non-profit of the artist's choice.
May 2009's artist chose Trips For Kids as the recipient.

Raised in the Quaker tradition, Danielle Riley learned early the awareness that comes from the practice of quiet mindfulness.  Years later, she extended this practice into her work at the College of William and Mary where she studied under writer-in-residence Nancy Schoenberger.  By examining the complexity of seemingly quotidian moments in her own poetry, Riley began to recognize the value of the same in photography.

“Photography serves as a kind of haiku experience for me.  Mindful observation of even the smallest of spaces can be revealing; there is much we miss as we slog through our days.  The camera provides the means and opportunity to be still, and remain still, in the moment.”

Danielle Riley currently lives in Durham where she works as an English teacher and freelance editor.  Her photography has taken her from coast to coast, down a few alleys, through train yards and into cemeteries.  Riley was 8 years old when she received her first camera – a Kodak Instamatic – from her father.  

This show is dedicated to him.

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April 2009
Isti Kaldor

A portion of all art sales will be donated to local arts related organizations or a non-profit of the artist's choice.
April 2009's artist has chosen Accomplishes More as the recipient.

Life for me began on December 23, 1977 in Vac, Hungary growing up on my grandmothers farm.
My family emigrated to the United States in 1988 after my father received a Fulbright Scholarship to peruse cancer research as an organic chemist in Rochester NY. In 1992 we moved to beautiful North Carolina for a job offer my father received from Glaxo. I attended Riverside High school and shortly thereafter Appalachian State University. Life for my family has been filled with many hardships ever since I can remember. My sister had two brain tumors at a very young age and now she has epilepsy accompanied by a undiagnosable psychiatric condition similar to schizophrenia, but in spite of her hurdles in life she is doing well. In 2002, I broke my back in a kayaking accident the same day my grandmother passed on. Six months later, February, 2003 my mother passed away to lung cancer which was a pivotal day in the life of many. Oh yeah, I am also bipolar and learning disabled but the show must go on.
Come and be a part of the celebration but most importantly the destination.
As far as my paintings...its just oil on canvas.
My style- Sweet and Sour Barbaque.
My muse...well, everyone.

Here are just a few examples of the work that was on display:

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March 2009
Steven Ray Miller

A portion of all art sales will be donated to local arts related organizations or a non-profit of the artist's choice. March 2009's recipient was The Human Kindness Foundation.

Here are just a few examples of the work that was on display:

Miller's works have been exhibited throughout the United States in more than 75 one-man shows and 40 juried competitions. His creations are part of prominent art collections, including those of NationsBank, Hilton, Marriott Corp., PepsiCo, Mary Duke Biddle Trent Semans, Roberta Peters, Mitch Kapor, Avery Rockefeller III and former S.C. Gov. Richard Riley.

Nicolai Cikovsky, curator of American Art at the National Gallery of Art, called Miller's award-winning painting Pencil Cup Revisited "a work of tremendous scale ... splendid sense of design and coloration which carries marvelously; it recalls Matisse." Miller's first serigraph, California Flower Fields, received awards from curators at the Whitney Museum of American Art. From 120 statewide entries, Miller won the prestigious Spoleto USA dance poster competition.

The Washington Duke Inn made an inspired choice in commissioning artist Steven R. Miller to paint four images. A 1973 Duke graduate, Miller is intimately familiar with the Duke landmarks depicted: the Inn, its golf course, the Sarah P. Duke Gardens and Duke Chapel.

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February 2009
Lisa Jones

A portion of all art sales will be donated to local arts related organizations or a non-profit of the artist's choice. February 2009's recipient was The Scrap Exchange.

Here are just a few examples of the work that was on display:

Lisa N. Jones is a local Chapel Hill/Durham artist. She received her BFA in Painting & Drawing from East Carolina University and is currently pursuing further education in art. Her art can best be described as mixed media painting in a funky style with very personal messages. She uses papers, glues, acrylics, inks, pencils, fabrics, glosses, and spray paints.

"Art is different for every person and tied deeply to who they are and what they believe. I believe all of existence is an absolute miracle, and it is our duty as people to strive for happiness and help each other. Art is a means to celebrate the beauty, complexity, and depth of existence and to revive our awareness and gratitude for it. Staying conscious and grateful for this miracle is how art can help people find happiness. They are boundless things aret can recite to people about life.
Be it through aesthetics, symbolism, or narrative, art creates more beauty in the world. Art can explore the depth of life through the imagination, the unconscious, and the past. Art can illustrate personal journeys, which is a big part of what I use art for. By exhibiting my journey and the truths I have found, I hope to help others find their way. one of the greatest miracles of life is that we will never have all the answers and there is more searching to do. My art is who I am."

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January 2009
Perry Arneson

A portion of all art sales will be donated to local arts related organizations or a non-profit of the artist's choice. January 2009's recipient was Seeds (http://www.seedsnc.org/).

Here are just a few examples of the work that was on display:

As an abstract artist Perry Arneson, aka Perry A., draws upon life's experience. 
What each piece represents is always up for discussion.

Perry graduated from Southwest State University in Marshall, Minnesota in 1997 with a Bachelers degree in Speech Communication: Radio and TV Broadcasting with Minors in Theatre and Studio Art.  There he studied painting from internationaly aclaimed artist Edward Evans. As an actor, Perry did six plays under Obby award winning Director Maxine Kline while living in Minneapolis, MN.

"Being an artist is an essential human function.  Vincent Van Gogh wrote "Every soul has a fire but few stop to warm themselves by it".  If we're lucky enough to learn to express ourselves that fire burns stronger."

Now living in Durham, he and his wife are avid organic gardeners ...which is the main source of inspiration.  "It is great that the Broad Street Cafe donates 10% of the profit from sale of artwork to local charities. "Seeds" is a wonderfull organization that gets kids involved in gardening and that is the chosen recipient for this show."

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December 2008
Onur Tukel

A portion of all art sales will be donated to local arts related organizations or a non-profit of the artist's choice. December 2008's recipient was the Durham Arts Council (http://www.durhamarts.org).

PICTURES FOR THE BABY ROOM
by Onur Tukel

Here are just a few examples of the work that was on display:

16" x 20" pastel and ink on canvas

Onur Tukel is a filmmaker, animator, illustrator based in Durham, North Carolina. He graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill in 1995 and has written and directed four feature films including the bizarre romantic comedy Ding-a-ling-LESS. In 2007, he wrote and directed a children's educational DVD for public television called Let's Go Shopping with Read-a-Roo that features a motley crew of puppets as well as animation and songs (that Tukel composed). His edgy cartoon Trashlands appeared in Encore Magazine in 2007. The same year, his political comic series The Decider lampooned George W. Bush and appeared in two issues of the now defunct political rag Old Trout. He has created animated music videos for NYC musician BLOCK and broadway composer David Yazbek. His 16-page comic piece Steps of Another Man's House will be published in World War III magazine in December of 2008. He is slowly working on various projects, including a folk album and graphic novel and hopes to return to filmmaking in the future. This was his first art show in Durham.

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