KESHA BRUCE’s “Magic Spells and Reminders” opens 2/26 at Morton Fine Art

Magic Spells & Reminders A solo exhibition of new artwork by KESHA BRUCE   Friday, February 26th, 2016 – March 17th, 2016 OPENING DAY RECEPTION   Friday, February 26th from 6pm-8pm The artist will be in attendance. Lexicon, 2016, 48″x36″, mixed media on canvas EXHIBITION LOCATION Morton Fine Art (MFA) 1781 Florida Ave NW (at 18th & U Sts) Washington, DC 20009 HOURS Tuesday – Saturday 11am – 6pm Sunday 12pm-5pm   Made of Spirit and Royal Blood 1, 2016, 48″x36″, mixed media on canvas About Magic Spells & Reminders Magical-Spiritual belief is at the root of every artwork I create.  “Magic Spells & Reminders” began as a series of reoccurring shapes which appeared within my daily drawings.  These shapes soon solidified and grew into a set of symbols that I began to think of as a personal, magical alphabet.  Influenced by the dry heat and jagged, volcanic peaks of the Superstition Mountains, over the last 6 months I have created a spiritual lexicon inspired by endless sunlight and expansive blue sky of my new home in the Sonoran desert. Unlike my past work, these new works aren’t necessarily narrative in nature, rather they are intended to act as catalysts and reminders to bring about change.   The symbols themselves do not have fixed meanings. In fact, individual symbols may have several meanings, determined primarily by their placement within the painting and their juxtaposition to adjacent symbols. Just as many spiritual paths regard “speaking in tongues” as being a private language between a believer and The Divine, I regard the symbols I’ve created as a subconscious, visual vocabulary that represents spiritual concepts and ideas that range from the concrete to the ethereal and intangible.  The paintings I’ve created for “Magic Spells & Reminders” are meant to act as visual reminders of both spiritual and creative intent, tools or reflection and healing, statements of personal power, and in some cases a call to arms.  -KESHA BRUCE, 2016   Magic Spells & Reminders marks KESHA BRUCE’s 5th solo exhibition at Morton Fine Art.   About KESHA BRUCE Kesha Bruce creates richly textured and visually complex artworks that explore the connections between memory, personal mythology, and magical-spiritual belief. Born and raised in Iowa, she completed a BFA from the University of Iowa before earning an MFA in painting from Hunter College in New York City. Kesha Bruce has been awarded fellowships from the New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA), The Vermont Studio Center, The CAMAC Foundation, and received a Puffin Foundation Grant for her work with Artist’s Books. Her work is included in the permanent collections of The Smithsonian Museum of African American History and Culture,The Amistad Center for Art and Culture, The University of Iowa Women’s Center, The En Foco Photography Collection, and The Museum of Modern Art/Franklin Furnace Artist Book Collection.   She is represented by Morton Fine Art in Washington, DC. Click here to view available artwork by KESHA BRUCE.

Remember to Fight 2, 2016, 36″x36″, mixed media on canvas   About Morton Fine Art   Founded as an innovative solution to the changing contemporary art market in 2010, 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 art collecting can be cultivated through an educational stance, MFA’s mission is to provide accessibility to museum-quality contemporary art through a combination of innovative exhibitions and a new generation of art services.   Morton Fine Art, 1781 Florida Ave NW, Washington, DC 20009 http://www.mortonfineart.com mortonfineart@gmail.com (202) 628-2787

“Written all over your face” by Martina Dodd examines six basic human emotions depicted in figurative artwork

Written all over your face

by Martina Dodd

I am fascinated by the way people communicate their feelings, ideas and thoughts.  Through written word, visual art and spoken language information can be shared by one person and interrupted by another.  Our emotional state can also be expressed in a variety of ways but the most universality recognized form is through our facial expressions.   Our body language speaks volumes even when we choose not to vocalize our feelings; from facial expressions to hand gestures, the body is consistently talking.

According to American psychologist, Dr. Paul Ekman, the six most basic emotions which can be easily understood regardless of culture and language are: happiness, sadness, fear, anger, surprise and disgust. With help from some of the artists represented by Morton Fine Art, let’s see what these emotions look like off the flesh and on the canvas.

Happiness:

Kesha Bruce. That they might be lovely, archival pigment print, 7/15. 12″x9″

Sadness:

 

Rosemary Feit Covey. Self Conscious 141103_1, mixed media 33″x28″

Fear:

 

Laurel Hausler. Blue Beards Place, 2009 oil on canvas with xrays. 40”x30”

 

Anger:

 

Billy Colbert. King County, 2009 mixed media on paper. 29”x22”

 

 

Surprise:

 

Ethan Diehl. Vigilance, oil on canvas. 36”x60”

 

 

Disgust: 

 

Rosemary Feit Covey, Red Handed, dimensions variable

 

Although these emotions are seen as universal, cultural practices and norms can play a role in how emotions are revealed and concealed between different members of the community. For example, the indigenous West African system of writing known as nsibidi employs graphic signs to code and convey concepts. The meaning of these symbols are traditionally restricted to members of all male associations but in Victor Ekpuks’ Asian Ubaoikpa (Hip Sista) series the artist not only creates his own symbols in the same style of  the ancient script, but also situated women in the center of the conversation.  The color and texture evoke a visceral reaction within the viewer rather than illustrating a singular emotion or revealing the meaning of his symbols.

 

 

Victor Ekpuk. Asian Ubaoikpa (Hip Sista) #11. Acrylic on canvas, 60”x48”

 

 

Charles Williams’ beautiful struggle in the Charlotte Agenda

 

Charles Williams’ beautiful struggle

by jonathan piscitelli | june 9, 2015

“Be careful Charles. Don’t go jumping waves with your cousins” Charles’ father called from the picnic area.

But the boys raced down to the edge of the shore anyway. The sea spray felt cool on their skin as they leapt through the first knee high swells and continued wading into the surf, splashing and laughing in the summer heat. Each successive wave brought with it more laughter as the boys tempted fate and cooled their noon baked skin. The last wave rose up in front of the boys, continuing to grow as it gained momentum, when it reached its peak, it paused, towering over their heads. The wind caught the crest of the wave, spraying a mist of salt water across the sky and creating a shimmering rainbow in the stillness. The boys yelled in anticipation as the full weight of the water came crashing down around them, forcing them under, and tossing them off their feet in a roaring wash of salt, sand and foam.

Then everything was dark.

His cousins popped up laughing exuberantly, wiping the salt out of their eyes and squinting against the glare of the bright afternoon sun. Charles was nowhere to be seen. He would come to, several minutes later, with his father and uncle anxiously leaning over him. Charles sputtered, then coughed. His father smiled with relief and held the breathing boy close, Charles Williams was alive.

There would be several more drowning scares as the years stacked up, and Charles’ fear of the ocean would remain strong, while some other urge kept drawing him to the water. It is this dichotomy, the fear and the attraction, that makes Charles Williams‘ paintings, now on display at the McColl Center for Art and Innovation where Charles is currently an artist-in-residence, so alluring.

“The thing that moves me the most about Charles Williams’ vision is his focus on fear and overcoming that fear.” says Mitchell Kearney, Image Maker.

Fear can be a funny thing. At times it is paralyzingly obvious, but on the whole, fear tends to be more insidious. Hiding in plain sight, rarely acknowledged, but insinuating itself into every decision, tainting every dream with a shadow of anxiety.

Charles is no stranger to fear, he has confronted and overcome it numerous times throughout his life. Like the time he decided to use his artistic talents to pay for college instead of taking the easier route and simply working a part-time job.

“My dad told me ‘I don’t want you to work at McDonald’s or the Grocery Store, not that there is anything wrong with that, but I want you to figure out a way to use your talent.’”

And that is exactly what Charles did, from displaying his art on any shelf in town that would have him, to selling out galleries. Or when he left a successful career as a graphic designer, having won industry awards and made a name for himself, to whole heartedly embrace his passion as an artist. Charles knows what it feels like to be afraid and uncertain at the crossroads of life. He knows what it is to have the hopes and dreams of a community resting on his shoulders. And through all of the progressions; professionally, personally and artistically, the fear of the water still remains.

Yet Charles has always been drawn to the water. He has lived by the water all of his life, and most recently moved with his wife to Charlotte from James Island, where they lived near the beach for the past four years.

Every day…every single day, Charles would go down to the seaside and watch the waves. He would take photographs of the water, analyze the currents, dissect the combination of light and texture, dimension and fluidity within the tides, and see, really see the ocean. See it in all of its color and majesty, all of its power and awe. That “seeing” was Charles’ way of embracing his fear. He is not ashamed to acknowledge his weakness, or embody his desire to overcome it, and in the process produce breathtaking works of art.

“For his recent exhibition, “Swim,” Charles Williams creates powerful and mesmerizing images of the sea. This force of nature becomes a metaphor for other potentially threatening emotional and societal undertows that must be navigated with courage and skill. An accomplished artist, Williams will continue to probe topics that need further dialogue.” says Carla Hanzal, an Independent Curator.

Charles has channeled his fear of swimming to create some of the most realistic paintings of the Atlantic Ocean I have ever seen. His canvasses are larger than life. Looking at Charles’ renderings of waves curling and thrashing with each other inspires awe and fear.

“All of the works that were in the exhibition, I wanted them to be large…I wanted you to feel like you were there, and doing them small would not have captured the essence of the emotional tie that I have to not being able to swim.” says Charles.

The ocean demands those feelings, commands your respect, and that intensity is palpable in Charles’ paintings. Mother Nature is awesome, in the true and original sense of the word, and fear is not an inappropriate feeling to have when in her grasp.

The depth of Charles’ paintings, the texture of the water, the interplay of light and color, is so realistic you feel like you are in the trough of a swell. On the east coast there are no waves without foam. And if you have ever been to the coasts of North or South Carolina, you know our waters are not crystal clear, or even blue. They are a rolling, roiling, turbulent color that alludes to the sand and life churning just beneath the surface, and they are always covered in foam. Charles captures the essence of our coastal waters with a unique honesty and vivid realism.

“I paint like a water colorist…but I work wet on wet so the cool thing is that I like to scrub out…. so you get all of those layers shining through… which gives it that glow.” Charles says of his particular process for finding the colors to make his portraits of the sea so incredibly life like.

Charles has big things on the horizon. As he continues his journey and faces his fear of the water, he plans to document his progress with photos and video, using these images to tell his story. Charles is currently working on pieces for his upcoming shows, as an artist-in-residence at the McColl Center for Art and Innovation, where he will be through early August.

That means we, as Charlotteans, have the rare opportunity to not only experience Charles’ realistic and imposing paintings of the sea, but to witness the craft and skill by which he brings the ocean into his studio. Stop in, take a few minutes to appreciate the dynamic beauty of his work, and talk with a man who is determined to better himself.

A link to the article: http://www.charlotteagenda.com/5999/charles-williams-beautiful-struggle/

Please contact Morton Fine Art for available work by artist CHARLES WILLIAMS.

Morton Fine Art, 1781 Florida Ave NW, Washington, DC 20009

(202) 628-2787, mortonfineart@gmail.com, http://www.mortonfineart.com

Welcoming SC-based artist CHARLES WILLIAMS to Morton Fine Art’s roster

Introducing SC-based landscape/seascape painter CHARLES WILLIAMS

About CHARLES WILLIAMS:

Charles Williams is a professional contemporary realist painter from Georgetown, South Carolina and a graduate of the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) in Savannah, Georgia with a Bachelors Degree in Fine Art. From utilizing oils for the basis of landscapes, each painting captures his reflection of human emotions in response to and in sync with the natural environment.

Recent achievements and awards include a Hudson River Landscape Fellowship, featured work in the Artists Magazines 28th Annual Art Competition, honorable mention from Southwest Art Magazines 21 Emerging Under 31 competition, 2012 Winner of the Fine Art Category from Creative Quarterly, 2013 selected artist for 28th Positive Negative juried art exhibition at East Tennessee State University, juror/curated by Michael Ray Charles from PBS Ar21, one of 25 selected artists for 2012 Dave Bown Project in Chicago, juror/curated by Karl Hecksher, owner K5 Editions, New York, Andrea Karnes, curator at Modern Art Museum, Fort Worth, Mary Kate O’Hare, curator American Art, Newark Museum, 2nd place Bluecanvas Publication international competition “Environments,” and featured cover artist of Composite and Professional Artist Magazine. Williams’ works has been shown in American Art Collector, Empty Magazine, Charleston Magazine, Grand Strand, Studio Visit, Bluecanvas and other national publications. He was recently interviewed and broadcast on ETV/ NPR station, entitled: Nature Through the Eyes of an Artist.

His contemporary landscapes have been exhibited in group and solo exhibitions in galleries in New York, Vermont, California, Georgia, South Carolina and several other southeastern states.  His upcoming participation in Morton Fine Art’s Beyond Yesterday: A Collection of Landscape Memories marks his exhibition debut in Washington, DC.

Charles Williams, Someday Soon, 30″x40″, oil on panel

About his inspiration:

“I explore the relationship between human emotions and the natural environment. These parallel perspectives are the basis for my landscapes and inspires me to capture honest moments, showing others a glimpse of what’s beneath the surface.” – CHARLES WILLIAMS