It’s been a great start to the art show season!
At the first show of the year I got to witness art in community at the Old Capitol Art Fair in Springfield, IL. My painting “Spheres of Completion” was the featured artwork for their yearly Community Project. Together the community created an enlarged 6 ft x 10 ft painting made up of 308 5 in x 5 in painted squares based off of my original painting. I so enjoyed watching the process as each one of the squares were painted by individuals in the community and then piece-by-piece added to a large magnetic frame.
I even slipped away from my art booth for awhile and got to paint my own square tile and have it added to the mural.
The completed community project piece will be on display at the Illinois State Museum for the next two years and at the 2019 Old Capitol art fair. It was really thrilling as an artist to watch the cooperation and creativity in action as festival goers participated in this interactive project by painting their very own section of the finished piece!
Finished! What a tremendous job by the community of Springfield to complete this painted mural project during the Old Capitol Art Fair!!! This project was brilliantly constructed and organized by the committee who organizes the fair-GREAT WORK everyone!
The Springfield show also had a Children’s Art Tent where only kids were allowed to shop for their own pieces of art. Artists at the show donated work which was priced at $4, $5, or $6 and then the kids got to pick out their favorite pieces. It was so great to have kids stop by the booth and show me their painting of mine that they selected in the Kid’s Art Tent. Another great way of making art accessible to all members of the community-even the very youngest ones.
Mulvane Art Fair Topeka, KS
The first weekend in June brought us to the Mulvane Art Fair in Topeka, KS. We sweated through a super hot set up day, but then the temperatures dropped and we had two fabulous art fair days on the campus of Washburn University. It was so great to meet so many new art friends in Topeka!
We travel to Spring Green, WI this weekend. Join us Booth #30B Saturday and Sunday, June 23 & 24. (Show Hours Sat. 9-5 and Sun. 9-4.)
The studio is hopping in between all these shows as we also do final preparations for shows in Brookings, SD and Aspen, CO in July. We’d love to meet you on the road or if you happen to see a painting you are interested from my photos from the art fairs, please feel free to contact me and we can deliver or ship it out to you!
“FREE: Pathways Toward Freedom”, my solo art show of original acrylic paintings remains open at the Ankeny Art Center in Ankeny, IA. The show will be open for two more weeks and closes on Wednesday, Nov. 29, 2017. The show is free and open to the public. Gallery hours are 9:00 am-1:00 pm Tues-Fri, 5:00 pm-7:00 pm Thursday, and 9:00-Noon Saturday.
We had a fabulous evening for the opening night of “FREE: Pathways Toward Freedom” at the Ankeny Art Center in Ankeny, IA. Thank you to everyone who came out to join us for the show. The show remains on exhibit from now until Nov. 29, 2017. The show is free and open to the public. Gallery hours are 9:00 am-1:00 pm Tues-Fri, 5:00 pm-7:00 pm Thursday, and 9:00-Noon Saturday.
“FREE: Pathways Toward Freedom“, a solo show by Melynda Van Zee, will be open October 3 through November 29, 2017 at the Main Gallery of the Ankeny Art Center 1520 SW Ordnance Road Ankeny, IA 50023. Please join us for the Opening Reception on Thursday, Oct. 12 from 5-7 pm. The gallery is free and open to the public Tuesday-Friday 9am-1pm, Thursday 4pm-7pm, Saturday 9am-Noon.
In “FREE: Pathways Toward Freedom” Central Iowa artist Melynda Van Zee uses spiral imagery to express the deep inner work necessary to finding equilibrium and energy to pursue a creative life. The spiral is one of the most commonly found design forms in nature and is symbolic of growth and transformation. From the galaxies to DNA to our fingertips, spirals are prevalent in natural formations and are one of the most efficient ways for something to grow. For the past ten years she has used her painting process as a method of internal excavating to discover her path.