by
Elizabeth Monks Hack
The sun is warm, the air is cool, flowers bloom in profusion, and once again it is June! Summer has us looking forward to long days of pleasant diversions. Why not fill some of them with a little local color? The Cypress Gallery, owned and operated by members of the Lompoc Valley Art Association, offers fine art and gifts for your viewing pleasure every month of the year. The work of a featured artist is frequently presented in the front gallery, allowing for an in-depth exploration of technique and aesthetic concerns. Enter the gallery this month and you will find a shimmering world of paintings on glass.
Kristine Kelly’s show entitled “The Magic of My World” brings us into a experience of light and color, captured in the medium of glass. Her predominant subject is landscape, created by the process of glass fusion. Pieces of colored glass are layered in a tray called a “dam,” then heated in a 1500 degree glass kiln. That describes the raw technique. The magical transformation that appears once the artwork has cooled, is the artist’s secret.
In viewing Kelly’s work, the eye meets beautiful flecks and sparkles, luminescent layers, and ethereal strokes of color. She is truly painting with glass, contrasting textures and shape to create lively compositions. Kelly’s control of the medium is superb.
In “Orca Borealis,” thick-bodied orcas cavort against a background of a gleaming aurora borealis. “Oriental Spring” is a lively contrast between 3-D cherry trees blooming in front of a mountain range that resembles a silk ink painting. “Winter Solstice” has the aspect of a watercolor painting, while “Fall Hike” is dappled with thick pieces of multi-colored glass, resembling Impressionist daubs of paint. As an artist who has twenty-five years of experience in fused glass painting, Kelly is a master.
Winter Solstice by K.Kelly.
In the main galleries, our artists display artworks of experimentation and tradition. Joe Goetz’s muted abstract piece “Triptych of Stone and Spirit” reads as a landscape with a moon that is an actual gemstone. Michael Corob’s “Poster Flower” is a swirling mass of petals pushing against the picture plane. In Steve Scolari’s bold, line-based abstract painting “Barns,” a little barn hides in corner. Yours truly displays her sewn “patchwork paintings,” in which some elements are three-dimensional.
Two large landscapes by plein-air painter Neil Andersson delight the eye and rest the soul. Vicki Andersen’s “Jalama Pool” lets her brushstrokes tell the story of this exuberant scene. In Lee Hill’s “Gone Fishing” a little boy with a pole over his shoulder contemplates the lake before him. Each artist has a style that ultimately represents who they are.
Many more tantalizing works await the visitor. Bins of original artwork and prints and greeting cards are available at modest prices. We offer exquisite jewelery, journals and glassware, including marvelous little three-dimensional glass houses by Joellen Chrones. Why not stop by this month, enjoy the show, and perhaps select a work of art by a local artist to take home?
The Cypress Gallery is operated by the members of the Lompoc Valley Art Association. We are a 501c(3) non-profit organization, committed to expanding and supporting access and exposure to the arts in the Lompoc and Santa Ynez Valley. Located at 119 East Cypress Avenue, Lompoc. Open Thursday – Sunday 11:00 am to 4:00 pm. Phone: (805) 737-1129
CAPTIONS (All photos by gallery photographer Bill Morson)