Morton Fine Art co-curates “Starshine and Clay” at Workhouse Arts Center

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KESHA BRUCE, MAYA FREELON & AMBER ROBLES-GORDON Starshine and Clay February 13th – March 31st, 2019 Opening Reception Saturday, March 9th from 6-8pm EXHIBITION LOCATION Workhouse Arts Center 2nd Floor – McGuireWoods Gallery 9518 Workhouse Road Lorton, VA 22079 HOURS Wednesday – Saturday 11am – 6pm Sunday 12pm-5pm

About Starshine and Clay Morton Fine Art and Workhouse Arts Center present the work of Kesha Bruce, Maya Freelon and Amber Robles Gordon — three women artists exploring ideas of healing power through their lineage of storytelling. Bruce’s spirit-based use of guardians, African-American folklore and a prophetic mix of abstracted figures and symbols serve as a reminder ‘to fight’ and to bring about change. Freelon’s visual vortex of potent tissue ink monoprints and quilt-like immersive installations welcome the contemplation of our standing ideas of strength and vulnerability. Robles-Gordon’s powerful narrative and the influence of African elemental and spiritual based practices activate bloodline connections and ancestral memories. With substantive and varied approaches, Bruce, Freelon and Robles-Gordon chart the transcendence of gender, history and preservation, rooting themselves as important and impactful contributors to current social and cultural dialogues. Co-curated by Amy Morton of Morton Fine Art and Jaynelle Clarke Hazard of Workhouse Arts Center.

KESHA BRUCE Artwork is spiritwork. When I pray, I ask my ancestors for the bravery to follow and make manifest the deepest truths and longings of my heart. Every artwork I create is an answered prayer. In this current political and social moment my prayers are especially urgent: Where can Black women feel safe? Where can we feel free? How do we protect our spirits from those who mean to destroy us? As an artist, these questions always lead me back to my work.  In my experience, the most powerful weapon for spiritual warfare is joy. I’m not being hyperbolic when I tell you that the process of making artwork has saved my life many, many times. Art is a refuge for the spirit. It offers us a way to understand and heal ourselves. I am of the mind that something absolutely prophetic can be revealed in both the act of making and the act of looking at art. Art objects embody spiritual power. I believe this so firmly now, that it seems almost surreal to think back to a time, not so long ago, when I was afraid to speak about my work in spiritual terms for fear of being called less serious or less intellectually rigorous. It’s clear to me now that often our fears show us the parts of ourselves that are desperately waiting to be revealed. To be set free. So, I present this new work with the firm knowledge that what I am creating is an important and worthy contribution to the current cultural dialogue. More importantly, I consider my work a part of a strategy for resistance. Even as we steel ourselves for battle ahead, we must remember to leave room for joy. Joy is sacred and so it is worth fighting for. Remember to fight. -KESHA BRUCE SELECTED COLLECTIONS Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture (14 pieces), Washington, DC The Amistad Center for Art and Culture, Hartford, CT The Museum of Modern Art, Franklin FurnaceArtist Book Collection, New York, NY The University of Iowa Women’s Center, Iowa City, IA The En Foco Photography Collection, New York, NY The Museum of Modern Art/Franklin FurnaceArtist Book Collection, New York, NY Available Artwork by KESHA BRUCE

photo credit: Christopher Charles

MAYA FREELON Maya Freelon is an award-winning visual artist whose work was described by the late poet Maya Angelou as “visualizing the truth about the vulnerability and power of the human being.” Cosmopolitan Magazine featured her in June 2015 in “Art Stars” calling her one “of the most badass female artists in the biz.”  She was commissioned by Google to design original art for their OnHub router, by Cadillac to create a live-sculpture for their Dare Greatly creative campaign, and by the North Carolina Museum of Art to create a collaborative tissue paper sculpture celebrating the opening of their African Art wing. Her unique tissue paper art, praised by the International Review of African American Art as “a vibrant, beating assemblage of color,” has been exhibited internationally, including shows in Paris, Jamaica, Madagascar, and Italy. She was selected by Modern Luxury Magazine as Best of the City; by Huffington Post as “Black Artists: 30 Contemporary Art Makers Under 40 You Should Know”; and by Complex magazine as “15 Young Black   Artists Making Waves in the Art World.”  Maya has completed residencies at the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture in Maine, the Korobitey Institute in Ghana, and the Brandywine Workshop in Philadelphia. She earned a BA from Lafayette College and an MFA from the School of Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. COLLECTIONS U.S. State Department U.S. Embassy in Madagascar U.S. Embassy Swaziland U.S. Embassy Rome The University of Maryland (David C. Driskell Center) Johns Hopkins University Rocketship Rise Academy; The Museum of the National Center of Afro-American Artists The Reginald F. Lewis Museum The School of the Museum of Fine Arts The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Lafayette College The Brandywine Workshop The Experimental Printmaking Institute The Williston Northampton School The Kokrobitey Institute Lewis Tanner Moore Dr. Maya Angelou Available Artwork by MAYA FREELON

AMBER ROBLES-GORDON My artwork is a visual representation of my hybridism: a fusion of my gender, ethnicity, cultural, and social experiences. I impose colors, imagery, and materials that evoke femininity and tranquility with the intent of transcending or balancing a specific form. I associate working with light, color, and energy as a positive means to focus on the healing power found in the creative process and within us all. It is my belief that colors have both feminine and masculine energies and each color represents a specific aspect of nature. -Amber Robles Gordon COLLECTIONS Judith A. Hoffberg Archive Library University of California, Santa Barbara, CA Masterpiece Miniature Art Exhibition, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Capital One Bank, Mc Clean,Virginia District of Columbia’s Art Bank, Washington, D.C. Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, New York, NY The Gautier Family Collection, Washington, DC Available Artwork by AMBER ROBLES-GORDON

About Workhouse Arts Center Workhouse Arts Center is a Virginia not-for-profit corporation that was created for planning, developing and fundraising a self- sustaining arts space. The primary goal has been and remains the renovation, preservation and reuse of the former District of Columbia Complex’s Workhouse facilities. Officially transitioned from the District of Columbia Prison Complex to Workhouse Arts Center in 2008, the organization now sits on 55-acres of land surrounded by rolling hills, featuring 4 main gallery spaces, near 100 artist studios and hosts an array of arts education courses, festivals and theatre performances. Workhouse Arts Center

About Morton Fine Art Founded in 2010 in Washington, DC, Morton Fine Art (MFA) is a fine art gallery and curatorial group that collaborates with art collectors and visual artists to inspire fresh ways of acquiring contemporary art. Firmly committed to the belief that anyone can become an art collector or enthusiast, MFA’s mission is to provide accessibility to museum-quality contemporary art through a combination of substantive exhibitions and a welcoming platform for dialogue and exchange of original voice.

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A Dose of Culture in Adams Morgan – MFA blog feature by Craig Meklir

 

A Dose of Culture in Adams Morgan

CRAIG MEKLIR AUGUST 18, 2016

If you’re in Adams Morgan and you’re feeling fine, stop in to Morton Fine Art and get a dose of culture.

Adams Morgan may be best known for its bars and nightlife, but you should visit during the day and check out Morton — it’s quiet and dignified, but edgy and au courant.

Morton Fine Art wears many hats. They want you to come look at the art and appreciate it, but they also want you to start collecting it. Morton offers advice to the burgeoning collector via a professional consultant. Not only will they help you choose the art, they’ll come to your home or office and install it for you in the best possible spot. You’ll grow to love it more every day.

Their dynamic model of changing exhibits means you always get a fresh selection. And because some of the most educated art minds are selecting what hangs on the gallery’s walls, you know you’re choosing from only the best.

Gallery owner and founder Amy Morton says an important part of collecting art is knowing what you like, and the best way to learn is to look at as many different types of art as possible. So get out there and spend some time in some of the DMV’s smaller galleries!

Morton’s, 1781 Florida Ave. NW, is open Tuesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sundays from noon to 5 p.m.

Click HERE to read Craig Michael Meklir’s blog.

Click HERE to visit Morton Fine Art’s website.

 

New artwork by JULIA MAE BANCROFT

We are proud to announce the arrival of new artworks by DC based artist JULIA MAE BANCROFT.  A graduate of the Corcoran College of Art & Design, Bancroft intricately and thoughtfully hand-stitches her mixed media artworks on paper. Each piece incorporates natural fibers including hemp, Merino wool and bamboo to complement her figurative monoprint drawings which are also laced with oil paint, watercolor paint and conte crayon. A typical artwork in her series Mending Moments takes 50-60 hours to complete.

About Mending Moments:

“Mending Moments is a title that describes both the literal process and conceptual ideas behind the artwork I make. I carefully “mend” the surface of my images by stitching various fibers directly into the paper by hand, rearranging its parts and binding the pieces back together to form a new ethereal moment for reflection.”

-Julia Mae Bancroft, 2016

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Please contact Morton Fine Art for additional details on acquiring artwork by JULIA MAE BANCROFT

 

Morton Fine Art (MFA)
1781 Florida Ave NW (at 18th & U Sts)
Washington, DC 20009
(202) 628-2787
mortonfineart.com
mortonfineart@gmail.com

Hours:  Tuesday through Saturday 11 am – 6 pm and Sunday 12 – 6pm

Morton Fine Art’s gallerist AMY MORTON & artist LAUREL HAUSLER at WALA DC’s “Galleries 101: Law for Visual Artists II” panel discussion

Thanks to WALA DC for including Morton Fine Art and MFA artist Laurel Hausler on the panel, “Galleries 101: Law for Visual Artists ll”. February 10th 2016 @ Pepco Edison Place Gallery in Partnership with Art Impact USA.

Thanks to Charlene Hardy for the inclusion, and to art attorney Carl Bedell for leading this very informative panel discussion!

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MAYA FREELON ASANTE, OSI AUDU & KESHA BRUCE Artwork featured in DC by Design Blog

http://dcbydesignblog.com/designers/guest-post-angela-belt-and-sheryl-scruggs/

Jennifer Sergent’s DC by Design Blog

Photo credits: Morgan Howarth

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Guest Post: Angela Belt and Sheryl Scruggs

I’m excited to have this guest post from stylist and writer Angela Belt, who’s in charge of the visual merchandising for Room & Board on 14th Street. I wrote a post on her own apartment last year, and in this post, Angela profiles an incredible kitchen transformation by designer Sheryl Scruggs, the owner of DC-based Bronze Interiors.

Take it away, Angela!

Sheryl is has a one-of-a-kind personality. When she talks, you listen—and watch, because she uses every part of herself to communicate an idea. When you ask Sheryl a question, she answers from her head to her toes with a response. I asked her if she has a background in theatre, and to my surprise she said no, because the way she moves is flowing and graceful, and everything is accentuated all at once. Sheryl, similar to her design, can be best summed up in this quote: “I’m sort of all over the place—I’m mosaic in that way.”

All photography copyright by Morgan Howarth

In our interview together, Sheryl and I discussed the vision behind this kitchen. “Its a jewel box, small and dramatic; it’s the perfect example of big is not always better,” she says. As the stylist for this photo shoot, I have to agree. The backsplash in this kitchen literally looks like gems.

The glass tiles in this backsplash have to be applied individually by hand—they don’t come prearranged on square sheets. Tedious work to say the least.

Sheryl reached out to me to style this kitchen because she wanted to get rid of the notion that kitchens are merely utilitarian, with a cabinet on every wall. She asked me, essentially, to bring the living room into the kitchen, without the decorative aspects taking away from its function and layout. This can be a tricky balancing act, because I love to layer elements in a room; pulling back and restraining myself was an intriguing challenge.

We sourced the accessories for this photo shoot from Daren Miller, the owner of  AndBeigein Adams Morgan. Sheryl wanted the objects in the kitchen to be white, metallic and sculptural, and the sculptural offerings from Miller’s boutique perfectly fit the ticket.

For the artwork, Sheryl and I collaborated with Amy Morton of her eponymous Morton Fine Art in DC, which focuses on African and African-American artists both here and abroad. Clients tend to think kitchens need cabinets on every wall, Sheryl says, but placing art on a wall or two is an unexpected surprise.

Bronze Interiors is about bold design, yet simple and refined in its execution. Based on these images of her recent kitchen remodel, I think you will agree!

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Images of KESHA BRUCE’s “The Guardians (A Continuing Series)”

Please enjoy this amazing slideshow of paintings from KESHA BRUCE’s solo exhibition “The Guardians (A Continuing Series)” on display at Morton Fine Art through January 6th, 2015!

Contact the gallery for pricing and availability.

(202) 628-2787

mortonfineart@gmail.com

http://www.mortonfineart.com

 

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Morton Fine Art at Aqua Art Miami featured in the Washington City Paper

A Look at the D.C. Galleries and Artists at Miami’s Aqua Art Fair

Posted by Perry Stein and Christina Cauterucci on Dec. 4, 2014 at 4:20 pm

While D.C. chills in the freezing rain, D.C. gallerists are sweating out Miami humidity in breezy, emptied hotel rooms at South Beach’s Aqua Art fair, one of several fairs operating alongside Art Basel this weekend.

Amy Morton of Morton Fine Art has been showing at Aqua for three years, and brought a collection of paintings, photos, drawings, and collages from a slew of living contemporary artists, including three from D.C. The gallery scored one of the largest (and coolest, temperature-wise) rooms at the fair. The Miami art fairs put D.C. on the global art radar, Morton says. “D.C., we’re really making our stamp down here,” she says, and since Morton made its Aqua debut, “I’m seeing more of a D.C. presence overall.”

At Morton’s booth, the work of local artist Stephon Senegal—who does most of his work in bronze and steel—was represented in large-format portrait photos of children. Senegal has an undergraduate degree from Howard University and a master’s from the Maryland Institute of Contemporary Art. Morton also showed oil paintings from Nigerian-born D.C. artist Victor Ekpuk(top) and mixed-media collages by GA Gardner, who worked in D.C. for many years and now lives in Trinidad (below).

A few doors down, Farmville, Va.’s J. Fergeson Gallery sold one of several $1,400 model trains painted by D.C. graffiti artist Tim Conlon (below) and is exhibiting a few of his spray-painted canvases, too. Fergeson has brought Conlon’s work to Miami for a few years now, but always as part of a collection of several artists. This year, Fergeson’s showing Conlon on his own. “His trains have always been popular, but it’s never worked out that I’ve had a good venue to show his paintings before,” says gallery founder Jarrod Fergeson. Conlon’s working on a street-art piece on a wall in Miami’s Wynwood Art District this week.

Hamiltonian Gallery, also at Aqua, is showing the work of several of its fellows and alumni. Joshua Haycraft‘s tiny sculptures (below) are cataloged as elements of an alternate universe called BHBITB. Though the pieces are all handmade, Haycraft made painstaking efforts to craft them in precise, geometric forms that look like they could have come from a 3-D printer.

Also in Hamiltonian’s room at Aqua is one of Sarah Knoebel‘s “Cycles” videos of a frozen ball of detritus—a head of lettuce, fake hair, feathers—melting in a cloudy tank of water. The gallery’s already sold “Rock My World,” one ofAnnette Isham and Zac Willis‘ $500 collages depicting Michael Jackson and Elvis as religious idols (below), riding googly-eyed unicorns and ruling over Lisa Frank cat stickers. Art collectors who are scared of the dark, take note: One of the Elvis pieces still on view (bottom) gave the Hamiltonian reps a shock as they closed up shop last night. When they turned out the lights, they noticed for the first time that it glows in the dark.

Follow #washingtonmiamipaper on Twitter and Instagram for more updates on D.C. artists and galleries from the Miami art fairs this weekend.

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AMY MORTON, ANNETTE ISHAM, GA GARDNER, HAMILTONIAN GALLERY, J. FERGESON GALLERY,JARROD FERGESON, JOSHUA HAYCRAFT, MORTON FINE ART, SARAH KNOEBEL, STEPHON SENEGAL, TIM CONLON, VICTOR EKPUK, WASHINGTON MIAMI PAPER, ZAC WILLIS