ArtDivas exhibit focuses on art without boundaries
By Amy Maginnis-Honey | DAILY REPUBLIC | July 09, 2010 10:23
VACAVILLE - Artist Robin Rossi likes to jokingly share that she was discovered in her garage. Rossi and her family were having a garage sale with lots of craft items for sale.
Artist Ann Jacobs stopped by and inquired whether a crafter lived in the house after seeing the goods. Rossi noted that the items were left over from art projects she had done in her children's classrooms over the years.
Within five minutes, Jacobs left and returned with a flier about the ArtDivas, a group of local artists with diverse backgrounds formed in 2004. Rossi -- Jacobs was already a member -- soon joined ranks with the collective.
Its current exhibit, 'Beyond the Frame,' is at the Vacaville Art Gallery through Aug. 7. This is the ArtDivas' sixth major exhibit. It features artwork that visually projects beyond the boundaries of conventional frames as well as artwork that challenges traditional concepts.
'We want to be edgy but not so far off the mark to put everyone off,' Rossi said.
Rossi's mixed media creation, 'Shadows,' pays homage to Louise Nevelson, an American artist known for her abstract expressionist 'crates' grouped together to form a new creation. Nevelson used found objects or everyday discarded items in her assemblages, one of which was three stories high.
'I love Louise,' Rossi said. 'She was instrumental in bringing women to the forefront in the art world.' Rossi began 'Shadows' with an oval and 'just started putting things together.'
Each of the ArtDivas were asked to submit three pieces for the show. It can be a challenge, Rossi admitted, but it's the provocation she needs. 'It's such a rewarding experience because I don't get to pick what I want. It pushes me,' she said.
Another of Rossi's pieces is 'Wunder,' which focuses on how advertising uses females to attract males in hopes of selling a product.
Annie Johnson's creation, 'Women's Voices,' features drawings and expressions from 21 women, ages 18 to 81. She asked women at locations such as Mission Solano's Bridge to Life Center and the McBride Senior Center in Vacaville to write down a message for the world in 2010.
The inspiration came from a photography book on graffiti in Paris. The idea was to record messages that might not be heard, Johnson said. Some of the communications are as simple as 'If You Want to be Happy be.' In the piece, Johnson said, the art is the words.
Another of her creations pays homage to Georgia O'Keeffe and uses a steer skull as a canvas on which she painted an oil landscape of New Mexico.
For information on the ArtDivas, visit http://www.ArtDivasArt.com.
Reach Amy Maginnis-Honey at 427-6957 or amaginnis@dailyrepublic.net.
'Beyond the Frame': By the ArtDivas
Reception 7 to 9 p.m. July 17 .......... Free
Vacaville Art Gallery, 718 E. Main St. 448-8712
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