Asta de Toro Azul

19x12" Framed Soda Lime Glass with Copper, Silver and Gold Foil

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San Antonio Visual Artists 

invite you

Thursday, October 13

6:30 - 8:30pm

to an opening reception

at The Foundry

2720 McCullough

San Antonio, TX 78212

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In 2010, I created a series of glass pieces I referred to as  Asta de Toro Azul (the horn of the blue bull). The framed piece above became my "journal page" reminding me of the inspiration and execution of that series. It will be on display through December 9th at the Foundry as part of a SAVA exhibit.

Closer Look at the Bee and Butterfly

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Take a closer look at two of the pieces in this month's exhibit at the SAVA Gallery.

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A visit from these pollinators is a blessing to any park or garden. You can attract butterflies and bees to your garden by adding native plants with colorful blooms. Here are just a few suggestions:

• Lavender's lovely scent attracts butterflies
• Purple Coneflower/Echinacea Purpurea attracts butterflies growing  easily with little care
• Lemon Balm, Thyme and Borage all attract bees

 For more information on planting a butterfly and bee friendly garden check out this article by Ben Groves over at Suite101.com .
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SAVA Gallery Opening Tonight

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Wednesday, July 13th at 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM

SAVA Gallery at Rivercenter Mall

849 East Commerce

San Antonio, TX

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The SAVA Gallery will be presenting work from local visual artists with summer in mind. "Let's Go Parking" is the theme of this month's show. The exhibit will be on display for the month of July. A nice cool refreshing break if you're walking the streets of downtown San Antonio this summer.

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Understanding Ana

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 Understanding Ana

12 x 9.5 cm framed, soda lime glass and enamel

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Understanding Ana is comprised of two pieces of glass each 8.5cm x 6cm x 3mm in size. Each piece of glass a separate idea inspired by two very different memories of my mother.  These are not new ideas. They are concepts I have already been using in other pieces but they come together here in a new way for me. 

For example, the background piece of glass includes a floral pattern symbolic of both my mothers passion for gardening and her fine filigree crochet work. This is representative of my mother's creative side. I began using imagery inspired by my mothers crochet when asked to do a piece for the SAVA Gallery show the Art of Family which opened in May of 2009.  Since then these images have continued to show up in pieces like My Mother's Garden and some clear glass functional work. In Understanding Ana this imagery is hidden behind a layer of clear glass. The texture of the granular imagery visible but not accessible to the touch.
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The foreground layer of clear glass contains a random segment of text taken from a piece of prose I wrote after driving to work on a cold winter morning. The text was carved from the glass using sandblasting techniques and back-filled with black enamel before firing. It was written after a moment of epiphany. For the first time I felt I really understood a certain aspect of my mother, her sadness. For that moment I could truly empathize. On the glass the words are run together, no capitalization, no punctuation, no intention that they be fully read or understood. So for your benefit the original text is below.

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Empathy

This morning I slipped on my coat and I put on my mother’s gloves

I walked out into the crisp cool morning keys in hand

I drove watching my hands on the wheel detached as I once watched her’s

Turning the corner, adjusting the mirror, both hands on the wheel

I realized I had grown like her, through age and maturity

The things that as a youth I had despised with an ignorant disregard

I now understood having been exposed to life’s harsh reality

Her loneliness, the depression she battled, the sadness behind her eyes

I rubbed my hands along my face, to feel her touch in my own movements

The notes of Elgar’s cello in my mind’s ear repeating in endless loops

The hands inside her gloves were mine

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The completed piece brings together the pretty picture in the background with the cold mechanical type scaring the surface much like reality. Together I hope they make something beautiful here just as these conditions can in us. Because of its' small size in order for it to be displayed as part of the San Antonio Calligraphy Guild's (SACG) Spring Show, I framed the completed framed piece.

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You can see this along with the works of other members of the SACG on display at Crumpets Restaurant. The opening reception is today from 4:00 to 6:00 Pm and the work will be on display through May 3rd of 2010.

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Invitation Calligraphy and Design by Joanne Pacelli

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Gever's St.Studio Makes Local News

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Sitting in the shade among the completed and in progress work of sculptors, mosaic artist and painters at the Gevers Street Studio was the perfect venue for a San Antonio Visual Artists (SAVA) brainstorming session. And no better day to be at 718 South Gevers Street as they just received a fabulous write up on the front page of the Express News S.A. Life and Culturas section. It was intersting to sit amough both historic work of Betty Jean Alden and the contemporary work of local artists like Jeremiah Heye. Congratulations to the all the studio and associate artists at the Gevers Street Studio, including Christian Deworde Withers.

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The Art of Family

The opening for the current show at the SAVA gallery, at Rivercenter Mall, is tonight from 6-8pm.The theme of this exhibit is the “Art of Family” in honor of Mother's day. The show includes some really inspired and unique pieces representing various generations of family members. I was particularly surprised and honored when SAVA's President Shirlene dedicated the show my mother, Ana Vachier, who is participating with me posthumously.
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Family Tree, 2009

16 1/2 x 23 1/2" framed

torch-worked and kiln-formed soda lime glass

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The design element which is the foundation for this piece was created by my mother originally as a piece of filigree crochet. Although not visible in the photograph, behind the glass in the top of the piece are exerts from devotional journals in her own hand.

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SAVA Gallery - Flavors of Feista

The SAVA Gallery's current show Flavors of Fiesta received a little close up camera TV time April 1st, thanks to Great Day SA's Bridget Smith. San Antonio Visual Artists (SAVA) president Shirlene Harris was able to promoted the shows opening, the gallery and SAVA's long term goals. You can see this KENS5 segment of Great Day SA on their website. Flavors of Fiesta is scheduled to run at the SAVA Gallery through May 2.

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10 x 10 fused glass and enamel tile

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Illuminati

“Don’t tell me the moon is shining;

show me the glint of light on broken glass.”
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Anton Chekhov

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The two peices below were accepted into the SAVA Gallery show Illuminati, currated by Laurel Gibson to work in conjuction with the San Antonio Citywide festivities for Luminaria. The show opening will be the evening of Tuesday, March 3rd and it will run throughout the month of March.

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Above Left: Inspired by Chekhov's qoute above this is a 12 3/4" in diameter Kilncarved refleif. You can learn more about what promted me to make this peice from this previous entry.
Above Right: 6" Kilnformed footed bowl made with iridized glass
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SAVA Gallery Opening - Urban Rodeo

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Each year in February, San Antonio welcomes the Stock Show & Rodeo and all it's events. The SAVA Gallery turns its' attention to this tradition with the exhibit Urban Rodeo. The opening reception is scheduled for Thursday, February 5th from 5:30-8:00 PM. The show will continue on display for the remainder of the month. The SAVA Gallery is now open Monday-Friday from 1:00 - 7:00 PM and Sunday 10:00 AM -2:00 PM.

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Asta de Toro Azul

A three piece set of kilnformed and coldworked plates

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SAVA Gallery Opening

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The San Antonio Visual Artists (SAVA) Gallery opening for the exhibition "Fresh Start" will be January 8th from 5:30-8:00 pm at the SAVA Fine Art Gallery in Rivercenter Mall. Word is the show is stunning. I can believe it since when dropping off my pieces I ran into a handful of repeat SAVA Gallery artists, old friends and and the work of fellow San Antonio Calligraphers Guild (SACG) members. I can't wait to see how the show looks hung this Thursday. What an exciting way for SAVA to start off the year 2009. Hope to see you there.

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Left - 3, 5 x 7" Kilnformed Glass from inFormal Canon Series and matching vessel Right - 28 ½ x 36 cm Kilnformed Glass from inFormal Canon Series

Red - SAVA show opening

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Red the San Antonio Visual Artists (SAVA) gallery's new show opens Thursday, December 4th from 6:00-8:00 p.m. The exhibit includes three of my pieces, the two functional pieces below and one 8x10" framed work. The show is scheduled to run from December through February of 2009. The SAVA Gallery hours are from 1:00-7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. The gallery is located inside Rivercenter mall at 849 E. Commerce Street in San Antonio, Texas. It is easily accessed from the Commerce Street level entrance.

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Above - 6x6" kiln formed and cold worked glass sushi

Below - 6" cast glass bowl

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Admiration - Coming to a Close

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Admiration, the San Antonio Visual Artists (SAVA) show honoring former Mayor Lila Cockrell is coming to a close November 21th. The SAVA Gallery, located on the street level of Rivercenter Mall in downtown San Antonio, is open Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. The show is worth seeing in person, but if you can't make it down you can see photos of the work online.

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SAVA 1st Juried Show - Admiration

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I am very excited to have been selected to participate in the San Antonio Visual Artists (SAVA) first Annual Juried Show Admiration. The show is being held in honor of Former San Antonio Mayor and avid art supporter Lila Cockrell. She was on hand October 18th at the private opening of the show at the Spanish Governor's Palace to hand out awards. Seeing my work along with those of painters, sculptures and mixed media artists on display in the courtyard of this historic site was quite the experience. The Public Artists' Reception is to be held on Friday, October 24th from 5-8:00 PM at the SAVA Exhibition Gallery at Rivercenter Mall. The show will continue on exhibit at the SAVA Gallery through November 21, 2008.

Two of my pieces were selected for this show. The first is a 12x12" relief which is displayed upright in a rod iron stand. Below are photos of the glass itself. On the left the full piece as it sits on a 12x12" clear glass. On the right side a close up of the center showing the detail where the linear stripes of color meet an abrupt change with a rise of texture.

The other is one of my favorite pieces, Glacier Bay .

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What I've Been Up To...

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Having taken a few days to recuperate and reassess after several weeks of local art and craft fairs, I thought you my be interested in a brief update on my recent activities. I would like to start by thanking those of you who made recent purchases. The proceeds of these sales go directly to new supplies, tools and to pay for workshops with national instructors. If you have purchased my work over several years you will see the quality and complexity of my work has increased. I could not have done this without your support. Thank you.

While selling work in Market Square and at the Encino Park Craft Fair, I had the opportunity to meet fellow members of the San Antonio Visual Artists (SAVA) group. This fast growing group of artists has expanded so much in the past year. I am excited to see the number of glass artist joining has justified our own section in the groups directors of artists. SAVA is holding its' first annual juried art show Admiration, for which I am excited to say I have been excepted. And it seems to have become common for me to bump into SAVA members at events around San Antonio. For example, this past weekend I meet Christian Deworde and Tony Garcia selling their work at the Encino Park Craft Fair. As we struck up a conversation Tony and I realized we were both excepted into SAVA's Admiration exhibit scheduled to open to the public on October 24th. I was very excited to have been excepted into this inaugural show and equally excited to meet another participating artists.

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Christian Deworde - Oil on Wood 16x24"

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One of Christian Deworde's pieces came home with me from the Encino Park Craft Fair. Christian painted many of his pieces on wood adding an additional depth/texture to his work as he worked oil paints into the grain. He was the second artist I spoke to this weekend who referred to dreams or visions as material for his work. I find it intriguing how different artists find inspiration. Using one's dreams is so very different from the way I work. Thank you Christian for sharing you inspiration as well as your work.

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New SAVA Fine Art Gallery

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San Antonio Visual Artists (SAVA) recently opened a Fine Art Gallery in Rivercenter Mall just off Commerce Street in downtown San Antonio. This is an exciting step for this fast growing group. The gallery is displaying the juried work of it's members. In addition it is sponsoring events like FotoSeptiembre with special exhibits throughout the month. I'm proud to say that at the moment the gallery includes the works of several San Antonio Glass Art Guild (SAGAG) Members including Denise with Little Song Art and myself. The work displayed in this space will be changing regularly and is certainly worth a periodic look.

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Sunday Morning Art Attack

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Sunday morning a small band of San Antonio Visual Artists (SAVA) took to the streets of downtown armed with paints, brushes and a trolley pass. Stopping briefly (for no more the 5-7 minutes) in front of the Alamo, along the Riverwalk, Market Square and Commerce Street we painted canvases, Plexiglass and yes even ourselves. The focus of this guerrilla art activity was the action. We came out of nowhere, created in a frenzy of flying paint (sometimes literally) and then were off. Artists were painting other artists while being painted themselves. I’m not sure if we attracted more attention with our actions or our appearance, but in the end a good time was had by all.

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walking through downtown San Antonio, with wet paint on our backs

San Antonio Visual Artists

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I am excited about what I have learned about SAVA and thought other San Antonio Artists might be interested has well. I was only recently introduced to them in the San Antonio Calligraphy Guild (SACG) newsletter. In visiting the website I quickly recognized artists from SACG as well as the San Antonio Glass Arts Guild (SAGAG). SAVA is a nonprofit (501)c3 orginization developed to enrich the cultural life of San Antonio by spotlighting San Antonio artists and their works.

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Arstists living, working or showing in the Bexar County area are invited to participate fee free. I simply completed the online form and was added quite quickly as a member on their website. And what a lovely website it is. Check it out... you might find it interesting whether you are a San Antonio artist or not.

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