Goodbye and Thank you!

Thank you to all the artist who have worked with me to put together stunning exhibitions at the Evergreen Cafe. I have enjoyed the 2 years I have spent organizing the monthly art exhibitions and look forward to working with you all in the future.

I am now moving on and in charge of setting up the art exhibitions for Di[e]ce boutique and art space in Federal Hill. http://www.dieceboutique.com/

If you are an artist who is interested in showing at Di[e]ce you can contact me through email: irenemdonnelly@gmail.com

If you are an artist who is interested in showing at the Evergreen the new contact person is Rebecca Waring.

She writes:

"I'm a local Baltimore artist and I live in the area (Tuxedo Park). I have frequented the Evergreen on many occasions and am familier with the space. I am very active in the art community in Baltimore and DC and have tons of artist contacts who could hang a beautiful show at the Evergreen.

Although I wouldn't be looking to hang my own work necessarily, I do have a website

http://www.rebecca-waring.com which you can view if you want to know my style. My work has been in galleries and juried shows in the area. My vision for the Evergreen would include many styles of art - modern, traditional, funky or just plain gorgeous."

Rebecca's Email address is: rswaring@yahoo.com

Justin Merrill Smith

Why should an unconventional man use conventional tools?

Justin Merrill Smith has a wily unkempt bread and ringed fingers. He stands poised and wise from Buddhist and Quaker values. His tall thin frame is evident of his Vegetarian up-bring. He is decked out in full vintage attire. Long dark hair typically reaching past his elbows, today is neatly rapped up in a crimson Sikhism, identifying him and his religion, Sikh.

Justin begins each piece with a clear mind, the void of any intention. He relies on instinct and his subconscious to lead the way in creating an appealing mix of color and texture. He has foregone the use of paint brushes and has replaced them with kitchen whisks and bamboo shoots. He has mastered the use of dipping these tools into oil paint. He then drips the paint onto floor lying canvases, creating dot patterns that build and speckle in a "tie-died-like" furry of earthen tones .

The work of Abstract Expressionist, Jackson Pollock immediately comes to mind. The same aggressive, spontaneous movements that Justin uses can be found in 1940's Pollock work. They both sling paint onto a canvas that is lying out on the floor. They both use repetitive motions to build patterns and layers. They both worked from all angles and sides of the canvas. This type of painting is more like a dance than a rendering; more like an event than a picture. They are solely out to capture movement, energy and emotion.

Justin admits to having no control over the fluid movements of the paints. That lack of control is where his interest is held captive. He glowingly teeters on the point of loosing control and harnessing it.

Justin's work will be on display through September 18th.

Reid Sczerba

Paint sandwiches a piece of plexi glass. An even coat of white on the backside and a stenciled, spray painted black image on the front. From the photograph it is difficult to see the subtlety in the finish of the layers. The depth of the shinny white plexi layer juxtaposed against the mat black spray painted top layer, give these simple pieces a dose of elegant complexity.

There is a harmony in the black and white universe Reid creates. He is influenced by the TaoTe Ching, the philosophical writings behind Taoism. It is easy to see the relationship between the philosophy and the art by examining the peaceful, flowing, interlocking balance of shapes. Think Yin and Yang- these shapes do not exist without the influence and form of their opposing neighbor.

A sense of unified duality that only nature could produce lives in these graphic images. Flowing, organic, organ like shapes; they feel like natural fluid forms, as if wind or water created them and not the hand of artist Reid Sczerba.



On display July 20th through August 22nd.
View more images here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/r-zerb/

Matt Muirhead

Matt Muirhead's work will be on display June 22nd through July 20th.

His work is an array of colorful layers of text and images.

He unifies the majority of his work with rings and swirls that resemble an atom.

A scientific mind is clearly at work. It is a mind that seems to hold too much information for it's own good. Words and images break free from Matt's introverted nature and collide on the page in layered dreamy stream of consciousness. His art is controlled and yet free. For Matt art is an exercise in experimentation, where each accident leads to the next decision.

When you look at Matt's art you see his brain at work. It is as though he has been constantly trying to make sense of what he has been feeling and seeing. In each mixed media painting it is as if Matt is trying to explain everything that is going on in his head all at once; that the reason for his introversion is do to the fact that he has so many brilliant ideas popping about in his brain all at once.

Screen printing suits him. He enjoys the precision and speed of printing. He also uses ink to draw and paint.

Try to think about Matt's M.O. when looking at his work: freedom, travel, time, ease, play, experimentation, color and simplicity.

Natalie Steinebrunner

      Natalie resides in Baltimore. She received a Bachelors degree in Fine Art at Maryland Institute College of Art in 2005. While her personal artwork is fine art, she respects the craft and technical aspects of decorative art. She works as a faux/decorative painter and has begun to incorporate different decorative finishes in her own work. Natalie loves traveling, cooking, thrift shops and being in the outdoors.

      Currently, Natalie creates multi-media paintings that tackle the roles of femininity in the modern world. Her inspiration comes from observations and personal experiences of how women are portrayed throughout the media such as fashion magazines, advertisements and “reality” television shows. Her paintings combine symbolism and literalism to instigate and challenge the viewer, contemplating the expectations of what the “ideal” woman is.

      While each piece boasts in vivid color and bold outlines, there also lies sadness in them. The women she paints are beautiful, but most seem lost with blank stares and stiff body language. Some of Natalie’s work shows the moment of judgment, the harsh vulnerability but also the eagerness to please. They depict the “final presentation” of women. It is about the moment (that some women live for) when they finally reveal how good they look in a new outfit or that fifty-dollar lipstick. Some of these paintings are from the subject’s perspective, her fantasy of unveiling her beauty. At the same time, the artist has painted her own judgments about the subject. Natalie’s artwork is not a protest of fashion, lipstick and everything feminine. On the contrary she aims to celebrate the beauty of women and fashion with bright colors and symmetric compositions, mocking shrines, and religious iconography.

      www.nataliesteinebrunner.blogspot.com

      410.703.3466 

Jordan Faye Block

Over the past two years I have learned a lot from this Baltimore art dynamo.

She embodies the personas of artist, art dealer, curator and gallery director all in one Jordan Faye Block body. Being just ones of these professionals poses difficult shoes to fill, but she some how makes it work in stilettos.

Jordan's work and life are about making connections. Her subject matter stems from her fascination with fishnet stockings and ripples in water. This imagery is a metaphor for the delicate expansion and growth she wishes to achieve as a person.

For example, it takes the simplest of threads to build an intricate gridded pattern into a stocking. It takes the smallest pebble's drop into a pond to create an ever flowing stream of ripples. It takes the simplest of repeated human interactions to create a community. It is through these human connections that we are able to be nurtured as people, creators and business.

Many people may be more familiar with Jordan's work as a Curator/Art Dealer, but she is herself an artist at heart. She currently works out of Load of Fun studios on North Ave. There she runs the downstairs gallery, The Lof/t, and also works as a painter on the second floor.

http://www.loadoffun.net/

http://jordanfayecontemporary.com/jordan_faye_contemporary/jordan_faye_contemporary_art_mission.html

Jordan's paintings and prints will be on display through May 25th.

Eli Halpin

Eli Halpin’s Animal Collective will be on display, March 28th - April 24th.

 

Artists tend to match the work they create and Eli is certainly no exception to this phenomenon. Her cadmium yellow skirt sang out over her neutral braids and retro glasses. “It looks like a kindergarten took over The Evergreen,” she joked as she began to install her paintings on the walls.

 

And it’s true; the vitality of a kindergartener does shine through the bright pallet, minimal sophistication and nonsensical animal theme. These paintings are simply all about color relationships and friendly creatures.  Eli’s power as an artist resides in her ability to combine these two passions for color and animals to create feelings of gushy elation. 

 

My particular favorite in the show is the sweet romance depicted between two fawns.  Young love.  The coming of spring is the perfect time to enjoy this body of work.

To see more of Eli's paintings visit: http://elihalpin.com/home.html