“Iconography has given me the opportunity to undergo a reflection and transformation…”
— Sarah Johnson

*"The Holy Trinity" by Sarah Johnson, 14x22in, graphite on paper (2017)*

At this point, it is fair to say that all art speaks to tradition; even the most radical work usually sees Dadaism as an ancestor. There was a time when virtually the only way to make a living as an artist was to create religious imagery – the church was one of the only paying customers, and private collectors rarely wanted secular art, except for portraits. Iconography is not always religious, but the use of recurrent symbols and themes in churches arguably laid the foundation of how we think about such things. Sarah Johnson here picks up that tradition in designs that show fealty to the rigid, highly symmetrical compositional formula that were essential in this work, but with a soupcon of individual interpretation in the details of character.

“I have the opinion that art is supposed to reflect to its audience a message,” says Johnson. “I believe art has a very significant role to play in our daily and personal lives as well as having the capacity to influence our entire culture, spiritually and politically. The best examples of that kind of art have one thing in common: it touches the soul. I have a strong desire to share my belief and perspective and Iconography has given me the opportunity to undergo a reflection and transformation and to learn a time-tested medium. I aim to continue in my study in Iconography.”

So Johnson’s images are unabashedly ecclesiastical; a personal expression of spirituality rooted in the long and rich historical traditions employed by some of the greatest artists the world has known: Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael, not to mention untold numbers whose specific identity has been lost to time.

Hometown: Maysville, Kentucky
Age: 32
Education: Studied at the Art Academy of Cincinnati
Website: http://www.sarahcatherinejohnson.wordpress.com

*"Christ Pantocrator" by Sarah Johnson, 14x22in, graphite on paper (2017)*

*"Archangel Michael" by Sarah Johnson, 14x22in, graphite on paper (2017)*

*"Saint Andrew" by Sarah Johnson, 14x22in, graphite on paper (2017)*

Are you interested in being on Artebella? Click here to learn more. — *Are you interested in being on Artebella? Click here to learn more.*

Painting, Drawing

Feature: 2017 Academy of LVA Seniors, Part 2 of 2

Josh Jenkins · May 17, 2017

“I learned so much that helped me to become a better artist.” — Mayteana Williams

Student, Mayteana Williams working on a drawing. — *Student, Mayteana Williams working on a drawing.*

The art of youth is often the transition between the joyful, unfettered creativity of a child, and the first deliberate intention of an adult artist. The senior students departing the Academy of LVA for college in the fall have discovered that they have something to say to the world, and they are choosing to say it through art.

Moving from the idealized and fantastical images of children from Mayteana Williams, to the more polished and well-observed self-portraits and startlingly brutal scene pulled from archetypal childhood we find in the work of Madison McGill, we get some understanding of how young artist may surprise us with caustic social commentary or reach beyond the obvious assumptions of perceived cultural identity. Then Katie Montgomery shows a full embrace of Expressionism and an authoritative command of her medium in capturing raw human emotion. A child’s first art making is fundamental expression of their emotional being – the elemental satisfaction of finger paints, and Montgomery reconnects to that need.

Mayteana Williams – CFAC/Academy student for 8 years
Has been accepted to Spalding University for their college of art and design.

“I am grateful to William Duffy in sculpture, because I had never done that before, and Dennis Whitehouse, because I learned so much that helped me to become a better artist.”

Madison McGill – Scholastic Silver Key
Will be attending the University of Kentucky to major in Studio Arts.

“I learned a lot from Wilma Bethel and we had some great conversations. She has such a loving heart for every one of her students and is an outstanding artist! It was my pleasure to learn from such an amazing woman. Jean Smith was also an amazing teacher. When I started the mural, she graciously took me under her wing and assisted me in any questions I had for her. This was my first mural and without her encouragement and guidance, I don't know if I could've completed it. Both of these wonderful ladies have impacted my life greatly and have taught me so, so much. I would definitely recommend LVA to someone with an interest in art!”

Katie Montgomery
Has been accepted into and will attend The School of the Art Institute of Chicago on a scholarship.

“Classes with LVA/CFAC have made me the incredible artist and person that I am today. I've learned everything that I know from being taught and influenced by their teachers, especially Dennis Whitehouse.”

These students, and others, have created small-scale work especially for The Academy of LVA exhibition, which will be at Revelry Boutique Gallery May 19 – May 25. There will be an Opening Reception May 19, 6-8pm.

Revelry Boutique Gallery
742 E. Market Street

Gallery Hours
Tuesday – Saturday, 11am-7pm
Sunday & Monday, 11am-5pm

This Feature article was written by Keith Waits.
In addition to his work at the LVA, Keith is also the Managing Editor of a website, www.Arts-Louisville.com, which covers local visual arts, theatre, and music in Louisville.

Drawing, Mixed Media, Painting

Feature: 2017 Academy of LVA Seniors, Part 1 of 2

Josh Jenkins · May 16, 2017

“(LVA) was a game changer from day one.” – Emily Yellina

"Untitled #1" by James Inmon — *"Untitled #1" by James Inmon*

What will the next generation of artists show us? A glimpse into the answer might be provided in high school seniors finishing the Louisville Visual Art’s (LVA) Academy program. Most have been involved with LVA for years, beginning with Children’s Fine Art Classes (CFAC) in elementary and middle school before moving on to the Academy curriculum, which is only now in its second year, but there is undeniable ambition and individual expression in abundance in the work with which these students have stocked their portfolios.

There is also a sense of discovery; the exploration of medium and technique is fresh and unapologetic. This is the art of youth; the marriage of facility and ideas that is characteristic of artists at this age. James Inmon takes hold of a motif - the Mexican piñata, and places it in a range of scenarios that are tender, satirical, and political; Emily Yellina communicates an intimate, revelatory moment with a small mirror filled with compassion; Juliet Taylor brings heightened color into service connecting with street art in a dazzling, almost hallucinatory image; and Audrey Heichelbech injects a more overt autobiographical theme into dense collage work.

Audrey Heichelbech – Governor’s School for the Arts
Will major in Industrial Design at California College of the Arts

*An expressive mixed media collage (paper and thread) by Audrey Heichelbech (2016)*

James Inmon - Governor’s School for the Arts, Scholastic Honors
Plans to major in Printmaking and Mathematics at Murray State.

“LVA opened my eyes to new mediums that I wouldn't have thought to try on my own, like printmaking. It's also provided me with resources to allow me to better communicate my own ideas with my art, as opposed to mimicking other artists. Both Sunny Ra and Rudy Salgado were impactful for me as an artist.”

Emily Yellina – Scholastic Gold Key, National Honor Society
Intends to Major in Art and Minor in Psychology at the University of Louisville

“In middle school art wasn't an option for a class to take in school, so we looked for an outside class for me to take so I could still be involved in art. That's when my parents found the LVA CFAC class and enrolled me in the class. It was a game changer from day one. Dean Mistler is not only an amazing art teacher but has become to be my friend and mentor in the process. He was the first to mention art therapy to me as a career, when I told him about my brother doing art therapy at the Riley Hospital for Children."

*"Untitled Still Life" by Emily Yellina*

Artist, Emily Yellina — *Artist, Emily Yellina*

Juliet Taylor – Scholastic Gold Key, National Honor Society, St James Court Art Show Sculpture Scholarship

“Rudy Salgado helped me do what I wanted to do with my art instead of forcing projects on me. It helped me to grow with my Printing skills.”

"Pulling Myself Through The Creative Process..." by Juliet Taylor, 8x9ft, mixed media — *"Pulling Myself Through The Creative Process..." by Juliet Taylor, 8x9ft, mixed media*

Artist, Juliet Taylor — *Artist, Juliet Taylor*

These students have created small-scale work especially for The Academy of LVA exhibition, which will be at Revelry Boutique Gallery May 19 – May 25. There will be an Opening Reception May 19, 6-8pm.

Revelry Boutique Gallery
742 E. Market Street

Gallery Hours:
Tuesday – Saturday, 11am-7pm
Sunday & Monday, 11am-5pm

*"Energy Is Everything" by Juliet Taylor*

Painting, Drawing

Vignette: Sunny Ra

Josh Jenkins · April 18, 2017

"Radiate" by Sunny Ra, 32x48in, oil on canvas (2016), $1300 | BUY NOW — *"Radiate" by Sunny Ra, 32x48in, oil on canvas (2016), $1300 | BUY NOW*

Artist, Sunny Ra. Photo by Dan Lubbers. — *Artist, Sunny Ra. Photo by Dan Lubbers.*

In striking abstract compositions, painter Sunny Ra uses the landscape form to investigate questions of identity in both a social and highly personal context.

“The foundation of my work originates from my experience of growing up Korean in Louisville, Kentucky. I did not have any Korean friends and since I spoke little Korean and could not read or write Hangul, I was an outsider in the Korean community. Similarly, I never quite identified myself as American since I was not white, and was living among majority white Americans. I remember people would ask me where I was from or comment on how well I spoke English. I grew up feeling and eventually believing that I did not belong anywhere - perhaps nowhere. It is from this limbo that my night landscapes emerge and my journey into the obscure and the unknown began.”

*"Untitled #3" by Sunny Ra, 9x12in, pastel on paper (2016)*

It is a common, and let’s be honest, lazy assumption to confuse an individual artist’s racial and cultural identity. Ra makes paintings with no overt ties to traditional Korean pictorial forms, and her formative culture was Middle American, so it is fascinating to hear how she connects the luxurious darkness of her imagery with an evolving personal journey.

“In these night landscapes, I revisit my childhood memories - what has been lost and what remains. Through the application of layers of paint, the images at first recognizable, slowly evolve and merge into the abyss of the dark palette. But through the darkness emerges light and color, a new image surfaces, perhaps this is where I belong.”

Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
Age: 35
Education: MFA, Hunter College, CUNY, 2011; BFA, University of Pennsylvania, 2005; Painting Certificate, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 2005
Website: http://www.sunny-ra.com

"Harvest" by Sunny Ra, 11x14in, oil on paper (2016), $450 | BUY NOW — *"Harvest" by Sunny Ra, 11x14in, oil on paper (2016), $450 | BUY NOW*

*"Untitled #2" by Sunny Ra, 9x12in, pastel on paper (2016)*

"Kinetic" by Sunny Ra, 14x11in, oil on paper (2016), $450 | BUY NOW — *"Kinetic" by Sunny Ra, 14x11in, oil on paper (2016), $450 | BUY NOW*

*"Untitled #1" by Sunny Ra, 9x12in, pastel on paper (2016)*

"Might" by Sunny Ra, 11x14in, oil on paper (2016), $450 | BUY NOW — *"Might" by Sunny Ra, 11x14in, oil on paper (2016), $450 | BUY NOW*

Drawing

Vignette: Barb McDevitt

Josh Jenkins · March 31, 2017

“Art enables us to finds ourselves. As an artist I try to interpret what I have seen in hope that others can see my vision.” — Barb McDevitt

"TAJI" by Barb McDevitt, 16x20in, pastel (2016) $700 | BUY NOW — *"TAJI" by Barb McDevitt, 16x20in, pastel (2016) $700 | BUY NOW*

Although she paints plein aire, Barb McDevitt also finds old architecture quite compelling. She sees the survival of venerable buildings from the past as inspirational, discovering the rich, earthy color of the brick, or the originally bright, albeit now somewhat dimmed colors of the signage and storefronts among the more modern buildings in the city.

“The TAJ was an old building bought back to life again,” says McDevitt. “I wanted to capture that rebirth. Conversely, The Phoenix Hill Tavern was a place of good times for many generations only to suffer a death by way of retirement. There is irony in the idea that a building with that name would not be born again from the ashes.”

These prosaic images tie present and past together in simple, honest, terms, but visual motifs are always loaded with more than the surface meaning; memory, history, and the passing of an age are at all at work in these paintings because those aspects are important to McDevitt. In her own way, like many other artist, she is a local historian and preservationist.

Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
Education: BA, Graphic Arts, University of Louisvill
Gallery Representative: Jane Morgan Gallery, Framer’s Express (Louisville)
Website: http://barbamcdevitt.webs.com/

"Spring Floyds Fork" by Barb McDevitt, 14x11in, pastel (2015) $350 | BUY NOW — *"Spring Floyds Fork" by Barb McDevitt, 14x11in, pastel (2015) $350 | BUY NOW*

"Coffee Talk" by Barb McDevitt, 12x16in, pastel (2016) $500 | BUY NOW — *"Coffee Talk" by Barb McDevitt, 12x16in, pastel (2016) $500 | BUY NOW*

"The Death of the Phoenix" by Barb McDevitt, 20x16in, pastel (2016) $700 | BUY NOW — "*The Death of the Phoenix" by Barb McDevitt, 20x16in, pastel (2016) $700 | BUY NOW*