March Artists & Colorful Work

This article was originally published in the Davis Enterprise in March, 2018.

Pence Gallery: March artists bring colorful work

By Natalie Nelson

At the Pence Gallery this March, we are hosting three new solo artists, each who plays with color in a distinctly different way. As we start to plan for our Garden Tour on May 6, color is a fitting subject to center on for the beginning of spring.

Joe Kabriel’s exhibit, “Sense of Time and Place,” is on display from March 2 to 25 in our Andresen Gallery. Kabriel’s landscapes, such as “California Dreaming in Yellow and Gold,” are first drafted in pencil on one of his travels through the Santa Monica Mountains, where he lives and works.

Like many Davis residents, he travels largely on a bike, and his scenic views merge a panoramic perspective with heightened color and texture.

Some of his drawings are printed on aluminum plates, which gives them an iridescent sheen — an appearance that he heightens through digital manipulation of color and pattern into a truly unique landscape.

As he writes, he hopes through his views to “rediscover the wonder of nature seen through a child’s eyes … and to ponder the meaning of life with fresh hope.” Like many landscape artists, Kabriel reflects on how capturing nature can be both a space to “explore the personal conversation between the inner and outer landscapes of the world around us.” Kabriel will be present for the public reception from 6 to 9 p.m. Friday, March 9, at the Pence, so please feel free to stop by to see his amazing view of nature.

Much like Kabriel, Davis artist Hannah Klaus Hunter spent a lot of time in her childhood outdoors, “picking up leaves, studying their shapes and colors, their textures and veins, taking pleasure in small details.”

Hunter still loves to collect leaves, which she brings into the studio, to capture the shape, texture and linear qualities of various leaves onto paper. She uses a monoprint process to do this, rolling out a layer of acrylic paint on top of a gelatin-based plate, and then placing leaves on top. After the paper is placed on top, a brayer is used to press the paint onto it.

Some prints are layers of four to five individual print runs, and successful prints are assembled with other versions into an overall larger composition. Sometimes the artist uses natural dyes and pigments to create her prints, which gives her work a natural feel.

To learn her process, plan to attend her Botanical Print & Collage workshop, on Saturday, April 7, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sign up now at brownpapertickets.com. The cost is $105 ($115 non-members) and includes all supplies. Attendees will also create a small accordion-style book with their prints. Hunter’s exhibit, titled “Paper + Leaf,” is on display through April 13, with an opening on Friday, March 9, from 6 to 9 p.m., sponsored by Far Western Anthropological Research Group.

Another related workshop this month is our Ecoprinting session, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, March 17. Book artist Dorothy Yuki has taught this workshop on using natural dyes and metals to make prints on cloth and other materials for many Bay Area arts organizations, and after Hunter participated in it, we heard so many great compliments that we had to bring it to Davis. The cost is $165 ($175 nonmembers), and artists can register online through www.brownpapertickets.com.

Last but not least, San Francisco artist Nicole Mueller unveils a new installation as part of her “Light Matter” exhibit, on view through April 13. Mueller’s works are both exuberant and complex, with shifting figure-ground relationships, vibrant color and pockets of deep space, creating pathways that weave in and out of her compositions.

Her large works are painted, cut, collaged, arranged and rearranged, resulting in works that exist between chaos and cohesion.

Mueller is the winner of the Glickman McClure Artist Award for 2018. Given to an emerging artist who produces a new body of work for the Pence, the award is donated by Mark M. Glickman and Lanette M. McClure, and includes a generous stipend.

Mueller is primarily a painter and mixed-media artist, but she is stretching into three-dimensions with an installation of suspended colored Plexiglas shapes. This one piece will be installed in the Bill and Nancy Roe glass tower, visible from our D Street entrance. Not daunted by heights, the artist will be installing at the top of a 20-foot scissor lift soon, securing clusters of wires with the colorful forms on them, so that when light passes through, the hues merge and overlap in truly magical ways.

Mueller’s inspiration was a French chapel with stained glass designed by Henri Matisse, and her installation is sure to have a very spiritual presence. As with any piece that is dependent upon natural light, it will constantly be changing, due to the shifting light conditions.

Her Artist Talk, which describes much of her artistic process and the fabrication of this recent installation, is from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, March 24. While the event is free, we are asking visitors to RSVP online, at www.brownpapertickets.com (search Pence Gallery). Mueller will also be present during our public reception on Friday, March 9, from 6 to 9 p.m., so stop by for a glass of wine and to meet the artist.

— Natalie Nelson is executive director and curator of the Pence Gallery; her column is published monthly.

The Healing Power of Art and Nature

This interview is reprinted from McGaw Graphics interview with me, published on January 26th, 2018.

Abstract, Artist Feature, Hannah Klaus Hunter, Nature, Winter Supplement 2018 - January 26, 2018

Artist Hannah Klaus Hunter creates work infused with the colors, textures, and wild, uninhibited compositions found in nature. In addition to natural elements, she frequently incorporates language into her artwork, drawn from being raised by two English professor parents. As a child, Hannah enjoyed spending time in her father’s vegetable garden, where she studied the colors and shapes she found there…elements that would eventually emerge in her artwork. Her brilliant portfolio ranges from printmaking to collage using a range of materials. We spoke with Hannah recently to learn more about her artistic process and inspiration (see interview below):

MG: What medium do you work with?

HKH: I work with a combination of monoprinting, eco printing and collage. I create the prints using the first two techniques and then select pieces of them to incorporate into a collage, using matte medium to adhere the pieces and to give them a translucent coating.

MG: What do you like most about working with this medium?

HKH: I love the spontaneity of all three processes. Monoprinting and eco printing allow for unexpected results; areas that are at once delicate and defined and rather gloriously imperfect. Collage allows me to choose evocative parts of each print and piece them together into a new whole, not unlike a quilt.

MG: What inspires you most?

HKH: My hometown, Davis, CA, is honeycombed with greenbelt paths planted with all manner of trees, shrubs and flowering plants. I spend a lot of time walking the paths around my home and studio, studying the sky, the changing colors of leaves as they bud, leaf out, and finally fall, where, after the first rain, they leave haunting imprints of themselves. There is a pond on the greenbelt populated by Canada geese, wild turkeys, herons and any number of other birds, making the walk not only visually inspiring but filled with bird call, chirrups and honks. The time of dusk in winter is one of the most evocative times to walk. Crows fly overhead, bats begin their nightly flights; all against the stark outline of tree branches and the delicate colors of twilight. I try to bring these impressions back to the studio to distill the essence of them in my work.

MG: What artists inspire you?

HKH: What a difficult question! So many! I’m fortunate to live in a town with many excellent artists whose work I adore: Sara Post, Rebecca Ryland, Stacey Vetter, Diana Jahns, and Linda Clark Johnson. Further out, ecoprinter Lotta Helleberg in Virginia, SF artist, Tracey Adams, and even further out in Australia, botanical artist Leslie Kendall. I have always been inspired by Paul Klee, Mark Rothko, Pierre Bonnard, and Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin, the 18th century French painter. Then in a whole other category, the Indian artists who painted Tantric gouache works and the art of the Amish quilt makers.

MG: What are your hobbies (besides art)?

HKH: Traveling and walking in beautiful places both cultivated and wild. I love botanical gardens and spend a lot of time in the San Francisco Botanical Garden. I enjoy exploring the back streets of San Francisco, discovering odd bits of flotsam for collage, small architectural wonders and hiking up the many hills for the views. I’m a yoga enthusiast and find that whatever is going on, time in our local studio, or on the road, helps to iron out the wrinkles of life. I’m also a passionate reader and enjoy spending the evening reading a good book with real paper and print that I can touch. 

MG: Describe your workspace:

HKH: When I was in college, I wanted to have a carriage house as a studio. I have the closest thing in the modern vernacular; the ample space above our garage. Spacious, with a slanted ceiling, there is a wall of windows looking out to the alley and a beautiful olive tree. As I enter my studio, to one side, I have a wall of books, watercolors, paints, and supplies. On the other side of the door, my inspiration: a wall covered with postcards of artists’ exhibits and artwork catches my eye. I have several tables holding current projects and work between them and a display wall. Finally, the last wall has shelving and storage for current and older work. There’s also more storage underneath the windows (more books!) and small niches with objects that keep me inspired.

MG: How many years have you been an artist?

HKH: 41 years

MG: What jobs have you done besides being an artist?

HKH: I love teaching art and I’m also a trained art therapist. I worked for many years as the pediatric art therapist for UC Davis Children’s Hospital. I’ve also worked for several area hospices, creating art therapy bereavement programs for children and young adults. After retiring from UC Davis, I’ve continued to offer once-a-month workshops at a non-profit that serves cancer patients. Despite the sound of all this, it is fun and very rewarding work. Going further back, I was a restorer of oriental rugs and a short order cook!

MG: If you were not an artist what would you do?

HKH: I’d be a yoga teacher—healing and art, body and mind all combined.

MG: What is your dream project?

HKH: I’d like to do a residency at the Bloedel Reserve in Bainbridge, WA or a similar setting and create a suite of work, which acknowledges climate change while celebrating the exquisite beauty of plants; how moment by moment, they support our life on this planet.

MG: Is there a painting or project that you are especially proud of?

HKH: This past summer, I was commissioned by NYU Langone Medical Center to create a series of monoprint collages for a new cancer center opening on Long Island. Because of my work with cancer patients, this project brought together my love for healing, color, pattern and creating beauty for people who can use it as part of their healing process. It was wonderful.

MG: What is your favorite color?

HKH: Celadon Green

Fall Findings

Botanical Prints at "Davismade" Market

I'm joining "davismade" for a special holiday market! Davis artists Betty Nelsen, Adele Shaw, Cindy Nelson and I will be putting on the holiday cheer with all the trimmings! Our Sunday event is a wonderful and local opportunity to do your holiday shopping while enjoying handcrafted art and conversations with Davis artists.

I've been busy in the studio and I'll be sharing original botanical prints, giclee prints, new notecards, my "Color Me Happy" coloring books and of course, no event is complete without a giveaway and a sale!

If you're in the area, join us for seasonal treats, a mug of hot cider, art & inspiration!

Botanical Printing and Collage Workshop

The November workshop was a great success! We spent a wonderful day selecting leaves from autumn's abundance, creating print after print and covering the floor with paper like so many fallen leaves. In the afternoon, we made book covers out of Sculpey and imprinted those too. By the end of the day, there was a gathering of accordion books, each one a small treasure.

I'm excited by the results, so much so that I'll be offering another Botanical Printing & Collage class Saturday, April 7th at the Pence Gallery in Davis, CA. Stay tuned for details!

2018, A Taste of Things to Come!

I'm spending the winter preparing for the spring, specifically a spring show at the Pence Gallery in March, 2018, entitled: Paper & Leaf. Above: Lowlands 1, Monoprint Collage, 16" x 16," ©2017.

I've completed much of the work and now comes the tough part; preparing them for view: mounting, framing, and the always delicious task of creating titles. I look forward to sharing more work with you as the show comes together.

Whidbey Island Retreat

As I write, I'm up on Whidbey Island in northwestern Washington, enjoying an early fall and changing colors. While here, I traveled to Bainbridge Island to visit the Bloedel Reserve. As a botanical artist, there's nothing more exciting than being surrounded by a plethora of new plants. Called a "living work of art," the forest paths of the reserve were a peak experience, as each turn of the way revealed a pond, a sweep of ancient birch or a Japanese garden. Equipped with photographs taken by my husband and I, these images will inform my work for months to come.

I traveled to Whidbey with a box of Art Graf tailor's chalk bars and a bottle of ink. The limitation of color to six autumnal shades forced me to be more inventive and I was attracted to the rhododendrons as subject matter.  The way in which the leaves splay out reminds me of crazy daisies, while their stems and branches twist and bend like some kinetic sculpture.

Rusty drawing skills nudged me to cut up the first couple of drawings into smaller pieces of paper just to see what would happen. When I looked at some of the pieces, I was intrigued by the abstract quality that occurs when you only see a part of a leaf or stem. So not blow up a section of a leaf in another drawing to see what happens? It's a work in progress and I'll post more images as I go along.

A Rich Summer Harvest

It's been an extraordinary summer by anyone's account. Much has happened on both a local and national level, and, as individuals, we may have many different reactions to these events.

As an artist, I believe that my work is to pursue my vision of beauty in an effort to nurture and deepen our connection with this beautiful earth we inhabit. I strive to maintain ties between heart and hand, between hand and earth, and between plant, paper and cloth.

This August, I was honored to be chosen to create a suite of monoprint collages for a new cancer center, part of the NYU Langone Medical Center in Long Island, NY. I was moved by the challenge of creating a collection that would both inspire, challenge and even entertain patients as they received their chemotherapy treatments. As an artist and art therapist, I can't think of anything closer to my heart. When the work is framed and installed I look forward to sharing the images with you. To see of the work in progress, click here.

More on Eco Printing:

Walnut and Silk Oak Leaves on Arches papere

During the long, hot days of July, I took a week long retreat in my back yard with a propane tank and a 40 gallon pot as company. Determined to explore eco printing in more detail, I was able to create a stack of papers, many of which found their way into collage. The week over, my appetite was whetted for even more.

I headed to San Francisco to study with Dorothy Yuki at San Francisco Center for the Book. There I learned the beauty of combining fine art papers with humble ingredients to produce beautiful and many layered results. I'm very excited and am brewing a workshop of my own which I'll share soon; it will include a primer to ecoprinting, monoprinting and the art of combining these together in a collage format. Stay tuned!