Moments in Time: The Magic of Still Life

Script Notes from the Suze’s PCA production, “Still Life with Iris”

Iris' Home. It consists, in total, of a white wooden table with three white chairs. On the table is a simple vase. Nothing else. IRIS arrives home. Just before entering the scene, she stops and watches as her MOM puts an iris in the vase on the table. She sets a steaming cup of cocoa on the table. She pulls IRIS' chair away from the table. She goes to the middle chair and touches it, looks down at it. Then, she moves to her own chair, pulls it away from the table, and sits. She looks at the iris in the vase, admiring it. IRIS enjoys this image for a moment, then enters.

A still life is defined as a collection of inanimate objects arranged together in a specific way. The magic of a still life is that it can show the viewer a new way of looking at ordinary, everyday objects or scenes. Once objects are placed into a specific arrangement and then captured in paint, ink, pastel, or any other medium, the objects take on a whole new meaning. They are imbued with a life beyond the ordinary. Their existence becomes recorded in time.

Objects chosen for a still life painting often have a special meaning, either on a personal, cultural, societal, religious, or philosophical level. The themes surrounding a still life often provoke introspection and reflection in the viewer. The way objects are depicted can evoke a wide variety of emotions, depending on their arrangement, as well as the lighting, color choice, types of materials, and their handling. These are all things to consider when viewing a still life. They are especially important to consider when you are creating one.

In this exhibit, “Moments in Time: The Magic of Still Life,” artists Neil Orlowski and Anne Legge capture simple, gentle moments on canvas and in mixed media. An arrangement of handmade glass objects by artist, Banhu Dunham present a still life in action. These 2-D and 3-D explorations remind the viewer that while time is fleeting, pausing time and capturing moments for eternity can be magical.

‍

Anne Legge

I am a mixed media artist that lets creativity dictate both the materials and subject of my art. For this series of artwork I am displaying, I have used old cigar boxes, oil pastels and paint to create one of a kind studies of vegetables and fruits. I have always been attracted to the natural beauty held in produce. As an artist, the rich variety of colors and textures captivate my attention and inspires me to create art. My other works displayed are done using wood, wood stains and repurposed materials. I like to create intimate scenes that draw a viewer into the artwork. I feel that creating Still Life pieces allows the observer to take a quiet moment to look at the stillness shown in the artwork.

My art education was done at Pacific University in Forest Grove, OR. I then moved back to New Orleans, LA to continue pursuing my unique style of painting. Deciding to enter the field of Animation, I moved to Los Angeles, CA where I worked on many television cartoon productions as a background painter. I have lived in Prescott, AZ for the past 18 years splitting my artistic endeavors between freelance animation and my own fine arts. I am represented locally at Arts Prescott Gallery and in Carefree at the Adelante Gallery.

‍

Bandhu Dunham

Lampwork Glass Artist

Born in Dayton, Ohio, in 1959, Bandhu Dunham began to teach himself lampwork/flamework technique in 1975, while still in high school. Now an internationally respected glass artist, author and teacher, his work is in the permanent collections of numerous museums in the US and abroad, including the Corning Museum of Glass, The Museum of Arts and Design, The Museum of Glass, The Sandwich Glass Museum, Museum für Glaskunst (Germany), Niijima Glass Art Center (Japan),and Osaka University of Arts. He is known for his whimsical, groundbreaking kinetic sculptures in glass as well as goblets and abstract Spheres and Baskets.

Bandhu’s Contemporary Lampworking books are the authoritative, standard instructional texts in his field. He regularly teaches workshops at craft schools and private studios around the United States and internationally. In 2010 he was Visiting Foreign Instructor at Osaka University of Arts in Osaka, Japan. Since then he has taught and lectured on his work for the International Festival of Glass in Stourbridge, England, the Ausglass Conference in Australia, the Glass Art Society and the International Society of Glass Beadmakers.

‍

Neil Orlowski

Born in Leavenworth, Kansas in 1961, Neil was drawing and painting from an early age, winning awards even as a young child.  Inspired by the print media and illustration of the early 1970's, Neil earned a BFA from Washington University in St. Louis.  He spent much of his career as a designer/illustrator with Hallmark Cards, exploring a wide range of styles and media, along with free-lancing and painting.  After Hallmark Neil eventually returned to painting, and commercial animation and music.  As a teacher for the past13 years, Neil has continued to hone his skills and distill his painting method, always with a vision and willingness to try new things.

Overtime, one truth that has become apparent is that the process of drawing and painting is really about learning how to see; to see deeply, taking nothing for granted, though our brains want to quickly name and label things.  What I initially think I know and see is so limited.  The process of observation through painting and drawing strips away this "baggage" and allows me to get to the truth of what I'm really experiencing. That experience is humbling, but ever inspiring.

‍