One of my favorite New Orleans artists is Sidonie Villere. I first met Sidonie when she came to my shop to purchase a mirror for the new home she was moving into when she was moving back to New Orleans a few years ago. At the time, I was not familiar with her art. Later, when I first saw her pieces in Jonathan Ferrara's gallery, I was moved by how much of her personality and her soul is expressed in her amazing artwork.

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Sidonie states that her work is "better understood by looking than by reading or describing." I think she's right on because her pieces, both sculpture and painting, and somewhere in between and encompassing both are best experienced in person.

Their emotion and intuition seeps into the viewer's soul, describing and implying  a feeling of the passage  from the dawn of time to the present. They seem to suggest the basics of human experience and at the same time, complex human emotions.

 

 

I love her use of hand shaped clay forms  to which she  applies paints, waxes and metallic leaf. Her forms are primitive and her surfaces are refined, creating a dramatic tension which gives her pieces a heart- throbbing feeling of the beauty and the rawness of our existence. They satisfy the soul as well as the eye.

Sidonie says that she takes her inspiration from geological forms and uses them as a metaphor for expressing human emotions.

When looking at these sculptural pieces, one can almost feel how the clay must have felt in the artist's hand, their tactile impression is so strong.

Her two dimensional works also vibrate with sensual texture  and portray a tension between the emotions associated with  both the epic and the personal.

Using the geological metaphor, Sidonie describes the passage of time through the ages and suggests the passing emotions inherent in human life.

Sidonie has created her own language for expressing her emotions through her artistic medium. Her work is intensely personal and yet it speaks to the basic nature in all of us. In the artist's own words, "I am going after the empathetic rather than the learned response." I think she achieves this, and therefore her work reaches the viewer.

 

 

The artist at work in her New Orleans studio.

I am proud to say that Sidonie Villere was born right here in New Orleans, and she received her BFA in ceramics at Newcomb College. She earned her MFA at the University of Massachusetts. Her work can be found in the New Orleans Museum of Art and the Jefferson Parish Courthouse and of course at the Jonathan Ferrara Gallery.

This active and busy artist has also curated a "Clay: A Compelling Expression" at the Jonathan Ferrara Gallery and several group shows for the National Council on the Education for the Ceramic Arts. And she even finds time to teach art at the Louise Mc Gehee School.

Read more about Sidonie and her work at her website and at Jonathan Ferrara's website, too.

 

New Orleans Artist George Dureau was born in this city in 1930 and has lived here for most of his life.  Dureau is proficient in many media, but he's best known for his figural paintings and drawings and for his photographs of male nudes. He is also an accomplished sculptor, having produced  such works as the gates at the New Orleans Museum of Art and the pediment sculptures for the Harah's Casino in New Orleans.

Recently, a wonderful article about the artist and his home were featured in New Orleans Homes and Lifestyles. Dureau's current home,  a three-story unfinished warehouse in the French Quarter is evocative of his own personal brand of New Orleans Style.

Dureau moved from a more residential space, also in the French Quarter, into this building in a more commercial area of the Quarter about two years ago and completely embraced his new home in all its glory. He chose to leave the building in its aged glory-exposed bricks, unfinished, cracked gray walls, raw wooden floors. "I didn't even bother to repaint the window frames in this place," he says. "Everything just lends itself to everything else here." In true New Orleans style, the artist responds to the inherent beauty in the raw and honest condition of this building, choosing to enhance the space with well-loved and personal furnishings.

 

A passionate cook,  Dureau has created a kitchen which takes up one whole end of the second floor. Utilizing "the same old ancient furniture" he's had for years, he has created a stunningly personal and inviting space for cooking and eating. Gracing the walls is a profusion of the artist's paintings, drawings and figure studies all of which he considers works in progress. "Those drawings are just waiting there for me to touch them up," he says. My favorite part of this unbelievable space is the  inclusion of a canopy bed the artist inherited from his grandmother. Nowhere else but in New Orleans would such imaginative furniture placement be found.

With his newfound abundance of space, Dureau is able to work all over his house. "Moving to this house two years ago changed very much what I get to see because I had lots of stuff stored away" he says. "I had tons of pictures hiding away in closets and now I'm seeing them for the first time since 1977 or 1986- old unfinished drawings or paintings suddenly get a new life. "

 

"I live with them and they live with me, and sometimes I'll draw the same one over and over again and rethink them and change them as I see fit I don't always worry about getting finished. And here I have these great walls for them to hang on, so I can just retouch and  redraw. It's wonderful."

Dureau, who is one of our city's most well-liked and accessible artists, works on his art every day.  Surrounded by work which chronicles his long and successful career, the artist revels in both his city and his home, inspired to continue the artist's life journey.

George Dureau's work can be seen at the New Orleans Museum of Art, The Ogden Museum of Southern Art, Gallier Hall in New Orleans and Harrah's New Orleans Casino, and many fine homes in our city. He is represented by the Arthur Roger Gallery.

 

A recent article in Louisiana Homes and Gardens featuring the apartment of Ned Marshall is entitled "New York Style." I guess this is because Mr. Marshall came to New Orleans from there.  But I think this apartment shows more than enough evidence that Mr. Marshall clearly has his own very personal style-a style which is  simultaneously graceful, elegant , fun and chic. And this, in fact is a style which is often regarded as "New Orleans Style."

Marshall moved into this apartment, which is has a first floor entry, shown above, that leads to a grand and spacious home on the second floor of a Garden District Mansion. This entry sets the tone for all the delights which are to come. The chocolate brown walls are a dramatic backdrop for the magenta-upholstered french sofa, the pair of abstract paintings by New Orleans' own Katie Rafferty, gilded brackets which hold 19th century Chinese vases, and last, but not least, a gilt wood and silk velvet niche de chien, or dog house-a copy of  a 19th century original that can be seen at the Metropolitan Museum in New York.

Other evidence of Marshall's sense of style are the gilt mirror over an antique iron demilune and the chocolate and tan zebra striped throw pillows. Icing this already rich cake is the hand-painted faux marbre floor which Marshall executed himself.

It's no surprise that a stairway as grand as the one above could only lead to an equally fabulous landing. Marshall seems to be quite the collector and he's not shy about displaying his remarkable finds. Another paint treatment by the decorator- the walls are painted with two shades of silver stripes.

This dramatic dining room makes me want to party! The draped table with the pristine white tablecloth, the chandelier in creamy tones and the handpainted armoire really stand out in exuberant contrast to the dark walls. I love his use of blue and white, as seen on the porcelains on the mantle and on the chair seats.  I find this elegant table setting more than inviting.

This view of the parlor, which is also pictured at opening of this post shows walls which Marshall calls "Hermes-box orange." He was inspired to use this color by the leather on the French chairs in this room. This photo shows Marshall's style in its finest-he uses color for dramatic effect, he employs balance and symmetry in his furniture placement and he carefully displays his collection of objets and art with both exuberance and restraint.

Another chocolate brown room on the second floor is a study in contrasts with all white upholstered French pieces. More fabulous pieces of note: the Chinese reverse glass paintings, an 18th century French bracket clock and a Maison  Jansen coffee table. I love that coffee table surrounded by the graceful French seating.

This exterior view of the  160 year old home of which this apartment is a part shows the typical New Orleans overgrowth of lush tropical plants, all enclosed by an ages-old iron fence- all of which embody the redolent gorgeousness of the city that we are lucky enough for the talented Ned Marshall to call home.

 

 

Christopher Porche' West is a native Californian with maternal cultural roots in the deep South who became involved with photography while in Louisiana on a fellowship from the University of California at Santa Cruz to study a pre Civil War sub-culture, "les gens de coleurs libres" or free people of color. In 1982 he returned to New Orleans to live and undertake self-directed photo-documentary studies of life and cultural activity in the Afro-American community.

 

Principally a photographer, he uses this medium to express visually the intrinsic uniqueness of New Orleans as a culture which inspires passion and longing in all who experience her.

Christopher began taking his expression of his love for New Orleans and its culture to the next step-he began constructing assemblages using architectural fragments from our beloved city.

"These artworks evolved into unique utterances of both the photograph selected and carefully tended base materials, mostly architectural findings... that forwards a sense of universal belongingness we have in our human condition."

"In some instances, wooden boxes lined with stained glass form reliquaries underscoring the sacred dimensions of New Orleans' religious customs and secular rights."

 

Porché West's latest work captures the subtle, more solemn spirit of the city; the sense of strength, joy and resilience that sustains New Orleans and her people.

 

Through the meticulous craftsmanship of his pieces and the conscientious visions they inscribe, Porche West's work manifests the timeless, indestructable spirit of New Orleans.

 

Christopher's view of New Orleans as a sacred and special place is shared my many. The loving care he takes in constructing his pieces from fragments of this place reflects his devotion to our city and its people. I think that he is a very special artist.

His work is being displayed and sold this weekend in the Contemporary Crafts area of the Jazzfest.  More information about Christopher and his work, which includes notecards and bookmarks can be found on his website.

This weekend marks the opening of the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival for 2008. There is so much to experience: of course the music and the food, and the weather and the people, but one of my favorite parts of the Jazzfest is the crafts exhibit.

This is a nationally recognized showplace of artists displaying and selling handmade fine arts and crafts. Each weekend offers a different array of acclaimed craftspeople representing the best of Louisiana and the United States.

There are many accomplished exhibitors and the array of crafts is vast- so I have chosen to focus on those who produce their pieces here in New Orleans. I will be profiling several artistsans during the 2 week duration of this wonderful event.

 

Kate Beck, whose studio is in the Fauborg Marigny, utilizes an artform called "Shibori" whereby she manipulates and dyes textiles, producing richly textured, even sculptural pieces of fabric.

   

 

Shibori is a traditional Japanese art form of embellishing textiles by shaping, tying and securing the cloth before dyeing it. The result is cloth with a three dimensional form. Sometimes the fabric is folded, sometimes it is wrapped and even pleated and sometimes stitching is employed. Regardless of the exact technique used, Kate Becks Shibori pieces are sumptuous, richly colored pieces of very wearable art.

 

The technique Beck  most often employs is called arashi (storm) shibori. The fine pleats and patterns suggest rain driven by a high wind. This elegant pleating is achieved by wrapping and compressing the fabric around a cylinder; a hot dye bath then sets the pleats.

These pieces not only satisfy and excite the eye, they are also very soothing and comfortable on the body. The experience of these is sensual and intense.

These pieces are so organic and so suggestive of the wind and weather which Kate says is her chief inspiration. These two wraps remind me of tornadoes.

The Shibori technique produces a wide variety of results. Pleating and ruffling are two of the outcomes of this method.

The fabric Kate works with is 100% silk and the dyes used are permanent. To retain the beauty of a pleated piece, they must be stored carefully and protected from moisture. Pleated shibori pieces may be professionally dry-cleaned.

Kate Beck is a great talent in the field of textile arts. We are lucky to have her living in our city and even luckier to be able to see and purchase her wares at this year's Jazzfest.

If you are unable to attend the Jazzfest, please visit Kate's website.

Please stay tuned for more Jazzfest craft features in the coming days!