Previous Exhibitions:

 

Dawn Steward Gallery, Tucson, AZ: Oct. 2011 - Jan. 2012

 

Myriad Gallery, Tucson, AZ: May 2008 - 2011 (closed)

 

Visual Arts Faculty Exhibit, Oct. 3 - Nov. 6, 1991

Northern Essex Community College, Haverhill, MA

 

ART faculty exhibition: Oct. 1 - Oct. 24, 1990

Northern Essex Community College, Haverhill, MA

(videotaped; Haverhill Cable News)

 

Notre Dame College Art Faculty Exhibit: Feb. 1, 1990 - Feb. 28, 1990

Notre Dame College, Manchester, NH

 

ART faculty exhibition: Dec. 3, 1989 - Dec. 31, 1989

Northern Essex Community College, Haverhill, MA

 

Publications:

 

Sonoran Arts Network

www.sonoranartsnetwork.net/raices-taller-mujeres-exhibit-2014.html

 

May/June 2014
Review
Mujeres, Mujeres, Mujeres
at Raices Taller 222 Art Gallery & Workshop, Tucson
 

Raices Taller

Raices Taller 222 Art Gallery and Workshop is currently presenting its annual Mujeres, Mujeres, Mujeres exhibit of artwork created by women. That’s what “mujeres” means for us gringos – “women.” For ten years now, Raices Taller, in its own words, demonstrates “our commitment to giving women artists a voice.” Considering that many of the artists in the exhibit are not often seen in local galleries, these Mujures exhibits are important for discovering emerging artists as well as enjoying the work of established artists.

This year Raices Taller has curated a large and varied collection of some very excellent artworks including paintings, photography, drawings, prints, ceramics and more. Here are some of the highlights.
 

JNorris, Robin's Nest, Red Tail Hawk

Jennie Norris creates a body of excellent graphite and watercolor works that are finely wrought, delicate, and very elegant in presentation. The exhibit has two of her works, Red Tail Hawk and Robin’s Nest.

Apparently the number of artists who are involved in printmaking is not as great as painters because hand-pulled artist prints are not seen as frequently in local exhibits as are paintings. Print making can be especially challenging.

 

The Mujeres exhibit has several works by printer makers. One standout work is Meghan O’Conner’sSymbiotic Suspension, a lithograph and embossed monoprint. A second noteworthy contribution is Marika Szabo’s Come On Baby, Light My Fire, a relief print created from kitchen matches that transformed itself into an intriguing abstract.

 

TPursch, Ranch House

It’s always a pleasure to see Teri Pursch’s artwork. In the Mujeres exhibit, she shares a small scale work titled Ranch House from her Architectural Landscapes series. This painting displays the same vibrant colors with an ominous touch that we typically see in her portrayal of man-made landscapes. Her vision of Tucson’s urban landscape is unique. See an interview Sonoran Arts Network did with Pursch HERE.

One of the most arresting paintings in the exhibit is Sarah Masse’s A Prophetic Fragment of Holofernes. The painting presents as a beautiful religious icon of the Madonna and Child. But take a closer look at this baby – the child’s midsection, and what she holds in her little hand. Is this a sign of what is to come? The Savior Child in this painting is Judith who is destined to save the people from Holofernes, as documented in Renaissance artist Artemisia Gentileschi’s famous painting.

Glory Tacheenie Campoy, well-known for her prints, shares with us two complementary paintings Desert Flower Series Number One, and Desert Flower Series Two. The whimsical work of Mary Theresa Dietz shows us two canine friends. And on the surrealism spectrum, we find Canyon Spirit by Khristy Thomas to be especially intriguing.

 

T Brown Shop, Shop, Buy and Comply

Mixed media work is well-represented. I found myself drawn to the work of Tracy Brown who paints and collages on digital prints. Her work in the Mujeres exhibit is titled Shop, Shop, Buy and Comply from her Fashion Monster series. Brown explained her work to me. “What motivates me to make my work is the ability of large companies and mass media to alter societies perception of beauty and the consequences and negative effects it has on women.”

Brown and co-partner Katy May Goodson are the founders of the Tucson Contemporary Women's Art Collective. In Brown’s statement, she says she is “invested in advocating for the promotion, collection, documentation, and preservation of women in the contemporary arts. She believes in women's leadership and the ability to reshape structures of power through art, collaboration, activism, and community engagement.”
 

T Turner Esprit Libre

The Mujeres exhibit includes a number of beautiful and engaging photographic work. Especially compelling are the photos of Terri Turner who creates moody and evocative black and white landscapes. Turner shared with me that the landscape shown here, Esprit Libre, was taken on Mount Lemmon. Combined in Turner’s vision of the natural world is the sense of serenity and wholeness that we perceive in nature, combined with the sure knowledge that the nature is constantly changing, and that death is a part of life.

~C.J. Shane

Raices Taller 222 Art Gallery & Workshop is located at 218 E. 6th Street. The Mujeres exhibit will be up through June 14
 

Sonoran Arts Network copyright 2013-2014