www.ginnygaura.com

yoohoogoo@yahoo.com

Artist Statement:

Ginny Gaura is a lifelong resident of the Chicago area. After successful careers as a graphic designer and photographer, she returned to her major in graduate school, painting. Also an accomplished writer, she is a published poet and the author of an upcoming book on spiritual guidance entitled “Look Within”.  She is one of the Gallery 44 artists whose art studios are located on the second floor of 50 E Galena Blvd in downtown Aurora.

Education:

BFA, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL

Major: Illustration with Graphic Design and Photography

Graduate Work, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL

Major: Painting

Associations:

Member of the Chicago Artists Coalition

Current Exhibition:

Water Street Gallery

160 W Wilson

Batavia, Illinois

Previous Art Exhibitions

November 22, 2008, Gallery 44

Fall Open House of Studio Artists

Aurora, Illinois

September 26 – 28, 2008, Chicago Arts District

38th Annual Pilsen East Artists’ Open House

Chicago, Illinois

August 7 – September 7, 2008, Fusion Gallery

Small Works Show

Collingswood, New Jersey

April 24 – 28, 2008, Merchandise Mart

The Artist Project

Part of Artropolis, in conjuntion with Art Chicago

Chicago, Illinois

November 2007, Gallery 44

Fall Open House of Studio Artists

Aurora, Illinois

August 25 – September 2007, Art House

A Million Little Pictures Show – Volume II

Decatur, Georgia

July 21 – August 29, 2007, Norris Gallery

Gallery 44 Artists Show

St Charles, Illinois

April 13 – July 2007, River Breeze Gallery

Peace Show

Aurora, Illinois

May 25 – June 2007, Art House

A Million Little Pictures Show – Volume I

Decatur, Georgia

April – May 2007, High Risk Gallery

All Good Things Show

Chicago, Illinois

January 2007, Morpho Gallery

Emerging Artists Show

Chicago, Illinois

November 2006, Gallery 44

Fall Open House of Studio Artists

Aurora, Illinois

April 2005, Art Around the Fox

Annual Artists’ Open Studio Event of Fox Valley

Aurora, Illinois

November 2004, Gallery 44

Fall Open House of Studio Artists

Aurora, Illinois

April 2004, Art Around the Fox

Annual Artists’ Open Studio Event of Fox Valley

Aurora, Illinois

November 2003, Olcott Gallery

Solo Show

Theosophical Society of America

Wheaton, Illinois

April 2003, Art Around the Fox

Annual Artists’ Open Studio Event of Fox Valley

Aurora, Illinois

November 2002, Gallery 44

Fall Open House of Studio Artists

Aurora, Illinois

April 2002, Art Around the Fox

Annual Artists’ Open Studio Event of Fox Valley

Aurora, Illinois
Medium: Painting: Oils, acrylics, and watercolors (I am submitting my newest works with this application)

Description: For me, the process of painting is a journey. It is traversed with prior knowledge, experimentation and discovery. There are times when everything comes together in a piece and it is a success, but there are also times when nothing is working and the painting must be put aside and sometimes finished months or years later, looking nothing at all like the original. That is the glory of life, the unexpected serendipitous event, the mistake that helps us grow, the moment where a decision must be met. This is life with all its mystery and through it I approach my art.

My innate curiosity leads me to experiment with new techniques and media. Constantly challenging myself to create new ideas, I’m always pushing my art to the next level. Never content with creating conventional artwork, I seek out new ideas, allowing me to grow and discover. If used as such, art can be a process of self-discovery and trans-formation.

When beginning a piece, I usually have no preconceived notions of the finished work. There might be a idea of general form or colors I choose to use but is the process that fascinates me, the ever-changing creation which grows as I paint. In my Dreamscape Series, which is composed of mostly oil paintings and some acrylics, I experiment with color, mixing paint directly upon the canvas rather than the traditional palette. I am not always satisfied with the result, so sometimes I paint over them, producing new works which many times incorporate the written word.

I often take photographs of surface images like brick walls and cracked pavement and experiment with surface forms through mixed media pieces. Due to circumstances, I have begun painting small watercolors because of their size and portability. In them I draw on top of the paintings with ink to create pieces that resemble stain glass works.

I feel compelled to work in the realm of abstraction and non-representation. A regular meditation practitioner, I am inspired by shifting consciousness which gives rise to patterns, shapes and ideas, forever changing into something different. I aspire to make the unseen seen, to make aware in the viewer that which is often overlooked.

spirosarr@comcast.net

Artist Statement:

I am currently studying graphic design at Waubonsee Community College.  One of the courses in the program dealt with black & white film photography.  I have always had an interest in photography but–prior to this class–have never taken shots in black and white.  One result of this class is my even deeper appreciation for the artistic merits of photographs taken only in black and white.
Medium: Black and White Photography

Description: A series of black and white film photographs of various scenes of downtown Aurora at night.

Rettaglass.etsy.com

rettaglass@sbcglobal.net

Artist Statement:

As a girl, I can remember being at fairs.  My grandmother was a painting artist using chalk, watercolors, and acrylics.  So at an early age I was influenced by artists’ eccentricities and exposed to many different medium and design elements.

I chose stained glass because of the impact the environment plays with colors.  The same panel will have changed effects at different times of day and different seasons of light and dark.

I have been building glass panels for 30 years and have no formal art education.  I took a park district class to learn the basics of “How To” and a year later was teaching the class.  I think this is the medium I was meant to do.

I have a degree in music education and still teach.  The staff and phrases of musical notation influence my panels.  I create a unique blending of antique Depression glass dishes as unusual focal points of interest in the panels and use contemporary art glass as accents.  I also use agate slices as focal points and match glass to the colors of nature.

I apply a soldering technique that few stained glass artists achieve.  The look of round beads of solder and shiny textures of solder is difficult to master.  This technique was developed and perfected over a number of years to make my panels exceptional.

I am in galleries throughout Illinois, Indiana, and Iowa.   I am a member of the Illinois artisan’s program since 1998.  It was my honor to be the artist of the month at the James Thompson Center in August.  I gave a power point presentation on stained glass to the Illinois Arts Council.  I have my glass in their shops in Chicago, Springfield, Southern Illinois and Dixon.  I am also with the Aurora Art Commission and have items in their Artisans shop.
Awards:

2008 August  Artist of the Month

Illinois Art’s Program

Displayed at Jim Thompson Center

Presentation of Artwork

2008 June  Second Place

Hinsdale Art Festival

Hinsdale, Illinois

2006 August  Purchase Award

Glen Ellyn Art Fest

Glen Ellyn, Illinois

2006 June  Award of Merit

Deerfield Art Festival

Deerfield, Illinois

2006 June  Judge’s Choice

Leeper Park Art Fair

South Bend, Indiana

2005 October 3rd Place

Galena Art Fair

Galena, Illinois

2005 August  Purchase Award for Art Exhibit at City Hall

Oswego Art Fair

Oswego, Illinois

2005 August  Cover of Art’s Beat Magazine

Fox Valley Arts Council

Geneva, Illinois

2005 August  Award of Excellence

Artwork used as show Logo

Waterstone Art Fair

Gurnee, Illinois

Medium: Stained Glass

Description: A unique blending of contempory glass with antique dishes, bottles, and agate slices as focal points.

Retta Hentschel 1