Jason Schneider | April 2021 Visiting Artist
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Jason Schneider is a studio furniture maker who works with traditional woodworking processes in non-traditional materials to create unique three-dimensional objects. He received a BFA in Furniture Design from William Paterson University and an MFA in Furniture Design from San Diego State University. Over the past two decades, his work has been widely exhibited at the Anderson Ranch Arts Center, Snowmass, CO; Aspen Art Museum, CO; Center for Art in Wood, Philadelphia, PA; Museum of Craft and Design, San Francisco, CA; and the Neuberger Museum, SUNY Purchase, NY; among others. He has given lectures and demonstrations at the Central New England Woodturners, Worcester, MA; Google, Mountain View, CA; and Penland School of Craft, Penland, NC. He is the former Studio Coordinator of the Furniture Design and Woodworking program at the Anderson Ranch Arts Center in Snowmass Village, CO. Currently, Jason is an Assistant Professor of the Woodworking and Furniture Design program at Northern Michigan University. Artist Statement My work explores the beauty and character of corrugated cardboard in functional and sculptural forms. This study of the fine use and function of this low-status, recyclable, and often overlooked material is what drives my curiosity. The inventive process of creating objects with corrugated cardboard is exciting and stimulating, often resulting in a highly textured and elegant surface and form. |
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Tim Trombley | March 2021 Visiting Artist
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Artist's Statement I've always been drawn to the "big picture" landscapes. I’m there to soak in and capture all of the details in every direction. Without exception, there is always more than what can be included in the print. This small collection here is stepping out of my usual approach of presenting the larger scene and taking a more intimate look at the landscape. This technique is not new for me but it is something I seldom work on. Most close-up work tends to be studies in colors, contrasts, textures and forms. Sometimes those combinations can make some interesting abstractions. Sometimes it just simplifies a greater scene into its basic elements. This is just a sampling of some smaller landscapes that I find interesting Artist Bio Tim Trombley’s love of photography began as a hippie hitchhiking across America with an old Brownie camera. After earning a BS in Forestry from Michigan Tech University, Tim enrolled in some photography classes while working in Lansing and later earned a Master of Arts degree in Photography from Purdue University. A five year stint as an interpretive ranger in the National Park Service led him to many beautiful places where he honed his landscape photographic skills, but he always returned to the Upper Peninsula, finally making it his permanent home in 1994. Tim feels the most rewarding part of landscape photography is that of discovery and exploration. Making images to share the experience completes the process and compels him to go back for more. Surrounded by the beauty of the Upper Peninsula and with the Hiawatha National Forest and Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore in his backyard, Tim finds ample inspiration and opportunity to create his amazing photographs. |
Patty Gagnon | January/February 2021 Visiting Artist
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Patty Gagnon has been a resident of Marquette, Michigan for 20 years. She received a BFA/painting degree from NMU in 2015 and a BA in English Literature with an art minor from UC Santa Barbara in the 1960s. She has also attended innumerable art workshops, including Turkish tile design in Istanbul.
Raised on dam projects around the world, she met her husband, Harvey, in Pakistan. They continued moving to new places with their three sons. In 2005, they served in the Peace Corps in Kyrgyzstan. SURPRISED BY JOY ‘Surprised by joy’ is a quote used by author Louise Penny in her Chief Inspector Gamache mystery series. It’s written on a plaque secured to the back of a park bench. Ms. Penny got it from CS Lewis, and he references a poem by Wordsworth. So, not a new idea – joy – but something I had forgotten in 2020. It surprises us even in times of pandemics and uncertainties. Joy isn’t the same as happiness or pleasure. “Joy is never in our power.” It doesn’t deny death, darkness, evil, despair. We and our world are made up of all these parts, yet, look around and every once in a while it smacks you – joy. So here are the surprises of joy that hit me when I looked out, up and around. |
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Barry Bernstein | December 2020 Visiting Artist
I’ve been making vessels and
firing in the Raku process for over 35 years. I use the vessel form
as my canvas and the firing process as my paint brush. Slight adjustments in the firing and cooling create a wide range of colors and textures. I try to create visually strong forms and strong surface treatment. Pieces must have both to be considered successful. I make simple forms with very little embellishment to get at the strength and inner beauty of the vessel form.
My pieces reflect the hues and
the forms of our Upper Peninsula environment. Many of my pieces celebrate the Northern Lights. Others are reminiscent of Lake Superior and the brilliance of the fall colors.
Other influences include 7th to 17th century Asian ceramics and Native American pottery. Another is an artist/instructor named Richard Devore who fired his pieces numerous times. Devore fired his pieces in an electric kiln and I thought I would try the technique with Raku. To my delight, I obtained hues and textures not usually found in Raku. This has led to other experimentation including glaze firing the pieces twice in an electric kiln before I Raku fire. Each piece gets 2-4 Raku firings. Sometimes I over fire the pieces and then under fire them. Each subtle change in the Raku process creates different results. I’m still experimenting.
Joe Graci | November 2020 Visiting Artist
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