Greg and his friend Dustin Farnsworth, who is now at Arrowmont in Gatlinburg, TN, are participating this year with the Grow Faster entry -- something originally created for their senior project at Kendall College of Art and Design and previously highlighted on the Gypsy HERE.
It is basically a giant ViewMaster and when you look inside you'll find his drawings that relate to war. (When you are young, you play be carrying the flag with your friends; but war finds a soldier presenting the folded flag to the daughter of a dead soldier.) There are about 10 of these comparisons, and when you click the ViewMaster, another set appears.
The s entry is showing at a location called "The Spot" in downtown Grand Rapids. (For those from Michigan who are attending, it's on Pearl Street, between Ionia and Ottawa and right across from a parking ramp. (Hungry folk: Try the Ottawa Tavern, just down the street.) Greg did the drawings and Dustin built the ViewMaster.
The gallery hosted an opening preview for the artists exhibited there, and Rick and I, and our friends Paul and Bonnie Davis, eagerly anticipated an evening art and hors d'oeuvres. (That's Bonnie and Paul below.) Greg said, "Now, wear a suit and a dress." It was fun to get the dress code from the kid!
It was exciting for us to see Greg interact in a rather sophisticated venue, speaking with strangers as though he'd known them his whole life.
And it was also fun to see the other art displayed there. This panel covered a very long wall, a detailed pen-and-ink drawing. (I'm sorry I don't have the artist's names -- none of them had been posted yet.)
This one took a 26' truck to deliver! It depicts the great world disasters of the first six months of this year (Joplin, Tuscaloosa, Japan's earthquake and tsunami) and is in oil, taking the artist two months to create. Personally, I don't see the specific disasters there, just a bunch of troubled people, but then I'm a fairly literal interpreter. The techniques, though were lovely. (His first name was Nick.)
This was my favorite, by Rebecca Green.
Becca went to school with Greg and for my birthday he gave me one of her prints. I think she has potential to be very big as an illustrator. She's very Somerset in terms of her style, which of course I love very much.
This was another favorite. This beautiful Japanese woman just jumped off the canvas.
I also was in love with this pencil drawing of a Chinese temple.
This one appealed to my love affair with cutting out tiny things. Looks like a beautiful tree, right?
Take a closer look -- it's entirely made of words and type! That's too anal retentive even for me, but I loved seeing it!
The exploding floral bouquet in this oil was a little odd, with flowers bursting from the bouquet on fire. But it was captivating and the technique was marvelous.
I loved the colors of this one. You would need a very large house to display it, though! I'm thinking office lobby only!
This was intriguing, too -- wild animals chasing people, while birds swarm above. I wish I had a tight shot of the birds, as they were outstanding.
The show wasn't limited to two-dimensional art. These three teapots were well done and whimsical in sort of a twisted way. (They were accompanied by "brass" knuckles and the gun at the top of this post in the same style.)
This fellow, Cameron, made an amazing bench, for which he was to charge $25,000. It was stunning.
And I loved this sculpture by an artist from Madrid, NM.
But back to Greg. We were so proud to see how people were responding to Dustin's giant ViewMaster with Greg's intricate drawings inside.
So, three cheers for a great evening. Lots of smiles all the way around. Let the voting for ArtPrize begin!
(Now, there was another show at this Gallery, happening at the same time, with equally amazing art to wear! That's the next post!)NOW at Chopsticks and String: "We Might as Well Win" by Johann Bruyneel and Bill Strickland.
15 comments:
Thanks Jeanie for posting all these cool art pieces! I am going on Friday and will keep an eye out for Greg's awesome entry!
Keep up the good work!
Dusty
What a beautiful show! And how wonderful to see Greg's work featured in it -- that is a very very cool exhibit that he's displaying ... must be great to see him getting the recognition he deserves for it! Love the pictures...
Congratulations to your son! What a neat piece he has created--very clever. I liked the others you featured as well. Thanks so much for sharing.
word veri: messes--ha! some people make "messes" that become exquisite art; the rest of us just make clutter...
Congratulations to Greg! What a wonderful opportunity. His gigantic Viewmaster sounds intriguing. Of all the other things you showed I think my favorite is the very last one....the sculpture. It just speaks to me.
Love seeing this art show. Thanks so much for sharing. I really do like Becca's art too. Fun to peak into the View Master.
What a gorgeous son you have
and bravo for his passion
and creativity!
Loved the art you shared
....thanks for letting me walk
along and enjoy the show too:)
-Jennifer
Aw! You guys must be so proud! He looks so handsome in his suit - and what a creative piece of art. I like that it is interactive. Very cool.
Isn't it amazing not just to see your son's talent, but also his adultness, his social grace? Wow! Where does time go?
Fantastic ~ what a treat to have an intimate opening before the fantastic frenzy of Artprize. I'm looking forward to seeing the piece in person. And I'm looking forward to Artprize more now that you gave me a sneek peek! You lead such a rich life ~ thanks for taking the time to share the beauty ♥ Off to read a few more posts :)
I'm so excited to go. Especially now that we have a daughter in GR to stay with! We haven't been before. How fabulous for Greg! And cool timing for me, since my sister-in-law just sent our old Viewmasters from when we were kids to the cottage for the current generation of kids to play with.
These works you've highlighted are phenomenal. What a terrific thing for Michigan!
Three Cheers to Greg, and to Mom & Dad! Wow, what an amazing show/post. And I love that Viewfinder, went back to your previous post thru your link to read every single detail of it... what an ingenious idea and gorgeous drawings! All the other displayed here are wonderful too, yes esp. Rebecca's work. The other ones are fresh, like the tree in print. I like the intricate drawing of the Chinese temple... everything is amazing! And I must say your beautiful new blog design is just the right place to showcase all these marvellous art works. Thanks for this wonderful post, jeanie! (P.S. Love to see a pic of M & D in suit & dress too... amazing how our kids can grow up overnight.)
How cool are these? I'll have to share this post with a froend of mine whose an artist.
Thanks for the birthday wishes.
Leann
I am catching up with your posts (my usual phrase after we go on a trip and I can’t access the Internet.) I was amazed by the creativity of all the cards you showed – they are delightful. You certainly traveled during your summer – I also loved your sunset. The wedding was memorable and the art show spectacular. I just loved the tree made of newsprint. Quite a varied and interesting series of posts my dear.
The Viewmaster is really splendid. I grew up with one, and loved it. It's good to hear that it was well-received - they must be very proud of it.
As for the other creations, I was struck by the utter incongruity of the teapots - cozy domesticity meets crazed personality! And the word-tree is remarkable. My first impulse would be to try to read it!
Love the variety you've captured - and your pride in a very accomplished young man!
love seeing the shots from the exhibit! How wonderful for Greg that his work is being recognized! I know you all are so proud and rightly so!
Post a Comment