Town Musicians of Bremen

I ran into the above image online somewhere and it reminded me of Kay Tuttle's series also based on the town musicians of Bremen. It also seemed a bit Lynchian, which of course I enjoyed. Kay said this painting of a swan, fox, and polar bear was her white-on-white:

Kay Tuttle, "Polar Bear, Fox, Swan"; ink on paper, 24” x 30”

New to Our Collection

One of the great perks of being an artist is trading artwork with fellow artists. I am now the proud owner of this beautiful Kay Tuttle painting thanks to a trade.

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.

Great Opening Tomorrow!

Kay Tuttle will be showing Lost and Found, An art show consisting of paintings on wood, drawings on found Victorian prints, and a collaborative series of drawings between Kay and her father, Sam Tuttle This show will be at Ironton Gallery 3636 Chestnut, Denver, CO 80216 303.297.8626, Dates: July 18, 2008-August 16, 2008, Opening Reception Friday July 18, 2008 7pm -10 pm

Gallery hours,10-4 mon-fri,and Saturdays 12-4

Coffee and Donuts with the artist: Saturday August 2^nd, 12-4,

1^st Friday hours: Friday Aug 1^st, 6-10 pm,

Closing Party Saturday August 16, 12-4pm Desserts I Stressed, Desserts and Drawing Exquisite Corpses , paper and pens supplied

Denver "Building Creative Businesses Expo"

The Denver "Building Creative Businesses Expo" takes place today (Saturday) and is loaded with interesting workshops and discussions. I will be on the panel for the discussion called "Self Made: Local Artists Make Good" at 2:30 pm. Joining Me will be Katie Taft, Kay Tuttle and Patti Hallock. Self Made: Denver's site is here. Come check it out.

Another First Friday Not To Miss

Kay Tuttle, “Collection Amusette-Alligator”, Acrylic on Wood, 2 x 4ft, 2007

Kay Tuttle, “Bird”, Acrylic on Wood, approximate dimensions 3 ft x 4ft, 2007

Kay Tuttle will be having a show called "Collection Amusette", at the one and only Sliding Door Gallery in Denver opening First Friday starting at 6 pm on the south end of the Santa Fe Arts District. This will be one not to miss - several paintings on wood, many of which are on unusually shaped panels. The show has a playfulness to it that balances line work/drawing with painting quite well. She also employs a large amount of text/handwriting in the pieces that make up this show, which adds to the depth and complexity of her work. The press release for the show elaborates,

"Collection Amusette is a series of oil and acrylic paintings that are painted on plywood. Some of the wood is cut into silhouettes of different shapes, for example a bird or a dinosaur. Other pieces are left in traditional rectangular shapes. All of the pieces are painted, sanded and repainted in a build up of imagery that is in some places sharp and detailed and in others erroded and blurred. The imagery is derived from scraps of popular culture that Tuttle has been collecting over the years, things like firework boxes, children's text books or aprons. Conceptually she is playing with ideas of how memories transform and change, gaining and loosing in significance as the years go by.

Tuttle was born and raised in Denver but lived away for 20 years, years that included an MFA and teaching at Arizona State University, and 3 year stays in both Germany and France. She will be featured in the upcoming Western States Edition of New American Paintings and was recently accepted into the Viewing Program at The Drawing Center in NYC. "

This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it Kay's show will be accompanied by work from Tony Zellaha and Evan Borman called "You Guys", and a special exhibit of work by students at Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design entitled "Mouth Amusements".

Sliding Door Gallery is located at 554 Sant Fe Drive, Denver, Co. The show opens Fri, Nov. 2, from 5-10 pm and closes Sun, Dec 2nd, 2007. Gallery hours are Fri, Sat, Sun, 1-5

Also

Be sure to stop by the Plastic Chapel on Colfax to see some fun and unusual work from Lauri Lynnxe Murphy called, "Incubator: Drawings and Snowglobes" - also opening on Frist Friday from 7-11pm - you can read more about it on the always up to date denverarts.org. Ken is doing a great job keeping everyone in Denver updated on openings and art events in the city. I see him regularly at openings, taking pictures and shaking hands. Be sure to check it out and bookmark it .