by Elizabeth Monks Hack
Somehow, upon walking into the featured show at the Cypress Gallery this month, the states of matter that constitute our existence here on earth are magically called forth. In “Water and Wood,” artists Neil Andersson and Chuck Klein have conjured earth, water, air and fire – scientifically referred to as solid, liquid, gas and plasma – and transformed them into objects one hangs on a wall, or places on a table. The show is less like an exhibition, and more like a natural environment in which one yearns to linger.
Andersson and Klein are receptive artists, exceptionaly attuned to their surroundings and the workings of nature. Both men have spent a lifetime experiencing and assimilating ‘”the ebullience of the natural world,” and recreating it as art. They view art as a process and expression of creative self discovery. It’s an endeavor that begins with each new piece, and doesn’t end once the piece is finished. “Water and Wood” features new work from the artists, and is their first collaboration together.
Born in Tacoma, Washington, Neil Andersson hails from the wooded northwest. His love of the visual arts parallels an ongoing, successful music career as a renowned jazz guitarist. Following an MFA degree from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, he returned to Washington to teach art, exhibit, create music, and learn the ins-and-outs of the sometimes difficult activity of plein-air painting. The works on view here invite contemplation, as they glow and pulse with the immediacy of the natural world. Sky and water reflect the fire of our sun in “Equilibrium.” As a painter and pastel artist, Andersson continues to develop his impressionist painting techniques. In “Lakeside Harmony” water, air and earth reverberate in suspended tension.
Chuck Klein is a California native, born in Santa Barbara. He became an avid outdoors explorer, engaging in sporting activities and travel across the globe. His life as an artist follows a career consulting for national non-profits. Klein’s work has been profoundly influenced by cultural studies in Europe, South America, and especially Asia. Referring to his artistry, he is a Wood Weaver, and his pieces are living things.
Much of Klein’s work can be viewed as a vehicle of spirituality. Bowls, lidded vessels, sculptural objects and wall pieces are beautifully lathed, and adorned with sacred beads, feathers, carved ivory and stone. In the wall piece “Ganesha,” two heavy arcs of wood with a gap between them are joined by slender bands of inlaid wood. The Hindu deity Ganesha is mounted in the sculpture’s center. The bowl “Neuton Star” in deep reds and midnight green, seems to convey a sacred orb encapsulating a glimpse of the cosmos.
Our rear galleries feature several works that continue the nature theme, and as you wander through them, keep the notion of our world as “matter” in mind. Kathy Badrak, ever playful and experimental in her pieces, has brought forth “Reflecting Spirit,“ a mixed media piece featuring a silvery oak tree. Sometimes the artist’s strokes and marks of paint and pastel seem to illustrate the nervous system of nature. This is true of Deborah Breedon’s “Inlet at Refugio Beach” and Joe Goetz’s “Surf Beach Tree,” both done on location. All of our gallery artists are on the journey that never ends – the elemental journey of art and nature. Despite of the frustrations of the process, in the end it always brings joy.
Water and Wood” featuring plein-air painter Neil Andersson and Wood Weaver Chuck Klein. On view through April 21, 2023
PHOTO CAPTIONS
All photos by Bill Morson
Ganesha by Chuck Klein
Neutron Star by Chuck Klein
Equilibrium by Neil Andersson
Lakeside Harmony by Neil Andersson
Reflecting Spirit by Kathy Badrak
Inlet at Refugio Beach by Deborah Breedon