A lot of people have been anxious to see this entry. I'm terribly sorry for taking so long to post it. This cold weather kills my motivation. If I am not doing something to help plan my wedding, I just want to curl up with a blanket at home and read. Cold weather makes me lazy.
Any who,
BYOA...or Bring Your Own Art...was a huge hit last Saturday night. It took place in the old Kimbrell's building in Morgan Square, the perfect location. That space leaves plenty of room for growth, because the event only took up about 2/3 of the space.
I apologize for the image quality here. I was borrowing a fancy-shmancy camera from my future mother-in-law, and I have no idea how to use it. Hah! The images are also very small because of the odd layout of this blog. Please email me if you want the full, huge copy of an image to see the detail in some of the artwork. I just wanted to capture some of my favorite things at the show, share information about the artist, and spread artistic cheer. 'Tis the season.
The party is just getting started. Meet Margaret Ann, the wine maiden, and her dog Jonas. They greeted guests at the door and passed out wine tickets. She represents Hub-Bub well:
This was taken just as the event started. I should ask about those paper lanterns. I could use those for my wedding :
My fiance and I had a long discussion with the following artist. Joan Wheatley had some really unique works. Not only did she do photography, the collages you can see hanging in the background, but she had these little shadow box-like things. She would take pictures of graffiti and put the pictures in the background, then put people in the boxes to look like a real street scene. They were so neat. For purchasing or information, you can contact Joan at joansweetrees@bellsouth.net, or visit her website at www.joansweetrees.com. Don't forget you can email me requesting the full pictures. This one just does no justice.
I'm no art connoisseur, but I will try to use big, fancy words to describe this stuff. Christina Ramsey has some very modern work. Most of the time, I'm not interested in modern art too much, but her stuff is just so much fun! She had one piece that my friend Anna brought to my attention that was very creative. She had incorporated bottle caps and buttons into the work with thick paint on top. It was very nicely priced, too! These kinds of events are not nearly as fun when you're broke. For more information or for purchase, see Christina's website at www.littlebittydesigns.com
The USC Upstate Club Art and Design table had a variety of arts, both in style and medium. The art is all from faculty and students. Now who wouldn't want to encourage a young soul to keep pursuing art by buying something? The table featured pottery, paintings, buttons, and photography, all very good work that took a lot of time to make. If you are interested in purchasing or getting more information about the club and the art involved, you can shoot me an email. Jonathan, Alyssa there are my friends, and Patrick on the left is my brother, so I can get in touch with them for you.
I didn't have a heart-to-heart with as many people as I would have liked. These two fine ladies are two that I didn't get to talk to for very long. I was all nervous about working the big, overbearing camera in my grasp. Diana McPherson and Cindy Moore Smyth both contributed to the pottery at this table. It was all beautiful work as you can see. These women have a lot to brag about. If you are interesting in their work, they can be contacted at mudtherapybydiana@charter.net and cindyluhu22@msn.com
Aaron Troski has some of the most interested work I have ever seen. He had his work on display when the art gallery Artery was open for a short time on East Main Street, but apparently that didn't last long. His high-gloss, unique pieces can easily catch an eye from across the room. I wouldn't mind owning every single piece of work he had, personally. For more information or purchasing, contact Aaron at atroski@aol.com
I hate to say this, but I don't know the name of the artist who painted the works in my next image. The guy was talking to someone for a long time, so I gave up waiting on him, and didn't see any business cards anywhere. His work was incredible between the colors and manipulation of the paint (Oh, that sounded fancy, right?). If anyone knows what name I can put to these, please let me know.
Below is the work of Henry Fagen, professor at USC Upstate. My fiance had him as an art professor, and he served as a great mentor. His work is no different. I have been to a couple of his shows and love these depictions of landscapes. I love landscapes, but would prefer not to hang up the typical boring one in my living room. These pieces are such good conversational works, and are even better in a group, as shown below. For more information, you can contact Fagen at hfagen@uscupstate.edu
Jamie Jimenez is the coolest name I've ever heard. It is almost as cool as Jamie herself. Jamie was very friendly and accommodating to my journalistic needs. Her jewelry was both intricate and breath taking. She had pieces to go with every outfit that you could imagine, and it is obvious that hard work goes into each fashionable work. If you'd like more information or want to purchase some of Jamie's jewelry, contact her at jewelry_by_jamie_sc@yahoo.com, or visit her website at www.geocities.com/jewelry_by_jamie_sc
A closer look at some of Jamie's work:
In closing, I thought it would be important to make it known who made this event possible. Thank you for supporting a growing culture and art community in Spartanburg!
And for the heck of it, here is an adorable picture of Jonas, of whom you saw with Margaret Ann in the first picture. Isn't he precious?!
