Three years ago, Kristy Gordon moved back to her hometown of Nelson, BC, leaving the bustle of New York City and returning to the quietude of the mountains in this heritage city in Canada. It was a difficult decision to make but in hindsight it all felt almost divinely guided. She spent the pandemic in the safety of the Kootenays, and also received a regional art grant from the Columbia Basin Trust and Columbia Kootenay Cultural Alliance. As Gordon will be moving back to NYC this June, her new solo exhibition, “Planetary,” punctuates the completion of this precious time she has spent in her hometown.
Artist Kristy Gordon in studio; Photo by Louis Bockner
This marks the end of a busy year for the artist. Gordon’s work was included in shows with Grenning Gallery in Long Island, NY and Garvey|Simon in NYC and she has been teaching one day painting workshops via Zoom throughout the pandemic.
Over the years, Gordon has had numerous solo exhibitions, and she’s looking forward to presenting her work for the first time near her hometown.
Some of the largest paintings in this new body of work were started in New York City just before her move. However, the majority of the paintings were done in the last couple years and were heavily influenced by the global upheaval of the pandemic as well as social justice movements.
Kristy Gordon, “Liminality,” 52 x 64 in.
“’The Cosmic Lotus’ and ‘Strangled Planet’ are the largest figurative paintings I’ve ever done,” says Gordon. “They took about three and a half years to complete and I started them as an artist who couldn’t do a painting of that size and complexity and finished them as an artist who could.”
Kristy Gordon, “The Cosmic Lotus,” 60 x 96 in.Kristy Gordon, “Strangled Planet,” 54 x 96 in.
The paintings in “Planetary” interweave motifs from disparate genres and time periods—from Old Master history painting to contemporary portraiture—to create an inclusive narrative about the shared struggle, strength and resilience of people in today’s global climate. These paintings subvert the tradition of history painting by dismantling and repopulating narratives with a diverse and inclusive cast of figures, in a way that speaks broadly to the current activist movements that champion equality and environmental awareness.
Kristy Gordon, “Planetary,” 30 x 36 in.
“Planetary,” runs through June 6, 2021 at the Langham Cultural Center in Kaslo, BC. There will be a Zoom opening for the show on Sunday, April 25th at 1pm Pacific Time. To register for the virtual “Meet the Artist” event email [email protected]. To find out more about the show visit www.thelangham.ca.
> Visit EricRhoads.com to learn about more opportunities for artists and art collectors, including retreats, international art trips, art conventions, and more.
> Sign up to receive Fine Art Today, our free weekly e-newsletter
As part of our effort to continue to help artists and art galleries thrive, we’re proud to bring you this week’s “Virtual Gallery Walk.” Browse the artwork below and click the image itself to learn more about it, including how to contact the gallery.
Rising Storm by Roger Dale Brown, Oil, 40 x 30 in.; Anderson Fine Art Gallery
Coke Straw No. 2 by James Neil Hollingsworth (Born 1954), Oil on panel 12 x 12 in., Signed; Rehs Contemporary
Eglise St. Germain des Prés by Antoine Blanchard (1910 – 1988), Oil on canvas, 13 x 18 in., Signed; Rehs Galleries, Inc.
Sunflowers by David Riedel, Oil, 28 x 17 in.; ArtzLine
Heading to the Session by John S. Dimick, Watercolor with pen, 16 x 12 in., 22.5 x 18.5 in. framed; Vermont Artisan Designs
Want to see your gallery featured in an upcoming Virtual Gallery Walk? Contact us at [email protected] to advertise today. Don’t delay, as spaces are first come, first served, and availability is limited.
France Jodoin, "Meanwhile the Sun Squints," Oil on Linen, 60x60”
Canadian-based artist France Jodoin is an impressionist known for her dreamlike maritime scenes and unique European Romanticism-inspired style. Through the use of muted tones, the imagery appears as though the viewer is seeing her work through a fine mist or a slight fog.
Water is an important piece in Jodoin’s work and appears in all of her paintings, even the cityscapes and floral still lives. Intuitive and instinctive, her paintings evoke a simpler time with a slower pace.
More from the Lily Pad | West:
Jodoin’s work is in private and public collections including the Sherbrooke Museum of Fine Arts, Loto-Quebec and Cirque du Soleil. Jodoin lives and works in a small town nestled in the forests of Southern Quebec.
“Nothing I paint is real. I like to say the buildings, places and people are like actors without the script. I leave the rest to the imagination of the viewer. I paint to suggest ideas only.” – France Jodoin
France Jodoin, “The Uncertain Hour Before the Morning,” Oil on Linen, 30×30”
Exhibition Details:
“France Jodoin – Journey Elsewhere”
Lily Pad | West, Milwaukee, WI
Through May 23, 2021
Please note: COVID protocols will be observed including number of attendees and mandatory mask wearing. This event will be held both in-person and online.
More details: www.lilypadgallery.com
Todd Anderson, Tyndall Glacier, ROMO (Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado), 2017, 17.25" x 23.5", Reductive woodcut on Okawara Japanese Washi paper
The Hockaday Museum of Art in Kalispell, Montana, is currently showing “The Last Glacier: Images of Our Changing Landscape,” a new exhibition highlighting the collaborative documentary project, The Last Glacier, led by visual artists Todd Anderson, Bruce Crownover and Ian van Coller.
This arts and science initiative, begun in 2009, documents the effects of climate change and unites visual artists, scientists, and writers who create convergent research on specific wilderness environments that are experiencing tangible and dramatic ecological changes.
Bruce Crownover, Thunderbird Glacier, Glacier National Park, Montana, 2014, 24″ x 36″, reductive woodcut on Okawara washi paper
Van Coller, who is based in Bozeman, describes the project this way: “Climate change is categorical, yet beauty, however temporal, still remains. As real time passes, The Last Glacier transforms into multi-generational artifacts that share stories of mortality and resiliency in the face of a changing planet.”
Bruce Crownover, Andrews Glacier ROMO (Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado), 2018, 18″ x 24″, reductive woodcut on Okawara washi paper
The presentation at the Hockaday will consist of 35 original artworks including: colorful woodcut prints of glaciers using traditional Japanese style printmaking techniques by South Carolina artist Todd Anderson, woodcut prints and watercolors by artist and master printer Bruce Crownover who lives and works in Wisconsin, and color photographs of glaciers taken around the world and in Glacier National Park by Montana artist Ian van Coller.
A full-color 648 page publication and exhibition guide containing essays, artwork, poetry, photography and other contributions by artists and scientists from across the globe will accompany the exhibition and is available for sale for $15 in the museum gift shop with 100% of the proceeds donated by the artists to support the Hockaday.
Part of the Hockaday’s mission is preserving the artistic legacy of Glacier National Park. While the beauty and grandeur of the Park has inspired artists for generations, it is a complex and changing landscape.
Of the 150 glaciers van Coller, Anderson and Crownover first started documenting in 2009, only 25 remain.
Todd Anderson, Grinnell Glacier, Glacier National Park, Montana, 2015, 22.75″ x 35.5″, Reductive woodcut on Okawara Japanese Washi paper
Hockaday Curator Pat Roath notes in her curatorial statement, “Glaciers, like the clean water they produce and the ecosystems they support, cannot be replaced. The Last Glacier Project brings our attention to this critical ecosystem and the challenges it is facing, using the creative process to evaluate climate change’s visual impact on the landscape and its emotional impact on us.”
> Visit EricRhoads.com to learn about more opportunities for artists and art collectors, including retreats, international art trips, art conventions, and more.
> Sign up to receive Fine Art Today, our free weekly e-newsletter
The Plymouth Arts Center (Wisconsin) has announced a new exhibition by the Water’s Edge Artists, a “Tribute in Honor of Kitty Lynne Klich.” The show is on display through April 30, 2021.
Water’s Edge Artists (WEA) – Painters for Preservation – is an alliance of plein air artists dedicated to artistically recording historic, endangered or threatened places. As artist activists for 15 years and continuing, WEA’s mission is accomplished by contributing portions of the sales of the artwork to organizations that support watersheds and historical sites.
“Along the Shoreline” by Kitty Lynne Klich“Morning Reflections” by Cynthia Tumpach“Hope Blooms” by Amy Eliason
More from the organizers:
A message from Donna Hahn, Executive Director of the Plymouth Arts Center: The late Kitty Lynne Klich was the president of Water’s Edge Artists up until the time of her passing in December 2019. An award-winning artist, Kitty was a member of the National Association of Professional Women, Oil Painters of America, Wisconsin Visual Artists – Southeast Chapter; Museum of Wisconsin Art – West Bend; Waters Edge Artists; and the Plymouth Arts Center. Her work was commissioned by corporations and individuals nationally, and throughout the State of WI.
Kitty began her tenure with the Plymouth Arts Center in 1997 as PAC’s resident oil painting instructor, presenting three to four classes weekly, annual special workshops, and an annual Student Art Exhibition and Gala. She retired from teaching at the PAC in May of 2014. During her teaching years, she also was the producer and emcee of PAC’s “Gallery Works” TV show, which was directed by Gary Kaiser and Plymouth Community TV-14. The shows consisted of intimate artist interviews and demos.
After Gallery Works, Kitty went on to produce “Painting Journeys,” a Sheboygan Community cable program directed by Keary Kautzer. She won several prestigious awards for these productions. For “Painting Journeys,” Kitty demonstrated her step-by-step painting techniques, creating beautiful oil paintings. With every brush stroke, her viewers not only gained artistic knowledge, they also went on a meditative journey with Kitty as she told stories about her vision for the painting, her travels, family, nature and animals, the universe, and her dreams.
Beyond her work as an artist/instructor for the Plymouth Arts Center, Kitty and her husband Jim were dedicated volunteers and generous members, caring deeply about the future of our organization. As a volunteer, Kitty coordinated and ran the annual PAC Paint the Towns En Plein Air event from 2010 to 2015, hosted more than 25 regional and local bus trips and three international trips, assisted with fundraising events, served as an usher, bartender, ticket person, and so much more.
Never afraid of taking the stage or using a microphone, Kitty was an amazing actress and hostess. She appeared in numerous theatre shows at the Plymouth Arts Center and Sheboygan Theatre Company.
Finally, we are forever grateful for Kitty’s devotion to the Plymouth Arts Center, her commitment to creating excitement and awareness for the arts in general, and especially for the many years of friendship and kindness. We all miss you greatly, and love you, Kitty!
“Kitty was a generous teacher, who was instrumental in my development as an artist,” said Dan Rizzi, WEA President. “She led WEA on a progressive and focused path by reaching out to other organizations for paint-outs and events, working tirelessly and unselfishly to organize and promote additional opportunities that benefited artists and her community.”
During previous President Chuck Eaton’s tenure, he said, “Kitty was always ready to step up and do what needed to be done. Whether it was taking on the duties of the treasurer, running the meetings when I was out of town, or sitting in a tent selling other people’s paintings, she did it all, even when I’m sure she would have rather been painting herself. Her joy and enthusiasm will be greatly missed.”
Chuck passed the baton of Presidential Leadership of WEA to Kitty, where she held the helm from 2017 until 2019. She remained dedicated to WEA, even during challenging times for her ‘in sickness and in health’, including attending the October 2019 WEA reception at their annual signature show at the Rahr-West Art Museum, just weeks before she died.
As Founder and Artistic Director Emerita of WEA, Bonnita Budysz shares that “Kitty’s unbridled infusion of interest and enthusiasm, of seeking and showcasing events and promotion opportunities, was her special brand of caring considerations in support of art and artists. Her organizing, facilitating, and networking skills, her pursuit of adventure, and her genuine warmth was so welcoming to participants for ‘A Painting Holiday in Ireland’, that we offered together in 2006. Even before her official commitment to WEA as President, she invited WEA artists many times as guest speakers and demonstrators on her Gallery Works and City of Sheboygan WSCS Productions shows. We are eternally grateful that she shared her all with WEA, and we salute and honor her generosity of spirit.”
> Visit EricRhoads.com to learn about more opportunities for artists and art collectors, including retreats, international art trips, art conventions, and more.
> Sign up to receive Fine Art Today, our free weekly e-newsletter
William Wendt (1865-1946), "Along the River Bed," 30 x 40in framed 39 1/2 x 49 1/2in
Estimate: $250,000 - 350,000
William Wendt’s “Along the River Bed” will lead Bonhams California Art sale in Los Angeles on April 20, 2021. The landscape painting stands as a wonderful example of the American Impressionist’s stylistic interpretation of Southern California nature and the American West, demonstrating his technical skill in use of color, shadow, and brushwork to draw the viewer in. The work is expected to achieve $250,000 – 350,000.
Bonhams Director of Fine Arts Scot Levitt commented, “At the turn of the 20th century, William Wendt stood out among the most talented artists in the group of avant-garde American painters who were reimagining the brilliance of French Impressionistic style through their portrayals of the American West. As a result of his prolific body of work focusing specifically on this subject matter, Wendt is still remembered today as ‘The Dean of Southern California landscape painters.’ Wendt’s ‘Along the River Bed,’ leading our California Art sale, is a fantastic painting, capturing the light, warmth, and grandeur of the natural world with unmatched luminosity.”
Another sale highlight is a painting by San Francisco-native Armin Hansen (1886-1957). Associated with the en plein air California school of artists, Hansen drew inspiration from maritime towns along the coast of Northern California, including Carmel-by-the-Sea, and thematically focused on seafaring imagery and the relationship between man and water. The work on offer in this sale, “Storm at Sea,” is an outstanding example of his oeuvre. It is expected to fetch between $150,000 – 250,000.
Armin Hansen (1886-1957), “Storm at Sea,” 25 x 30in framed 29 1/2 x 34 1/2in Estimate: $150,000 – 250,000
An additional highlight from a Northern Californian artist is E. Charlton Fortune’s “The Harbour Light, St. Ives.” Fortune spent the majority of her formative years training in the Bay Area, then went on to continue her artistic studies in New York before eventually moving abroad to work in Europe.
This painting, which demonstrates the artist’s bold brushwork and strong use of color, was painted in the early 1920s during the two years she spent living in St. Ives, England. It is expected to realize $100,000 – 150,000.
E. Charlton Fortune (1885-1969), “The Harbour Light, St. Ives” 12 x 16in framed 17 3/4 x 21 3/4in Estimate: $100,000 – 150,000
> Visit EricRhoads.com to learn about more opportunities for artists and art collectors, including retreats, international art trips, art conventions, and more.
> Sign up to receive Fine Art Today, our free weekly e-newsletter
Odile Richer, “Dandelion,” 2017, oil on panel, 44 x 34 inches, RJD Gallery
By Allison Malafronte
Odile Richer (b. 1978) makes paintings that read like giant, gorgeous pages in a surreally romantic yet strangely realistic storybook. Metaphors, myths, allegories, allusions — all can be found in this Canadian artist’s highly detailed creations.
Trained as a museum technician, Richer is primarily self-taught. She also studied at the Saidye Bronfman School of Fine Arts (Montreal) and the Academy of Realist Art (Toronto).
Richer’s paintings are feasts for the eye that make us pause and ponder. They contain both overt and hidden symbols, and trying to solve the puzzle — or surmise what the artist was after — is only half our reward for close observation. In a painting such as “Dandelion,” for instance, several interpretations might apply. “This painting actually represents spring, hope, and youth in a romantic world,” Richer explains. “The young woman is like a flower beneath glass, in the same way we might frame flowers to preserve their color and beauty. Presenting the model behind glass also alludes to the idea of preserving youth. She holds a puffy flower near her mouth as if it were a breath of life, or as if she had made a vow, or held a secret.”
The artist’s affinity for storytelling is complemented by her love of antique and vintage items, fashion, fabric, and jewelry. These accoutrements make regular appearances to further set the stage and context for each narrative. Richer devotes significant time not only to recreating their tactile appearances, but also to transmitting how they feel or what memories they may bring to mind. Not surprisingly, her creative process is time-intensive and requires ample forethought, sometimes up to a year in advance. “My ideas accumulate and become more complex as time passes,” she says. “I often say that a painting comes to fruition as a result of extended meditation.”
Odile Richer, “The Sheer Gloves,” oil on panel, 16 x 16Odile Richer, “The March of Time,” oil on panel, 24 x 24Odile Richer, “iPhone,” oil on panel, 36 x 48Odile Richer, “The White Gloves,” oil on panel, 30 x 36
Now through May 14, view “Birds of the Northeast: Gulls to Great Auks” at Fairfield University Art Museum. The exhibition includes paintings, sculpture, prints, drawings, photographs, and natural history specimens from the early 19th century through the present day.
Beyond merely connecting us to the natural world, these artworks remind us of the toll taken on bird habitats since the beginning of European colonialism in North America; the delicate ecosystems that allow birds of all species to thrive came under attack, as birds were hunted for food and ornamentation and their habitats were destroyed.
Todd McGrain, “The Lost Birds Project (Great Auk),” n.d., bronzeMarsden Hartley, “Give Us This Day,” 1938, oil on canvas. Lent by Art Bridges
“Birds of the Northeast: Gulls to Great Auks” complements the installation on Fairfield’s campus of The Lost Bird Project by artist Todd McGrain (on view through August, 2021). These monumental sculptures, created as public memorials to North American birds driven to extinction in modern times, present a chronicle of humankind’s impact on our changing world and a moving record of dwindling biodiversity.
“Reinventing Narrative Painting” is the first major retrospective of Manning Williams’s work since his death in 2012. View it at the Gibbes Museum of Art (Charleston, South Carolina) through April 18, 2021.
Manning Williams, image Courtesy of Gibbes Museum of Art
Williams’s paintings are rooted in the history, traditions, and terrain of the South Carolina Lowcountry. A Charleston native and lifelong resident, Williams earned degrees from the College of Charleston and the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts.
His highly personal approach to realist painting emphasized storytelling and was fueled by an interest in portraying subjects that he found on the periphery of the city and along the barrier islands.
Western subjects also commanded Williams’s attention, and during the later years of his career, his concern with narrative was expressed in a more abstract style.
As part of our effort to continue to help artists and art galleries thrive, we’re proud to bring you this week’s “Virtual Gallery Walk.” Browse the artwork below and click the image itself to learn more about it, including how to contact the gallery.
Stunning Moments by Ronald Tinney, Oil, 30 x 24 in.; Anderson Fine Art Gallery
Fading Light (featured in Bite Size) by Ben Bauer (Born 1980), Oil on aluminum, 9 x 12 in., Signed; Rehs Contemporary
Still Life with Roses by Oliver Clare (1853 – 1927), Oil on canvas, 8 1/2 x 6 1/2 in., Signed and dated ’95 (1895); Rehs Galleries, Inc.
Vista Bella by Daniel Gerhartz, Oil, 40 x 24 in.; ArtzLine
New Blooms by Eric Tobin, Oil on canvas, 25 x 30 in., 31 x 36 in. framed; Vermont Artisan Designs
Want to see your gallery featured in an upcoming Virtual Gallery Walk? Contact us at [email protected] to advertise today. Don’t delay, as spaces are first come, first served, and availability is limited.
Fill your mind with useful art stories, the latest trends, upcoming art shows, top artists, and more. Subscribe to Fine Art Today, from the publishers of Fine Art Connoisseur magazine.
“Planetary,” runs through June 6, 2021 at the Langham Cultural Center in Kaslo, BC. There will be a Zoom opening for the show on Sunday, April 25th at 1pm Pacific Time. To register for the virtual “Meet the Artist” event email [email protected]. To find out more about the show visit www.thelangham.ca.
For more information, please visit 
