Author: ArtsyChowRoamer

Like Sculpture?

TWO ARTISTS YOU’LL LOVE

I suppose I must be in a black and white state of mind. I am so intrigued by two sculptors of late and they both happen to work in those colors; you know, the neutral ones that also happen to make a very strong statement. In this post we will take a look at both artists and how they are bringing 3D to new levels.

EILEEN BRAUN

Eileen Braun was born in Boston, Massachusetts and has lived and worked in Atlanta, Georgia since 2004. She has her BA in Sculpture and Art Education from Indiana University.

She previously served as Executive Director and Art Educator for a suburban New York cultural arts center. Her unique style was developed mainly through experimentation and discovery in her studio.

Eileen began working in clay doing ceramics. Her pieces have an organic and whimsical quality to them with a contemporary modern feel. She became frustrated with the mediums limits in trying to give voice to her artistic vision.

She started gathering materials from nature and from hardware stores; everyday found objects. She began to work with these different objects to develop the abstract aesthetic of her work today.

THE ARTISTS INSPIRATION AND IDEAS

Eileen says her work has evolved around dinnertime conversations as a child; a blend of her mother attending to family needs (nuture) and her father’s shared updates on his occupation (science) of testing metallurgical samples - often by x-ray.

The work in many ways blends the two beautifully by creating biomorphic forms (suggesting living organisms) that appear to be communicating emotional needs. These newly formed organisms represent a new species of cross-breeding insects, fish and vegetation.

Skeletal hulls reveal a phase of their life cycle, evolution and emergence while being suggestive of x-rays.

PROCESS AND MATERIALS

Eileen first begins with a sketch. She draws everyday and considers it an important part of her creative meditation. While the pieces are 3-D, they are like suspended drawings in space, creating complex shadows on the wall as light passes through the forms.

Bamboo reed is soaked in warm water until the reeds are pliable then manipulated to the desired shape; clamped, tied with cotton string and secured with adhesive and stained.

The form might then be robed in encaustic wax or metallic latex paint which has the ability to oxidize.  The use of fabric or dress-maker’s pattern tissue creates more texture and a feeling of an emergence from a husk.

As you can see from the photographs the results are a fantastic mix of texture, form and function. They can hang or be displayed on pedestals and work both in large and small scale.

Eileen has just closed an exhibit at Spruill Gallery which had to go virtual due to the pandemic so she did a series of three videos so clients and visitors could experience her work on a tour with the artist. Almost as good as being there but not quite! Take a look-I hope you enjoy them!

You will also be able to see Eileen’s work in upcoming exhibitions at the Swan Summer Invitational and the Ogden Museum of Southern Art in New Orleans.

KIMO MINTON

Born in 1950 in Lawrence, Kansas, Kimo Minton has been creating 3-dimensional sculpture for over three decades. Kimo is self-taught beginning at the age of 22 by reading art books while supporting his family by working as a carpenter.

Spurred by his love for woodblock prints, the artist began to carve abstract imagery into birch wood. He worked on his art everyday in a space under the Atomic Cafe in Little Five Points before he went to work.

He landed a show in 1985 that led to a photo in the Atlanta Journal & Constitution and then major gallery representation in ‘89 and has never looked back since.

IT’S ALL ABOUT THE MUSIC

He brings a joyous improvisation to his work that is really based in music. When his partner Christine showed a 3 year-old girl named Bay one of his abstract woodcuts and asked, “Do you know what it is?” Without hesitation Bay answered, “Music”.

Kimo finds that will do for him. He tries to work in a way that is similar to jazz improvisation, letting his inspiration have free reign; carving while listening to some of his favorites like Brubeck, Gillespie and Nina Simone.

Just as some music does not need words, some pictures do not need subjects to be understood. Viewers can see some ethnic references in the pieces and feel a retro vibe just like the music he listens to.

AMAZING COMPLEX ELEMENTS OF FORM & COLOR

He has always been a carver and loves creating amazing complex elements involving form and color. He says he believes in individual style and invention over academic theory, trendiness, or conformity.

You can tell that he finds influence from classical art history but early modernism and primitive art also play a big part in what he produces.

Utilizing hard and organic shapes along with dark colors and strong flashes of unexpected color, Kimo has a unique but subtle balance to his carvings.

THE TRUTH OF THE WORK WILL STAND

Kimo studies composition and proportion to develop his sense of color while expressing a freshness and feeling of playfulness that his work exhibits.

He believes in the magic of the hand and what it can produce. There is an integrity there that speaks to the truth in his work that will stand no matter what happens in the rest of the world.

Kimo feels he has been very lucky to make a living from his art as many artists do not. But he also recommends to have a backup. Just as he had his carpentry that he could have leaned on other artists might also want to have something as well.

Kimo is also known for his 2D work in oil on panel and graphite drawings. The paintings are energetic and full of movement with a beautiful color sensibility. They are abstract and very contemporary with a nod to the work of Picasso. The energy allows you to envision the music he speaks to when describing his work.

The graphite drawings are soft and neutral with no color. They are figurative in nature leaning either in a more rounded mother subject or a harder edged abstracted type that feels more like his sculptures.

Kimo is represented by Pryor Fine Art but I did find a video that I thought might help you understand his work a little better being interviewed by Timothy Tew of Tew Galleries. I hope you enjoy it.

CONCLUSION

Eileen and Kimo have both come into their own producing beautiful sellable works of art. They both enjoy representation by good galleries: Eileen is presently showing at Thomas Deans Fine Art and Kimo at Pryor Fine Art.

They both have taken time to experiment and discover a process for what they are creating. They both have muses that obviously take them in some wonderful directions. You can see it in the work. I think you can see why I have been truly inspired by both and impressed by where they are in their careers.

I hope you enjoyed reading about both of these artists. You might want to also read some other blogs under Artful Ideal particularly 5 Artists Inspiring Me to Share and Confessions of a Street Art Junkie. Hey, don’t be a stranger! Go to the galleries and check these artists out. You might find something you can’t live without-let me know what you think about them OK? Until next time…

Cheers,

ArtsyChowRoamer

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TO MY READERS: This post was updated with more info, pics and videos on 5/29/20