Visual Art League of Lewisville

The members’ show, “Self-Portrait”, was judged by Jackie Lamb, an Art History, Design and Appreciation teacher, and a past President of VAL. Marci Kawalek was the winner of the award, for her piece “Self-Portrait: Irradiated”. Thanks to all members who participated, congratulations to Marci, and special thanks to Jackie for being our judge.

Judge’s Statement

Self Portraits — “The self portrait is a category of art that, historically, has been one of experimentation for artists. Willing, pro-bono models have been available ever since flat mirrors came into use, even though these models did not always sit perfectly still. Artists such as Rembrandt and Van Gogh honed their skills of composition and mastered the use of materials and techniques in their many self portraits.

The Visual Art League’s current Self Portraits exhibition redefines the category in ways that in various instances are puzzling, intriguing, amusing, and refreshing. What is especially commendable is that artists were encouraged to include statements with their entries. Many artists are generally annoyed by the need to verbalize their non-verbal work in artists’ statements. Concepts that seem obvious to the artist in something he or she has worked with very closely are not as evident to the viewer who knows little to nothing about the artist or the work. I can say as a viewer that the statements are tremendously helpful, and I value the insight they give into works in the exhibition.

Jo Ann Vincent’s Self Portrait, with the frontal view and interesting brushwork, and Elaine Nienkamp’s quarter-turn view Myself, with the fine line work and arbitrary yellow hues, are as close to traditional treatment as any of the portraits. The obscured features behind Karyn Lee’s hands in Reaction, and the use of objects to represent the self as in Meg Smith’s Dichotomy and Linda Shackelford’s Where Art Now? become less visual likenesses than self-definitions in which content about the subject supersedes form. As such, these and other more abstracted works reveal much about the artists through the choices of objects and use of color.
Two droll takes on self-portraiture, John Aggus’ Beautiful Blue Eyes and David Mask’s Twin/Spin, are delightful. Aggus’ watercolor is noteworthy for the extreme close-up view, interesting angle, and the dark window in the background; the humor is in the artist’s statement. Mask’s cartoonish, mirrored image on a tall, thin support invites a nudge to make it spin.

There were two especially strong pieces in the exhibition, however. One, Bruce Schiefelbein’s diptych Abused By My Inner Child, shows the fragmenting of form in a style similar to early Cubism. (Anyone who has attempted this technique is well aware of the challenges!) The rendering of the self portrait in two stages of life—one as a child on the right panel and as an adult on the left—makes the use of fragments and the space/time continuum of Cubism an appropriate pairing. Surrounding the adult image with the fragments from childhood, and certainly the title, make the self-portrait’s content intriguing. It would have been helpful to read a bit more on the artist’s intent.

In Marcy Kawalek’s Self-Portrait: Irradiated, a torso dominates the canvas. The head, usually the focus of a self portrait, is barely suggested at the top. Her artist’s statement explains that the work is a response to her breast cancer several years ago. One side of the torso is classical and naturalistic in its detail. Haziness on the other side of the torso implies a physical loss, but vibrant colors and the painting’s organic quality combine for a dynamic treatment that suggests ultimate triumph. This is a painting that invites the celebration of life. Of all the exhibition entries, Self-Portrait: Irradiated is the standout.

It has been a privilege to view the exhibition and offer these comments. As a writer and educator of art history and communication design, I can certainly appreciate the talents and work of each artist. As a former VAL board member, I can see the risk-taking and experimentation members have made over the years since I was active in the organization, and I applaud your creativity and fine talents.”

Our next members’ show is titled “Saying It with Color” and will open on Thursday, May 11. Please be working on a new piece using color to convey your message!

March 6, 2006

1:11 am

Doris Cain, Photographer Art Talk, April 4th

Doris began her professional career in 1980 as an assistant producer of television commercials in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area where her career grew over the next 17 years. By 1985 she was a full time producer of major film, video, and television shows and owner/operator of three companies: The Edit Suite, a full service video editing and 3-D graphic facility; Tele-Visions Corporation, a video production studio, location facility and service company; and Dynamite Films, a high end film production company.

Some of her more distinguished jobs included producing the Dallas Cowboys coaches and owners shows, producing the number one hit music video “Ice Ice Baby”, producing films for Disney’s Epcot theme park and countless award winning commercials, corporate videos, and documentaries for fortune 500 companies including Kodak, Motorola, Apple Computer, Sun Microsystems, Adobe, Sony, IBM, and Frito Lay.
She was producing a piece for Kodak in the mid 90’s and the film called for still photographs. After hiring and rejecting the work of several professional photographers Kodak expressed their disappointment so Doris showed them some of her pictures and that began a long time relationship with Kodak. Today when you visit Kodak Imagination pavilion at Epcot you’ll see her work proudly on display. Doris’s photographic work has since shown up in countless productions, brochures, video covers etc.
She began shooting still photographs as a hobby in the mid 80s. At first her passion was shooting 3-D and she quickly mastered the artistry of shooting in the 3-D environment but the limited viewing opportunities left her with very few options to display her work so she transitioned to a 35mm camera.

After recently moving back to Texas from San Francisco, Doris decided to end her producing career and focus on her passion, photography. Doris jumped in with both feet. She’s currently a member of NAPP, National Association of Photoshop Professionals, and CLAG, Canyon Lake Art Guild. She is also an active member of Professional Photographers Association, Texas Professional Photographers Association and her local San Antonio Professional Photographers Guild. She’s accomplished her professional photographers certification requirements and working on earning credits on her Masters of Photography Certification. She’s great at shooting all types of photography, but she loves shooting children and families in their natural environments. She loves shooting with a photojournalistic style where she can capture the real character of her subjects. She utilizes her previous video production skills and creates “Day in the Life” slide shows.

Doris also has a passion for art photography. She has an extensive background with black and white photography and printing. Ten years ago she changed her format to digital and hasn’t looked back. She continues to study digital darkroom techniques using Photoshop to give her images a unique look. She is constantly stretching her abilities and trying new things. Her latest endeavor is infrared art photography and her pictures are already drawing great reviews. Doris will show you some of these images and share some of her secrets that can take a good photograph and make it great. Feel free to bring your digital camera, she will show you some camera tricks to improve your images.

VAL would like to thank our demonstrator from last month, Dave Maxwell

Dave spent his early years in Illinois and Fort Worth, graduating from Arlington Heights High School in 1952. Upon graduation he attended TCU for two years, and worked as a Cabinet Maker for a period of time after that. He then completed a degree in Industrial Arts from North Texas State in 1958.

He was employed by a Major Oil Company as a draftsman for ten years, then for the next 25 he held various assignments in their Purchasing Department, living in various West Texas and New Mexico locations. After living in Houston for many years, he retired in 1993.Travel became a primary activity until his wife, Mary, decided that it was time to slow the pace a bit. She and an artist friend convinced him to take some free watercolor lessons, which he reluctantly agreed to. He soon became fascinated by its challenge, and began a serious study in 1999 through professional lessons and various workshops sponsored by the Watercolor Art Society-Houston. During that time, he began entering local shows, and had a satisfying degree of success in winning ribbons and various awards. He and Mary moved to Fort Worth in 2002.

A life-long love of automobiles provides the subject matter for many of his paintings. His teacher in Houston, Gerry Finch, recommended that he follow his automotive love for subject matter, even though she is a painter of still lifes and florals. He loves developing mechanical shapes and reflected surfaces on paper, through employing smooth flowing washes contrasted with the crisp line work that reflections require. About the time he moved to Fort Worth he began having success in National Shows, and gained Signature Membership in the Watercolor Art Society-Houston in 2004. Additionally he began study with Mary Kay Krell, and has attended various area workshops sponsored by the Southwestern Watercolor Society and the Society of Watercolor Artists.

During 2005, his efforts were recognized through the attainment of Signature Membership status in the Southwestern Watercolor Society as well as the Society of Watercolor Artists in Fort Worth. One of his works was accepted in the recent VAST Member Show, and he has a painting included in the VAST 2006 Calendar. Additionally in 2006 he has had paintings jurored in to the Spring Shows of the Visual Art Society of Texas, the Houston International, the Society of Watercolor Artists International, and the Artists Showplace Jurored Exhibition in Dallas.