Wed, March 27: The Gallery, Store, and Offices are closed today due to flooding around the Torpedo Factory.

April 2018 Open Exhibit
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April 2018 Open Exhibit

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The Marshall Award for Best in Show

Karen Schmitz, The New Normal

Honorable Mentions

Cristy West, Beehive

Sharon Malley, Have You Friended Me?

Ann Ruppert, Resting

Deborah Pawlik, Icarus, We Knew You Well

Karen Chambers, Untitled

Margitta Hanff, Horse Head

Viviane De Kosinsky, Italian Market

Betty Grisham, Bill W’s Table

Deborah Conn, Attitude

Angela Lacy, View From Water Taxi

Craig Brodfuehrer, Desi

Karen Kumm Morris, Persimmons or Oranges?

 

View the works on Flickr here!

 

“An Open Exhibit is in bloom at The Art League gallery, juried this springtime month by the prolific printmaker and instructor, Avis Fleming. Curating an “open” (or unthemed) exhibit poses unique challenges, as the juror must group artworks into a cohesive exhibit, unified perhaps by color, recurring shapes, or subjects, creating a dialogue between very different artworks. Every month an aesthetic mood emerges, and this April the gallery is awash with artworks that feature bright colors, flowers, architectural structures, or, interestingly, horses.

One wonders what makes an artwork stand out from hundreds of hopefuls. According to Fleming, whether it be a charcoal drawing or an oil painting, “if there’s no composition, there’s no artwork.” Fleming emphasized the importance of composition, highlighting The New Normal, a monotype by Karen Schmitz, winner of the Marshall Award, for her mastery of the medium and demonstration of skilled composition. Fleming also complimented the drawings, from chalk to ink, noting their fine drafting. Watercolors too, were discussed as being particularly strong this month.

Fleming remarked that the photographs she selected were examples of artistry that “weren’t just leaning on their subject,” finding strength in their composition, print quality, and ability to communicate emotionally with the viewer. “Too often photographers will capture purely ‘anecdotal’ images,” Fleming commented, explaining that she chose photographs that offered viewers more than simply a beautiful subject captured by a nice camera.

When discussing the three dimensional artwork, Fleming noted that she selected sculptures and stoneware that demonstrated “balance and emotion.” Regardless if the piece employed abstraction or realism, she admired 3D work that displayed a unique, human touch or directly evoked a figure.

As for presentation, Fleming urged artists to carefully consider their frames. In her eyes, frames should be understated and tasteful, highlighting the artwork without pulling the viewer’s focus. Signatures, too, should be unobtrusive—large signatures on an artwork’s mat were unappealing to Fleming.

Fleming lamented that she could not select more artwork for the April exhibit due to space constraints. “It’s always painful to be turned down.” Fleming remarked, recalling a recent juried show that she herself had been rejected from. “There’s a lot of good work that doesn’t get in. It’s a learning process.” Hopefully, the artists who entered the April exhibit will be inspired by Spring’s hallmark of renewal and growth—and keep creating the art that blossoms inside them.”

— Written by Haven Ashley

Meet the Juror

Avis Fleming

The islands of Maine, plus Louisiana, Virginia and Ireland are the source of much of Avis Fleming’s art.

Born in New Orleans, she grew up in the bayou country south of the city. After graduating cum laude in philosophy from Bryn Mawr College, she studied graphic arts and illustration at Pratt Institute. She lives in Old Town Alexandria with her husband, Paul Hodge. They lived previously on a small farm in Unison, Virginia, near the Blue Ridge Mountains. She is a member of Printmakers Inc. Gallery in Alexandria’s Torpedo Factory Art Center..

For more than 30 years she has taught gesture, sketch book and figure drawing, for the Art League School in the Torpedo Factory Art Center. She has led repeated art trips for the school to Ireland, as well as trips to New Orleans and Prague.

She has had numerous exhibitions in Washington, D.C., Virginia and Maine and is in private and public collections across the country. A one-person painting and graphics exhibition, “The Sunday Series,” was featured at Alexandria’s Black History Museum.

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