The Martin Artisans Guild announces the “Summer Salon” in the Palm Room. The public is welcome to the Opening Reception on Wednesday, July 1. Over 20 member artists will display their art, sculpture, glass, and ceramics, as well as wearable art.  The Rickie Report shares the details, some sneak peeks, and an introduction to some of the artists. Masks will be available and Phase 2 distancing guidelines will be followed. This exhibit will be up through August 29, 2020.  All artwork is for sale.

MEET    THE    ARTISTS!

Jane Lawton Baldridge, ASMA

Jane studied art at High School for Performing and Visual Arts (Houston, TX), California Institute of Art (Valencia, CA) and the Alfred G. Glassell Museum School (Houston, TX). “Being a creative requires being somewhat fearless. Unafraid to make something new and so different no one understands what it is.” Jane was taught by John Mandel and influenced by Douglas Huebler and John Baldessari, to never repeat what has been done – to do new art. Arthur Turner taught her to try multiple mediums, to keep the creative ideas flowing. Her artwork has been exhibited in Solo and juried shows including Times Square, The Musée du Louvre, Lincoln Center, Museum of Computer Art, Mint Museum, Cameron Museum of Art, Fayetteville Museum of Art, World Festival of Art on Paper (Slovenia) and her 911 tribute, “We the People,” in the Library of Congress. She has won competitions at both local and international levels.

Jane’s new work is represented in the Reflection, Erosion and Alchemy series. Although she has painted moving water for decades using various media, her current paintings are the closest she has come to eliciting the paint to tell her story. Jane uses a mixture of pencil, charcoal, acrylics, latex, glazes, inks, watercolor and digital.  She now combines all of that experience into rich visual stories. 

“I’m passionate about the planet, especially the ocean, rivers, and bays. I have a profound respect for the power of water and wind.  Watching my childhood sand castles fall to the continued impertinent rolling in of waves and tide captivated me. It was but a miniature version of what happens all around the globe.  I grew up in a small Texas fishing village that was underwater at the hint of a tropical storm, from there I moved to a North Carolina coastal fishing village that went under water with the lunar cycles. Now, much of the coastal areas of the planet have reason to watch their own erosion, subsidence and the rising tides reshape their world. Jane is a licensed boat captain and lived on a boat with her husband and their dog. They have settled in Stuart where she now has a beautiful studio. She has an obsession for water and watches how it moves and how it sculpts shorelines.

MalloBisset

Mallo might have taken the long road to living her dream, but once she sets her mind on something, there’s nothing stopping her.   As a little girl living on the Åland Islands in the Finnish archipelago, she wasn’t too fond of school, and told everyone “I am going to be an artist when I grow up”.   Life got in the way for a while, but after years of hard work and building a successful business, in, 2007 with encouragement from her husband and daughter, that Mallo finally took the time to do what she had always dreamed of doing.   It started with a weekly drawing class at the local Adult Education program.    After just two semesters her teacher, Helen Terry, told her she could make money drawing pet portraits.   Mallo’s earliest work combined her love of animals with her love for the arts.   Having tried drawing, pastels, and watercolors, it was time for oils !  She signed up for classes at a studio located across the street from her own business, so she could be close to work, yet make it easy to get to class every week. This is where her love affair with oils and the palette knife began.   Under the tutelage of Georgia Abood at Alizarin Crimson, she has been working on her craft and has made remarkable progress in such a short time.  Having grown up on an island, and living in Florida for 30 years, with a second home in the Bahamas, it’s not a surprise that Mallo Bisset’s work often features the water and always celebrates the beauty of nature.    As it turns out, that little girl in  Finland  really did grow up to be an artist!  

“My artwork celebrates the things that make me happy.  While my subject matter does vary,  I am greatly influenced by my love of color, animals, and nature.  Having always lived close to the sea, water and the color blue seem to be a part of me and often make it onto my canvas.  When I get an idea for a painting and I can’t stop thinking about it, I know it’s time to get to work.  Often it’s these obsessive moments that lead to the best work.    Having tried many techniques, I now paint exclusively using oils and the palette knife.   I love the texture created with the knife.  My method is quick and definitive.  Once I commit to a painting there is not a lot of second-guessing.  I know a piece is done when the canvas is full of color.    The most rewarding feeling is seeing a smile on the face of someone viewing my work and nothing compares to the satisfaction of having someone bring home a piece of my work. Hopefully my artwork makes others happy too.  The studio tour is my FAVORITE event of the year!”  Mallo Bisset  resides in Palm City, Florida http://www.mallobisset.com

Wire wrapped Circle Pendant by Laura Kay Darvil

James Joseph DeMartis

James Joseph DeMartis (1926 – 1996) was an American painter of the post-World War II generation who explored a wide variety of styles and media; but he is best known for his abstract expressionist works.  He was born in Corona, Queens, New York, to working-class Italian immigrants. He received the Purple Heart in World War II for injuries incurred in Belgium leading up to the Battle of the Bulge. During his rehabilitation he began taking art classes. After being discharged, he attended the War Veteran Art Center at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City from 1946-47 and took classes at the Art Students League of New York. After traveling across the US, DeMartis trained for two years at the California School of Fine Arts in Santa Monica, California. A stint in Pacific in the Merchant Marines came next then, DeMartis devoted himself full-time to painting. With funding from the G.I. Bill he left for Europe in 1950, traveling to France and settling in Florence, Italy. He studied painting and art restoration at L’Accademia di Belle Arti di Firenze from 1950-54. He participated in several group shows and one-man shows in Italy and Switzerland. 

Mr. DeMartis returned to New York in 1956, at the height of the Abstract Expressionist art movement that had New York City as its center. He first settled with his new family in Corona and then moved to Brooklyn, New York. He had a steady stream of grass-roots storefront galleries opened with fellow artists, before opening the Armory Gallery and studio in Manhattan where he worked and exhibited his paintings. He also exhibited in other lower Manhattan galleries and at the National Arts Club. In 1962, he was awarded the prestigious Emily Lowe Award for Painting. Following that with shows at the Ward Egglestone Gallery, ROKO Gallery, Pierantonio Gallery, Artemis East Gallery and Hicks Street Gallery from 1962-68.  He opened the Brownstone Gallery in Brooklyn, exhibiting his and others’ works, while doing framing and restoration until 1988.  Following several one-man shows in Tokyo, DeMartis sold the Brownstone Gallery. He is now represented by his children. 

After retirement, I quickly became burned out on 3-4 weekly golf games and was drawn back to my love and appreciation of art. I spent a few years of formal study and work with some highly experienced local artists and teachers. My travels also continued to be my teacher. I spent six months traveling the central coast of California studying the sunsets, seascapes and quaint villages of that part of the country, but now as a fully committed artist. I gradually began to develop my own style. I have found that my creative expression is very much informed by the natural environment of my youth and by my travels later in life.  My work, consequently, tends toward maritime settings and rustic landscapes. My goal is to produce art that is easy to look at, captures the imagination and draws your eyes back time after time. 

Torenzo Ganaway

I am compelled.   I am driven.    I must create!     I see art everywhere. On sidewalks, reflections in storefront windows, shadow designs falling on the ground or embracing the side of a building. I see clouds as moving sculptures.

I produce thousands of photographs. Some, to use as a reference for a painting… others because they tell a story or ask a question and invite me to create a painting.

As an artist, I believe I have a responsibility to also create works of art that bring attention to important societal issues such as chemicals as food additives, toxic chemicals used in the industrialized production of crops, and genetic engineering. I’m also concerned about the current trend in America to whitewash our history in order to oblige the politically correct community.

I feel a deep responsibility and calling to create works of art that reveal and contemplate the beauty in the everyday objects we all find around us in this amazing universe created by God.

Art is everywhere! If you look for it, you’ll see it!

I believe God has created an amazing universe! As God is the original Creator, He created EVERYONE with the ability to create…everyone! If you’re one of the millions of people who believe they cannot create or are not creative, I challenge your belief and encourage you to step out of your comfort zone and CREATE something. I believe you can do it! We all start at the beginning. Let the fun begin! Soon…you’ll be seeing art everywhere.

Torenzo is an internationally known, award winning fine-artist, photographer, and commercial art film producer. A native of Michigan, he majored in illustration at Kendall College of Art and Design. He pursued his own studies in the areas of painting, photography, and filmmaking.After 20 years of creating art, Torenzo abandoned it to confront a personal crisis caused by his alcoholism. As a result of his experience receiving treatment and getting sober, he chose to become a certified counselor so that he could help others who struggle with alcoholism and other drug addictions. When he was able to help a patient achieve a major breakthrough, it was an exhilarating moment! He recalls “nothing I’ve ever created has given me such satisfaction and joy!” It would be another twenty years before he returned to the world of physically creating art.Torenzo has exhibited in national and international shows. In January of 2019, he was selected for the prestigious ArtSynergy/ArtPalmBeach International Art Fair, by Eric Weiss, Curator of the Picasso Museum in Barcelona, Spain.In September 2019, two recent works, “Wall Switch, St. Petersburg” and “Obelisk, Bonaire” selected by Jack Rasmussen, Director of the Katzen Gallery, American University (Washington, D.C.) for the Will’s Creek Exhibition of Fine Art.In November 2019, Torenzo was one of 54 artists selected from over 500 entrants to be juried into the prestigious All Florida Art Show by the Martin County Cultural Arts Council. Juror, Ehern Gerhard, Arts Exhibitions Director for the Centers for the Arts in Bonita Springs, FL commented on Torenzo’s piece, “The Last Roundup”, as a work that brings awareness and attention to the toxic chemicals used and found in America’s agriculture, and awarded it Honorable Mention. Torenzo’s ceaseless quest for seeing and creating art is his unconstrained passion. He eagerly awaits to see what the universe offers.

“Many years ago, I was given a choice, “Music or Art”, and I chose Art!  More than 30 years later, I am still painting. I work in oils with brush and sometimes palette knife to create seascapes, landscapes and florals. My passion is to paint the blues and greens of the sea and I love the peace it gives me. Monet is my inspiration”.

Sue is an ocean inspired artist who currently enjoys exploring the many techniques associated with fluid art. Acrylic and resin are her primary mediums used to create aerial views of the ocean.  Much of her work is abstract in nature; however, the ocean, the ebb and flow of tides, wave formation and the many shades of blue associated with the sea can be seen throughout Sue’s body of work.  “I love all things blue and find my inspiration in nature and travel, whether it be to the cold waters of Alaska or the warm waters of the Caribbean. It is my desire that the viewer of my work, experience the calm and serenity that the creative process affords me”.

Raised in Connecticut and relocated to Florida with her family in her early twenties, she is a retired graphic designer, who, prior to raising two children, worked as an Art Director at a local advertising agency. Sue holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Arts with a major in Graphic Design. Although trained in a variety of mediums, she loves the chemistry involved in working with acrylic and silicone, which along with paint density and manipulation create interesting abstract pieces.  Working with tinted epoxy resin and a torch, she creates beautiful aerial views of the ocean which rival that of Mother Nature. In addition to fine art, Sue’s creations can be found on her “functional art” which range from ocean inspired furniture to charcuterie boards. Her paintings are largely inspired by the beautiful blue hues of the ocean which appeal to her senses and influence her creativity. Sue finds inspiration in nature and traveling, whether to the Blue Ridge Mountains, the turquoise icebergs of Alaska or cruising the Caribbean.

Sue has sold her work internationally, in addition to exhibiting locally in festivals, museums, businesses, pop-up shows and gallery settings as well as opening her home studio for the Martin County Open Studio Tour. She is an active member in several local art organizations, including the Martin Artisan’s Guild, Soul Arts Society, and Arts Council of Martin County. Sue is an advocate for Mental Health and Addiction Awareness and aims to break the stigma associated with both. She uses art to maintain personal wellness and often donates percentages of her sales to non-profits such as American Federation for Suicide Prevention or NAMI (National Alliance for Mental Illness). Sue believes God has called her to use the talent He has given her to help encourage and inspire others and give back to organizations which she is so passionate about.  She creates unique pieces of fine art as well as commission work. 

(772) 485-5957  Visit her website: sueklahnecustomartwork.com 

https://www.instagram.com/suewilsonklahne/

https://www.facebook.com/Sue-Klahne-Artwork  Email: sue.klahne@gmail.com

Chris Kling 

“Being an artist is not just my career.  It is an integral part of who I am and is something that I am compelled to do reflecting my interest in boats, water, nature, and the human figure.  I work in oil primarily in a traditional manner but with a contemporary flair through color, composition, value, and application of paint. Color sings to me and I try to use its harmony to connect to others.  I love to paint plein air (on location) landscapes which helps my studio work retain an authenticity that only comes from observation from life.  In my portraiture work, I strive to show not only their appearance but also a part of their personality and when I do this I know it is a successful painting that a family can cherish for years to come. Painting, to me, is reaching out to find the common emotional connection between all of us and life around us”.

Chris has received numerous awards from shows for her landscapes and portraiture throughout the U.S. and with the Portrait Society of America. She has received hundreds of commissions for oil portraits and landscapes and her work is in numerous private and corporate collections in the U.S. as well as in international collections. She served as one of the “Florida’s Finest Ambassadors” for the Forgotten Coast en Plein Air (2018), and was an Invited Artist in the New Smyrna Paint Out (2018), Delray Plein Fun Fest (2019), and won Best Seascape in the Lighthouse Plein Air Festival (2019). Chris was juried into the AIS 20th Annual National Exhibition 2019 at the Salmagundi Club in NYC , the NOAPS Small Works National Exhibition, OPA Eastern Regional 2019, and the OPA National Exhibition 2020.  She currently teaches Plein Air and Oil Portraiture workshops at The Artist’s Nook in Stuart,FL. 

Chris is a member of the Portrait Society of America, American Impressionist Society, Oil Painters of America, and Plein Air Palm Beach. Chris has work in several galleries in Florida and you may see her work on Facebook, at Chris Kling Studio and at her website. Locally she is represented by Palm City Art and Frame and is owner of Kling Gallery, Wine & Decor of Stuart, FL. www.chrisklingartist.com .Email:  cbkling@bellsouth.net, or call 772-678-6949 (gallery), or 772-285-7826 (cell).

Sophie is a French artist born in Martinique, raised in France, and lives in Stuart, FL.Her traditional visual arts training includes several art studios as well as extensive studies at the School of the Museum of the Louvre in Paris, France. These studies profoundly enriched Sophie’s artistic and cultural knowledge and encouraged her travel from prehistoric times to modern times all over the world discovering a vast array of fascinating artistic, cultural, historical, and religious movements.  She owned a professional photography studio focusing primarily on outdoor candid portraits where light and movement played an essential role. Today, Sophie is back to painting with an abstract expressionist bent, bringing a vision of the world that is very colorful, vibrant, animated, sensual, complex and simple at the same time. Her creativity is expressed through the power of instinctive imagination guided by a spiritual connection.

“In the process, I have discovered the pleasure of energies flowing freely.My paintings represent these vibrations of energies, emotions, and the connectedness with all that surrounds us. Colors flow evoking a dance connecting all elements of nature through their vibrations. Even though my art is mostly abstract, it easily brings to mind specific images of underwater scenes, plants and flowers, and the spiritual realm where all things physical originate. The flow of colors and their shapes speak to the soul and takes us to another dimension”.

I know a painting is finished when it brings me serenity, harmony and joy because then I am connected to the universe with all its energetic, complex, and sensual glory. Sophie uses mostly fluid media like inks to convey the dance of colors, elements, and feelings that are in perpetual movement. She includes metallics (mostly gold) to highlight the flickering of energies and she uses acrylics and textures for the dimension they add. Matisse and Kandinsky are two of her favorite painters for their colors, shapes, movement, and the overall energy that is so powerful in their work.  Sophie is exhibiting her work in France and in Florida and has sold paintings internationally.  E-mail : soledeme@gmail.com Tel : 772.263.0230   Instagram : @sophieledeme     Website : www.sophieledeme.com

“Before I begin a painting, I already have an idea in my head about the subject matter, which is often inspired by photos taken on one of my adventures”.  Lynn begins with a loose sketch using a dark hard pastel, blocks in dark and light shapes with hard pastels, and then washes  over the entire underpainting with denatured alcohol which creates the lovely drips, splashes and patterns that she incorporates into the finished painting. “When I think the painting is complete, I leave it on the easel until the next day, when I will undoubtedly see adjustments that need to be made.  I ask myself a series of questions about design and composition.  Does the work convey the emotion I felt when I saw the scene in person?  Does it convey the emotion I felt when I imagined the idea?  Depending upon my response to these questions, I will then make further adjustments or declare it complete and sign it”.

For Lynn, creating art is an integral part of her philosophy of being consciously aware of the world around her.  Lynn has been creating art all of her life.  Until her retirement from the corporate world, art was one of her hobbies. By attending classes and workshops, she learned techniques that have evolved from realistic renderings to a much more abstract style.  Lynn loves to travel the world and is considered quite the adventurer by her friends.  Her works are inspired by the sights and sounds of her travels to various parts of the world.

“Palm Pods” by Lynn Morgan

Lynn has a Bachelor’s degree in Education and a Master’s degree in Human Resources Management.  She tried flying a plane, playing guitar and piano, playing golf, SCUBA diving and sailing, but she always came back to painting. Lynn took classes with Garri Katz, Barbara Nechis, and Robbie Laird.  An instructor at Palm Beach State College introduced her to pastels.  She was hooked on the look of the pastel sticks, the feel of the medium in her hand with no brush as a go-between, and the brilliant color that clings to the tooth of the paper. In her studies with Margaret Dyer, her style evolved into a looser, more abstract one.  As her travels increased, Lynn began painting landscapes.  She has studied with Miroslav Antic, Terri Ford, Casey Klahn, Aline Ordman, Jen Evenhus and Tony Allain.  Her style continues to move toward more abstraction in both landscape and figurative works. 

Lynn is a full-time artist and a signature member of the National Association of Women Artists (NAWA), the Artists Guild of the Boca Raton Museum of Art, Florida Artists Group (FLAG), Women in the Visual Arts (WITVA), Martin Artisans Guild, and is a juried member of the Pastel Society of America.  She exhibits both locally and nationally and has won awards at several exhibits.  Lynn is currently represented by GalleryVibe in Naples, FL, and she teaches pastel classes and workshops at the Lighthouse ArtCenter in Tequesta, FL. 

Sally Browning Pearson  

“When I saw my first watercolor Painting I was hooked.  Several years of watercolor painting and acceptance in juried shows, brought success and confidence. People then ask me to teach, which terrified me, but the terror soon disappeared and I discovered my second love. Satisfaction and reward come from watching my students “get it” while composing and painting.  Those small “Oh…I see” moments are wonderful.Art is the love of my life.  Watercolor painting is how I express myself.   It is a demanding medium, challenging me one moment and delighting me the next. I love it. Sally has been teaching adults from her home studios, art leagues and condo complexes since 1995.  She has taught workshops at the J.C. Cambbell Folk School (NC), Pocohauntaus Art League (WV) and Greenbrier Artists League (WV).

 Carolyn Walsh

Ceramic artist Carolyn Walsh was born and raised in Miami, Florida.  At a young age,  she was inspired by her Aunt Jean, a ceramic sculptor.  Even though her life took another direction, she always longed to be a working artist.  She became a Pediatric Physical Therapist and a devoted mother of three.  In 2003, she was able to pursue her dream, after all her children went off to college.  She began working and learning at the Pottery of Carlee Weston and Friends, honing her craft for the last 17 years. 

As a studio trained artist, she taught hand building and began to show her work.  She showed her work at Molly’s House winning a 3rd place ribbon in mixed media and at the Lighthouse Arts Center juried show where she won a 2nd place ribbon in ceramics.  She has also shown her work at the Beanie Backus Gallery Best of the Best Show, Spring Pop Up Show with the Martin Artisan Guild, Summer Salon at the Martin Arts Council,  the Fall Pop Up Show  and most recently the December Art Exhibit at the Palm Room with the Martin Artisan Guild. Carolyn has recently opened her own ceramic studio, My Little Pottery, in Palm City Farms. 

For more information about this exhibit, other events, or membership:

• To promote Martin County, Florida as a center of art.
• To provide opportunity for artists to exhibit original work to the public.
• To develop a sense of shared community and support among artists.
• To foster the concept that success for one artist benefits all artists.
• To present Artists’ Open Studios as a venue for purchasing art.