First Friday

Two of my good friends are having a show tonight at my alum - Sliding Door Gallery on Santa Fe. Here's the info:

Kay Tuttle: Cover Stories

A show of paintings on vintage encyclopedias and a series of ink drawings on paper with the subject of animals

• Dates: May 1 –May 30, 2009
• Place: Sliding Door Art Gallery, 766 Santa Fe Drive, Denver, Co 80204
• Hours: Fridays 12-5, Saturdays 12-5, First Friday 6-10, Third Friday 5-9
• Artists Reception Saturday May 8th, 5 – 9 p.m.

The title of this series of paintings, Cover Stories, is a playful reference to the use of a set of vintage encyclopedias as the structure of the paintings. After carefully sanding the cover, Tuttle paints directly on the book. The subject matter of animals stacked upon each other references things like totem poles, folk tales, (especially the German tale The Bremen Town Musicians), and environmental concerns.

Kay Tuttle was born and raised in Colorado. She received a BFA in painting and drawing from CSU in Fort Collins and an MFA in painting from ASU in Tempe, Arizona. After graduating she taught painting and drawing at ASU. She lived abroad for several years, in both Germany, and France. She has had solo shows in France, Germany, Colorado and Arizona. She now lives in Denver and shows with Sliding Door Gallery. She was published in Issue 72 of New American Paintings and was included in the 10th Anniversary exhibition at Roq La Rue Gallery in Seattle. She will be exhibiting in the Beyond the Border Art Fair Sept 2, 3, 4, 2009, in San Diego, CA.



True Love: New work by Katie Taft

Consisting of three-dimensional objects made of porcelain and a variety of textiles: leg warmers covered in barnacles, a shawl encrusted with 300 octopus suckers and a variety of other accessories and items of clothing.

• Dates: May 1 –May 30, 2009
• Place: Sliding Door Art Gallery, 766 Santa Fe Drive, Denver, Co 80204
• Hours: Fridays 12-5, Saturdays 12-5, First Friday 6-10, Third Friday 5-9
• Artists Reception Saturday May 8th, 5 – 9 p.m.

These works are love stories, both happy and sad. Making them has helped to exorcize my past and manifest the future that I want to exist. They are spells cast and objects of catharsis, they make magic happen and contain it. Some of these objects are made up of numerous almost identical pieces: the repeated action enforces a lesson learned, a tall building leapt a roadblock turning into a milestone.

Katie Taft is an artist living in Denver, Colorado and working predominantly in photography and sculpture . Her work deals with universal stories drawn from myth, folklore, philosophy and religion, and addresses how these kinds of stories manifest themselves in our modern lives. Taking inspiration from individuals around her as well as from the symbolism of animals she creates objects and images that tell the stories of her life.

Katie has shown her work in Denver, Colorado, Portland, Oregon and Santa Fe, New Mexico in the past couple of years and spends her days making art with students in the Denver Metro Area at Downtown Aurora Visual Arts and other local arts organizations. She completed a residency at PlatteForum in 2007 and was awarded Westword’s Mastermind Award in 2005.