Looking forward to the Oscars Sunday night? Are you a story lover? Spend the afternoon before the Oscars at Topanga Canyon Gallery and discover the stories.
If you missed the reception for “Everything has a Story” on February 9, this is another chance to stop by on Sunday afternoon from Noon to 3 p.m. Have some bubbly before you settle in for the evening and read why these artists created the pieces on display.
“For any creator of things, there comes a point when you tend to rely on and look to what’s worked in the past,” says abstract artist Moises Mendoza. “Your crafting ability and experience becomes a crutch that protects you, keeps you from taking risks. Growth as an artist is necessarily tied to the amount of risk you take. With this piece, “Suiseki” (or water stones), I very much tried to stay true to the mantra of less intellect, more instinct. Whenever I tried to excessively plan and make sketches, color studies, the more of a battle it became. My favorite pieces have always come together very quickly, paying little mind to questioning why this color or why this shape. If it worked, it worked. Often this leads to what may appear to others as irrational choices, but to me it may make the most sense in the world: Of course there’s a green glowing rectangle there; where else would it be? Like every other choice in the painting, things are there merely because it felt like the right thing to do. It’s not attempting anything logical or anything resembling a narrative, it is just chasing the trail of a feeling.”
Carole Carpenter creates art with dye on silk. “People in our culture don’t want to show their wrinkles; they go to all lengths to avoid them, to hide them, or to treat them,” she explains. “But wrinkles are attracting; they tell the story of a life. It’s the wrinkles that fascinate us in the faces captured by great photographers. It’s the wrinkles that let us know who you are; about your smiles, your tears, your face in the sun or in the shade. It’s amazing and a bit crazy to try to remove wrinkles. It’s our life’s beauty presented to the world in our face.”
Come and admire the silk painting with a close view of a sage elephant titled. “Wrinkles.”
“Everything Has a Story” closes March 3.
SAVE THE DATE
Run away to the circus on March 9 for the opening reception of “Cirque d’Artistes” complete with popcorn and peanuts, while you enjoy the ambiance and entertainment of the exhibits outside the main tent of circuses long forgotten.
LAST CALL TO APPLY FOR THE STUDIO TOUR
Are you a canyon artist? You have one more week, until March 1, to be part of the Topanga Studio Tour. This is an opportunity to show a body of work to an interested audience with plenty of time to spend at each location. Look for details and application at topangacanyongallery.com under “Studio Tour.”
Topanga Canyon Gallery, founded in Topanga in 1989, is an artist-owned mutual benefit corporation. It is located at 120 N. Topanga Canyon Blvd., Topanga CA 90290. For more information: (310) 455-7909; TopangaCanyonGallery.com. Gallery Hours: Wednesday 2 p.m.– 6 p.m.; Thursday 2–6 p.m.; Friday 12–8 p.m.; Saturday 11 a.m.– 6 p.m.; Sunday 11 a.m.–3 p.m.