Annie Kammerer Butrus: On the Sublime

"Sublime Dogwood IV", Acrylic on Panel, 30" x 40", 2013.
[Image courtesy of the artist.]

My conversation with Annie Kammmerer Butrus about her work and her new adventures into the sublime was inspiring and affirming. Annie's Sublime Dogwood series is a natural transition from her longterm project, The Peach Tree Trail series and a jumping off point for her journey into the sublime nature of gardens. 

 "Sublime Dogwood V", Acrylic on Panel, 30" x 40" , 2013.
[Image courtesy of the artists.]

Inspired by the Jasmine Hill Garden near Montgomery, AL, this series represents the beginning of a much anticipated journey. Annie plans to continue with her pursuit of the sublime landscape through gardens but she looks to define that term in the broadest sense. Her introduction with Jasmine Hill is very formal, however, she has already visited a storm ravaged pecan orchard near Tuscaloosa.  The pecan orchard will provide a perfect setting for rendering what she calls "the idea of terror and beauty," as referenced by the Victorian philosopher Edmund Burke, in his treatise On the the Sublime and Beautiful, 1757.

Peach Tree Trail: 4 Winter Culp 07, acrylic on panel, 50" (w) x 28" (h) 2009.
[Image courtesy of the artist.]

Shadow Study II, Ink on Paper, 2010.
[Image courtesy of the artist.]

 For Annie, the sublime references the reality that nature is constantly being defined and redefined, which makes it as she states,"still  malleable to the contemporary." To this end, she continues to track and record family owned lands that have undergone some sort of trial and subsequently recovered. While the Peach Tree Trail series captured the shadows cast by the peach trees, as her work with the dogwoods progressed, she began to look up to record the framing presented as she gazed into the sky through the trees. Seemingly, this action provoked a brighter more saturated palette. The vibrant blues of the sky also  brought forward the memory of her recently deceased father who as she recalled, " had very  blue eyes."

Annie Kammerer Butrus, "Sublime Dogwood II," 30" x 40" Acrylic on Panel, 2013.
[Image courtesy of the artist.]

As Annie stated so eloquently during our conversation, "The solace that nature provides is common to us all," but this connection to nature also reminds us of our volatility in this life and as she affirmed, "it can change on a dime."

Annie Butrus's Sublime

Annie Kammerer Butrus's "Sublime Dogwood" series is enticing and fresh. Yet the deeper and brighter hues of blue bring a majestic depth to the delicate forms of the dogwood flower. I look forward to sharing more with you about this work after talking with Annie about it.

Annie Kammerer-Butrus, "Sublime Dogwood I," 30" x 40" Acrylic on Panel, 2013.
[Image courtesy of the artist.]

Annie Kammerer Butrus, "Sublime Dogwood III," 24" x 36" Acrylic on Panel, 2013.
[Image courtesy of the artist.]

Annie Kammerer Butrus, "Sublime Dogwood II," 30" x 40" Acrylic on Panel, 2013.
[Image courtesy of the artist.]

Grand Opening

I am so excited about the grand opening of Smokey Road Press, a letterpress and bookbinding space, owned and operated by Margot Ecke in Athens, GA.

Margot does beautiful letterpress work to suit a variety of needs. She also creates and re-binds books; a skill that she sometimes teaches at Smokey Road Press.

Please enjoy these nice samples of her work, which can be purchased via the Smokey Road Press etsy shop. Click (here).

Letterpress, No Less

A contemporary artist, Margot Ecke, bills herself as a letterpress printer and book-binder. In addition to creating excellent, beautiful and smart work, she shares her talent with others as an instructor who  runs Smokey Road Press near Athens, Georgia. At the press, Margot collaborates with artists from around the country to create art that is in her own words, "finely considered and expertly done."

This summer, through her extensive network of other notable creatives, she is offering an opportunity for others to participate in this process through her kickstarter project, Six Letterpress Printed Artist Editions. Its easy to take advantage of this opportunity and by pledging as little as $25 you will receive a fine work of art for your enjoyment. Naturally, the rewards of art will increase with the value of your donation. When this project is funded it will allow for the purchase of a polymer platemaker- a machine that exposes and develops image files created on the computer.

I hope you will log on to kickstarter and make a donation, big or small. In the meantime, enjoy looking at some of the excellent choices available.  

Moon Jang Jung, MINOR ARC, 2012.

Libby Black, DAMN YOU SMELL GOOD TOO, 2012.

Shelly DiCello Ahern, NINE SHUTTLECOCKS, 2012. 

Margot Ecke, WE BELONG TO THIS PLACE, 2012.

Fabulous Find: Cui Xiuwen



Cui Xiuwen, Existential Emptiness, No. 7, 2009. c-print 200 x 160 cm.
[image courtesy of Eli Fine Art, New York, New York and Carlos Herrera, director of Blackbridge Gallery]

The photographs of Cui Xiuwen caused me to pause as I viewed them for the first time. Crisply printed onto clear acrylic, I was totally engaged by the content as well as the technique in which they were rendered. I love it when this happens.


Cui Xiuwen's photographs are now on view at Blackbridge Gallery in Milledgeville, Georgia through September 23rd as a part of the exhibit, Scenes from Within: Contemporary Art from China.


Scenes from Within was curated by Carlos Herrera and Theodore Windish. Gallery hours are 9 a.m to 5 p.m. Monday - Friday.


The Kiang Gallery in midtown Atlanta will feature Cui Xiuwen's body of work Existential Emptiness September 16 - November 19, 2011. Cui Xiuwen will be present for the opening reception on September 16th from 6 p.m. - 8 p.m.







Profile: Jon Coffelt part 2

On Agnes Gallery


sc: In my last post, I mentioned being one of "the Agnes kids" is something I am proud to claim. Can you talk a little bit about some of the other "kids" and what they have gone on to pursue within the field?

 

jon: Most have gone on to work in the field of art. Shannon, Clayton and Cynthia curate. Joel Seah is an educator and Jennifer Chin is a full-time artist.

sc: When you all conceived of the gallery what role did you wish for the gallery to play within the community of Birmingham?

jon: We (Shawn Boley and I) along with Jane Hughes initially wanted a place to show photography with an edge. Once we decided to open a gallery we also wanted to bring experimental disciplines into the space. Our decision to show book artists started out when we saw that some of the artists in the area were experimenting with artists books among them Mary Ann Sampson, Jess Marie Walker and Ruth Laxson. 

sc: Can you talk more about the Agnes Gallery and its role within the community? 

jon: AGNES served as an incubator and education facility. We exhibited social agenda photography with an edge and  we were the first gallery to show film and the first gallery to have a book arts program in the South.

sc: Can you give some examples of how Agnes altered the dialogue within the community? And what were the results?

 

jon: For the first time photography was treated in the same manner that painting was in Birmingham and not in some back room second hand manner. People began to take  photography much more seriously  even the Museum [Birmingham Museum of Art] supported the gallery and this was a rarity. In those days, a gallery did not have an open dialog with a museum, especially in Birmingham. Today, a decade past, people in the area still take photography seriously. Peoples minds are much more open to alternative dialog and that art doesnt have to be pretty and that it is nice when art can make you think.

sc: And finally, what did you learn from owning and managing the gallery that you still carry with you? 

jon: People are people and artists are artists. I just to have a saying dealing with artists was like trying to carry snakes in a bicycle basket. I learned to respect the universe more. Seems like we had such excellent Karma. Giving creates that. We never worked with anyone who didnt love the gallery and we are so thankful for that.

Inspiration: Anthropologie

From Cambridge, Massachusetts where I am working and learning at Harvard as the Georgia College Curator, I send you these images created by the art department of the store, Anthropologie. Enjoy!