TheDesignFile

Great art available for $100 this Friday

If you’re like me, you love original art but can’t always afford to buy it.

For those of you in Central Indiana, I’ve got a great solution.

The Indiana Downtown Artists and Dealers Association will have its First in Line exhibition and sale on Dec. 7 at the Stutz Art Space.

All works will be priced at $100 and sold on a first-come, first-served basis.

IDADA members can attend a reception from 5-6 p.m. to preview the work and the general public can join in the fun at 6 p.m.

That’s when the art sale begins.

These are the kinds of events I love – and I really hope that I can make it

And, I’m recommending it to friends who have been looking for original art.

That means there will be competition – so get there early.

You just can’t beat $100, whether it’s for a large canvas or a smaller piece.

So go on Friday night and see what you can find. And try buying a gift or two while you’re there!

Stutz event promises art for all who attend

This has got be one of the coolest art events I can remember: Walk Away with Art, which takes place this Friday night at the Stutz Art Space.

The event is open to just 50 guests and will feature 50 works of art. Everyone walks away with art.

Guests at the event will draw numbers to determine who picks the art pieces in what order. I love it!

Tickets are $100 per person or $150 per couple. Click here to buy tickets.

The event takes place at 7 p.m. Friday and features work from some of my favorite artists, including a fantastic photographer named Andy Chen, whose piece Snowy Grass is shown at right.

Other participating artists include Lydia Burris, Shawn Causey, Joseph Crone, Kate Oberreich, Ginny Taylor Rosner and Emily Schwank.

Stutz Artists Open House is this Friday, Saturday

Central Indiana is blessed to have a number of truly fantastic art fairs and other events.

The monthly Indianapolis Downtown Artists and Dealers Association’s First Friday tours, similar events in Zionsville and Carmel, annual art fairs like those in Broad Ripple and Herron-Morton, and Masterpiece in a Day in Fountain Square are just a few of the area’s great opportunities to celebrate local art.

But my favorite by far is the Stutz Artists Open House, which takes place this Friday and Saturday.

There’s just something about this big, two-day event in a former auto factory that gets me excited about art every spring. (See the painting Beach Trio at right by artist Carol Myers.)

I think it’s that the Stutz open house brings you right into the artists work spaces. But it’s also that the Stutz building is full of such a diverse group of artists that you spend the evening becoming fascinated over and over by different styles and kinds of art.

But then maybe it’s all the wine and shortbread cookies you can consume going from studio to studio. Below, is a look at Susan Mauck’s studio during a previous open house.

Regardless, I love it. And if you haven’t been, you should check it out.

WHAT: Raymond James Stutz Artists Open House

WHEN: Friday, April 27, 5:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 28, 2 p.m. to 7 p.m.

WHERE: Stutz Business Center, 212 W. 10th St., Indianapolis

COST: $10 advance tickets at Old National Bank centers.
$12 tickets at the gate.
Kids 12 and younger are free on Saturday only

INFO: www.stutzartists.com
317-503-6420

 

At right, Shadow of Grace by Colleen Murphy.

Indiana Partisan Marketplace coming soon

I was excited to see that the Indiana Artisan Marketplace is back for its second annual show.

The event – scheduled for March 31 – April 1 – will showcase more than 125 artisans from Indiana plus 75 more from Kentucky.

My husband and I went to this event last year and it was just great. There was so much to see that I actually covered here in two posts.

Among my favorite pieces were these ceramic buildings and figures from ZMED Ceramics and artist Zach Medler.

The Indiana Artisan Marketplace gives you a chance to not only see some amazing art and taste great food but to purchase both. The artists are also on hand so you can ask questions and learn more about the work. The booth below featured work by Peggy Taylor.

The Marketplace is modeled after the successful Kentucky Crafted: The Market, which is in its 30^th year and attracts approximately 8,000 visitors and 600 wholesale buyers to its annual event, which will move this year from Lexington to Louisville.

Indiana Artisans include painters, woodworkers, winemakers, jewelry designers, weavers, makers of specialty cheeses and more. You can see jewelry at right from Amy Greely, who will be participating this year.

Program manager Eric Freeman says, "An Indiana Artisan is a Hoosier recognized for careful attention to detail, knowledge of a craft and an entrepreneurial spirit.  His or her talent contributes to Indiana's reputation for quality work."

WHAT:       Indiana Artisan Marketplace

WHEN:      Saturday, March 31, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
                 Sunday, April 1, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

WHERE:    Indiana State Fairgrounds, Expo Hall, Indianapolis

COST:       $10 admission (free for children 7 and under)

INFO:        www.IndianaArtisan.com

First Friday tour is this weekend + a reward offer

It’s been awhile since I’ve written about a First Friday Art Tour but there’s a great one coming up this weekend.

At the Stutz Art Space, an exhibit will explore the lines between commercial and fine art.

“Marketing messages engage us using art,” the organizers say. “Artists in turn use marketing tactics as they create. What distinguishes art from marketing?”

The participating artists will explore that question.

They are Jim Barnett, Chris Bucher, Leigh Dunnington-Jones, Wendy Franklin, Jennifer Maher, Wilbur Montgomery, Polina Osherov, Emily Schwank, Holly Sommers, Ed Stewart, Cara Jean Wahlers and Jack Wickes.

At right is one of Emily Schwank’s pieces. It’s called “Before they left.”

The opening night of the exhibit is from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Friday, March 2.

The exhibition will last through the month with the gallery open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Enter from 10th Street via Bearcat Alley.

At the Harrison Center…

Fans of the show, Portlandia will recognize the title of this show from the skit of the same name that pokes fun at hipster-crafters who will seemingly put a bird on just about anything.

On March 2, with the help of more than 75 artists, the Harrison Center will indeed be "putting a bird on it" as four of our exhibit spaces combine to form a giant art aviary.  Participating artists include Ryan Abegglen, Teri Barnett, Justin Cooper, Geoff Davis of 50 Little Birds, Kyle Herrington, Tasha Lewis, Kate Oberreich, Carolyn Springer and many more.

Also that night, in the City Gallery will be new work by Erin Drew and 23 HCA artists will have open studios.

The art hangs through March 31.

Meanwhile…

Buy Hoosier handmade for the holidays

Rather than fighting the crowds at the mall on Black Friday, consider instead buying some Christmas gifts from a locally-owned shop or the DIYers and crafters in your community.

Those of you who live in and around Indianapolis have a perfect opportunity.

The Hoosier Artisan Boutique is this Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Hamilton County Fairgrounds.

The fair will feature 50 Indiana artists selling handmade goods that will make fabulous Christmas gifts.

There will be art, textiles, children’s clothing, jewelry and more.

I went to a similar event a few years ago and it was so fantastic. I think I’m just going to make it to this weekend’s Hoosier Artisan Boutique.

We have a Thanksgiving event on Saturday but I’m confident I’ll make it just time to buy up all the good stuff others have foolishly passed up!

You can get a preview of the artists at Hoosier Artisan Boutique, but here are some examples. The pieces below come from Susan Ball of New Castle:

I love those Ball jar soap dispensers. They are so cool.

Below are pieces from Beverly Skinner of Battleground, Ind., who makes amazing glass art.

There are so many more fantastic artists and gift options. Make sure to check it out!

Northern Indiana gallery is worth a visit

Regular readers may remember that my husband’s family has a cottage in Northern Indiana on Lake Webster.

We visit there several times each year and, of course, shopping often is a big part of the weekend.

Recently, I’ve discovered a few new shops and I’m going to share them with you this week.

Today, I’ve got photos from the fun Creative Fish Art Gallery in Syracuse, which is about eight miles north of Lake Webster.

This cute little shop is tucked away off the highway that runs through town and along Lake Wawasee, which is Indiana’s largest natural lake and the crown jewel in an area that is filled with lakes and cottages big and small.

Creative Fish Art Gallery is packed with interesting and beautiful pieces for you to display, wear and use every day. There are paintings, clocks, glassware and jewelry.

All are made by artists from across Indiana and the rest of the country.

“The mission of Creative Fish Art Gallery is to be a leader in presentation and promotion of unique selections of artwork by emerging and established artists,” the shop’s mission statement says. “A place that builds a sense of community and encourages the idea of the arts as an integral part of a healthy community.”

Unexpected encounters with vintage suitcases

Do you remember my post last week – Vintage suitcases as decor: In or out?

I thought of it yesterday when I was walking down Canal Street in New Orleans during a trip to the city for a fantastic journalism conference.

I passed Rubensteins, a high-end, locally owned men’s store, and saw a beautiful window decorated primarily with – you guessed it – vintage suitcases.

I knew instantly I wanted to share some photos with you.

The display was so well done. The suitcases were attached to the walls, almost like shelves. They were stacked on the floor. They were hung from the ceiling. So fun.

And there were some well-dressed mannequins hanging out among the suitcases.

It was very striking.

I wasn’t carrying my camera at the time. (I was actually out trolling for Diet Mountain Dew, which seemed to be strangely unavailable in New Orleans.)

But I did have my iPhone.

So with people staring at me, I shot a bunch of pictures of the window.

Naturally, it was a terrible time of day to do it.

From one angle, the sun was glaring off the windows.

From another, I was getting so much reflection from the shops across the street. (Can you see the trolley reflected in the top photo and the palm tree in the photo at right?)

Still, I wanted to share the fun with you.

These mannequins are looking pretty darn handsome. And I love these suitcases and trunks. It’s making me rethink my doubt about whether they’re still in style.

Tiny art is often out of scale with the room

Yesterday I shared my obsession with keeping artwork within the imaginary bounds of the furniture below it. I admit in that post to being a little nuts.

But today I’m going to share one of my real design irritants – art that is way undersized for the space. And I don’t think I’m nuts here.

Check out the bedroom at right from Better Homes and Gardens.

The series of three little frames above the headboard is ridiculous. It’s so puny compared with that fairly substantial headboard.

Scale is so important – I think – when it comes to art and design. And the room at right just doesn’t do it well.

Neither does the room below, which I found at MyHomeIdeas.com and was featured in Southern Accents. I’m so distracted by the way those tiny pieces of art are spread across that huge wall. Your eye has no idea what to look at.

The same is true below in a photo from Cottage Living, which I found at MyHomeIdeas.com. The space behind that sofa is perfect for a nice sized painting or even a collage of art.

Instead, there’s a little painting with a pair of sconces and some small sculptures. None of them make an impact.

It’s hard for me to believe the folks in the room above just couldn’t afford to buy some nice-sized art! But maybe they just like it that way.

I’ve got one final photo for you.

The room at right is from Real Simple and I found it at MyHomeIdeas.com.

What’s up with those tiny matted photographs? They are just swallowed up by the big wall.

Terrible! The pieces are too tiny to relate to that tall desk and hung too high to relate to the chair. It’s all wrong.

 

 

Do you have art that’s too small for your space?

If so, will you change it?

Furniture dictates art placement – right?

What do you think of wall art that extends beyond the furniture below it?

I’ve always thought of furniture as a base for art. I rarely let art extend beyond the boundaries set by the edges of a desk or headboard.

Even most art collages I’ve created tend to stay within some imaginary lines I’ve drawn – sometimes arbitrarily, sometimes dictated by what’s beneath.

Am I nuts?

I’m starting to think so. I feel like I’ve seen lots of examples of art that is larger – or taken as a whole is larger – than the furniture it relates to.

In the photo at right – from Better Homes and Gardens – several framed waterfowl prints create a fairly large art wall, one that extends beyond the small dresser.

It makes some sense to the right, where the furniture vignette is expanded by the chair. But it appears there’s no furniture to the left.

In the photo below, also from BHG, there are two examples. At right, a grid of six frames extends well beyond the tiny table below it. To the left, a large print hangs above a small chair.

The print above the chair above doesn’t actually bother me. It seems to fit the space and the chair seems less important than the print.

But I’m bothered aesthetically by that small table. Is there something wrong with me?

Take the BHG bedroom above. I don’t understand why that wooden art wouldn’t be hung just a little closer to the center of the wall so that the edges don’t extend beyond the edges of the headboard. (Actually, I’m not sure why you’d hang those at all, but, well, whatever.)

And how about that huge piece at right (from BHG, again) over that tiny settee.

No way. I know the art – a piece of desk top glass from IKEA – fits the wall well but it just overpowers the furniture!

 

So what do you think?

Am I just obsessive or do you have some invisible furniture guidelines too?