Abstracts & Mixed Media
by Ruth Kramedjian
January 3, 2010 - February 28, 2010

Ruth is a graduate of the University of Georgia with degrees in drawing and painting and art history. She has worked with fabric, designing and making original quilts; she has worked in metal, designing jewelry in silver and gold; her photographic work is represented in this show with a series of black and white infrared prints; and in recent years she has returned to abstract painting and the art of collage or mixed media.

In her artist's statement, Ruth says:

Rhythmic cycles chart the course of our days. Both mundane and magnificent, they present themselves in the powerful circle of community life, the changing of the seasons, the movement from dawn to dusk and back again to light. Ethereal, concrete, and universal, they frame our lives and they give direction to my spiritual quest to find meaning in my world through art making. The grid and its counterpart, the circle, often serve as a frame for these cycles, and my emotional response to the inherent rhythms finds expression in my mark making. The short view, the long view, the universal view - from these, I examine my world.

Ruth is an avid gardener and lives with her husband, Armand, on the Chattahoochee River in Vinings. Ruth can be contacted at 770-384-1122 or via e-mail at rrpk2@yahoo.com.

Pastels
by Sandy Jane Tabor
March 1, 2010 - April 30, 2010

Sandy is a Georgia native, born in Atlanta and residing in Marietta. She attended the Univ. of Ga and graduated from the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta. She moved to Brittian with her family as a young teenager and began her love affair with art while in Europe. "Every weekend we would be at some famous art museum. I noticed how huge some paintings were and how tiny others were. When I viewed the paintings up close, I was amazed to see that those colorful, random strokes of paint, became a mostly dark and gray picture of someones face from far away. "

While backpacking solo through Europe and Greece as a college graduate, she continued her visits to the beautiful places of the world. Sandy has traveled as far north as the Artic Circle, as far south as Brazil, as far east as Iran and as far west as Hawaii. She raised three children who are now in college themselves , a son at Univ. of Alabama, another son at Florida State University and a daughter at Kennesaw State. They have all been subjects in her paintings. "My children have taken my more serene paintings to school with them. Those that they can retreat into during their hectic student days."

Sandy has studied under local artists David Mathews, Gary Baughman, Ann Cockerill and Chris Didomizzio. Her preference in mediums is pastel. "It is very similar to coloring with crayons and is very soothing to use. Art is like therapy to me. It helps to make sense of the world."
   

For May and June the art gallery will feature a solo exhibit of photographic art by H. Gay Allen, entitled "Painterly Refacimento and Four Studies".

The work begins with Ms. Allen's original photography and through various elaborate processes, is transformed into original art work and displayed, via pigmented print, on archival paper. The main body of work is 17 large photographs that have been altered in a painterly fashion. In addition, studies exploring four subjects are presented: Flamingo Moods; Peonies Perfect; Sunsations; and Pieces of Water.

The process was dubbed, by the New York Times, as refacimento (ree-FATCH-e-men-toe), the radical refashioning of a work of art, by use of a computer. Some works are recognizable as the original objects, some are mysteriously familiar, but not readily identifiable; and others have been taken beyond recognition.

Learn more about Ms. Allen from her website at at www.HGAYALLEN.com.

Olympic Pin Collection
By Gene Ledbetter
July 1, 2010 - August 30, 2010

Gene Ledbetter attended the University of Georgia and the University of Miami. He worked fpr 20 years as the Art Director and and partner for Harris & Weinstein Advertising Agency. In 1970 he began his own graphics company, the A La Carte Graphics, Inc. with his wife Alice.

The beautiful exhibit of pins that Gene designed covers a span of many years, from the late 1970s through 2000 when he retired. He designed Olympic pins as well as other types of pins for the Coco Cola Company as well as the American College in Atlanta and London.

Early in the Olympics history there were no pins or posters. Gene was involved in researching the history in Switzerland in order to create pin designs.

Watercolors
by Marsha Chandler
September 1, 2010 - October 31, 2010

Marsha Chandler is a watercolorist, who, as a child, dreamed of being an artist. She is now realizing that childhood dream. After rearing here children and pursuing a successful career in real estate appraisal, she then moved into the world of professional painting. In her studio in Douglasville, Georgia, she creates vivid landscapes and still lifes which reflect her love of history and antiquities, such as a battered tin bowl, a weathered iron gate, a 12th century hilltown in Italy or an old barn in the Georgia mountains.

For years, Marsha carried a camera around to photograph scenes and objects as potential painting subjects, knowing without a doubt that one day she would use them. She captures her subjects in luminous watercolor, her medium of choice. "It is the translucency that appeals to me. I love the way watercolor glows. Watercolor has become the driving force in my life and a day without painting feels empty" she says.

Her travels throughout the United States, Mexico, and Italy have created a desire to capture everything she can on paper from rural farmlands to historic buildings, from old homes and barns to broken down wagons. She tries to convey to her viewers what she experiences when she sees a place or object for the first time or in a new light.

As much as she loves to paint these scenes, she enjoys painting vibrant still lifes that give viewers a new look at color and light in everyday things. "Color brings me joy and I love to create paintings with expressive color," she says. With her vibrant colors, she seeks to invoke a feeling of intimacy in the viewer, to make them feel s if they can reach out and pick up a piece of fruit. Also, she captures a sense of nostalgia by incorporating family heirlooms and vintage items of yesterday in her still lifes.

Since becoming a full-time artist, she has studied extensively with local artists and has taken workshops with regionally and nationally known watercolor artists. Marsha paints in her studio, on location and travels abroad and around the United States both to paint and find subjects for her art.

She has been accepted in numerous juried exhibitions throughout Georgia and the Southeast. Her works hang in many private collections and she is represented by Gallery 4463, Acworth, GA.

Marsha is a member of Atlanta Artists Center, South Cobb Arts Alliance, Douglas County Art Guild, ART Station, Watercolor Society of Alabama, Georgia Watercolor Society. and Southern Watercolor Society. Her website is www.marshachandler.com.

Exhibitor's Website

Photography
by John Clemmer
November 1, 2010 - January 2, 2011

John is a retired Navy Musician with 24 years of service. After his retirement in 1991, he attended The Portfolio Center in Atlanta and studied advertising photography. Since that time, he has developed his craft in architecture and interiors, and sets himself apart with quality, distinction, and a hard work ethic.

John is one of Atlanta's premier architectural photographers. His style is unmistakable, and commitment to quality is second nature to him. The direct results of the quality of John's work stem from his passion for it.

"My greatest passion in life is fine art, whether it be music, architecture, painting, photography. Beauty presents itself and I absorb it. Hopefully my work gives back some of what I take from life. I am grateful for the fun of doing it."

Exhibitor's Website