“Experience will be more valuable than anything learned in the classroom.”
— Deborah Stanley

Deborah Stanley has been a juried member of the Louisville Artisans Guild (LAG) since 2011 and a member of the Louisville Visual Art (LVA) since 2014 and have been a participatant in the Art[squared] project since its inception. Her work has been displayed and featured in various art galleries and exhibitions in the Louisville area such as LAG 2016 Holiday Showcase and 2016 Annual Exhibit; Kaviar Forge and Gallery (Touched with Fire, 2016 and The Figure Revealed, 2014, juried participant); Gallery 104 in La Grange, KY (the 2014 Red Show, juried participant), 2013 Crafts of Kentucky Exhibition, (juried participant), JCC Patio Gallery Presents Louisville Artisans Guild, 2013, the 2012 and 2013 Brown-Foreman Annual Pride Fair, The KORE Gallery (former partner), 2012 September Art Fair Mellwood Art Center, juried participant, Louisville Artisans Guild Annual Art Exhibit, and The Women's Club of Louisville (2012 Annual No-Jury Art Show).

When did you first think you would be an artist?

2004

Who or what inspires you now?

Beautiful and colorful visual imagery in nature or photo images

"Lukas" by Deborah Stanley, 8x10in, polymer clay (2016) $350 | BUY NOW — *"Lukas" by Deborah Stanley, 8x10in, polymer clay (2016) $350 | BUY NOW*

Your work is unique, and blurs many lines. How did you come to work with polymer clay?

I was working on an art project with my young son and needed something different and colorful that would be easy enough for a child to make into simple shapes. However, I found an immediate connection and affinity for the feel of the clay and the endless possibilities I saw when the colors are blended.

You describe yourself as an “abstract expressionist,” yet the images also contain representational figures and faces – talk about how you balance the two strains in your work?

I strive to express an emotion or feeling with every piece I create. While many of my creations contain representational figures and faces, my concentration is on communicating emotion or feeling rather than trying to create a technically correct replica of a particular subject. I would say my balance of the two strains is giving just enough technical detail to capture the essence of the subject and let abstract expressionism take over from there.

"Gypsy Dancer" by Deborah Stanley, 9x12in, polymer clay (2016) $425 | BUY NOW — "*Gypsy Dancer" by Deborah Stanley, 9x12in, polymer clay (2016) $425 | BUY NOW*

If you could do anything else but make art, what would it be?

Photography. I have always had a passion for photography and previously owned and operated a photography business specializing in wedding and family photographs.

What frightens you the most?

Bugs!

What challenges you more than anything?

Coloring within the lines.

What is your favorite music to listen to when making art?

R&B/hip hop/rap/oldies/pop

Vinyl or CD?

iTunes - Sorry but if I have to choose between the two, it would be CD

What advice would you give a young artist just out of college?

Experience will be more valuable than anything learned in the classroom. Keep working and never feel like you've "arrived". You will always improve if you keep working.

Tell us about an important moment of transition for you as an artist?

For my first several years as an artist, I exclusively created abstract designs, always determined to "let go/let flow" with the clay. A few years ago, I accepted a commission, which required the inclusion of a representational figure. This commission challenged me to find the most creative way to express freedom while meeting the requirement of my client. This was a pivotal moment for me and gave me the outlet to express myself or an idea or feeling in every piece I now create.

"Sheba" by Deborah Stanley, 9x12in, polymer clay (2016) $425 | BUY NOW — *"Sheba" by Deborah Stanley, 9x12in, polymer clay (2016) $425 | BUY NOW*

How do you feel about local art scene in Louisville? What would you change about it?

I love the art scene in Louisville. As a transplant from the Washington, DC area, I was pleasantly surprised at how art friendly Louisville is. Just walking downtown and admiring the artistic bike racks and generations of "Gallopalooza" horse statues is always entertaining. There are plenty of galleries and venues that are very welcoming for local artists of all levels. I wouldn't change a thing.

Has your style changed or evolved over the years? If so what do you think influenced this?

Yes. As I described above, my style has evolved from strictly abstract, to Abstract Expressionism utilizing representational figures or faces. It was a required element in a new commission, so I had to give it a try and have not looked back!

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Favorite movie?

"Something New"

If you could meet any celebrity who would it be and what would you ask them?

Boy George. I would ask him where his courage comes from to have demanded to live and look his own way since childhood. His love of freedom and honest way of expressing himself has always been an inspiration to me.

Hometown: Silver Spring, Maryland
Age: 52
Education: Studied Business Administration and Sociology at Montgomery College in Rockville, MD
Website: http://www.aegalleryshop.com

"Color Chameleon" by Deborah Stanley, 9x12in, polymer clay (2016) $425 | BUY NOW — *"Color Chameleon" by Deborah Stanley, 9x12in, polymer clay (2016) $425 | BUY NOW*

*"The People's Champ" by Deborah Stanley, 9x12in, polymer clay (2016)*

"The Purplest" by Deborah Stanley, 11x142in, polymer clay (2016), $500 | BUY NOW — *"The Purplest" by Deborah Stanley, 11x142in, polymer clay (2016), $500* *| BUY NOW*

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

Photography

Vignette: Charles Mintz

Josh Jenkins · March 3, 2017

“Hardware stores are about self-reliance and culture that values results rather than shiny new things. In today’s world, they are survivors.” — Charles Mintz

"Cedar Center Hardware" by Charles Mintz, 32 x 40in, Inkjet Print From Scanned FIlm (2015), $1000 | BUY NOW — *"Cedar Center Hardware" by Charles Mintz, 32 x 40in, Inkjet Print From Scanned FIlm (2015), $1000 | BUY NOW*

As we make the world shiny and new with urban renewal and fashionable shopping malls, there is still a network of old-fashioned hardware stores located in American communities. The counters are aged; once sharp corners worn to a nub, yellowed tile floors, the glare of fluorescent lights on plastic packaged merchandise filling every square inch of space, so that the color of the walls remain a mystery. Photographer Charles Mintz has been documenting these archetypal exemplars of the American character for the last few years, searching out the rustic and utilitarian businesses wherever he travels.

As is his custom, Mintz uses a large format film camera with interior exposures ranging from one to six minutes. He explains how it serves to break the ice with his subjects: “Though ungainly, the camera is appreciated by the owners, who gave their permission for the project, and allows some control over focus and perspective. The project is a continuation of work exploring the Great American Dream and the meaning of home. Hardware stores are where we go to fix things - to make things. They are about self-reliance and culture that values results rather than shiny new things. In today’s world, they are survivors.”

"Heuser Hardware" by Charles Mintz, 32 x 40in, Inkjet Print From Scanned FIlm (2016), $1000 | BUY NOW — "*Heuser Hardware" by Charles Mintz, 32 x 40in, Inkjet Print From Scanned FIlm (2016), $1000 | BUY NOW*

“All of my work is about things that are important to me. It is built around my biography but is not about me. Rather it is about the culture of my time and place. It is intended to make you feel and to make you think, though it is not didactic. While this project is not traditional portraiture, it pictures the people that own, operate and shop in these stores. In addition, we can see both common elements and hints of where we are. There is a sense of belonging, a sense of place. To the extent possible, I want the subjects to speak for themselves with a minimum of my interpretation.”

Since becoming a full time photographer in 2008, Mintz has explored portraiture through objects and locations: The Album Project, Precious Objects and, still in progress, Costumes. Even Every Place – I Have Ever Lived, where people in the images are largely unrecognizable, is uniquely personal, beginning with my childhood home that was in foreclosure and continuing in all my lifetime neighborhoods the work has become less traditionally photographic both in form and method.

"Hollywood Hardware" by Charles Mintz, 32 x 40in, Inkjet Print From Scanned FIlm (2016), $1000 | BUY NOW — "*Hollywood Hardware" by Charles Mintz, 32 x 40in, Inkjet Print From Scanned FIlm (2016), $1000 | BUY NOW*

Mintz was Artist in Residence at the Kala Art Institute in Berkeley CA in March 2016, and he was was awarded an Ohio Arts Council Individual Excellence Award for 2015. His work can be found in museums, including the Smithsonian Museum of American History, private and corporate collections in North America, Europe and Asia.

Trillium Books, an imprint of The Ohio State University Press, published his latest book, “Lustron Stories”, in 2016. The Lustron series was exhibited at LVA’s PUBLIC Gallery in Louisville in 2015.

Hometown: Cleveland, Ohio
Age: 69
Education: Mintz studied photography at Maine Photographic Workshop, Parsons School of Design, the International Center for Photography, Lakeland Community College and Cuyahoga Community College. He has a BSEE from Purdue University and an MSEE from Cleveland State University.
Gallery Representation: 1point618 Gallery
Website: www.chuckmintz.com

"Krays Hardware" by Charles Mintz, 32 x 40in, Inkjet Print From Scanned FIlm (2015), $1000 | BUY NOW — "*Krays Hardware" by Charles Mintz, 32 x 40in, Inkjet Print From Scanned FIlm (2015), $1000 | BUY NOW*

"Rodeo Hardware" by Charles Mintz, 32 x 40in, Inkjet Print From Scanned FIlm (2016), $1000 | BUY NOW — "*Rodeo Hardware" by Charles Mintz, 32 x 40in, Inkjet Print From Scanned FIlm (2016), $1000 | BUY NOW*

"Rutledge Hardware" by Charles Mintz, 32 x 40in, Inkjet Print From Scanned FIlm (2015), $1000 | BUY NOW — "*Rutledge Hardware" by Charles Mintz, 32 x 40in, Inkjet Print From Scanned FIlm (2015), $1000 | BUY NOW*

Painting

Vignette: Barbara Tyson Mosley

Josh Jenkins · March 2, 2017

"Awakening - Rise and Embrace the Morning" by Barbara Tyson Mosley, 24x48in, acrylic on canvas (2017), $1500 | BUY NOW — *"Awakening - Rise and Embrace the Morning" by Barbara Tyson Mosley, 24x48in, acrylic on canvas (2017), $1500 | BUY NOW*

We have observed that quite often fiber artists work like painters, but Barbara Tyler Mosley is a painter whose work might put you in mind of some fiber artists. Of course, the comparison assumes the intuitive manipulation of plastic medium is, while not unique to the act of painting, at least a defining characteristic. Mosley’s mark-making application is both organic and highly structured.

Her abstract landscapes are vibrant with color. “These works harmoniously emphasize the relationship between earth, sea, and sky,” it states in Mosley’s Artist’s Statement. “As she quickly works on canvas manipulating the paint to reflect light and color changes, the viewer’s eye sees a playground of color and movement as she expands the scale of color and line.”

In the tightly constructed layers of that color and line we can see the echo of the hand stitching of a textile artist, allowing repetition of the mark to create visual texture in the manner of thread stitched through fabric. This repetition carries through the strict, 12” x 12” dimensions of the individual paintings in the series, so that a perspective from a distance puts us in mind of quilt construction.

"Moonlight is Yellow" by Barbara Tyson Mosley, 12x12in, acrylic on canvas (2016), $500 | BUY NOW — *"Moonlight is Yellow" by Barbara Tyson Mosley, 12x12in, acrylic on canvas (2016), $500 | BUY NOW*

But Mosley is still, determinedly, a painter, boasting a highly developed point-of-view on the integration of representational and abstract.

Mosley’s current exhibit, "12 x 12 Plus" will be at KORE Gallery at the Mellwood Art Center in Louisville through February 28, 2017. She will then be showing more of the 12 x 12 paintings at the New Edition Gallery in Lexington, KY through the month of March. This fall, she will be exhibiting with Tomisha Allen in September and October of 2017 at the Wayside Expressions Gallery, Louisville, KY.

"Evening Calm" by Barbara Tyson Mosley, 12x12in, acrylic on canvas (2016), $500 | BUY NOW — *"Evening Calm" by Barbara Tyson Mosley, 12x12in, acrylic on canvas (2016), $500 | BUY NOW*

Permanent Collections:
PNC Bank Tower, Contemporary Ethnic Dolls, Pittsburgh, PA
Heritage Art Center Gallery, Lexington, KY
The University of Virginia Medical Center, Charlottesville, VA
The Corcoran Gallery of Art (Evans-Tibbs Collection), Washington, DC
The Fine Arts Institute, San Bernardino Museum of Art, Redlands, CA
The International Multicultural Fine Arts Exchange Foundation, Washington, DC

Hometown: Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Education: BA, Studio Art, Painting, University of the District of Columbia, Washington, DC, 1985; MA in Liberal Studies Degree (Humanities; 20th Century Art History) Georgetown University, Washington, DC, 1990; MFA Candidate, Design George Washington University, Washington, DC, 2002-2004

"In the Night" by Barbara Tyson Mosley, 12x12in, acrylic on canvas (2016), $500 | BUY NOW — *"In the Night" by Barbara Tyson Mosley, 12x12in, acrylic on canvas (2016), $500 | BUY NOW*

"Morning Coffee and Caramel Tea" by Barbara Tyson Mosley, 24x36in, acrylic on canvas (2014), $650 | BUY NOW — *"Morning Coffee and Caramel Tea" by Barbara Tyson Mosley, 24x36in, acrylic on canvas (2014), $650 | BUY NOW*

"The 13th of Friday" by Barbara Tyson Mosley, 36x48in, acrylic on canvas (2013), $2500 | BUY NOW — *"The 13th of Friday" by Barbara Tyson Mosley, 36x48in, acrylic on canvas (2013), $2500 | BUY NOW*

Painting, Drawing

Vignette: Jenny Shircliff

Josh Jenkins · February 28, 2017

"Creekside" by Jenny Shircliff, 24x36in, oil on canvas (2017), $1500 | BUY NOW — *"Creekside" by Jenny Shircliff, 24x36in, oil on canvas (2017), $1500 | BUY NOW*

Artists turn that introspective gaze towards themselves; it’s not at all unusual - most art reveals something of the person who creates it. Jenny Shircliff makes herself the subject as a way of investigating age and, by implication, mortality.

"Cavea" by Jenny Shircliff, 18x15in, pastels on paper (2016), $650 | BUY NOW — *"Cavea" by Jenny Shircliff, 18x15in, pastels on paper (2016), $650 |* *BUY NOW*

Her earlier paintings were naturalistic renderings of the figure, but her new work is a departure, in which she dramatically abstracts human form nearly beyond recognition, and equates it with landscape forms.

“Our culture's idea of figurative beauty is predicated on youth, smooth skin, and rosy complexions,” observes Shircliff, “I am inverting that tenet and looking at my own aging flesh as a recording of my life, much in the same way that time is visually marked on the landscape. Thus, I have turned to viewing various parts of my own body as elements of land formations and use them as a derivation for abstract landscape. And I draw my color from nature itself. In a way, this new body of work could be described as ‘flesh-scapes’.”

What results from this focus are images of startling graphic impact. They appear to be abstract but are, in reality, intense, close-up views of the human form that embrace and reveal their humanity. The discovery of organic pattern and shape is so universal that we mistake them for images of other animals or natural rock formations. Through this highly candid, nearly forensic self-portrait series, Shircliff reminds us that we are a part of a larger natural world.

"Outcrop" by Jenny Shircliff, 20x24in, pastels on paper (2016), $950 | BUY NOW — *"Outcrop" by Jenny Shircliff, 20x24in, pastels on paper (2016), $950 | BUY NOW*

Shircliff has returned to painting after a long period devoting herself to the studying and teaching art history. “One of the most important things I learned from that experience is that assumptions should be challenged, inverted, and viewed in a different light.”

Shircliff has taught previously at Kentucky College of Art + Design at Spalding University, KSAH, Bellarmine University, University of Louisville, IUS, JCTC, and Midway College.

Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
Age: 62
Education: PhD in Art History, May 2014 University of Louisville, Louisville, KY; MA in Painting, 1994 University of Louisville, Louisville, KY; BFA in Drawing, 1976 Murray State University, Murray, K

"Cavern" by Jenny Shircliff, 31x36in, oil on canvas (2016), $3000 | BUY NOW — *"Cavern" by Jenny Shircliff, 31x36in, oil on canvas (2016), $3000 | BUY NOW*

"Gorge" by Jenny Shircliff, 48x48in, oil on canvas (2016), $1500 | BUY NOW — *"Gorge" by Jenny Shircliff, 48x48in, oil on canvas (2016), $1500 | BUY NOW*

"Cliffside" by Jenny Shircliff, 24x36in, oil on canvas (2016), $750| BUY NOW — *"Cliffside" by Jenny Shircliff, 24x36in, oil on canvas (2016), $750| BUY NOW*

Fiber, Painting, Mixed Media

Vignette: Denise Furnish

Josh Jenkins · February 24, 2017

"Gain/Loss (detail)" by Denise Furnish, 31x31in, yoyo quilt patch, archival ink on cotton, acrylic, $900 | BUY NOW — *"Gain/Loss (detail)" by Denise Furnish, 31x31in, yoyo quilt patch, archival ink on cotton, acrylic, $900 | BUY NOW*

“I was asked, ‘What is a quilt?’ It is a question that, at first, seems obvious, but the answer goes much deeper than a hand-made bedcovering. The process of defining a quilt is the essence of my art. The quilt is a sign of women’s work. The making of a quilt implies a chain of signification through conception, use, deterioration, and, in my case, transformation.” — from Denise Furnish’s Artist Statement

"Gold Star" by Denise Furnish, 77.5x76in, discarded lone star quilt, acrylic, $3200 | BUY NOW — "*Gold Star" by Denise Furnish,* *77.5x76in, discarded lone star quilt, acrylic, $3200 | BUY NOW*

In the history of Modern Art, or the still-being-written chronicle of Contemporary Art, the quilt can still seem like an outlier, despite several generations of fiber artists using it as the foundation of their work. Yet the very associations that might lie at the heart of perceived limitations – namely its functional role as comforting family heirloom, are also the source of the quilt’s unique power in communicating themes and ideas. Denise Furnish exploits these attributes but also subverts them by using discarded quilts as a vehicle for painting.

*"Bed" by Robert Rauschenberg 75.25x31.5x8in, oil and pencil on pillow, quilt, and sheet on wood supports (1955) © 2017 Robert Rauschenberg Foundation*

“The quilt as a sign for bed interests me, yet I nearly always remove quilts from the bed and put them on the wall. For his collage, “Bed”, Robert Rauschenberg took a quilt from a bed and destroyed it to make art in 1955. The difference is that I am interested in taking already damaged quilts and transforming them into art. I later realized that seeing that work in the Museum of Modern Art in 1968 has influenced me.”

The inherent qualities of each quilt are crucial in the conceptual nature of Furnish’s approach, informing her thoughts and application of medium, but there is also a sense of rejuvenation emanating from the transformation of a tattered, worse-for-wear object becoming a wholly new creative action.

“My work developed as a chain of signification beginning with the recognition of quilt as a sign of pre-feminist ‘women’s work.’ This work was created and executed with attention to design and purpose. It was used, washed, worn. Often, it was separated from its maker. It was found by me and painted–a sign not only of transformation, but also of post-feminist women’s achievement.”

Denise Furnish’s work is currently featured in the Louisville Visual Art exhibit, Tessile Ora, on display at Louisville’s Metro Hall through May 26, 2017.

Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
Education: BA, University of Kentucky, 1972; Attended Louisville School of Art 1980-1981; BFA University of Louisville, 2008; MA University of Louisville, 2009
Website: http://www.denisefurnish.com

"Red Basketweave" by Denise Furnish, 56x37in, worn and discarded flower basket crib quilt, acrylic, $1200 | BUY NOW — *"Red Basketweave" by Denise Furnish, 56x37in, worn and discarded flower basket crib quilt, acrylic, $1200 | BUY NOW*

"Flower Garden Boogie Woogie" by Denise Furnish, 48x53in, worn and discarded flower basket crib quilt, acrylic,telephone wire, tablecloth, $1200 | BUY NOW — "*Flower Garden Boogie Woogie" by Denise Furnish, 48x53in, worn and discarded flower basket crib quilt, acrylic,telephone wire, tablecloth, $1200 | BUY NOW*

"Lavender Log Cabin" by Denise Furnish, 40x28in, discarded log cabin crib quilt top, acrylic, $900| BUY — *"Lavender Log Cabin" by Denise Furnish, 40x28in, discarded log cabin crib quilt top, acrylic, $900| BUY*

"FIreball" by Denise Furnish, 43x29in, discarded fireball crib quilt, acrylic, $1200| BUY NOW — *"FIreball" by Denise Furnish, 43x29in, discarded fireball crib quilt, acrylic, $1200| BUY NOW*

Q&A: Deborah Stanley

“Experience will be more valuable than anything learned in the classroom.”— Deborah Stanley