One Tree Hill - Christopher Owen Nelson

Waxlander Art Gallery is proud to kick off its 2012 season with an exhibition by its newest artist! Denver native Christopher Owen Nelson will present his most recent works in a one-man show entitled “Anchored and Drifting.” Nelson’s one-of-a-kind acrylic carved and painted plexiglass pieces, marked by their bold use of color, establish him as an innovator: a passionate artist who puts his own refreshing spin on the traditional landscape, daring to push conventional boundaries of color, scale, and controlled emotion—and continuing to push his own boundaries as an artist.

Born in Denver, Colorado, in 1979, Nelson possessed an innate calling to create and experiment with art. Self-trained as a teenager and then formally educated at the Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design, he quickly emerged as one of the top young talents in Denver’s vibrant art community. Nelson’s work transcends genres, defying the established labels of the art world. He has pioneered the use of carved and manipulated acrylic, creating art that affects the viewer on a profound level. His aggressive manipulation of color and abstractions, as well as his unique portrayal of familiar landscapes, allows him to capture beauty as the eye beholds it: new, exciting, and constantly evolving.

“My goal,” says Nelson, “is only to capture just a piece of the beauty I see around me, and do it some small justice through my vision.” His vision, as evidenced by his art, is rare, potent, and bursting with creative energy. Nelson skillfully harnesses this energy in his paintings. It is present in his vivid use of color, in the twisting tree branches and bulbous clouds that leap forth from plexiglass, and in the excitement that courses through viewers as they witness his art.

“Anchored and Drifting: A One-Man Show of New Paintings by Christopher Owen Nelson” opens at Waxlander Gallery on May 22nd and runs through June 4th, with an artist reception on Friday, May 25th from 5 to 7 PM.

Charcoal - Christopher Owen Nelson

Daydreaming - Christopher Owen Nelson

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After months of planning, weeks of delving through the details, and days of anticipation, the first annual Passport to the Arts is finally upon us.

This weekend, Canyon Road will devote itself to a celebration of the arts. From visual mediums to musical melodies, Santa Fe’s famed arts district will come alive with art lovers from all walks of life.

The event will rev up on Friday with special exhibitions and openings at several of the galleries, boutiques and restaurants along the road.

Things will really kick into high gear on Saturday, with a day packed full of events, including live music, a silent auction, and much more.

The fun will start early with a quick draw at 9:30 a.m. Thirty-three artists from galleries all along Canyon Road are participating in the quick draw. Each artist will have 90 minutes to create an original work of art, which will be auctioned off immediately following the event.

We will be hosting one of the three sites for the quick draw in our sculpture garden and are sponsoring five artists in the event, including Barbara Ivey, Cheryl Koen, James Trigg, Andrée Hudson, and Bernard Marks. We will also have several pieces in the silent auction.

Live performances by local student musicians and a free concert by the Tribute Trio will set the musical tone for the day.

Visit www.visitcanyonroad.com for a full schedule of events and more information on Passport to the Arts.

The weekend will come to a close on Sunday with the Historic Santa Fe Foundation’s annual Historic Homes Tour. This year the foundation has chosen to highlight buildings that appeared on the 1912 Kings Map of Canyon Road. The tour will run from 1-4 p.m. Visit www.historicsantafe.org/Tour.htm for more information about the tour.

Just Lookin' for Some Peace of Mind - Lori Faye Bock

Anyone who has owned a pet can attest that animals possess personalities all their own. With the raise of an eyebrow, the lift of a head, the sound of a sigh, they communicate. Sometimes it is hunger, sometimes it is annoyance, sometimes it is mischief, and sometimes it is total, unconditional love. Lori Faye Bock’s ability to convey the range of emotion of our closest animal friends, be they sleeping on the foot of your bed or grazing in a pasture, is truly remarkable.

Her imaginative depictions sketch out the distinct personalities of her subjects in bold colors and whimsical surroundings. Whether she is portraying sheep, cats, dogs, or birds, her paintings restore in even the most serous and cynical adults a sense of child-like wonder.

“In the beginning, surrounded by a menagerie of cats, dogs and sheep, whose eyes just don’t ever leave me alone — ever — there was no doubt in my mind what subject matter I was to paint,” she says. “So I painted and painted and painted … animals.”

A Room with a View

Her windowscapes series finds joy in the simplest household items. In spoons, and tables, and chairs, and household plants, she uncovers something fresh. Her paintings reveal in these common items an uncommon beauty.

“Household objects, both ordinary and extraordinary, intrigue me,” she

Long Way Home 2 - Lori Faye Bock

says. “I believe my windowscapes evolved so that I can have animals and landscapes along with those wonderful domestic inventions — all in one painting!”

Back to Basics

In her ABC series, she is also able to connect with the child’s sense of awe and wonder at the greater world, elevating simple objects to a greater purpose.

“My years as a first grade teacher have no doubt influenced my ABC series,” she says. “Besides being able to paint anything in the whole wide world as long as it begins with a letter of the alphabet, I get to write text, which accompanies my illustrations. Sometimes these words are funny. Sometimes they are serious. Sometimes they are mine and sometimes I borrow from others.”

Farm Fresh

Lori lives with her husband on a farm just outside of Abiquiu, in northern New Mexico. The creatures she finds on her land, whether they are in the household, on the farm, or in the wild, feed her imagination and provide rich fodder for her work.

“Being able to vanish into my studio, thus into my own little world, day in and day out, is truly a tremendous gift and blessing,” she says. “And the best thing about being an artist is that I get to go to work in my pajamas, with a cup of tea in hand, followed by a host of darling faces who just happen to have whiskers.”

Her latest series is titled Women’s Perspectives and explores, through imagery and words, the inner lives of women.

Stop by the gallery to see Lori’s latest work in person.

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Tuxedo Hop - Laurel Peterson Gregory

“Nothing makes me happier than seeing someone smile and laugh with my work,” says Laurel Peterson Gregory. And her whimsical pieces of dancing creatures cast in bronze never fail to bring a smile or a laugh or a giggle to the surface.

“I want my pieces to lift the viewer and take them to a better place for a timeless moment,” she says.

A classically trained sculptor, Laurel has twice served as the director of the board for the La Scuola Classical Sculpture School. A love for figurative expression and for the freedom she finds in impressionistic interpretation inspire her creations.

Laurel’s exceptional ability to work with bronze has been honed in a variety of ways throughout her life. She earned a degree in Industrial Arts from Humboldt State University in Northern California, after which she took on a variety of jobs, including master electrician, building official, and finally sculptor.

Pause for Reflection - Laurel Peterson Gregory

Her uncommon ability to observe and capture motion in clean lines is the hallmark of her work. Her process always begins with careful observation of motion. After hundreds of sketches, she has honed in on a particular position that articulates the essence a movement. The animal she chooses to represent the movement is also carefully selected for its lines and ability to convey an emotion.

Laurel is also intimately involved in achieving the rich patinas her work is known for. She carefully applies multiple layers of chemicals and oxides to each piece. The range of effects she is able to pull from each piece is simply astounding.

Stop in at the gallery the next time you need to smile. Laurel’s pieces will never fail to bring levity to your day.

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Field Study- Cimarron Crossing - Bernard Marks

A born artist, Bernard Marks put his painting career on hold for much of his adult life as he pursued interests in the business world. He earned an MBA from the University of Chicago and started an advertising and marketing agency, where he worked for many years. But his love of painting never quite loosened its hold on him.

In the 1990s, he began handing off some of his duties at the company he had founded and started devoting more time to painting. By 2003, he had moved to Santa Fe permanently and transitioned to the life of a full-time artist.

“While I was primarily a figurative painter at one time, my work gained a new focus after I moved to the Southwest in 2003 and began spending more time doing plein-air painting,” he says. “I’m especially inspired by the long vistas one experiences in the West.”

Workshops and mentorships with artists such as Robert Wade, Arne Westerman, Eric Wiegardt, Frank LaLumia, Alvaro Castagnet and Albert Handell helped him hone his skills over the years. Today he divides his time between plein-air painting and studio work.

“I would describe my work as ‘idealized reality,’” he says. “At least that’s what I strive for. If you compared one of my paintings to the actual scene that inspired it, you would have no trouble making the connection. But I believe you would also recognize what I’ve brought to the scene, which is a product of my emotional reaction, past experiences and color sense.”

Bernard’s work can be found in the gallery throughout the summer. He is also excited to be one of four Waxlander artists participating in the Quick Draw at Passport to the Arts on Mother’s Day weekend. Andree Hudson, Barbara Ivey and Cheryl Koen will join him in the event, and each artist will be asked to produce an original work in just 30 minutes. The finished pieces will then be auctioned off as soon as the paint is dry. We hope to see you there!

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Hidden Gate - Phyllis Randall

An East-Coast Girl Finds a Home Away from Home

Sketched in bold relief, Phyllis Randall’s pastels distill the colors, shapes, and shadows of the Southwest, casting them across the canvas with a hint of whimsy.

A self-proclaimed East-Coast girl from Maryland, Phyllis first visited the Southwest in 1993 and promptly fell in love. When she returned to the East Coast after that fateful trip, she began experimenting with the bold colors and shapes she had experienced in New Mexico, working first in oils and then switching to the more vibrant medium of pastels.

“I was smitten on my first visit to Santa Fe,” she says. “The light and shadow captured my heart, and the organic adobe architecture fired my imagination.”

A graphic designer by trade, Phyllis soon found herself devoting more and more time to painting, unable to get the shapes and colors of the Southwest out of her head.

“My years of working in advertising and graphic design shaped my geometric style, and the exploration of this mysterious architectural form illuminated by the sun set my imagination free,” she says.

Looking-Up - Phyllis Randall

New Directions

We welcomed Phyllis into the Waxlander family in December of last year. She was a part of our hugely successful online art auction early this year, and she will join artists Marshall Noice and Sangita Phadke in our first ever group pastel show, entitled Not Your Mother’s Pastels, in early June.

While her past pieces have tended toward exploring the lean architectural lines and vibrant colors of the Southwest, her latest body of work, Pastel, Pigment and Passion, is a study of nature.

“From potted plants to wildflowers and overgrown weeds, my work is sprouting a new floral element and texture,” she says. She has also added to the work’s sense of the whimsical with the likeness of her cat, Velcro, who pops up in unexpected places throughout the pieces.

Sneak Peek - Phyllis Randall

Light Savers

Recent travels to the Mediterranean have inspired a new perspective on the use of light, which will be evident in her pieces in the pastel show.

“I studied how the different angles of the sun and the time of day influence the architecture—the diffused sun in Tuscany as opposed to the severity of the sun in Santorini,” she says. “The similarities and differences have sharpened my eye to the play of sunlight in Santa Fe.”

Randall describes her style as Cubism-inspired art meets architecture and her biggest influence as Georgia O’Keeffe. “It is her use of simple shapes and color that I relate to,” she says. “I’ve always felt that I saw things through similar eyes, that my mind breaks subjects down to their least complex and most basic forms, shapes, planes and colors, as depicted in most of O’Keefe’s works. Even her earliest paintings of New York City through her window have that basic quality of light and shadow, geometry and depth that I so admire.”

More than 20 years after first visiting New Mexico, Phyllis has not lost the sense of wonder that overcame her on that first trip. As the years have passed, her work has evolved and she has grown as an artist, but her love for the Southwest is still evident in every piece.

Best in Show

Not Your Mother’s Pastels will feature new work by Phyllis Randall, Marshall Noice and Sangita Phadke. The show will run from June 5-18, with an Artists’ Reception on Friday, June 8th from 5 to 7 p.m.

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Angels of Tranquility - Richard Pankratz

Born with the soul of an artist, Richard Pankratz took a winding path to the life of a full-time artist. After graduating art school, he found, as all young artists do, that he needed to make money. When he accepted a job teaching high school art he didn’t think it would mean giving up his craft. But eleven years later he found himself still in the classroom and longing for the time to devote to his creative pursuits.

With the rise of the crafts movement in the 1970s, he saw an opportunity to return to his first love — art. Formally trained in painting, printmaking, and jewelry design, he took up the medium of clay and began experimenting with pottery and ceramics.

Now thirty years later, Richard has fulfilled his dream of being a working artist, and his work has expanded and grown through the years. He now works in wood and metal as well as pottery and ceramics, though he admits that clay is the medium he is most drawn to.

“In all the years I’ve been working as an artist, I have always been most enamored by the magic of clay—drawn to it as though it is part of my being,” he says. “If I push on clay it will conform to the pressure of my hand and record the imprint of my will. When subjected to fire, it becomes permanent and will survive long after I am gone.”

While he may love the malleable nature of clay, he also excelled in the metals. His series of bronze angels reveal his love for working in the metals and his expert ability to manipulate the medium.

Stop by our sculpture garden to see Richard’s angels in person. Surrounded by the natural beauty of the gardens, they come alive, revealing the unique depth of vision he infuses into each of his creations.

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Marshall Noice - Warm Fall Afternoon

Marshall Noice prepares for two shows at Waxlander this summer

Whether he is capturing a scene through the medium of oil paints or pastels, Marhsall Noice strives to evoke the essence of a landscape more than its realistic details. Sunlight filtering through a stand of aspen trees, the full moon rising over a cliff, autumn leaves rustling in the breeze—each scene is an impression of a place, brought to life through his brush.

“My paintings are made in response to things I see in the natural world,” he says. “They capture a place at a particular time. And they capture a moment in my sensibility. My overriding goal as a painter is to create a work, an artifact if you will, that resonates with the spirit of the landscape that inspired me to begin painting.”

A Busy Season

Marshall’s work will be showcased twice in the upcoming summer season at the gallery. His pastels will be a part of the first ever Waxlander group pastel show and will appear alongside other accomplished artists who work in the medium, including Sangita Phadke and Phyllis Randall.

“Many of my pastels are done outdoors as field sketches,” he says. “That’s how I generate material for my paintings. However, this show will be exclusively work that was done in the studio.” The group exhibit will run from June 5-18, with an opening reception held Friday, June 8 from 5-7 p.m.

Marshall Noice - Old Moonrise

We are also excited to announce “New Horizons,” a one-man show that will celebrate Marshall’s oil paintings and pastels. With such a diverse and extensive body of work, Marshall was the perfect pick for a solo show during our busy summer season.

The show will offer classic Marshall Noice pieces, as well as newer work that shows him pushing his boundaries and reveling in the joy his art brings him.

“I’m doing some larger pastels than I’ve ever done before,” he says. “And I’m working in triptych, which I’ve never done, and I’m having fun with that. I’m hopeful that I’ll have a handful of pastels that are done on canvas rather than paper. It is a new way of approaching pastels for me.”

The New Horizons show will run from June 26 to July 9th, and we invite everyone to join us in the gallery on Friday, June 29 for an artist reception from 5-7 p.m.

Marshall Noice - Sidehill Red Ridge

The Joy of the Work

Marshall’s vibrant work stirs emotion in its viewers. It’s as though he has captured a landscape’s very soul in color and invited you to share in it.

“My work’s greatest pleasure comes when I’m in the thick of the battle to let a painting emerge,” he says.

We hope you will join us at the gallery for his shows and experience the beauty of his paintings!

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Your “passport” earns you entrance to the day’s events, including silent auctions, performances by local student musicians, a quick draw, and an outdoor evening concert, not to mention all the great galleries, boutiques, and restaurants lining the half-mile stretch of famous Canyon Road.

Andree Hudson in the Quick Draw

We are proud to announce that Waxlander artist, Andree Hudson, will be one of the participants in this year’s quick draw. Andree and her fellow artists will be asked to create original works of art in just 9o minutes. The finished pieces will be auctioned off after the contest. It’s the perfect chance to get inside the mind of your favorite artist and to bid on an original piece.

Andree’s bold paintings bring the American West to life, and she is currently preparing for a one-woman show at the gallery in July.

“I get excited about painting in front of people”

We can’t wait to see what she comes up with for the quick draw, but she hasn’t thought too much about what it will be; she prefers to see what her muse brings her on that day. She can’t wait for the event.

“I get excited about painting in front of people,” she says. “I love it!”

We love it too, and we hope to see you out on Canyon Road on May 12!

If purchasing a piece off the blog, mention that you found the piece on the blog and get a special discount!

Going Places - Andree Hudson

Andrée Hudson’s vivid oil paintings bring scenes from the American West to life, capturing intimate moments through dramatic brush strokes and a striking use of color. It’s as though her subjects — a cowgirl resting on a stoop, a herd of bulls in the evening light, wild horses running through the brush — live and breath among us.

Andrée attended Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore to hone her skills, earning an BFA in illustration and visual communication, but she has been drawing and creating works of art since she was a young child.

“I started drawing as soon as I could pick up a pencil,” she says, “and I started oil painting when I was 11.” Her first commission for a painting came when she was still in high school, and she has not put her brush down since.

During her college years and shortly after her talent for capturing the fine details of human musculature and the skeletal form led to a career in medical illustration and drawing, and her work has been published in several publications. But her true passion has always been in capturing the essence of her subjects through the brush, and it wasn’t long before she returned to painting.

Andrée’s pieces have been hanging at Waxlander for four years now, and she has done four solo shows here. Her work brings levity and light to the gallery, and our customers always remark on her unique ability to capture a moment in paint.

She is currently hard at work on pieces for her one-woman show at Waxlander this summer. Mark your calendar now and come by the gallery July 17 – July 30 to see her newest works of art.

Andrée will also be representing Waxlander during the quick draw at this year’s Passport to the Arts, which will be held Saturday, May 12 on Canyon Road. One part of a day of events designed to raise money for music programs in the Santa Fe public schools, the quick draw challenges local artists to create an original work in just 90 minutes. Her finished piece will be auctioned off as soon as the paint is dry. It’s the perfect opportunity to pick up an original Andrée Hudson piece with a unique story behind it!

Far from being nervous about the event, Andrée can’t wait to harness the crowd’s energy to create something new and compelling.

“I get excited about painting in front of people,” she says. “I love it! But I don’t want to think about what to paint until the time comes. This keeps my painting fresh and exciting.”

We can’t wait to see what her brilliant imagination brings to life this time!

If purchasing a piece off the blog, mention that

you found the piece on the blog and get a special discount!