Creatures II

Details: Published on Thursday, 20 August 2020 15:55; Category: Previous Gallery Exhibitions

Creatures II September 26-October 22, 2020

Please join Art Saint Louis for Creatures II, a new exhibition featuring new artworks by 57 regional artists from Missouri, Illinois and Indiana.

Graphic design by Emily Amberger.

We are pleased to present Creatures II, our a follow-up to our 2018 Menagerie and 2016 Creatures exhibits. Creatures II is an multi-media juried visual art exhibition featuring artworks about animals, critters, pets, beasts, creatures, insects and more—real or imagined.

For this juried exhibit, 212 artworks in all media were submitted by 87 St. Louis regional artists for consideration by Jurors Lisa Ober and John Cross from which they selected 62 artworks by 57 artists from Missouri, Illinois and Indiana for the final exhibition. This multi-media exhibit includes ceramics, collage, digital media, drawing, handmade paper, mixed media, painting, photography, printmaking, sculpture, textiles, and wood.

Creatures II is presented September 26-October 22, 2020. We will not be hosting a reception for this exhibit but will work to provide other opportunities for the public to meet the featured artists—to be announced.

Beginning September 26, Gallery hours are Monday-Friday 8 a.m.-3 p.m. and Saturday 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Closed Sundays & holidays. Dates and hours subject to change.

For the safety of Gallery visitors as well as for our Staff, we offer these PROTOCOLS and SAFETY MEASURES in accordance and compliance with City of St. Louis health mandates and CDC recommendations:

• All guests must wear a mask or face covering at all times. A complimentary disposable mask is available if needed.
• Social distancing is observed by guests and staff;
• Guests limited to 10 people at any time;
• Sanitizing Stations are available throughout our space;
• We cannot offer seating in the Gallery or Coffee Bar;
• All Coffee Bar orders are carry-out/to-go;
• Restroom is closed to the public;
• Staff will regularly clean surfaces and other areas in the Gallery & Coffee Bar throughout the day;
• If you are feeling sick, are sick, or have been exposed to someone who is sick, please refrain from visiting the Gallery or the Cafe.

We invite you to view images of all 62 artworks featured in this exhibit as well as gallery views and highlights from our opening reception in our Facebook album here. Congratulations to our Award of Excellence winners: Best of Show to Lon Brauer; Awards of Excellence to Brent Becker, Robert Dielmann, Connie LaFlam, and William McKenney; Honorable Mentions to Amy Miller, Sadhbh Mowlds, and Linnea Ryshke. Contrats to William McKenney on the sale of his work in the exhibit.

We are very honored to have the opportunity to work with artists Lisa Ober and John Cross as Jurors for this exhibit.

Artist John Cross is Professor, Lead Art Faculty, and Program Coordinator, Front Range Community College, Longmont, CO. He earned his BFA Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (1996) and MFA Fontbonne University (2001). John is also Visual Arts Editor of Plains Paradox and Gambling the Aisle, two literary arts journals. Previously, Cross has taught at Northeastern Junior College, Lindenwood University, St. Charles Community College, UM-SL, Saint Louis University, and Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. A nationally-exhibited artist, John has served as a grants panelist, lecturer, visiting artist, consultant, curator, juror, and judge for institutions across the U.S. He also has created and been Project Lead on a dozen public artworks presented in Longmont, Colorado.

Artist Lisa Ober, is a full-time studio artist and art educator working in St. Louis, MO. She holds a BFA in Graphic Design & Illustration from Washington University in St. Louis. Lisa specializes in portraiture and for over 20 years, she has enjoyed consistent private & corporate commissions including paintings of major league sports figures, noted religious figures, U.S. Supreme Court Justices, corporate executives, government officials, and private individuals. She has also illustrated several books and enjoys still life painting, too. Her Award-winning pastel artwork has appeared in publications including The Pastel Journal and Southwest Art. Collectors have long recognized her work for its clever content, exquisite realism, and detail. Over is a signature member of the Pastel Society of America and IAPS Master’s Circle member. Previously, Lisa was co-owner of OA Gallery in Kirkwood, MO.

PARKING RECOMMENDATIONS
Art Saint Louis is located at 1223 Pine Street in downtown St. Louis.
There are parking METERS on Pine Street and Olive Street & other nearby streets. Parking meters run 8 a.m. until 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Fines are steep ($20), so don't let your meter expire. Visit Downtown St. Louis.org's website for additional parking suggestions. You can also download the handy Parkmobile app, whereby you can pay for and monitor parking meter via your mobile phone.

Hourly parking is available with limited hours in the PARK PACIFIC GARAGE on Olive just West of Tucker. The garage entrance is on the South side of Olive. Parking is at your own expense and payable by credit card upon exiting the garage. Access to the garage & hours are currently limited. For info: 888-614-7426. Be sure to take your parking receipt/ticket with you when you exit your car to visit the Gallery or you won't be able to get back in to the garage to get to your garage. Your parking ticket is your key to get back in to the garage. Art Saint Louis cannot validate parking.

The Gallery is easily accessible by PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION with MetroLink and MetroBus with MetroBus stops nearby.
If you are uncomfortable driving downtown, you might want to consider a carpool or rideshare to our location.

The 57 featured artists in Creatures II are:

Michael Anderson, Belleville, IL
Eve Dake Bayer, St. Louis, MO
Brent Becker**, Wentzville, MO
Lincoln Brasel, Herrin IL
Lon Brauer*, Granite City, IL
Ryan Bredlau, St. Charles, MO
Candice Dailey, O’Fallon, MO
Emily Denlinger, Cape Girardeau, MO

Elizabeth Desrosiers, Chesterfield, MO

Robert Dielmann**, St. Louis MO
Diane Epstein, Columbia, MO

Tracy Farmer-Luster, Fairview Heights, IL

Wm. Daniel File, Manchester, MO

Dominic Finocchio, St. Louis, MO

Mark Appling Fisher, St. Charles, MO

Marcia Gay, Defiance, MO

Barbara Godwin, Collinsville, IL

Holly Goodwin, Eureka, MO
Alicia Halpin, Glen Carbon, IL

Maurice Hirsch, Chesterfield, MO

Kenzie Holzinger, Highland, IL

Ann Homann, St. Louis, MO

Rose Ann Huck, Poplar Bluff, MO

Barbara Jost, St. Peters, MO

Bill Kambol, Manchester MO

Mary Jo Kattelman, Newark, MO

Justin King, St. Louis, MO
Connie LaFlam**, St. Louis, MO

Subi Lakshmanan, University City, MO

Sheila Lamberson, Bloomington, IL

William McKenney**, Overland, MO

Amy Miller***, St. Louis, MO

Elizabeth “Betty” Moore, St. Louis, MO

Catherine Anne Morgan, Kirkwood, MO

Sadhbh Mowlds***, Carbondale, IL

Alex Paradowski, Granite City, IL

Michelle Peterlin, Evansville, IN
Kim Phillips, St. Louis, MO

Kelene Karetski Piazza, Brentwood, MO

Michael Plurad, Webster Groves MO

Jasmine Raskas, Maplewood, MO

Diane Reising, Webster Groves, MO

Erin Rivers, St. Louis, MO

Deanne Row, St. Charles MO
Linnea Ryshke***, University City, MO

David Ruggeri, St. Louis, MO

Laura Siadak, O’Fallon, IL

Douglas Simes, St. Louis, MO

Valerie Snyder, Creve Coeur, MO

Phil Strang, Urbana, IL

Michelle J. Streiff, Wildwood, MO

Jeslyn Trau, Kirkwood, MO

Russell Vanecek, St. Louis, MO

Ronald Vivod, Collinsville, IL
Mary Wertsch, St. Louis, MO

Diane Wilson, Auburn IL

J.B. Nearsy Wright, St. Louis, MO

* = Best of Show Award
** = Award of Excellence
*** = Honorable Mention

Juror's Statements

"I was honored and delighted to jury this exhibit. The two hundred plus artworks submitted by almost ninety artists made making final decisions difficult. The submissions represented a wide array of genres, techniques, materials, and skills. Each displayed a unique quality that represented the artist well. I enjoyed looking at all of them and was intrigued by quite a number of them. My goal, as juror, was to select not just what I considered the most successful artworks on an individual level, but a collection of artworks that represented the overall theme of the show itself. I would like to offer a nod of appreciation to all who entered and shared their personal work. The world is a much better place when creative people are willing to share themselves and their creations in the public eye."

— John Cross, artist, Professor, Lead Art Faculty, and Program Coordinator,
Front Range Community College, Longmont, CO

"I would like to thank Robin and Art Saint Louis for entrusting me with a portion of the jurying process for "Creatures II." What a privilege it was to review each submitted piece, first simply to enjoy another creation but then to delve further into the interpretations of and approaches to the subject matter by each artist. From quirky and clever to poignant or powerful, each piece had its own strengths and each artist’s voice spoke.

This jurying process is a dialogue with gut instincts. A good juror will keep the biases at bay and examine each piece for color, value, composition, light, form, concept, and all the other artistic “ingredients” that go into make a a great piece of art. Yet there is always more. Is concept more important than execution? Is composition more consequential than color? Does it stir emotion or perhaps even offend? Is the work thought-provoking? It’s a weighty process, a back and forth with one’s own definition of what makes good art.

I can say with certainty I was stunned by the sheer creativity, raw (and willing) emotion, and skillful use of a such wide variety of mediums. I am so proud to be part of the St. Louis art community because it produces some truly wonderful art as was evidenced by the submissions to this show, all of them.

I have endeavored to treat the pieces submitted with the same respect I would expect and I hope you view the final selections with the same enthusiasm I have for them. I can hardly wait to see the exhibit in person!"

— Lisa Ober, artist, art educator, St. Louis, MO

Some of the 62 artworks featured in Creatures II:

Ann Homann, St. Louis, MO. "Bella alla prima." 2017. Oil on Canvas, 7”x5”. NFS.	Sheila Lamberson, Bloomington, IL. "Dance of the Koi." 2020. Oil on Canvas, 36”x36”. $1,400.	Bill Kambol, Manchester, MO. "Untitled." 2018. Mixed Media, 9.75”x9.75”. $100.
Honorable Mention: Amy Miller, St. Louis, MO. "Vision." 2020.Acrylic, Oil on Paper, 26”x32”. $1,200.	Laura Siadak, O'Fallon, IL. "The Walker." 2018. Watercolor on Paper, 19”x23”. $800.	Michael Anderson, Belleville, IL. "Fish Eye Lenses." 2020. Oil on Canvas, 18”x22”. $500.
Jeslyn Trau, Kirkwood, MO. "Bone." 2019. Digital Illustration on Paper, 25”x19”. $75.	Justin King, St. Louis, MO. "Gazelle #6." 2020. Cardboard, Acrylic, 27”x15”x18.5”; 5 lbs. $1,275.	Holly Goodwin, Eureka, MO. "Molecular Octopus." 2019. Ink on Paper, 22”x28”. $1,750.
Honorable Mention: Linnea Ryshke, University City, MO. "Host." 2020. Conté, Acrylic, Paper on Fabric, 12”x11”. $550.	Michelle Peterlin, Evansville, IN. "Indigo Vapor." 2019. Acrylic on Canvas, 28”x34”. $2,000.	Dominic Finocchio, St. Louis, MO. "The Spectacle of Progress." 2018. Oil on Canvas, 16”x20”. $800.

Creatures II

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