Fibonacci fine arts digest volume 2 | issue 3

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$7.95 US $9.95 CAN Volume 2, Issue 3



Robert Moore

48 x 48

Winters Voice

608 MAIN STREET, Park City, UT

oil

435.655.3264

Reception with the artist Friday, February 26, 2016 6-9 P.M

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2015–16 Utah Symphony SeaSon

YOUR SOUNDTRACK TO THE HOLIDAYS Share in the Joy of the Season at the Utah Symphony

November 29 – January 3

© 1990 tWENtiEth CENturY Fox

tickets start at

tickets start at

$10

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$18

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Messiah Sing-In

beethoven’s “Ode to Joy”

Rei Hotoda, conductor Utah Symphony Chorus

Thierry Fischer, conductor Josh Higgason, video design Utah Symphony Chorus

November 28 / 7 pm AbrAvANel HAll

December 4 & 5 / 7:30 pm AbrAvANel HAll

This cherished tradition invites all to share in the singing of Handel’s masterpiece with the Utah Symphony Orchestra and Chorus. Bring your family, and your score, and join in on the majesty of Handel’s Messiah.

TM & © WarNEr BroS. ENtErtaiNMENt iNC.

$18 ent

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The Utah Symphony will transport you to a wintery Chicago neighborhood for a not-to-be-forgotten holiday thrill ride as they perform John Williams’ score live while plays on the big screen.

(S 15)

tickets start at

$6

Here Comes Santa Claus!

bugs bunny at the Symphony II New Year’s Celebration December 22 & 23 / 7 pm AbrAvANel HAll

January 2 / 7 pm AbrAvANel HAll

Rei Hotoda, conductor

George Daugherty, conductor

Thierry Fischer, conductor Celena Shafer, soprano

Bring the entire family and enjoy the festive sounds of holiday favorites that will make your season bright. Don’t forget to bring your wish list, because Santa Claus has taken time out of his busy schedule to make a special appearance.

What’s up, Doc? Experience the spectacular fusion of classical music and classic animation that celebrates the most famous and beloved cartoons in the world.

December 19 / 11Am & 12:30pm AbrAvANel HAll

Visit

SeaSon SponSor:

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December 18 & 19 / 7:30pm AbrAvANel HAll

Beethoven’s final masterpiece celebrating humanity and brotherhood and the premiere of Nico Muhly’s Control (Five Landscapes for Orchestra).

tickets start at

Home Alone: Feature Film with the Utah Symphony

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UtahSymphony.org

or call

Celebrate the New Year and let yourself be carried away with dazzling waltzes, delightful polkas, festive marches, and more.

801-533-NOTE ( 6 6 8 3 )


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FIND YOUR VOICE. FUEL YOUR PASSION. IGNITE YOUR FUTURE.


Inside 9 On the Cover 10 From the Publisher 12 Editor ’s Note 14 Editor ’s Choice 16 Creatives Corner 18 Mountain Wes t Ar t & Event s 24 A Day in the Life

DIGEST

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Visual Ar ts 27

Live Fearlessly and Passionately

by Elif Ekin

36

Finding the Muse in Landscape

by John Hughes

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Bet ween Ear th and Sk y

by Ehren Clark

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Studio Pages

53

The Muse Marilyn

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by Rebecca Edwards

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Inside

Multimedia 74

Music 59

80

Behind the Minds of Music

by Nathan Bowen

64

The Ar t of Motion

Salt Lake Cit y ’s Underground Jaz z Scene

by Savannah Turk

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by Carmen Stenholm

Creating M.U.S.E by Janice Brooks

82 Place-based Mas ters

by Kaylin Meyer

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Muse or Curse?

by Josie Luciano

Collec tor ’s Des tinations

Poem: Ode to Nike and Venus by Mary Giuseffi


At Frame Gilders, our goal is to enhance your art, not compete with it. www.framegilders.com 801.298.1227 1403 S. 600 W. Bountiful, UT 84010 A division of Apple Frame Gallery Premier Fine Arts Digest of the Mountain West

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DIGEST

PUBLISHER Molly Bitton

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Asenath Horton

MANAGING EDITOR Savannah Turk

CREATIVE DIRECTOR Chad Zavala

DIRECTOR OF SALES & MARKETING Devin Liljenquist

FEATURED WRITERS Elif Ekin Jayme Marrs Thomas M. Alder

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Carmen Stenholm Ehren Clark Janice Brooks

John Hughes Josie Luciano Kaylin Meyer

Nathan Bowen Rebecca Edwards

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Asenath Horton Chad Zavala Geoffrey Ellis Jayme Marrs

Logan Lape Las Vegas Arts and Culture Molly Bitton Richard Petrucci

For advertising information send inquiries to: Fibonacci Fine Arts Digest 221 E Broadway, Salt Lake City, UT 84111 P 385.259.0620 www.fibonaccifinearts.com advertising@fibonaccifinearts.com The opinions contained in the articles and advertisements published by Fibonacci Fine Arts Digest are not necessarily those of Fibonacci Fine Arts Digest, its officers, directors or employees, nor does publication in Fibonacci Fine Arts Digest constitute an endorsement of the views, products or services contained in said articles or advertisements. The publisher is not responsible or liable for errors or omissions in any advertisement beyond the paid price. Fibonacci Fine Arts Digest is published six times annually and is distributed throughout Utah and surrounding areas. Any reproduction, electronic, print, or otherwise without written consent from the publisher is strictly prohibited. Address requests for special permission to the Editor-In-Chief at asenath@fibonaccifinearts.com. To subscribe to the Fibonacci Fine Arts Digest, make changes to your current subscription, or purchase back issues, call 385.259.0620 or visit us online at www.fibonaccifinearts.com. Copyright Š 2014 Fibonacci Fine Arts Company, LLC. All rights reserved.

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On the Cover Cover: Spring Left: Fall Bottom Left: Summer Bottom Right: Winter

I love living where we experience the changing seasons,

an allegorical representation of the changing of the seasons.

where change comes as matter of temperature and precipi-

Originally, the three-dimensional clay models were created

tation—a literal physical change, as opposed to just chang-

as a reference for two large vessels with the seasons executed

ing dates on a calendar. Change in our lives is inevitable,

in bas-relief. After that project was finished, I decided to fin-

so we can either embrace it and find beauty in it or dread

ish the models with a few variations, which made them more

it. Spring is part of a series of four sculptures I created as

aesthetically pleasing three-dimensional works.

Some of my deepest feelings have a hard time being articulated through words, so I create art. I hope that the viewer can sense what is most important to me when they see my work. I don’t try to hide any secret meaning in my art. Each piece is deeply personal, yet universal. I try to create images that are beautiful, uplifting, and relatable. Although I am a representational artist, Realism is always secondary to the composition and design of my work. I want whatever I create to be engaging visually, regardless of the subject matter. — Ben Hammond

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From the Publisher I had the opportunity to run one of the most beauti-

more, something bigger, inspiration happens and our

ful half marathons of my life in the midst of working on

creative mind kicks in. Going to school, new careers, new

this issue. I took it slower than I normally would and

relationships, having children, starting a business, taking

enjoyed the amazing views and runner camaraderie. I was

on any kind of challenge will require you to think beyond

able to listen to my heartbeat, listen to my footsteps, feel

what you already know and create.

the breeze on my face, and look out over red mountains,

Utah is abundant with ever-changing scenery, a cul-

dynamic clouds, and the gorgeous Lake Powell. The whole

turally dense populace, and wondrous trails to explore.

experience made my heart swell with appreciation for life

When I put on my running shoes I know I will have a new

and love of what we have in this world.

experience, different than any other I have had before.

It’s at these times that I want to capture everything

This inspires me to keep moving, watching the clouds,

I see and everything I feel, whether it be capturing these

mountains, people, and animals; listening to the traffic,

feelings in an image, a single time and place, and sharing

wind, wildlife, and footsteps; feeling the wind on my skin,

it with the world, or contemplating current life situations,

the sun on my back, and the cold on my fingers. Each

thinking through problems, overcoming emotional barri-

experience a muse for my thoughts, sparking ideas and

ers, and expanding. Every time I put on my running shoes

feelings, molding me into who I am.

I challenge myself to grow and appreciate. Running is not inherently creative—the swinging of

We are all original pieces of art, created with the paintbrush of life, inspired by the muse of experience.

arms, feet hitting the pavement, lungs expanding and deflating, heart beating in a perfect rhythm. It’s what

Molly Bitton, Publisher

happens with the mind while the body is in this rhythmic, synchronized state that makes running a mindexpanding activity. When I first started with Fibonacci Fine Arts my thought was that running was completely opposite of creative. I was looking for something more, something to expand my mind and my heart. Now, as I evaluate what inspires me, my muse, I am seeing that running is just that. Not everyone finds inspiration in running. Some people get inspired while walking down the street. Others are inspired by a certain type of animal. Many can see a piece of cloth and picture an entire outfit. Inspiration can happen whether you look for it or not. It’s this kind of creativity that helps people grow emotionally, spiritually, and physically. Finding that muse in every day activities is what adds dimension to one’s life. There is no growth without creativity. Our minds and hearts are continually expanding with everything we see, everything we do, everything we hear, and everything we feel. When we push beyond our limits, work for something

“Running! If there’s any activity happier, more exhilarating, more nourishing to the imagination, I can’t think of what it might be. In running the mind flees with the body, the mysterious efflorescence of language seems to pulse in the brain, in rhythm with our feet and the swinging of our arms.” — Joyce Carol Oates 10

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LAUNCH PARTY AND EXHIBIT: FIBONACCI AND UMOCA CELEBRATE SLC CULTURE

Friday, November 20, 2015 Time: 5:00 -7:00 pm Location: Utah Museum of Contemporary Art, UMOCA, 20 So. West Temple Cost: No cost to attend, public invited.

DIGEST

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Editor’s Note

Gathering fresh eggs is a frightening chore. Barefoot and barely six, the roosters in the yard were my size and

ebrates the masterful work of these people—the creatives in our own communities.

I was convinced they would to eat my toes up, like they

Thrive, create, and express your ideas in physical

would worms in the grass. But, no matter how scared I

form and substance. No matter how small or how difficult,

was, I still had to go into that little hen house and grab

you have what it takes to master this part of your life; to

the eggs I could reach.

create your masterpiece for today.

As an adult, things are much different. I love the chance to snatch a warm egg from an unsuspecting, fluffy hen. Literature, like fresh farm eggs, is an existential component of my being. Writing, editing, telling my story, and the stories of the people I adore, is transforming. Photography is a close second, with one of my favorite

We are not defined by our limitations, we are defined by our capabilities. These pop when we push past the point we imagine as possible, and rise to accomplish what we never considered attempting. Raise your own barn. Love it. Snap it. Shoot it. Dance in it. Create.

subjects being fences and barns. No doubt a response to my childhood treks to the hen house.

Asenath Horton, Editor-In-Chief

Stopping to think for a while about what it takes to build something magnificent, I realized this favorite subject of mine is a favorite muse of many creatives as well— an old, red barn. Painters paint them, crafters construct with the seasoned wood, actors and dancers perform in them, and troublemakers go behind them to create delicious memories. We can all connect somehow to a beautifully constructed barn. Beginning with a foundation of earth, a barn is of simple construct, with walls held up by sticks and a roof to keep the guts dry. With enough preparation, they are raised by the neighboring farmers in an afternoon, with a party to signify and celebrate the work that was put into

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the finished piece. Every day, artisans go to work, preparing for a masterpiece, and then creating exquisite pieces of their own self expression. We at Fibonacci are here to raise our own kind of barn, a book constructed of pages filled to the brim with experiences of our beloved artisans. Our finished book signifies and cel-

“Peace: it does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble, or hard work. It means to be in the midst of those things and still be calm in your heart.” — Unknown

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Spectacular art shouldn’t just hang on your walls.

239 East Broadway Salt Lake City, UT 84111 801.359.2192

Photo by D’Arcy Benincosa

www.antoinettesjewelry.com Premier Fine Arts Digest of the Mountain West

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Editor’s Choice Robert Wilson was raised in south east Idaho as studied art at Ricks College in Rexburg, Idaho. He spent some time working at Wild Oak Framing and Fine Art and had the pleasure of studying with Leon Parson and master Russian artist Ovanes Berbarian. When discussing his muse for art and life, it comes down to two things: nature and figures. “I really love to paint,” Wilson says. “Everything I see, I’m just caught with. It’s hard to explain.” Wilson’s passion comes through in his pieces, and one can quickly tell how important capturing that enrapturing moment is. In fact, that’s how “In the Rain” came to life. “After a long photo session with the model at a beautiful church yard, it started to lightly rain. We packed up our things and started back for the cars. I was walking behind and when we turned the last corner this wonderful image appeared before my eyes. I still had my camera hanging from my neck and I snapped a quick shot. I love the subtle colors and subdued lighting. It’s a very peaceful painting,” Wilson says. This subdued painting is somber, yet familiar. Perhaps it’s the muse of weather and rain tapping into our nostalgia, or the muse herself leading us ever forward, yet just beyond our grasp. Wilson currently lives in South Jordan with his wife and five children. To see more of Wilson’s work, turn to page 54.

In the Rain, Oil on Canvas, 28” x 14 in.” 14

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Award Winning Builder “Best Of Show”

A Fresh Perspective On Home Building

801.455.6965 www.altacreekhomes.com Premier Fine Arts Digest of the Mountain West

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Creative’s Corner Juan Pablo Gasca is a visual artist born in Guanajuato, Mexico in 1979 who came to live in the United States in

Who are your biggest influencers for your artinspired life? Who helped you get where you are?

1998. He started drawing at an early age. He loved drawing everything he saw especially the animals at the family farm where he grew up. Gasca is, for the most part, a selftaught artist. About three years ago, after experimenting

Pablo Picasso and an art movement that was popular in Mexico in the 1970s called “The Mexican Geometrism.” What inspired me about Picasso is the fact that he prac-

with different techniques and mediums, he discovered that

tically reinvented art when he invented Cubism. He saw

geometry and abstraction were what he had been looking

what was happening in the world around him and he saw

for to express himself. He started reading and investigating

that everything was changing so much and so fast, and he

the work of artists that formed the movement called “The

thought that art needed a big change as well.

Mexican Geometrism” in the 1970s.

Exhibitions: Alpine Art & Frame at Harmons City Creek, August 2015 - Present Charley Hafen Jewelers Gallery, October 15, 2015 November 14, 2015

In Cubism the objects are analyzed, broken up, and reassembled in an abstracted form; and instead of depicting the objects from one viewpoint, the objects are depicted from various viewpoints. That’s what I intend to do in my paintings. I take forms and shapes from objects around me and I rearrange them in the picture plane to create a balanced composition. I think my paintings are different and modern. Although they are the result of my inspiration from artists from the past, I feel they are very synthetic and easy to see, and yet they can get very complex and intriguing. The Mexican Geometrism was a movement that started with an art exhibition in 1976 under the same name. The exhibition included about 20 artists united by the use of geometry in each one of their works. The movement included painters, sculptors, and architects. The way these artists used space, color, light, and designed to give their paintings that expressiveness and life sparked my inspiration and creativity to start creating my own geometric compositions. Finally, the support of my family and especially the support of my girlfriend, Lucrecia, is what has helped me to get where I am right now.

If you weren’t a painter, what would your profession be? Veterinarian, I love animals.

What brain food do you snack on when you need inspiration? Reading a good book and seeing the work of great artists Photos courtesy Juan Pablo Gasca

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from the past and present times. Right now I am reading a book from Miguel de Cervantes called “Don Quixote.” I should have read this book a long time


ago, but for one reason or another I couldn’t do it. I like to read novels from Latin American writers like Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Isabel Allende, and Paulo Coelho. To see the work of other contemporary artists I like doing the Gallery Stroll in Salt Lake City, and I also like to visit the Utah Museum of Fine Art to admire the works of artists from the past.

Go to Saturday night spot in Salt Lake City? I really enjoy going to the movies with my girlfriend and going out to dinner on a Saturday night. I’d have to say that I don’t really have a specific place to go to. After dinner and a movie we usually go to my family’s house or my girlfriend’s family’s house and have coffee and talk.

Favorite quote to get you through tight places in life? “What you think, you become. What you feel, you attract. What you imagine, you create.” — Buddha

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Mountain West Art & Events Fibonacci Open House

Photos by Chad Zavala

September 18, 2015 - Salt Lake Cit y, UT

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To submit your event s and pic s, send us an email event s@ fibonaccifinear t s.com


YOUR ART HERE

CALL FOR ENTRIES FOR THE LOVE OF ART 2016 SUBMIT BY NOVEMBER 23, 2015 www.fibonaccifoundation.org/events/submit

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Mountain West Art & Events Jackie Biskupski - An Evening of Ar t and Culture September 30, 2015 - Salt Lake Cit y, UT

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Photos by Molly Bitton

To submit your event s and pic s, send us an email event s@ fibonaccifinear t s.com


Jackson Hole Fall Ar ts Festival

Photos by Molly Bitton

September 8 -18, 2015 - Jackson Hole, W Y

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Mountain West Art & Events Evergreen Galler y 30 Year Anniversar y

Photos by Asenath Horton

Oc tober 23, 2015 - Salt Lake Cit y, UT

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More event pic s and details on w w w.fibonaccifinear t s.com


Ben Hammond Fine Art www.benhammondfineart.com (801) 787-1634

An Angel In Repose

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A Day in the Life

A Stage Manager’s World by Jayme Marrs

“W

hat do you do?” “I work in Theater.” “Oh so you’re

“LA Weekly” called us, “The most important invisible person

an actress.” “No, I’m a stage manager.”

in the theater.” So, I’d like to help clear up the confusion

“Oh… Um…What is that?” Most people don’t know what stage managers do or that

about stage managers. A more technical explanation of our responsibilities

they even exist. One of the things I like about my job is that

would be that stage managers typically provide practical

if I’m doing it right, the audience doesn’t know I’m there.

and organizational support to the director, actors, designers,

I’m the man (or woman) behind the curtain while the Great

stage crew, and technicians throughout the production.

and Powerful Oz is performing. One of my favorite quotes about my profession is, “If all the world’s a stage, then the stage manager is God.”

As stage manager, I start working weeks before we start rehearsal. I analyze the script, make notes on what happens at each rehearsal, and help all aspects of the production stay in communication. After a few weeks of rehearsals, we have what is called tech week. Others refer to it as “hell week.” It’s the week where we introduce new elements into what the actors and director have been working on such as costumes, lighting, scenery, and sound. People refer to it as hell week because just when everyone thinks they know what to do, we add a lot of new elements and people are bound to make mistakes and get thrown off their game. This chaos of new things usually only lasts a day or two before everyone settles into their new costumes and wigs, walking up stairs instead of imagining them, and walking in the dark to exit the stage instead of a well-lit rehearsal space. The role of the stage manager gets more complicated during the tech week process as well. We go from writing down what is going on to actually making things happen. I am given light cues to call, sound cues to execute, and scene changes to orchestrate. When the audience is present, we say the show has opened. As the stage manager, it is my responsibility to make sure everyone—actors, musicians, and technicians—

Photos by Jayme Marrs

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has arrived at the theater prior to the performance. Once the show has opened, it is my job to make sure that every performance looks and sounds the same so that everyone coming to enjoy the show will get the same experience. It is hard work recreating the same thing night after night, but the reward when the audience erupts with applause makes it all worth it. Like most professions, I started out as an assistant first. An assistant

plays. I love musicals because of the fun energy and the

stage manager (ASM) works on either side of the stage and

constant activity happening during rehearsals and per-

helps cue the technicians and actors to do their jobs. The

formances. After working a few years in summer stock

ASMs are constantly on their feet making sure things are

theaters and other play houses, I got a job at the Utah

going smoothly. After a few years, I moved up to stage man-

Festival Opera and Musical Theater in Logan, Utah. I was

ager. The stage manager typically stays in one location and

hired as an assistant stage manager for one musical and

calls cues over a headset. We have everything written down

one opera. I had never worked on an opera before, which

in our script or score so that everything happens at the same

made me very nervous. However, that summer I found a

time every performance.

love for opera.

One of the first jobs I had after college was at a summer

In November, I will be stage managing Utah Symphony’s

stock theater. This particular theater did seven musicals in

Masterwork Series, “L’Enfant et les Sortileges” or, “The

a four month period back-to-back, and at the time, I was an

Child and the Enchantments,” which will feature a collabora-

ASM on all of the shows. This made for long work days. A

tion with Utah Opera in celebration of the Symphony’s 75th

typical day for me was to go to rehearsal for show B in the

Anniversary Season.

morning, have lunch, do a matinee performance for show A,

The “Child and the Enchantments” is an interesting

do a 45min children’s show, have dinner, and then work on

opera about an ill-mannered child’s world of talking objects

the evening performance of show A. There were lots of parties

and animals. The production will feature a full cast, as well

and very little sleep.

as an adult and children’s chorus and will be semi-staged

One of my favorite shows to work on that summer was

with conceptualized costume pieces. The setting will be inter-

“Thoroughly Modern Millie.” Sometimes what’s happening

preted by an original video design. The performances will be

backstage is more entertaining than what the audience sees

on November 13th and 14th at Abravanel Hall at 7:30 p.m.

onstage. One night during this show everything kept going wrong. At one point, a piece of scenery was supposed to go onstage with a curtain hanging over the doorway. The curtain wouldn’t stay in place on one side so I had to hold the curtain in place over my head. I rode onstage with the set piece and stood behind it, holding up the curtains through the whole scene. I was hidden behind the curtain so the audience never knew I was there or that there was anything wrong. It’s moments like that that make me love what I do. The saying, “The show must go on,” is imprinted on every theater professional. During college and after, I worked on musicals and Premier Fine Arts Digest of the Mountain West

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Visual Arts

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Live Fearlessly and Passionately

The Story of Two Artists’ Passion for Creativity and Each Other by Elif Ekin

I

t was serendipity that I happened upon BECA’s website when I was searching for an artist from Sun Valley,

Soon, it was big canvases, big brushes, and bright, vivid acrylic colors that caught Catchpole’s imagination.

Idaho. It soon became clear that serendipity shines bright

She only needed to paint one transitional, big-brush land-

in Steve Behal and Jeannie Catchpole’s—who make up

scape before she got Realism out of her system and jumped

BECA using the first two letters of the artists’ last names

feet first into Expressionism.

put together—life and art.

Catchpole’s counterpart made a similar jump from

Not only did they grow up within miles of each other,

capturing real life to striving for the abstract. After being

they went to the same art college, but didn’t actually meet

a photographer for many years, Behal didn’t want to be

until 1984. Sparks flew between Catchpole and Behal, but life

behind the camera anymore. He studied acting, but paint-

took them in different directions. Fast forward 25 years and

ing filled in extra pockets of time ever since he was a child.

serendipity brought them together again, this time for good.

As he moved more into painting, he captured the essence of

It was easy for me to step back in time and visualize

a moment in time with elemental forms, focusing more on

their life as I sat with my coffee and read their screenplay “High Desert Traffic (A True Story…Mostly).” Written by both Catchpole and Behal, this screenplay took me to the moment of conception of their collaborative art. Their art is spontaneous, expressive, vivid, and full of life. When I see their paintings, I am reminded of my days as a student in awe of Mark Rothko and Jackson Pollock. I never dreamed that I would be able to chat one-on-one with artists who evoked the same magic for me as did those Expressionist pioneers. Naturally, when I sat down to talk with Catchpole and Behal, I wanted to know how their artistic style came to be. Both artists began in their own form of Realism, and have since shifted gears to Abstract Expressionism. I asked Catchpole what that transition looked like for her. “The only way to do that was to throw away the watercolors and paper and never touch them again,” she stated. For Catchpole, painting realistic watercolors wasn’t exciting anymore. Her last watercolor took six months to complete and was her pinnacle piece. What was left for her to strive toward? In realism, you know where to start and where to end because it looks real. Jeannie Catchpole, Seven Summers, Acrylic on Canvas, 171 in. x 136 in.

Steve Behal and Jeannie Catchpole, High Desert Traffic, Acrylic on Linen, 72 in. x 93 in. Premier Fine Arts Digest of the Mountain West

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Top: Steve Behal and Jeannie Catchpole, Date Night, Acrylic on Canvas, 60 in. x 48 in. Bottom: Jeannie Catchpole, Exposed Redux, Acrylic and Mixed Media Canvas, 36 in. x 48 in.

feeling than representing the moment realistically. These two artists came together and began to paint collaboratively. As we talked, I wanted to know more about how two painters work on a single painting together. “I do the green,” Behal said as Catchpole laughed. Apparently, they get this question a lot and Behal loves to have a little fun with the interviewer each time with this same answer. Their first collaboration was the painting “High Dessert Traffic.” The painting comes together beautifully, but it is clear that there are two painterly techniques. The more they paint together, lines blur in regard to who does what and when. Egos are removed and the purity of the painting’s intention is allowed to present itself. According to the couple, paintings begin on impulse. There are times when each begins one, takes ownership on it and doesn’t want the other to be involved. Other times, there is an open invitation to jump in anytime and paint what you feel the canvas needs. Behal joked saying, “Sometimes I want to get my hands on one of Jeannie’s [paintings] and she won’t let me!” Art is a metaphor for their relationship. There are times when they just don’t know what to do, but they always respect each other’s creativity. They even wrote that into their marriage vows as a reminder to support each other creatively in all that they do. Each artist has their own style within the painting process that complements the piece as a finished whole. Catchpole focuses on color while Behal is more about form. As they each come at the painting from a different angle, the painting comes together in a way that allows the viewer to get lost in the “what is” rather than “who creates what.” Looking at the paintings, it is clear that the feeling they evoke within you is the focus as you open yourself up to them. “Picasso took 92 years to learn how to paint like a child again,” Catchpole stated as she began to explain her painting philosophy. She tries to grasp more of the universal communication with which children are inherently born. No 28

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Steve Behal, Oscar’s Fowl Play, Acrylic on Canvas, 48 in. x 60 in. matter the child’s language, you can look at their art and know

it’s done and it’s time to move on. There are some paintings

what they are feeling. There is no fear in their expression.

that may not be quite ready. They will go away only to be

Letting creativity flow with no fear is how Catchpole approach-

revisited at a later time when inspiration hits and either

es life and art. That need to express with visual communica-

Catchpole or Behal know what that painting needs.

tion led her to big canvases and bold, bright colors. Painting together is not always easy since the couple

In all that they do, in life, love, and art, one mantra is clear: Do not fear to be true to yourself. As Catchpole and

sometimes lives in different places. Catchpole is based in

Behal evolve as painters, they do not attempt to emulate

Sun Valley, Idaho while Behal is often in Toronto. There are

who they used to be and instead try to move forward into

times when Catchpole wishes Behal was there to paint on a

who they are becoming. Audiences may come and go, but

certain piece. But, when they are able to commingle in the

those who stay for the ride will be rewarded with fresh and

paint, painting becomes a dance that changes all the time.

exciting art.

It has become easier and cleaner over the years, as each

I love their art and the feelings it evokes for me because

has removed their own Ego from the process. It’s not about

it is a visual example of how to embrace life fearlessly and

how it will come together, but who is in the moment or who

passionately as we all grow into our own true selves and

has the vision. Like life, their dance and art is always evolving.

find our purpose.

“We paint what we are feeling at the time,” said Behal. They let go and just paint, true to their own vision and exploration. Each painting takes on a life of its own once

To get a taste of Catchpole and Behal’s work, you can find them currently represented at Lipton Fine Arts in Sun Valley, Idaho. Premier Fine Arts Digest of the Mountain West

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The Art of Henri Moser Loaded with color by Thomas M. Alder

H

enri Moser was more than a quality, early Utah landscapist. In this election year, “maverick” and “pio-

in December, 1908, he left his family for Paris. Several significant events happened to Moser while

neer” seem extremely trite phases to apply to Moser, but he

studying at the Paris academies. First, he met and became

was both.

good friends with Pablo Picasso.

As with many of the early Utah artists, Moser was the

Second, he met Frank Zimbeaux, a fellow artist who

product of parents who converted to the Church of Jesus

became Moser’s trusted colleague. Zimbeaux and his wife

Christ of Latter Day Saints to Utah in 1888.

would later travel to Utah where he and Moser painted

Moser, age 13, lived with his grandparents in Payson,

together frequently. Zimbeaux and his wife chose to remain

Utah and worked at a printing shop. Then he traveled to

in Utah and continued to be lifelong friends with the

Montana where he worked in mining to earn money for col-

Mosers. Zimbeaux was a friend of Matisse and although

lege studies. He later attended Utah Agricultural College,

I never turned over any stones that proved Moser met

now called Utah State University.

Matisse, it is likely that they palled around together.

In 1905, he married his sweetheart, Aldine Wursten,

Third, Moser created a legacy of beautifully hand-

and a year later he enrolled in the Brigham Young College,

written letters to his beloved wife. Fortunately, she kept

where he studied under A.B. Wright and Calvin Fletcher.

all 76 letters, which were available to me in my research

Two years later, Dr. John A. Widtsoe, president of USU,

by the family. The weekly letters provided a valuable

recognized that some of his departments lacked talent and

chronology of an artist’s life of poverty, frustration, hope,

talked to Moser.

and discovery during one of the most dramatic periods of

Widtsoe suggested that he would sponsor Moser in

artistic transition.

Paris for two years if he would return and teach art at USU

Fourth, although Moser attended the rigid academies

for at least one year. Moser seized the rare opportunity and

and learned strict principles and regimen of the day, after returning home he soon rejected much of the tight-fisted training in favor of Fauvism, or use of secondary colors. It was Matisse who shocked the world in 1905 at the Salon d’Automne by exhibiting his works of atmospheric as opposed to representational art. The bold use of secondary colors, usually applied directly from tube to canvas, earned Matisse and his colleagues the derogatory term “Fauves,” French for “wild beasts.” Moser absorbed the explosion of colors used by the Fauves and later adopted them to create astonishing Utah

Fauvist Landscape Oil on Canvas, 24 x 30 in. 30

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Logan Canyon, Oil on Canvas, 16 x 20 in. landscapes and still lives, not seen before in Utah. It would

Idaho, near Malad, where he farmed, ranched, and paint-

be years before any other Utah artists would experiment

ed. Zimbeaux, a Bohemian-like thinker, was a frequent

with the same painting style.

visitor, The two would dash off for the day, or sometimes

After Moser returned to Utah in July of 1910, he

longer, sketching and painting the landscapes. Sometimes

fulfilled his commitment to Widtsoe for the agreed-upon

they would include relatives and other locals as models,

minimum of one year teaching, but was soon drawn away

something that got Zimbeaux into a bit of hot, or rather

by the lure of full-time painting. Later, in 1915, the family

cold, water.

relocated to Cedar City, Utah, where Moser taught at the

Moser and Zimbeaux frequently set up their easels on

Branch Agricultural College, predecessor of Southern Utah

several well-traveled corners in Salt Lake City. They would

University. This stint lasted only two years, but Moser’s

paint small paintings of the Temple and Salt Lake Theatre,

exposure to the natural wonders of Southern Utah was

then sell them to the tourists for $15 or $20 each. These

inspirational, as evidenced by his painting, “Edwin Bridge.”

small gems surface from time to time and are sought after

The artwork won first place at the Utah State Fair and

by collectors.

was purchased by the state of Utah, and still resides on the walls of the Capitol Building today. For the next eight years, Moser homesteaded in

Besides being a maverick in his brush and composition styles, Moser was a wanderer, sometimes leaving his family to fend for themselves for months or a year at a time. Premier Fine Arts Digest of the Mountain West

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The Zions Canyon, Oil on Canvas, 20 x 24 in.

In 1928, for example, he exhibited in a show at an Oakland, California gallery. This was immediately followed by a trip to San Antonio, Texas, where Moser had heard about a wealthy Texan who had offered $1,000 to the artist who could paint the best picture of the state flower, the blue bonnet. Convinced that he could do it, and attracted by the prize money, Moser painted a glorious, neon painting of a field of the wildflowers. He took an honorable mention for his painting and then decided to remain in Texas for a time to learn how to paint longhorn cattle. Returning to Utah in 1929, Moser painted and donated a mural for his local Mormon congregation, the Ninth Ward, in which he included longhorn cattle. It was during that same year that Moser began a 29-year career as an art supervisor for Cache School District. The late 1920s and 30s would see some of Moser’s finest work. His 1929 painting of Zion Canyon is clearly a wild beast of a rendition and was particularly interesting because the roads into the park were very primitive. Most Americans did not have any practical way to see the park and this painting must have been as evocative then as it is now. Barbara Sessions was a young child at the elementary school in Cache County. Since Moser was the art supervisor, he stopped into their class. He asked about various subjects that the students would want to see and then created a stunning chalk drawing on the blackboard. Because everyone loved it, they all decided to keep it for the year and they made sure that the janitor would not brush it off. On a similar occasion, Moser was traveling alone in his car to conduct another class when his car slid in some February ice and rolled down an embankment. The accident caused multiple injuries and put Moser in the hospital for eleven months. After a number of surgeries, Moser walked with one leg several inches shorter than the other leg. While he was recuperating in the hospital, Moser continued to draw, design, and create lovely little thank-you cards, crayon landscapes, and colored pencil sketches.

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When World War II came, Moser decided that he needed to contribute to the war effort, so in 1944, he lied about

about him was the same. The quotes were the same. The

his age—the maximum age was 59 and he was 68—and

museum, library, and historical files all had the same arti-

volunteered for military service. He was assigned to clean

cles and quotes and they seemed to be copies of each other.

pipes in a factory in Portland. With his bummed leg, and

Without the gracious help of two of Moser’s granddaughters,

advanced age, Moser hitchhiked to Portland, remaining

who lived with him for several years, I would never have

there for about a year. He stayed with one of his daughters

been able to write 182 pages about this iconoclastic artist.

and painted some bold cobalt and pink paintings of Mt.

received a degree in business management and an MA in Art

he continued to paint at a feverish pace, creating some of

History from the University of Utah. In 2007 he purchased

his better works.

an art gallery and in 2013 changed the name to Alderwood Fine Art. Alder serves on the Utah Arts Council, is a member

Moser developed pleurisy and pneumonia and passed away,

of the Salt Lake County Art Board, is vice chair of the Utah

leaving his beloved Aldine, two sons and six daughters.

Cultural Celebration Center, and was on the board at the

One of the early challenges I faced in writing about

Thomas M. Alder was raised in Holladay, Utah and

Hood and the surrounding areas. When he returned home,

In September, 1951, after a long, poverty-filled career,

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Moser was that all of the immediately available information

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College of Fine Arts at the University of Utah.


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Finding the Muse in Landscape Understanding Landscape Painting’s True Inspiration by John Hughes

T

he muse of the landscape painter is the land itself, coupled with varied weather patterns, time of day, season, and

lighting effects. These make up the bulk of their inspiration. This idea sounds simple and straight forward enough, does

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For starters, landscape artists not only have nature as their muse, but the particular way they express their ideas within their medium, such as oil, watercolor, or acrylics. As I look back on my early days as an aspiring artist,

it not? As a concept this statement could stand on its own and

and my quest to learn the craft, I am reminded of the many

nothing more would need be said, but there is one glaring prob-

hours spent in museums and galleries soaking up the work-

lem: As an oil painter, primarily, I have often wondered, what

ing methods of so many art heroes, past and present, whose

attracts me more—the land, or the means of artistic expression?

works I admired. As many artists like me can attest, these

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excursions to learn the secrets of the masters didn’t so much involve an appreciation of the land, as much as it did, an appreciation of the application of paint. It was the subtle beauty of a well-placed brushstroke, a delicate color juxtaposition, economy of paint application, the suggestion of detail where none was present, and so on. In realist paintings of this sort, it paradoxically comes down to the abstract quality of paint application, as much or more than depicting a scene in nature. This is known as creating a “sense of place” by many in the profession. That is why I have sometimes thought that Modern Traditionalists owe a debt of gratitude to the Abstract Expressionists, if for nothing else than the appreciation of the painting surface itself. When you get down to it, the real muse is something more-something deeper-than even the beauty of the great outdoors. Quite frankly, the land, with its inspiring vistas needs nothing else to prop it up. In other words, if it were only about appreciation of beautiful scenery, why would anyone need to paint it in the first place? After all, to see the land in person, to feel the sun on your face, to bask in the envelope of atmosphere that surrounds it, would be all that was necessary. That brings us back to the idea of a muse. It’s more than mere appreciation of pretty places that attracts the landscape painter, and for that matter, more than mere surface quality on a picture plane. Though these two elements are a source of satisfaction and inspiration, the even deeper muse dips its roots into the creative need. These three elements of the painting process—subject, depiction, and creative impulse—all go into making up the muse of painting, and these can mean a lot of different things to many artists. I recently participated in the Rocky Mountain Plein Top: Mitch Baird, Antelope Flats, Oil, 11 in. x 14 in. Middle: Wes Newton, Jenny Lake Pines, Oil, 11 in. x 14 in. Bottom: John Cook, The Grand Stand, Oil, 11 in. x 14 in. Left: Wes Newton, Cottonwoods of Kelly, Oil, 20 in. x 30 in.

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Left: Eric Jacobsen, Stormy Afternoon, Oil, 4 in. x 8 in.

Left: Mitch Baird, Raking Light Santa Catalinas, Oil, 18 in. x 24 in.

Air Painters Show in Grand Teton National Park for my

“I live in the Dallas area

third year in a row. Several dozen well-known artists from

where we have bumps in the

all over the country come together to this event each July

land. I stare at the rock forma-

to paint for two weeks in one of the most beautiful places

tions in Jackson with fits of

on earth, with its majestic mountain peaks that rise over

jealousy. The Tetons are ridicu-

13,000 feet above sea level.

lously astounding!”

One would think that in an environment like this would

— John Cook

be the subject of every canvas at the show on opening night, but that wasn’t the case. The mountains themselves usually only make up a portion of the total canvases. Does this surprise anyone? Possibly, but the reason

“The land is a testimony of the Creator’s passion for his creations. The drama that takes place

is clear. As previously stated, the muse of the landscape

is here one moment then gone,

painter involves that certain something inside that comes

but shortly thereafter, another

out and manifests itself in a cross section between creativ-

moment of visual delight comes

ity, nature, and execution. It’s the true essence of painting

along. Whether it’s the mountains,

and can’t be controlled by preconceived ideas about what

streams, waterfalls, seasonal col-

would look good in a frame or what might sell quickly.

ors, wildlife, or the blending of

To follow their creative muse, each artist must be in tune

them all; it’s an experience that

with their deeper feelings as they react to nature and light

all should take the time to behold.

on any given day.

It’s my pure pleasure as an artist

For me, an added incentive to this show has come in the form of two weeks of unfettered artistic freedom and experimentation. There are certainly long rigorous

to make the effort, in hopes of capturing one of these moments.”

— Wes Newton

days of painting, but in a sense, these days are dictated only by where the wind happens to blow our easels each

“I prefer to paint in wild or at least rural areas where

day. This freedom creates an energizing atmosphere of

man’s impact on the land is minimal. For me there is nothing

creative renewal, along with rich bonds of friendship and

more beautiful than seeing the landscape roll out in front of

artistic sharing.

me in a rich tapestry of color, texture, and pattern.”

During this year’s show I was particularly impressed by

— Eric Jacobsen

the works of artists Wes Newton, Mitch Baird, Eric Jacobsen, and John Cook; whose artistic styles vary from the more

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“As a creator of images there are so many opportunities

traditional approaches of Newton and Baird to the edge of

to express visually the epic moment, the spiritual connec-

abstraction in the work of Cook and Jacobsen. I would like to

tion to a subject, the quality of light, color, and even the

highlight some of their work as well as their thoughts on the

everyday mundane. With every subject there comes a core

muse of painting.

communication that we must strive to share. It is often dif-

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ficult to figure out what needs subordination to accentuate

color, texture, shape, edges, atmosphere, and rhythm.

the important, especially when everything in front of you is

Within these concepts there are repetition, alternation,

scintillating and exciting.

order, chaos, movement, stagnation, complexity, simplici-

To help in this process I look to design principles to ease the burden and narrow my field of expression to exactly what I want. I prefer to work from life when seeking inspiration and finding my ‘muse.’ When working with the landscape I try to be on loca-

ty, etc. The options are endless and this is my ‘muse’ and what keeps me seeking fresh arrangements to create.”

— Mitch Baird John Hughes lives in Taylorsville, Utah and is represented in Park City, Utah by Montgomery Lee Fine Art and in Jackson

tion as much as I can, because when facing nature direct-

Hole, Wyoming by Mountain Trails Gallery. He teaches landscape

ly, one has to really look for the visual essentials. It

painting at Salt Lake Community College as well as yearly outdoor

usually comes down to a design concept such as pattern,

summer workshops through the Scottsdale Artist’s School. Premier Fine Arts Digest of the Mountain West

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Between Earth and Sky Salt Lake City Artists Share Their Thoughts on Nature by Ehren Clark

I

t is said that faith can move mountains. With the reality of inspiration, a mountain will move the observer

stop and meditate on the realities of existence in the truth

spirit of experience.

of beauty and the bounty of life in these inspiring locations that have, for over 200 years since, been the muse

vastness and variety and

for artist, traveler, and

appeal, as “muse.” Since

seeker of life.

the Romantic era, with innumerable artists, there has been an inspiration to experience and to recreate the landscape. Forest, mountain, water, hill, and

wonder that reaches into the empyrean beyond, pause to

of every kind, with channels of emotion, meaning, and the Consider the mountain, and the landscape, in its

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With a sense of the natural world and its pristine

“Natural formations of every kind convey a sense of spirituality that is experienced emotionally.”

The muse, in the classical sense, is that which inspires. For an artist, this inspiration elicits a response, an expression; be it painting, a theatrical ode

sky—natural formations of

to the land, a poem, sculp-

every kind that convey a

ture, drawing, or multi-

sense of spirituality that is experienced emotionally and

media expression. This response is the inspired expression

that transcend into the sublime awe to reach even higher.

drawn from the inspiration of the natural muse.

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Salt Lake City painters of landscape, in communication with whichever landscape resource inspire them, are exciting in the dynamics of their purposes and processes. They are grounded and rooted in the city, and in nature that surrounds, with a broad spectrum and scope of inspiration and interpretation for creativity. Anne Albaugh is a painter whom has for many years been captivated by the land of the southwest and has become long adept at painting it. She is metaphysically in touch with the land, its universal balance, its reality in the lives of those whom exist between earth and sky, subject to overwhelming, billowing, and darkened clouds that loom largely above like a cloak, and the habitation below, where all are subordinate to this balance. All of life must experience adversity, says Albaugh, and the intensity and inner power of her oeuvre is a force to be reckoned with. Nature is a living reality of life, and is something Albaugh takes very seriously, as she draws from the inner energy that inspires her, and she paints what she sees, the state of flux she experiences in nature, and as nature offers it to her in an inspiration that is whole. Albaugh offers this to whomever chooses to experience and feel the power of her paintings. What are the sensibilities of the reality and being of nature that inspire the artist and how can she make this, if only for a moment, just as real for her audience? For Albaugh, this comes naturally. “When I paint the landscape, I paint not as much the land as the interpretation of the land and the sky… and the weather. The weather is what has shaped the land; it shapes us,” says Albaugh. “There is a time when you are in there, when you are with the weather, and it is consuming. When you are in that desert, especially when there is nothing going on, but that big blue, blue

Top: Mark Knudsen, Park Avenue North, Oil, 24 in. x 84 in.

Left: Anne Albaugh, Pinedale to Jackson, Oil on Canvas, 16 in. x 40 in.

Bottom: Anne Albaugh, Wyoming Snow Melt, Oil on Canvas, 30 in. x 48 in.

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sky. Then you see the storms come in, and they bring life,

Says Knudsen, “In our ordinary life, the mundane

but they also bring death…I see it and I have to stop, and

dualisms, right or wrong, them or us, good or bad; when

I have to allow myself to be consumed by it.”

I go to wild country that dissipates…I think inspiration

“Then, that is what I paint. When I paint, I can paint it because there is a metaphysical, psychological attempt to control the natural world, by painting, that is what I feel. It’s a closeness with where I am, and what I

is always out there, what comes and goes is our ability to see.” “A couple who had bought three of my pieces… approached me and wanted to commission me to do a

am doing, and my own attempt to dominate my own fear of it.” On the other hand, Mark Knudsen is a wellknown Salt Lake City

painting. They had a photo

“Inspiration is always out there, what comes and goes is our ability to see.”

in it; it was by most people’s standards a beautiful setting, but I couldn’t paint it, mainly because of the way

around Moab, Utah. His

it was lighted. I could not

works depict the physicality of hard rock formations—

make a painting out of it because of the direction the

bold, unabashed, barren, and beautiful.

sun was coming from, so there is ‘a beautiful’ that I

By adding detail, of iconographic choices—signposts, a

can’t paint.” To counter the photograph, Knudsen gestures to a

the ephemeral within the timelessness of the rock, estab-

painting in progress. “By just about anyone’s standards

lishing a fragment of the reality of a moment, isolated

this isn’t a beautiful thing, but I found it engaging.

from all other moments.

Dualism is something that when it vanishes, that is one

Justin Wheatley, The American Dream, Acrylic, 31 in. x 48 in.

horizontal. It had a VW Bus

landscapist who paints

culvert, or magnificent ravens—he captures the moment of

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they got to me. It was very

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Justin Wheatley, House on 7th, Acrylic, 20 in. x 16 in.


Top: Ron Russon, Five Sisters, Oil on Canvas, 60 in. x 48 in. Bottom: Ron Russon, Red Dirt Pines, Oil on Canvas, 24 in. x 18 in.

way of saying, ‘you’ve transcended it.’ Many of my paintings, not all of them, I try to find a way of focusing on temporality; I want that to be in the present. I don’t want my paintings to be ‘mysterious,’ and a lot of people think that paintings are mysteries to be unraveled. Often that just prevents them from entering into it.” Knudsen’s is an approach to capture the timelessness of the land and present just enough of ephemera in his canvas to capture that land in a definable moment. Knudsen’s wife, Leslie Thomas, is a no less notable artist in Salt Lake City and, like her husband, paints the red rock around Moab. Thomas has an approach that is unique and inspired by what one might often see just beside a highway, and may not be identified. Thomas makes distinctive and aggressive shapes of the landforms she uses as her subjects, and lends a unique Modern presence by painting each for its own sake, with a focus on the physicality of her subject—the structure of what she paints more than simply the illusion of a mountain. Says Thomas, “A big part of my inspiration is finding pieces of the world that I think I can paint. The world is full of beauty and the landscape is full of beauty, but a lot of it, I don’t know how I would present it. So, part of me that is inspired is just whether I think I can present it.” “And then a lot of my inspiration is Mark; he’s been a teacher to me. He’s taught me to look at roadside scenes instead of hiking in miles to get to something, either more spectacular, or in a sense less familiar. He’s helped me to see that I can paint things that are familiar that have just not caught people’s attention and let them catch people’s attention. The way I try to bring an audience in is the way we lean on the world, and the world is interesting.” Ron Russon, who is originally from Lehi, Utah and has always been immersed and connected with the land, is a landscape painter who is also an abstract painter. His work, and the power of the ebb and flow within it, evokes the fundamentals of nature and how natural elemental catalysts are what give the mind nourishment to produce profound and evocative images of the land. Even though abstract, Ron Russon’s work is very real, with a very palpable way of interpretation. He Premier Fine Arts Digest of the Mountain West

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Leslie Thomas, Big Lump Oil, 24 in. x 40 in. draws from nature, and elemental forms that echo the

how the things we make come from the land and then we

literal being of the natural world, albeit from the mind,

make more,” says Wheatley.

imagination, and care for the environment. “If you look at nature in and of itself, it’s what a lot

keeping up with each other, creating neighborhoods where

nature and there is truth and beauty there, because it’s

all houses look the same, but still everybody wants to be

there, you can’t deny it, so a lot of art is seeking truth and

different because it’s comfortable being the same. And

beauty through art. Depending on how you look at it, a

then you try to be different by ‘getting a new toy’ or doing

tree is a tree, but a tree is also little sections of abstrac-

something a little to your house. I think we’re all the same

tion—you can get lost in the bark, you can get lost in the

because everybody has their problems; it doesn’t matter

moss, you can get lost in lichen on rocks. It can become, in

where you come from. I think it’s how we put ourselves

your mind, just this journey of beauty.”

into the landscape; it’s about how we put ourselves into

from landscape, Salt Lake City painter and philosopher

the houses.” Wheatley’s inquiry into the artificiality of landscape,

Justin Wheatley is an artist whose focus is a broad

urban sprawl, what he sees as a world of facades that can-

enquiry and oeuvre that is a response to the human

not show truth, and an “everybody for themselves” atti-

environmental world, albeit a questioning of artificial

tude is what constitutes the general landscape environ-

landscape of today.

ment in America.

With an intellectual twist for a different and entirely

For those who love the land, as do these Salt Lake

relevant point of view, Wheatley has questioned land

City artists, the realities of suburbia are nothing new,

all of his life—the suburban and natural landscapes.

and the falseness of the world today has become boring,

Wheatley focuses on communities to learn more about

something not for the artist, traveler, and seeker of life;

people, their interactivity, and the landscape of suburban

and never has and never will inspire.

sprawl to identify how people choose to habitat for them-

The contrast between manufactured society and all

selves. He’s interested in and what is essentially real or

that has been discussed—the inspiration, ideas, and ide-

false about this landscape.

ologies of nature as muse—point to the being of beauty,

“It’s always been about the relationship between us as humans and the landscape, the artificial and the natural, •

how we live amongst each other, and often how we’re

of people try to emulate,” says Russon. “You can look at

With a broad inspiration and a richness of ideas

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“Lately, I’ve been questioning living in suburbia, and

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universality, temporality, and what is lasting as is what is true.


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Artists and their Pieces John Huges Upper Provo

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Along the Snake River

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Wyoming Autumn

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Devin Liljenquist Roman Apartments

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My Window

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St. George

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Rob Wilson Golden Fall

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Subdued Passion

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The Matriarchs

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Coming from the Creek

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Upper Provo, 2015 by John Hughes 30 x 40, Oil on Linen Canvas Framed $7,200 This painting represents one of my favorite spots on the upper Provo River. I love the serenity of a fresh blanket of snow on a sunny day. Fields decked out in fresh snow lined by rows of cottonwoods provides an intricate combination of abstract forms that give spark to my artistic muse.

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Wyoming in Autumn, 2015 by John Hughes 12 x 24, Oil on Linen Panel Framed $2,000

Along the Snake River, 2015 by John Hughes 9 x 12, Oil on Linen Panel Framed $975 The joy of summer along the river teaming with life and abundance. This peaceful place is one that I can retreat to during the bustle of summer activity in Grand Teton National Park.

Autumn evokes a peaceful somber mood with its juxtaposition of warm and cool tones that signify change as winter approaches. The warmth especially, is the last glimmer of life that ebbs for a while, as the land and its creatures prepare for the long siege of Winter.

As I painted, a young moose made his way across the expanse of land across the river, and for a time we both lived in harmony with the land and each other.

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Roman Apartments, 2004 by Devin Liljenquist 45 x 35, Oil on Board Framed $1,350 The colors in Italy! I was a huge fan of the composition, particularly the straight lines. It reminded me of Edward Hopper, a favorite artist of mine. My exploration of color in everything, especially in reflective light, continues here.

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My Window, 2003 by Devin Liljenquist 32 ½ x 42 ½, Oil on Board Framed $1,050 As a student in Florence, I became enamored with Post-Impressionism. Particularly, the work of Paul Cezanne. He painted distinct color in everything—the sky, the shadows, skin. This was an over-exploration and exaggeration of that concept.

St. George, 2009 by Devin Liljenquist 45 ½ x 33 ½, OIl on Board Framed $1,250 The colors from Snow Canyon, as seen from Sunbrook, inspired this piece. I went through a Mark Rothko and Richard Diebenkorn kick. Also, I was having fun with gesso and sanding techniques. This is the first piece where I felt like my brushstroke was my own too.

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Golden Fall, 2015 by Rob Wilson 22 x 30, Oil on Canvas Framed $2,350 The coming of fall and the brilliant color changes in the Caribou mountain range above the Teton river in Idaho always catches my attention. It feels almost surreal when the aspens glow in the setting sunlight.

Subdued Passion, 2012 by Rob Wilson 20 x 14, Oil on Panel Framed $910 The way the light falls like liquid down this figure is just mesmerizing. Drennen was the model and she couldn’t have been any more expressive. I can feel her passion through this piece.

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Coming From The Creek, 2013 by Rob Wilson 30 x 12, Oil on Panel Framed $1,260 Crossing the planes on a moonless night with only firelight must have been a harsh challenge. I pictured a woman coming back from the creek they camped by with a bucket of water to wash with for the evening meal. Her expression and the look in her eyes lead me to think it’s more that just being back from the darkness, and that she is looking lovingly on someone or ones.

The Matriarchs, 2015 by Rob Wilson 30 x 40, OIl on Canvas Framed $3,900 The Tetons and Mount Moran from the Wyoming side when the light blows through the clouds as they pour over the peaks is magical. You can watch the Tetons from dawn to dusk and see a million distinctly different paintings come and go; one of the most beautiful places on earth.

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The Muse Marilyn

Is the Perfect Woman Inspiring or Imitated? by Rebecca Edwards

W

hen asked to consider who embodies the idea of a

the bottomless pit in Norma Jean Baker’s soul. Her bottle

modern-day muse, Marilyn Monroe was my inevita-

blonde hair, those cherry-red lips, and her ideal hourglass

ble first thought. She possesses an image and mystique that

figure became the visual ideal of womanhood. But her

has inspired a legion of contemporary artists across nearly

impact went further. Her soft, whispery voice and vulner-

every medium—from Andy Warhol to Joyce Carol Oates, and

able, ingénue persona added to the allure and became repre-

even pop music maven Madonna.

sentative of female sexuality.

Marilyn was aware of her own allure and gave herself willingly to the adoring throng clamoring for a piece of her. “I knew I belonged to the public and to the world,” the iconic blonde once said, “Not because I was talented or even

Marilyn became the answer to Freud’s conundrum; the illumination of the “dark continent called woman.” And it’s her embodiment of all things feminine that helps push her into the role of a muse, that ethereal female spirit that

beautiful, but because I had

inspires and emboldens an

never belonged to anything

artist to create.

or anyone else.” In retrospect, those words are eerily prophetic. Foretelling the decades of continued adoration and emulation that have immortalized the tragic

“Marilyn is an enigma. She resists capture and understanding, adding to the muse-like quality that draws artists like moths to a flame.”

The fact that Marilyn manufactured herself makes it easy for others to do the same. Andy Warhol did it best with his Technicolor images of the blonde bombshell. An

Hollywood star. Part of

homage most definitely,

what helps Marilyn’s influ-

but also a critique of the

ence persist is the idea that despite thousands of pictures

beauty as a person stripped bare and manufactured as a

capturing her image—both still and moving, subdued in

commodity.

black and white and blazing in vibrant color—the woman was never really known. Marilyn is an enigma. She resists capture and under-

In fact, Warhol’s replication of Marilyn’s image is the perfect representation of how she has been used by artists, actresses, singers, photographers, and even fashion design-

standing, adding to the muse-like quality that draws artists

ers. His famous lithographs are a copy of a copy of a copy—

like moths to a flame.

which is the most common way Marilyn’s precarious image

Marilyn was, after all, a mask. A magical creation invented to satisfy the hunger of the American public and

is treated in the hands of contemporary artists. A seemingly unending parade of pop culture mavens

Andy Warhol, American, 1928–1987, Blue Marilyn, Princeton University Art Museum 1962, Acrylic and screen print ink on canvas 19 7/8 in. x 15 7/8 in. Gift of Alfred H. Barr Jr., Class of 1922, and Mrs. Barry

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have cannibalized Marilyn’s image, mannerisms, and embodiment of female power to their own ends. Madonna, Lady Gaga, and the late Anna Nicole Smith have all fancied themselves a new incarnation of the Marilyn magic, which begs the question: Is imitation the same as inspiration? It would be easy to dismiss Marilyn as a pop culture phenomenon that, had she lived into middle age or been born a decade later, would have been no bigger a blip on the world of art than selfdestructive child star Lindsay Lohan. But her premature end forever preserved her mystery; froze the woman and her largerthan-life persona in time. Oates, author of fictional Marilyn tellall, “Blonde,” says, “I think that Monroe is a representative American of a time, a place, a category of being, with whom virtually anyone can identify.” Her universality is her blessing and her curse. The proliferation of Marilyn coverage, encompassing more than 200 tomes, innumerable articles, and thousands of images, dilutes her potency. It does not, however, change the woman’s omnipresent power to inspire. Marilyn has been credited as the inspiration for everything from fashion lines to lipstick colors. There is a collective imperative to possess her, even if it’s only through the fleeting impression of a blood-red lip on a tissue. The most compelling aspect of a muse is its incessant pull. A constant tug that compels the artist to express himself, and in so doing attempt an exorcism of the spirit of the muse by which he has become possessed. Marilyn is nothing if not a highly possessive spirit that takes hold and refuses to let go. That spirit, which was never fully embraced by the serious theatre, has always been revered by the art world. Whether it’s

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Richard Avedon, American, 1923–2004, Marilyn Monroe, actress, New York 1957. Gelatin silver prints, 7 15/16 in. x 7 13/16 in.


Warhol’s unforgettable portraits or iconic fashion photographer Richard Avedon’s insightful images, the canvas and the camera have always taken her seriously. The artist’s quest to possess Marilyn is driven by the desire to expose the torment underneath the flirty smile and lascivious stare. In a Metropolitan Museum of Art essay, Avedon shared a glimpse of his desire to capture Marilyn’s elusive inner life. “For hours she danced and sang and flirted and did this thing that’s—she did Marilyn Monroe. And then there was the inevitable drop. And when the night was over and the white wine was over and the dancing was over, she sat in the corner like a child, with everything gone. I saw her sitting quietly without expression on her face, and I walked towards her but I wouldn’t photograph her without her knowledge of it. And as I came with the camera, I saw that she was not saying no.” The result of that picture to which she did not say no became one of the only portraits of the quiet puppeteer behind the flamboyant persona. In the telling black-andwhite image Marilyn’s famous smile is gone, the bright taunt in her eyes is nowhere to be found, and in their place is the face of a little girl lost. It nearly looks as if Avedon captured Norma Jean playing dress up in a plunging, sparkly gown and too much makeup. Repeatedly, it seems those quieter moments are the ones that show us Marilyn’s power to ensnare the artist’s imagination. Sexuality is regularly tangled up in the mystery of the muse, and Marilyn is no exception. However, because her sexuality is so overt, it’s the pull of what lies beneath that compels artists to continue their pursuit of the complicated starlet. It is the tragedy overshadowing the glamour that sneaks into the subconscious and takes root. Yet even though artists’ representations of the starlet

Barry Leighton Jones, Marilyn, ca 1980, Oil on Canvas, 36 x 48 in., Courtesy Erica Duval. It is that very comparison that removes her status as

abound, upon closer examination I no longer view her as a

muse. We wouldn’t likely consider the Campbell’s soup can to

muse. Marilyn does not inspire new creation, she compels her

be Warhol’s muse; however, even though Marilyn is used in

own reincarnation. Depictions of Marilyn, whether on canvas or

identical fashion, her flesh and blood make us elevate her role.

through physical imitation, continue to be variants on Warhol’s

No, this sad, lost woman is not a muse in the truest

theme. She is re-created again and again, in her own image. “Forbes” once called Warhol’s “Marilyn” an “icon of an

sense of the word. But she is an idea and an emblem that continues to fascinate and encourage replication. As a subject

icon created by an icon.” Positing that “Warhol’s ‘Marilyn’

of art, she has more in common with the inanimate can of

is no different from a soup can on a grocery shelf. She is no

condensed soup than the assortment of women who played

longer a human being but a consumer product, one created by

muse for artists like Picasso.

Hollywood to satisfy the demands of the marketplace.”

Throughout his life Picasso always had a muse, usually

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his paramour of the moment, and these women absolutely

For Picasso, his women are hidden in the brush-

influenced his work, but when viewing a painting by Picasso,

strokes, in the paint, in his unique, obsessive vision. With

you don’t see Marie-Therese Walter or Jacqueline Roque, you

Marilyn, all you see is Marilyn—she’s too ubiquitous to

see art. There’s no question that the women are there, but

fade into the background. When Marilyn is represented by

they are there for the artist, not the audience.

an artist, it is she who is the point.

Marie-Therese influenced Picasso for at least 30 years,

Marilyn is, more than anything else, a work of art. And

but only a very knowing observer could spot her on the can-

that is where her artistic legacy lies. Art informs art in the

vas. John Richardson, a friend of Picasso, told CBS News,

same way a muse inspires the artist. Being stripped of the

“He had her in mind always, all the time; everything relates

title “muse” in no way diminishes the iconic star. Rather, it

to her,” said Richardson. “When he was painting landscapes,

elevates her to a place of true art, where she is at once the

he was painting her. He was absolutely obsessed by her.”

artist, the subject, and the message.

Melissa Kelsey Photography

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Music

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Behind the Minds of Music

What Role Does Divine Inspiration Play in Composing Music? by Nathan Bowen

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A

s a young student, I remember my composition teachers

dients that add to their genius. Their work is often mysteri-

warning me not to trust what composers say about their

ously conceived.

music and their process. The irony is not lost on me. They

The reality is that works of art, when completed and

would cite all kinds of anecdotes and lace the retelling of the

presented to the world, take on a life of their own. The recep-

stories with a wink and a little skepticism.

tion of a piece, the circumstances in which it was produced,

Handel’s “Messiah,” widely believed to be written in a

an esteemed colleague’s endorsement, a critic’s salient obser-

fever of divine inspiration over the course of only 24 days,

vations, and all other meta-data generate a momentum that

took about the same amount of time to compose as other

detaches the work from the creator.

large works by him and his contemporaries. Handel also used

A composer might be able to drive the conversation

recycled material from works written just before it. Stravinsky

around the work, but at some point along the way he or

declared the full orchestral score of “Rite of Spring” finished by

she will lose autonomy over the work. For someone who

signing the last page as “completed in Clarens, March 8, 1913,”

has invested so much time and put so much heart into a

even though he continued to make revisions for years following

piece, the loss of control can be a little unsettling or down-

its premiere.

right frightening.

Granted, we live in an age where debunking myths and

That is what makes the inception of the work—the time

drilling down to the facts are common practice. Yet, who are

and space in which it is not yet heard publicly—so intrigu-

we to scruple with Handel seeing “all heaven before him” when

ing. What is going on in the mind of the composer? How

he wrote the “Hallelujah” chorus, or to hold Stravinsky in con-

does a musical idea originate and then crystalize into some-

tempt for preemptively calling a work done that he could not

thing far more defined? What role does inspiration play in

leave alone?

the process? How does the muse speak to the artist?

Yes, composers often say and do things calculated to

I asked this last question to several composers, all

create intrigue around themselves, and much of the tra-

of whom have lived in Utah or are living there currently. My

ditional culture surrounding the maestro is predicated on

prompt went like this:

a Romantic idea that composers can take on mythological grandeur. Over time, the perception of the “composer as genius” has transformed into the “composer as specialist,” a term coined by Milton Babbitt in a 1958 article attempting to link music composition and its subject matter with other high-level studies such as quantum physics and advanced mathematics and philosophy. Regardless of the reasons why we grant composers respect or status, at the end of the day we want the art they produce to move us. We want to believe that artists, poets, and composers have special, uncommon qualities. They have privileged access to inspiration. They possess special ingre-

I had a teacher who believed I should make the muse come to me: set regular hours where I write as routine, and if inspiration strikes then, great. If not, then, oh well. The idea was essentially that waiting around for inspiration breeds creative laziness and/or procrastination, and that inspiration can only get going when one is in regular practice. A quote by Flannery O’Connor summarizes: “And the fact is if you don’t sit there every day, the day it would come, well, you won’t be sitting there.”

“We want to believe that artists, poets, and composers have special, uncommon qualities.”

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These are the responses I received from each composer who participated in this inquiry.

Michael Hicks

Steven Ricks

the original inspiration is not always obvious—it’s buried, obscured, transformed, etc., by the creative

For me, nowadays, the muse is the energy

I think any creative venture, and for me per-

process itself.

flow of all past experiences that have subtly

sonally, the act of creating music, takes hard work

haunted me through life. Pardon me if this seems

and time, and I have most often been inspired

any piece of music I’ve created has required a

gauche, but I think of a comment Johnny Carson

when I’m in the throes of a piece and working hard.

lot of hard work and clock time, I always feel that

My version of the muse, while probably

there’s something miraculous about that finished

made to Steve Martin after Steve had done a

And I suppose that in spite of the fact that

breakthrough set on the “Tonight Show:” “You’ll

there all along the way, usually seems to really

product. I’ll step back and think, “Wow, where did

use everything you ever knew.”

show up when I have a certain amount of criti-

that come from?” Even though I was there and

cal mass, which is to say I usually only start to

working for hours and I suppose “know” where it

can do that. I allow and welcome and coax

feel inspired about a piece and feel like it’s really

came from, there’s still something mysterious and

and savor everything I may have thought I’d

going in the right direction, or when I have a

miraculous about it.

gotten over or transcended in the name of

certain amount of ideas down on the page and

some affectation of high-mindedness or pro-

can really get a better sense of what I’m trying

priety. The experimentation, the love of play

to create. Once that happens the work seems to

we lost as we “grew up,” is the blood-flow of

flow more easily.

I’ve finally gotten to the point where I

this “muse.” I don’t wait for her to come so

Getting to that point happens in dif-

Crystal Young-Otterstrom I approach music writing pretty darn similarly to how I also approach my religious

much as know when it’s a good time to open

ferent ways for me with different pieces,

practice. I think about the ensemble, or religious

the door and let her in from the unconscious

but one constant is that I usually become

concept, or musical concept, or idea for weeks.

to the conscious. It’s usually at odd hours and

obsessed with something, and that obsession

I’ll meditate on it. I’ll think about it on and off

never scheduled. But I know when it’s time.

ultimately leads from abstract thoughts to

during the day. There’s always some concept

Like last night, I was thinking about this

more concrete ideas about sound and music,

I’m working out in my brain during these mental

string quartet commission for which I’ve done

which eventually find their way onto the page

exercises. I think about the harmonic structure,

some sketches and wondered where to go with

or in to a sound file.

the contrapuntal ideas behind the piece, archi-

it. And then, I felt I was in the right frame of

I think you’ve probably heard me share this

tectural structure, voices, etc.

mind to open my thoughts to scenarios and ges-

poem, but it’s one of my favorites on the creative

Before pencil hits paper, I’ve already

tures I loved or wondered about. I began writing

process—“Why I Am Not A Painter,” by Frank

made most of the decisions and written

ideas down in words on 4 x 6 post-its. That’s

O’Hara. I think this poem accurately captures

80 percent of the piece in my head. I then

actually how I do most of my writing, by the way,

how the creative process works for me. I become

sit down and write out the music, usually

whether music or prose or poetry: cursive on 4

obsessed with something—a song or specific

straight through from beginning to end over

x 6 post-its; which apparently my muse seems

musical idea, a poem, a passage from a novel,

a few hours, spread over a few days. If I had

to love, maybe for their lack of pretension and

whatever—and then at some point I’m compelled to

more time for composition maybe I would

ease of reordering. I need to keep things mobile,

create something inspired by or in response to this

approach it differently, but this is how it

at least for awhile.

initial impetus. By the time the work is completed

works for me.

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M. Ryan Taylor Generally, I agree that setting regular hours to work on creative projects is the best way to have the muse visit. Every now and again,

ative projects in the arts; it’s also something that I

way through putting the piece together, when

rely on when crafting strategies or adding nuance

the materials I am working with take on a life

to tactics deployed in the workplace in order to

of their own and dictate the course of the

orchestrate the people in the office.

piece. Waiting for inspiration to strike simply

I think it’s one of the reasons I’m so good

delays the process.

though, I’ll get an idea for something that I feel

at my job (currently consulting on merging two

utterly compelled to do and can’t stop working

companies), but it’s also why I’m still able to be

week to write a double saxophone concerto

on, obsessively, I might add, until it is finished.

creative outside the office. I need my logic muse

from the ground up. I couldn’t wait for inspi-

Perhaps those moments wouldn’t come if I didn’t

just as much as my artistic muse on a daily basis

ration to strike. I just had to start working.

have those “regular hours” though.

and sometimes they feed each other.

And so I used techniques most familiar to

For example, when I’m thinking about

Nathaniel Eschler To your question the muse, as it were,

Case in point: I was recently given one

me—canon, counterpoint, ornamentation,

strategy at work I get a brilliant idea about a

pairing, sequencing, etc. The more time I

storyline I’ve been working on and when I’m fut-

spend accumulating technique, the easier the

zing around on the piano, inspiration about how

process of composing becomes. In my work,

comes from time to time and is usually needed

to solve a behavior problem at work will hit me.

the most productive ways of gaining that

to start a piece that is worth working on. After

Whenever I’ve tried to only focus on one side of

technique are by studying the work of other

that it is just solving the puzzle, or rather letting

my ability (arts vs. corporate or right brain vs.

composers and working out small composi-

the music run its course in a natural organic

left brain) I begin to lose my edge. It’s only when

tional etudes.

way. I actually make very few compositional

I’m active in both sides of my ability that I am

choices after a work is started outside of the

able to sustain my muses.

next harmony.

Neil Thornock Rebeca Dawn

For me, the entire process of music composition is simply technique. I don’t wait

As you know, I’m not a composer 100

for the muse or set hours; I just dive in and

percent of my time. In fact, I don’t get paid to

use the tools at my disposal to make the

compose anything these days and spend more

music happen. However, I do believe inspi-

of my “creative” time writing prose rather than

ration is important. The music has to mean

writing music. Regardless, for me the muse isn’t

something. But that “meaning” for me does

something I only access when I’m working on cre-

not normally come until I am much of the

As both a writer and composer, you might be able to deduce that I too find great value in hearing from oth-

To close with my own anecdote, I remember as a teenager

ers, and it is a part of my own muse. Inspiration tends

having a strong desire for originality, with Jimi Hendrix’s

to come for me once I am in regular fitness and exercise

“unschooled” persona being my beacon. In spite of my parents

with writing.

offering for me to be able to take guitar lessons, I declined

That lesson came from the strong advice of my teacher Amnon

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its way into my artistic output whether I want it to or not.

because I wanted my work to remain free from influence.

Wolman, who relayed the O’Connor quote on setting hours and

It’s laughable—and fascinating—to look back and hear how

added, “If the muse comes while I’m making lunch, all it will

close my “original” compositions sound like my favorite Jimi

amount to is a really good sandwich.” I have been profoundly

Hendrix tracks. The moral of this story? Don’t trust everything

impacted by what others have taught me, and that influence works

a composer says about his or her work.

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The Art of Motion

The Legacy of Dance’s Most Impassioned Contributor by Kaylin Meyer

T

he brilliance of dance is in its total exclusivity.

dancing in a wide open space full of people, dancing so

Whatever inspires your spirit and tickles your soul

hard his stomach hurt, but “the music was so infectious,

while dancing is something others will never have access to, which is why when a dancer dances the work is more unique than that of anyone else’s.

it overrode the stomach cramps.” Smith compares dance to a surreal escape into a black hole, with the integration of music adding a timeless ele-

A woman who not only knew that truth, but lived it, was

ment. When Smith choreographs, if the movement doesn’t

master American choreographer and dancer Martha Graham.

come at first he listens. He waits patiently until some ele-

“Dance is the hidden language of the soul,” she said.

ment impacts him enough to give his body some sort of

Born in the late 1800s, Graham lived to be 96 years old, and she spent over 70 of those years dancing and choreographing. Between her long career and endless creativity and commitment to dance, it should come as no surprise that she

gesture and when that triumphant jam strikes, he suddenly gains momentum and crafts a beautiful surge of art. Smith, like Graham, is in love with the commitment to process in the truest, organic sense. The challenges, the

is known by many as the

intentions, the breath,

mother of modern dance

and the totality of

in America. Graham’s ingenuity came from her infusion of avant-garde techniques with ballet’s perfection, from which she developed

“I did not want it to be beautiful or fluid. I wanted it to be fraught with inner meaning, with excitement and surge.”

contemporary dance as we know it today. According to Denver contemporary dancer and choreographer, Alfred Smith, “Modern dance derives from ballet’s technique, but is significantly more expressive. Ballet is a

the experience in the moment is what drives both of these artists in their creation. Graham once said, “I wanted to begin not with characters or ideas,

but with movements. I wanted significant movement. I did not want it to be beautiful or fluid. I wanted it to be fraught with inner meaning, with excitement and surge.” It was that drive to fill movement with meaning that

science whereas modern or contemporary dance becomes

lead Graham to develop contemporary dance. Rather than

more interpretation instead of a science.”

focus on the technical aspects of dance, Graham encour-

I recently took a dance class from Smith and we

aged self expression. For her, it was never about the phys-

engaged in conversation about contemporary dance. In talk-

ical location or overall image and what the figure looked

ing with Smith, it became clear why the art of dance and

like on stage, but, rather, what the human body could do

movement is so important to him.

and say with their figure. Her visual expression of indi-

Before age 27, Smith had never really danced, and never thought he would until one day an incredible rhythm found its way into his soul. Smith proclaims there was a moment in time where he found his shy self 64

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Herta Moselsio, Martha Graham in Lamentation, Series ca 1930, Photograph B&W, 8 in. x 10 in., Courtesy Moselsio Collection.


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viduality through dynamic, angular movements played an

understood the depth of commitment to her passion and

irreplaceable role in the world of dance.

was willing to embark on a great adventure. It was through

On her journey to combine movement with emotion, Graham developed her own dance technique, one that is still widely used today. Her style, called the Graham

intensity of motion that her artistic voice was empowered and thrived. She had the burning passion to act in the world and

technique, was based on contracting and releasing differ-

as a dancer, choreographer, mover, influencer, artist, and

ent parts of the body in opposition to one another, which

activist. She found the source within herself and it’s quite

created exaggeration and dramatic tension between the

clear she was fiercely devoted. Acknowledgement of oneself

natural movements and formal dance technique that a

was what lit her fire and kept it burning until she parted

dancer uses.

ways with earth.

In her long dance career, Graham was the first dancer

Graham commenced on a valuable path to human

to perform at the White House, travel abroad as a cul-

exploration and helped change the overall perspective

tural ambassador, and receive the Presidential Medal of

of individuality. Her attitude toward dance and notable

Freedom—the highest civilian award in the United States.

experimentation with the human form crossed artistic

She also received the Key to the City of Paris and Japan’s

boundaries, which forever-changed the visual arts and

Imperial Order of the Precious Crown for her contributions to

opened the door for one’s spirit to express itself in the tru-

the art form.

est form possible.

However, the most notable contribution Graham made to Western dance culture is the simple truth that she changed the attitude of what it means to dance; to feel through connectivity. Unlike the other accepted forms of dance in the 20th century and prior, Graham took a more holistic approach. She saw dance as an experiment in the connection of one’s soul and her contribution to modern dance can be characterized by her dedication to resolute fearlessness. Graham’s soul was alive and she managed to overcome all impediments and limitations that tried to keep her from her life’s passion. Perhaps the greatest setback Graham had to overcome was leaving the stage. As she got older and was resigned to watching young, beautiful dancers perform her choreography, she became greatly depressed, and used alcohol to numb the pain. Eventually, Graham was hospitalized because of her drinking and spent much of her time in the hospital in a coma. If it were anyone else, this would be the end of the story. But Graham did not quit. Instead, she rallied and quit drinking in 1972, returned to her studio, and went on to choreograph ten new ballets and many revivals. All of this at age 78. She continued to choreograph until she died of pneumonia in 1991 at age 96. As one of the foremost pioneers of contemporary dance, Graham explored human and societal complexities. She 66

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Carl Van Vechten, Portrait of Martha Graham and Bertram Ross, 1961, Photograph, Courtesy Library of Congress.


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Salt Lake City’s Underground Jazz Scene Is Literally Underground by Savannah Turk

I

walked down the steep stairs into a loud, dimly-lit bar that feels reminiscent of the prohibition era. There, under the

I wanted to know what it was that encouraged these young musicians to play such inspired music. So, I sat

streets of Salt Lake City, smart city slickers sip their cocktails

down with the band and had them walk me through it. I

and gush with friends about everything from work to love.

wanted to understand the technique, culture, improvisa-

This is Bourbon House, a classy little watering hole that

tion, group dynamic, and more. And the group was kind

lives under the busy streets of Salt Lake City’s downtown

enough to take an intermission to explain where their moti-

business district. I walked in with a handful of friends, all

vation comes from.

looking for a rewarding drink after a long day. I expected the

The group consists of ring leader and bassist Zach

sweet cocktails and warm conversation, but I didn’t expect

Downes, founder and guitarist Ben Weiss, Kevin Judd on

the music.

keyboards, David Featherstone on drums, Matt Lima on

Filling the bar that night was a tight jazz group,

saxophone, Patrick Buie on trombone, and second drum-

playing upbeat classics with

mer Chris Petty. Technically,

soulful interjections of each

the jazz night at Bourbon

of their instruments. I was instantly enchanted. This isn’t the first time I’ve been impressed by the jazz scene in Salt Lake City. In fact, this metropolis has gar-

“That enlightenment, inspiration, muse—whatever you want to call it—is what makes me thirst for jazz.”

nered a reputation for being

Jazz has always fascinated me. While I love the perfectly practiced notes of the orchestra, and the catchy predict-

anyone interested in jazz to come jump on stage. “Every Tuesday from 9 to 11 p.m.,” Downes announced. questioning. How could a

musician who has never played with these individuals before just jump in without rehearsal or preparation? “The reason we can do what we do is because we’ve done

ability of pop music, nothing truly captures my imagination

our individual homework,” answered Weiss. “We have never

like jazz. Whenever I hear the impassioned music, I become

‘rehearsed’ as a band and that’s a very common thing with

inspired. Feeling, in some way, the force of every solo flow

jazz. You do your homework and you show up and hopefully

right out of the instrument and into me.

you pass the test.”

That enlightenment, inspiration, muse—whatever

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and the group encourages

That started my line of

one of the more jazz-savvy cities in the West.

House is an open jam sesh,

But it’s not complete guesswork. The group admits that

you want to call it—is what makes me thirst for jazz, even

they follow the “Great American Songbook,” which covers a

though my understanding of the genre is elementary at best.

number of standards commonly known in the jazz commu-

fibonaccifinearts.com


nity. Anyone versed in the songbook can pretty much show up and jump in. That jazz tradition of skipping rehearsal and playing with various groups regularly helps musicians understand the common cues and rules of communication on stage, allowing them to “play with anyone without having ever met them before,” explained Judd. For that to work, however, each musician has to “do their homework,” which means putting in thousands of hours of independent study. You hone your instrument, listen to the music, memorize the standards. “Absorbing that is a huge part of learning it,” said Weiss. “It’s like learning a language.” If playing jazz is like learning a language, then technique is your vocabulary. It’s the bedrock that allows musicians to get to the fun stuff—that sweet and soulful improvisation. “For me, technique is about not having to think about how you play your instrument so that your emotion can shine through honestly and authentically,” Petty told me. The musicians responded in resounding agreement, also

Photos by Chad Zavala Premier Fine Arts Digest of the Mountain West

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noting that technique helps players avoid injury, not hurting

gins and become an academic music. The group argued that

one’s hands or getting tired after a few songs.

it had, but to categorize it into either class would be selling

Buie expanded, “Technique is important...but what you have to say musically is more important.” Downes agreed, explaining how playing his bass is like journaling; he gets to express what’s in his head in the most honest way he knows. Jazz seems to have been an important mode of expression since its origins in the late 19th century. It grew out of

current, living side of jazz,” Weiss said. “You can’t be a jazz musician without understanding and respecting the tradition of it,” added Buie. “Honor the past by looking forward,” Downes chimed. “It is a preservation, but at the same time there’s a tradition in melding things together to create something new,”

musical influences in the African American community. It

Judd responded.

the early 1900s. Jazz did not stay in New Orleans, nor as ragtime, for long. The genre quickly spread across the country, and eventually the world, with each new iteration adding its own special twist. This central characteristic of jazz has made it a seemingly impossible genre to define. In an interview in 1988, jazz musician J. J. Johnson said, “Jazz is restless. It won’t stay put and it never will.” In the dark basement bar, this Salt Lake City jazz group echoed Johnson’s sentiments. “I think the defini-

“It transcends culture...It’s more than that,” declared Weiss. This is that nebulous definition of jazz in its truest form. That transcendent nature has made jazz more than “black music” or “white music,” it’s everyone’s music. “If people have a sincere wanting to learn, play; it’s not really entitled to one person or another,” Lima summed up. This got me wondering, what inspired that sincere wanting in these musicians? Of all the genres and instruments to choose from, this group found themselves on the same stage. Where did that unifying inspiration come from? “Music, for me, is a lot of pattern recognition...and going

tion of jazz is so nebulous,” Buie commented as we tried to

into nature is great because you get to see all of those pat-

define the music.

terns reflected in the raw beauty as they have been forever,”

I wanted to determine whether jazz has left its pop ori•

“There is a preservation side of jazz, but also a modern,

New Orleans from the combining of American and European was originally known as ragtime, and got the name “jas” in

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the art form short.

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Weiss explained. “You need to experience life to have some-


thing, some emotion, to play.” Judd and Featherstone pointed to a number of great musi-

The audience, it seems, is vital to evoking the muse and crossing over into that other realm of creativity. The problem

cians that inspired them to play this kind of music. “You get

with that? The fact that jazz audiences seem few and far

really inspired to create what they create,” said Featherstone.

between these days.

Downes spoke of his bass teacher in college, who inspired

“Jazz has this academic stigma, lately, and people think

Downes through his endless sacrifice for his students. Of the

it’s this high art form that you’re supposed to enjoy from a

late Joel DiBartolo, Downes said, “I always think about what

distance, like when you go to an art gallery and stand there

he would think about my playing. [He] was my biggest bass

quietly looking at the painting. People think jazz is that way

influence...I think about Joel every time I pick up the bass.”

and it boggles my mind. We are out here, drinking beer and

For Lima, attending live shows and watching concert DVDs was a big part of his motivation to play jazz. “I would look at videos of concert DVDs and pretend I’m playing like them,” he said. “I get more inspired by tunes than players,” noted Buie. “A really good tune gets me excited.” All of this inspiration for playing jazz is vital to any

having fun. It’s a lot more approachable than people think,” concluded Weiss. And I think he said it all. In this dark bar on a Tuesday night, the band mates stood and took up their posts on stage. Some of the mystery of this savory, sultry music was solved, but to truly understand jazz, it has to be heard. That magical realm of pure creativity must be experienced, and in my opin-

musician’s journey, but it isn’t quite what creates the mes-

ion there is no better medium to act as the doorway into the

meric melody that happens on stage when the muse strikes

ultimate muse.

and history is made. I wanted to know how these players tap into that kind of inspiration. Buie is quick to kill my buzz, “It can’t be inspired, it just exists. It just happens.” Alright, there isn’t a magic formula, but something spe-

The jazz jam group would like to thank Bourbon House for their hospitality over the last three years in allowing these sessions to continue, and encourages anyone interested in playing or listening to jazz to stop by on Tuesday nights. Maybe I’ll see you there.

cial needs to happen. Weiss jumped in and elaborated, “There are really special moments from time to time, that are pretty rare, when you’re going beyond what you know, and you’re in this crazy, little realm of magic.” Me: “So, what inspires those moments?” Them: “Getting in the zone.” Me: “And what inspires the zone?” Them: “The moment.” It seems like an inspiration catch 22, but I’m able to discern a few things that make the moment or the zone happen. “It’s easier to get in the zone when you’re in a room full of people when the stoke is high,” Weiss explained. “You shift into this realm of pure creativity and you’re pulling straight from the source.” Premier Fine Arts Digest of the Mountain West

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Multimedia

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Muse or Curse? A Look Inside the Great Minds of Art History by Carmen Stenholm

I

s a touch of mental dysfunction really what you need to

“We of the craft are all crazy. Some are affected by gaiety,

enhance your creativity? It is possible, but the jury is still

others by melancholy, but all are more or less touched.”

out after many studies that have indicated the answer can go in either direction.

It is telling to note that many artists such as the poet T.S. Elliot, the composer Irving Berlin, and the painter

As advances in science bring us closer to understand-

Georgia O’Keefe were once institutionalized. Others ended

ing ourselves, we must examine our cultures’ assumption

their own lives because the perturbation caused by their ill-

about tortured artists. The contradiction of genius creat-

nesses was simply unbearable.

ing great art because of, or in spite of, mental illness has

Historians speculate that Vincent van Gogh may have

been studied in the past few decades as we try to make

had schizophrenia. The disease is characterized by dis-

sense of the age old assumption that madness is a cohabi-

turbances in thought, language, emotions, and activities.

tant in our greatest artists.

While most of us are familiar with images of people with

Results are still inconclusive, but a link between manic

delusions or hallucinations, what is common to people

depressive disorder, as well as

with schizophrenia or bipolar

schizophrenia, has been found.

disorder is that the illnesses

The question for researchers is: Which came first—the often harsh lives of artists leading to deprivation and illness or the illness leading to great art?

“If insanity is a muse, she comes with an enormous price tag.”

The clearest example of the correlation between brilliant art and mental illness may be “The Scream” by Edvard Munch. Painted in 1893, Munch once said, “Sickness, insanity,

change perceptions. This means such individuals see the world in novel ways that may translate into works of art that are unusual and perhaps thought provoking. Ludwig von Beethoven, in

addition to being an alcoholic—a condition that may have been the result of self medication—is reported to have suf-

and death were the angels that surrounded my cradle and

fered from depression and possibly bipolar disorder. He is

they have followed me throughout my life.”

reported to have had sudden changes of mood ranging from

Great art and madness were linked as early

being manically driven to severe, incapacitating depressions.

as ancient Greece when Plato said in the dialogue

The latter were so severe that he was noted to be suicidal

Phaedrus: “Madness, provided it comes as the gift of

on numerous occasions. Eventually this celebrated composer

heaven, is the channel by which we receive the great-

and musician died from liver damage.

est blessings...Madness comes from God, whereas sober sense is merely human.” The great poet Lord George Gordon Byron, in more recent history, supported Plato’s sentiments when he said, 74

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Edvard Munch, The Scream, National Gallery, Oslo, Norway, 1893, Oil, tempera, pastel and crayon on cardboard, 36 in. × 28.9 in.


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Vincent van Gogh, Self Portrait with bandaged ear and pipe, Courtauld Institute Galleries, London, 1889, Oil on canvas 20.1 in. × 17.7 in.

Joseph Karl Stieler, Portrait of Ludwig van Beethoven when composing the Missa Solemnis, Beethoven-Haus, Germany 1820, Oil on canvas, 24.4 in. × 19.7 in.

If insanity is a muse, she comes with an enormous price tag. Ultimately, the question we must ask ourselves is whether or not it is right to medicate those of our fellow humans who contribute so much to our lives and cultures, perhaps because of their ability to see the world outside the consensus reality box most of us inhabit. Some new studies claim there may well be a link between mental illness and creativity, and that this link is written into the twisted molecules of our DNA. Scientists in Iceland such as Kári Stefánsson, founder and CEO of deCODE, a genetics company based in Reykjavík, has described that genetic findings “point to a common biology for some mental disorders and creativity. To be creative, you have to think differently. And when we are different, we have a tendency to be labeled strange, crazy, and even insane.” Stefánsson shared his findings with “The Guardian” and noted that he and his team of scientists drew on medical information from 86,000 Icelanders, which found that genetic variants in creative individuals doubled the average risk of schizophrenia and increased the risk of bipolar disorder by over one third. These findings were supported when 35,000 test subjects in Sweden and the Netherlands were found to have a 25 percent increased risk of carrying the variants for mental disorders when deemed “creative.” These findings and others imply that “the muse” is of genetic origins in at least 25 percent of our population. The price for this genetic gift is enormous and we might find comfort in contradictory findings. One that deserves our attention is the work of Daniel Nettle of the Psychology in Behavior and Evolution Research Group at Newcastle University. Nettle and his colleagues have concluded that the link found mental disorders and creativity is, what they call, an “artifact.” They maintain that creative thinking may appear similar to

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“Perhaps a better question is whether we have the right to allow the suffering that can come with untreated mental illness for the sake of great art.” psychotic thinking, but that the two are not the same.

ration of pain whenever and wherever possible. What won-

Additionally, they say that it is difficult to distinguish a

derful contributions might Ernest Hemingway have made if

significant correlation and Nettle, as well as his fellow

he had not shot himself after electroconvulsive treatment, or

skeptics, point out that creativity can exist without men-

Virginia Wolf if she had not drowned herself when she felt

tal illness and mental illness does not necessarily pre-

a depressive episode coming on, and even the great artist

dispose the sufferer to great creativity. In their opinion,

Michelangelo? We will never know.

the two may be indirectly linked, but no more.

What we do know is that these and other famed artists

So, we ask again, is the muse of art a curse or a bless-

have given the rest of humanity a glimpse into worlds we

ing? Should we be grateful for her gifts or resentful of the

might otherwise never have experienced. Our lives are richer

price she extracts from the pursuit of happiness we assume

because of their talents and we have a greater perception of

is our right?

what is possible in our outer and inner worlds.

Perhaps a better question is whether we have the right

We must all individually answer the question whether or

to allow the suffering that can come with untreated mental

not we would ask these geniuses to suffer for us. Better still,

illness for the sake of great art.

would you be willing to suffer the muse if she were to bring

I know my answer to that question is to seek the amelio-

you unbearable pain?

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79


Creating M.U.S.E

Masterpieces Using Sensory Experiences by Janice Brooks

I

n 2006, I was commissioned to write a piece of poet-

Jolted out of a trance-like state of suspended

ry for an all-ages winter solstice celebration for the

thought by the high-pitched note emitted by the tea

community. After hours of contemplation on winter’s

kettle, I recognized that I had again been ushered,

elemental nature and worldwide seasonal spiritual

clearly through the power of this heightened, sensory-

rituals, eight hours before it was due, I found myself

activated state, into an embodied, sensory-stimulated

poetically barren.

sensorium—a creative space I delight in.

It was three in the morning and neither restlessness nor the gravitational force from the earth tilting

this multi-sensory conscious state, I fumbled through

on its axis caused my sleeplessness.

knickknack kitchen drawers looking for paper, or my

It was the sensation of the wind blowing through

reached for the first thing my eyes saw and vigorously

sharp, crisp breeze dance across my face while sleep-

began to scrawl copious notes on strips of paper towels.

The sounds from my house creaking its nightly

The creative pilgrimage always begins, and is most profound for me, in the crevasse―indeed that sacred

symphony, and the humming of the kitchen appli-

unimaginable portal between the “ah” and the “ha”

ances rustled me from slumber. I got up and stealthily

epiphany moment.

ambled through the house, taking it all in. I leaned into the doorway of my son’s room and listened to the rhythmical syncopation from the rise

After much ado, I finally stopped to sit by the hearth fire. Index finger slowly circling the cupped-rim of my

and fall of breath as he slept. I paused and savored the

freshly steeped chamomile tea, I pondered the idea of

sound. I peered at him sleeping, so peacefully. Evoking

how creating any artistic masterpiece involves a height-

Mnemosyne—mother of the nine muses and the per-

ened sense of our sensory, muse-enhanced experiences.

sonification of memory, I etched this moment into my

For centuries, the muses or Μοῦσα, first spoken of

memory bank. As adulthood was just over the horizon

through Hesiod’s Theogony—an ancient Greek narra-

for him, I knew his nightly, peaceful sleep would soon

tive of the story of nine sisters and other well-known

be found somewhere else, and away from my view.

legends—have declared the muses as daughters of

Walking down a dark hallway passage, the moon-

Gaia, or Earth, and have been used to call forth,

light glistening through the side window called my

through the psyche, to assist with the regeneration

attention to the elegant beauty of a barren chaste tree.

and renewal of the creative, energetic muscle.

I stood stock-still as the “wooing” sound of a courting great horned owl reverberated outside and through the nearby canyon. Moseying my way to a dimly lit kitchen, I perched a kettle onto an amber-hued flame. Kitchen towel thrown askance across my left shoulder, I stared at the kettle’s misted vapors as thoughts of the historical seasonal rituals, throughout the ages,

trusty digital voice recorder. Unable to find them, I

the small crack of my bedroom window. I felt the ing. Winter nights are truly my favorite thing.

80

Crossing this creative threshold, over and into

On this cool night, the muse reached out and spoke to me. Knowing that the audience would have many children under the age of twelve in attendance, I wanted to create a short, spoken word, “family” poem that would require physical movement, incorporate a learning experience, and have an engaging music element. From the bark of a tree turned into a paper towel,

to celebrate the magical power of winter’s darkness

I offer to you, dear reader, as inspiration, a simple

and to honor the resting sun or “Sol” floated through

“Invocation to the Sun” ceremonial, community poem,

my mind and body.

to help ignite your wintertime creative spark.

fibonaccifinearts.com


“INVOCATION TO THE SUN” Call and Response

Walking Circle, Two-Voice Community Meditation Poem Spoken Slowly Caller/callers stand stationary in the middle of a candlelit circle, surrounded by an outer ring of participants/responders who are moving in a clockwise direction while reciting the response verse. The faint sound of drums and a harp can be played in the background. Callers and responders alternate on subsequent rounds. By the end, the poem is fully memorized by all.

CALL: Named by Aristotle, I am the Sun RESPONSE: We honor you for all you have done. CALL: 93 Million miles from Earth is my home RESPONSE: We honor you for the light you have shown. CALL: Sovereign over the nine planets, am I RESPONSE: We give thanks, as we pass by. CALL: Bathed in my rays, you are each day RESPONSE: We honor you, for showing us the way. CALL: Inside me are many colors that you cannot see RESPONSE: Thankful Hue-man beings are we. CALL: A halo of light is my crown RESPONSE: Spinning us, round and round. CAL: Fuel for plants and animals, I give RESPONSE: Blessed nourishment, for us to Live. CALL: Brother to the Moon am I RESPONSE: Sons and daughters to you are we. CALL: Creative powers, and peace, are the forces I beam into view RESPONSE: From Sun rise, to Sun set, we circle you, and renew. (Responders stand still on the last line)

©2006 Janice Brooks Premier Fine Arts Digest of the Mountain West

81 81


Place-based Masters

Sierra Nevada College Takes a New Look at Art Education by Josie Luciano

“I

nspired by nature” is a phrase so ubiquitous it is just

is doubling down on the place-based model both as a teach-

as likely to turn up in an ad campaign as it is in any

ing tool and as a muse that does more than just sit there and

art you will see today, tomorrow, or in the next 50 years. But

look mysterious. For the graduates or “cohorts” in this MFA,

as terms go, “place-based” is a little more nested.

place talks back.

First known as a type of educational pedagogy that

“We’re trying to activate the location we’re in,” says

began in the early 1990s, the expression has come to mean a

Sarah Lillegard, graduate admissions counselor at SNC. The

personal understanding of one’s surroundings. Not just the

location she’s speaking of happens to be breathtaking. From

natural parts, but also the unique culture, economy, and his-

gem-colored Lake Tahoe to the muted palette of the high

tory of a particular place.

desert, it’s not difficult to be moved by its beauty. The real

If ads are the best medium for exploiting this idea— think geo-marketing, shop alerts, and your endlessly omni-

trick is being inspired by something less easy to locate, such as the specific feeling, void, or story of a place.

scient Facebook ad feed—then maybe art is the thing to

“You go somewhere and the experience of it will affect

save it. This seems to be the unofficial mission of Sierra

you,” says Rich Petrucci, a photographer and MFA student

Nevada College’s new low-residency MFA program, in

at SNC. “If as new students, we find a connection to Tahoe

which the actual mission is described as “a locus for cre-

and Reno, then it becomes a place that we choose to go or

ative art making, fostered by critical thinking, with an

gravitate towards even if our work isn’t specifically about it.”

emphasis on community.” Although the program is only four months underway, it

As it turns out, Petrucci’s own art contains a lot of breadcrumbs for understanding the appeal of the MFA program itself. At first glance, the artist’s photographs look a lot like your typical urban and rural landscapes, complete with tall buildings, long views, and big skies; what you see when you look out of a window. Then you notice that the window frame is included in the photo, turning the image into a think-piece about your own interface with the landscape. Though this idea of looking at your environment through a filter is as ancient as the wire grids that old masters used for their realistic paintings, the filter has changed somewhat over the years. Today, modern viewers are just as likely to see their surroundings through a camera lens, window frame, or computer screen as they are through their own eyes. This contemporary view of place is also reflected Photo by Logan Lape

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Photo by Richard Petrucci

in the low-residency aspect of the program as graduates

of a life or a moment—paintings that communicate her

based in towns and cities across the country travel to the

belief that “every square-inch of the earth has a story.”

Great Basin twice a year for 10-day micro-residencies

For Krolak, the first 10-day residency brought up

while communicating via screen for the rest of their two-

a lot of questions about her own creative process. “For

and-a-half-year MFA.

me, it was a good challenge because none of the people

Karen Krolak, an MFA student and Boston choreog-

[in the program] were in performing arts. It got me

rapher, uses a range of social media platforms to corre-

to focus on aspects of my art that were more visual.

spond with her fellow graduates. “ Rich [Petrucci] is out of

When I began adding those layers into performance

New York, and he and I often talk through text message,

pieces, it opened up a lot of directions for places I

whereas with Eric Charney, who is a land artist, [and] I

could take my work.”

email. Susan Bass and I communicate through Instagram.

Krolak’s first product was a hand-sewn flip-book that

My mentor Chris Lanier and I go back and forth through

played with the idea of visual choreography, piggybacking on

Facebook and Skype.”

the artist’s previous work that explored regret with repeated,

It’s kind of like a GPS network with people instead of points and places instead of satellites. At least that was

reversed movements. The impact of the residency on Petrucci’s photogra-

the original metaphor that Russell Dudley, the creator of

phy is hidden in plain sight. Beyond the dozens of images

the program and professor at SNC, articulated months

that he shares with his program advisor, Petrucci’s real

before the residency began. Now that it’s in progress,

progress is more of the looking-and-thinking type. “I

Dudley is mindful about building enough flexibility into

sit with [my] pictures for a long time and try to build

the schedule to reflect the diversity of artists and their

something...I think a lot about whether you have to go to

ever-changing ideas.

a place to capture it.”

“What happened in the first residency was a mapping

With such a diverse body of work coming out of the pro-

out of resources,” says Dudley. “[Now we’re] thinking about

gram, it’s tempting to chalk it up to divergent pathways that

how it all works, using the student and student body as a

just happen to converge twice a year for a week-and-a-half.

grounding place.”

But this conclusion underestimates the special quality of the

With student perspectives and geographies guiding the process, graduates are free to pivot in any direction, or dive as deep as they wish. For MFA student Mary Grace Tate, this means sinking into the past. “[My muse is] more the history of a place than

program’s home base. “The Great Basin has the ability to hold a variety of muses because of the multiplicity of voices that have built and inhabit the West,” explains Dudley. It’s true. The same frontier mentality that brought

maybe my actual surroundings. It’s about who inhabited the

explorers, gold-diggers, pioneers, and indigenous peoples into

places where I am. How did they cope?”

the desert is the same mindset that contemporary artists

Tate’s portrait and landscape paintings often depict

take home with them to their denser, lusher, possibly more

old photographs and are created in a way that reflects the

mainstream communities. Even if the artists themselves are

building of a history—underpainting, collage, vignettes

still processing what they found in Nevada. Premier Fine Arts Digest of the Mountain West

83


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Artistic Lifestyles Gallery

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2758 S Highland Dr Ste B Las Vegas, NV 89109

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60 E Broadway Ave Jackson, WY 83001

35 E Deloney Ave Jackson, WY 83001

Denver Area Robischon Gallery 1740 Wazee St Denver, CO 80202

Sandra Phillips 420 W 12th Ave Denver, CO 80202

thesandraphillipsgallery.com

86

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fibonaccifinearts.com


Counterpath

Plus Gallery

613 22nd St Denver, CO 80202

2501 Larimer St Denver, CO 80202

counterpathpress.org

plusgallery.com

Native American Trading Company

Ice Cube Gallery

nativeamericantradingco.com

icecubegallery.com

1301 Bannock St Denver, CO 80202

3320 Walnut St Denver, CO 80202

Park City Area Montgomery-Lee Fine Art

Terzian Galleries

montgomeryleefineart.com

terziangalleries.com

Julie Nester Gallery

Gallery MAR

608 Main St Park City, UT 84060

309 Main St Park City, UT 84060

1280 Iron Horse Dr Park City, UT 84060

436 Main St Park City, UT 84060

julienestergallery.com

gallerymar.com

Kimball Art Center

McMillen Fine Art Gallery

638 Park Ave Park City, UT 84060

1678 Redstone Center Dr. Ste 120 Park City, UT 84098

kimballartcenter.org

mcmillenfineart.com

Logan Area King’s Gallery 13 W Center St Logan, UT 84321

Sean Nathan Ricks: The Main Street Gallery

antiquesutah.com

909 S Main St Ste F Logan, UT 84321

Winborg Masterpieces

Logan Fine Art

55 N Main St Logan, UT 84321 winborg.com

60 W 100 North Logan, UT 84321

loganfineartgallery.com

Don’t see a gallery you love? Let us know by emailing advertising@fibonaccifinearts.com Premier Fine Arts Digest of the Mountain West

87


“Ode to Nike and Venus”

By Mary Giuseffi From From her book, Femme Fierce; Flashes of Courage. This ode is dedicated to the iconic statues of the Goddesses Nike of Samothrace and Venus de Milo on display at The Louvre in Paris Worshipped for millenniums admirers drawn by your imperfection and missing parts Taking comfort and control of the features they don’t see sort of a dark macabre fantasy this adoration of half a woman Your marble visages the perfect metaphor for the lives we have been allowed to lead Perfect in our lessening Adored in our incompleteness Worshipped in our brokenness Feared in our beauty Made famous after being fractured Lithe and limbless Decorated and decapitated Glorified once rendered useless except on a pedestal of some station or other Fair warning given to all women who step into the fullness of their loving I can imagine you both complete and courageous Gorgeous beyond the half witted oglers Constant throughout time Wise beyond the wrappings of your modesty Strong beneath the layers of your gentility Emancipated by understanding Oozing from your pores exudes the essence of your earthly tenure Nike how you attend to your dear sister Venus with wings Angels adorned you and a halo of kisses and breathlessness enraptured by your elegant nature And Ms. de Milo your keen vision sears through the eons of time guiding fair Nike to the phoenix nest your selfless support of each halves does render you whole In your effigy I see your genius and the call to order for the coming of age of all women We are more than our W2’s and sad soliloquys playing homage to our lakes, violations and fears They may have immortalized your restraint I see your bravery 88

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