GROUP EXHIBITION
COMPLEXITY/SIMPLICITY
May 5 - 21, 2022 
Opening First Thursday May 5, 2022 | 6 - 8 pm 

Foster/White Gallery is pleased to present the work of 5 sculptors who are new to the gallery. The artists work in an intriguing range of techniques and materials, from glazed medite and sintra to stone carvings with needle felted wool, and from stitched, salvaged neoprene to slip cast and assembled ceramics. This collection of works runs the gamut from the most simple to the most complex combinations of shape, color and form.

Sara Coffin’s glazed medite and sintra wall mounted sculptures, which the artist refers to as sconces, repeat a simple rectangular form within a larger rectangular form. Utilizing a unique glazing technique to create a spectacle of candy like colors, these pieces seem to be super-naturally glowing with light emanating out of every edge and angled join.

Kyle Johns’ builds complex, multi-faceted molds to create slip cast ceramics which fall between vessel and sculpture. These works take on the appearance of multiple components stacked or assembled, one on top of the next, like a colorful and far more inventive version of Jenga, or a teetering tower with shapes and contours that seem to be moving in every possible direction all at once.

Gabriel John Poucher takes a building block approach to his highly complex ceramic structures which he has described as maximal and cacophonous. Inspired by industrial aesthetics and childhood construction toys, the artist embraces the unpredictability of his chosen material. As the clay reacts to the conditions of firing, stability deteriorates and these pieces contort and collapse resulting in somewhat chaotic forms that veer in and out of accidental harmony.

 Stephanie Robison’s stone and felted wool sculptures bring these seemingly opposing materials into unexpected conversation with each other. Simple organic shapes which at times look like strange creatures, with rounded extremities protruding outward, neatly interact with themselves. They are odd and awkward but simple and delightful, and seem to have been dreamed up with a light-hearted sense of humor and freedom.

 Henry Jock Walker is an Australian artist whose practice is intertwined with his surfing lifestyle and surf culture. His instincts for breaking up space with line and shapes are somewhat classical but the use of neoprene, which he sources from used wet suits, brings a satisfying texture to the surface. The stitched seams create soft grooves which behave as graphic elements between brightly colored patches of fabric. Often playful and with unexpected titles, the assorted mix of salvaged neoprene offers varying levels of reflection and light absorption which allows the work to take on a more serious tone at times.

To learn more and see all works in Complexity/Simplicity, please visit this page.

Tom Burrows, Elisha Bay, polymer resin, 48 x 48 inches

TOM BURROWS
THE CURVE OF TIME V
March 3 - 26, 2022
Opening First Thursday, March 3, 6 - 8 pm - Artist in Attendance
Artist Talk: Saturday March 5, 12:30 pm 

The artwork included in The Curve of Time series by Tom Burrows are named after bodies of water and landmarks from the Inside Passage (Puget Sound near Seattle up to Alaska). The Curve of Time by Wylie Blanchet is inspiration for the series and it takes place in the Inside Passage.  This book recounts Blanchet's summer sailing adventures with her five children and dog in the 1930s and 40s.

After realizing that many places along the Inside Passage were named for the admiralty of the explorers, Burrows decided that he could just as well name them after some of his family who have enjoyed their cabins in the British Columbia waterway for a few generations. Elisha Bay is named for his son, Elisha; the two sail together, and the piece is a rich blue. Other pieces with family names are Gina Rocks, Josh Cove and Yasmine Arm.

Burrows approaches his work with an open, intellectual thoughtfulness. His artworks embody concepts through color, exuding presence and luminosity. Each piece provides its own space for meditative encounter and reflection. The Curve of Time V was born of Burrows observations of and experiences within a familiar region he has long inhabited, but which in some ways has changed noticeably. Surrounded by the Salish Sea, Burrows spends much of the year at his island studio, where the effects of climate change are clear. 

Tom Burrows, Okisollo Channel,  polymer resin, 48 x 48 inches

In his artist statement, Burrows shares “Very early in the summer of 2021, a searing heat dome hung over the island for days emphasizing the presence of a record drought that by mid-August had lowered the local aquifer to the level that my pump failed. We had no water for the first time in fifty years on that island. A third of my planned studio production had to be abandoned.  Luckily, we were spared most of the smoke wafting from the burning mainland forests as I fumbled about trying to reconstruct the plumbing. By November the highest recorded rainfall for that time of year had finally penetrated the heat-baked soil and the aquifer began to rise. Water re-emerged from the faucets.

We live in a time of crisis. The sheltered interconnected seas and channels that line the Northwest coast from Puget Sound to Alaska offer protection from the vast powers of the open Pacific. If one attempts to read the ever-changing light of that inner passage, its tidal surge, the spawn of its creatures, there is a possible solace. The Curve of Time V (a series now in its fifth year), strives to portray the luminosity of those inner coastal waters in its subtle variance."

It is indeed this notion of solace that Burrows so aptly captures and shares. With subtlety and exactitude, Burrows allows his artworks to appear effortless; each is filled with character, highlighting the sublime colors of the natural world from which Burrows draws comfort. Yet far from being static, the wall sculptures contain within their fields of color gentle insistence that we pay attention; to ensure that what inspires us today exists in perpetuity.

 Tom Burrows, Beazley Passage and Sockeye, both polymer resin, both 48 x 30 inches

Throughout his career, Tom Burrows has explored a myriad of sculptural materials and styles, ranging from performative, site-specific installation work to two-dimensional pieces. His work has always been concerned with drawing attention to social and environmental issues; he has presented research-driven artist responses to homelessness, housing, and displacement, and more recently refers to the increasingly evident negative impacts of climate change. Having developed a unique process through his explorations in casting polymer resin, Burrows’ resulting wall sculptures showcase color as an entity, light as an active participant, and stillness as essential.

Tom Burrows has a BA in Art History from the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, and studied Sculpture at St. Martin’s College, London, UK. He has shown his work internationally, at galleries across North America, and at places like the Museum of Contemporary Art, Antwerp, Belgium; Musée d’Art Moderne, Paris, France; and Vancouver Art Gallery, Vancouver, BC. His work is part of collections including the Canadian Embassy to Japan, Tokyo; Government of Ontario Art Collection, Toronto, ON; the Morris and Helen Belkin Gallery at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC; and Canada Council Art Bank, Ottawa, ON among others.

Click here to learn more and see available works.

 Carol Inez Charney, Invisible Man, chromogenic print, laminated and mounted to panel, 24 x 24 inches, edition of five

The colorful curls and wisps of smoke in Carol Inez Charney’s newest series are sophisticated and elegant while being rich with metaphor. The series, Secondhand Smoke, highlights the dangers of cultural censorship, the limiting of individualism and artistic expression. Book burnings and the destruction of artwork have been an all too common practice in both modern and historic eras, public demonstrations meant to show the power of authoritarian governments. However, the pieces in Secondhand Smoke seem to remind us that such censorship can sneak in; can whisper and spread like rumors, creeping in around the edges, as smoke can.

Secondhand Smoke also poignantly considers the dichotomy between artistic expression and the proliferation of falsified information – as well as the resulting political division. But the pieces speak softly; Charney was inspired to create work both beautiful and reflective, in a way providing respite from the world while at the same time holding a mirror up to it.

Carol Inez Charney, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou, chromogenic print, laminated and mounted to panel, 24 x 24 inches, edition of five

The images in Secondhand Smoke share their titles with literary works that have, at points throughout recent history, been banned or burned by governmental entities seeking to silence individual voices; says Charney, “Incinerating intellectual, creative and critical thought has harmful reverberating effects on society, just as second hand smoke does for all of us. It’s about maintaining control of individuals by censoring the ideas necessary to evolve: suppressing enlightenment and creative freedom.”

Carol Inez Charney, Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides, chromogenic print, laminated and mounted to panel, 24 x 24 inches, edition of five

Known for her characteristically eloquent photographic abstractions, Charney here utilizes a more ethereal approach. “Ultimately smoke represents aftermath—what remains of provocative of ideas. Secondhand Smoke is a cautionary tale of the growing threats facing artistic expression around the world.”

Charney received a BA in painting from the University of California, Santa Cruz, CA, and an MFA in Photography from San Jose State University, San Jose, CA. She has shown her work at galleries across the country, and in museums such as the Museum of Sonoma County, Santa Rosa, CA; San Jose Museum of Art, San Jose, CA; and the Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life, Berkeley, CA. She has received numerous awards, and her photographs are part of collections including the AT&T Art Collection, New York, NY; Microsoft Art Collection, Redmond, WA; Reese Witherspoon's Art Collection, Los Angeles, CA; and the Escalette Permanent Collection of Art at Chapman University, Irvine, CA.

VIEW COLLECTION

VIEW COLLECTION

VIEW COLLECTION
Opening October 7, 2021

Julie Himel’s work explores the space between our connection with and distance from the natural world. Her first solo exhibition at Foster/White Gallery, Broken Beautiful is an exploration driven by the artists close ties with the natural world; favored places become recognizable to us as the artist returns to them, perhaps in different seasons, capturing changes in light, emotion, and growth. Himel also invites us into imagined places, using color and contrast to draw us into the dreamlike spaces she creates.
 
Says Himel, "On all levels of human experience there is the coexistence of two ends of the cycle. At this time, we are facing massive environmental change, and watching the way things were shift to a new reality. The reason for that shift and for what is broken is human interaction with the environment. The title of this exhibition is an acceptance of needing to let nature be, and honoring the beautiful adaptations."

Julie Himel, It Was Written in the Sky, mixed media on canvas, 48 x 40 inches

Click here to view collection.

Tom Burrows, Jedidiah Island, polymer resin, 24 x 24 inches 

Tom Burrows

New Work | Seattle Deconstructed Art Fair 

August 5 - 28, 2021 

Tom Burrows’ resin pieces are laboriously created through a unique and highly variable process. Burrows’ artistic career has included a myriad of explorations in sculptural materials, ranging from performative, site-specific installation work to two-dimensional pieces. Often with an element of research focused on social issues such as homelessness and housing, he has been a significant part of the arts community of British Columbia since the early 1960s. 

The works in this exhibition reflect light, bouncing it between the walls of each hollow form and illuminating the natural tendencies of his materials. Vibrant pigmentation causes each piece to possess a seemingly effulgent presence, each transmitting fields of color and allowing for meditative encounters. 

To learn more about Tom Burrows and to see available work, please visit his page.

Will Robinson, Andantino, stone, 32.5 x 22 x 15 inches 

Will Robinson

Tapestry | Seattle Deconstructed Art Fair 

August 5 - 28, 2021 

Achieving warmth and softness with unforgiving stone, Robinson breathes life into each of his pieces, revealing the innate qualities of the natural medium he works with. His sculptures are as much about discovery as they are reflections of the artist’s intuition. 

Finding boulders and slabs across the Pacific Northwest is the beginning of his artistic process. From the exterior it is often impossible to determine the characteristics and mineral properties within each stone. It is only after he has begun to carve through each piece that he discovers intricacies and attributes to highlight through sculptural form. Within his newest body of work, Robinson weaves a diverse array of sculptures together through the common thread of his pursuit of beauty.

Will Robinson, Ripple in Time, stone, 66 x 32 x 21 inches

Will Robinson studied History at the University of Washington. His work has been shown across North America, including at the Southern Vermont Arts Center, Manchester, VT; SOFA Exposition, Chicago, IL; Toronto International Art Fair, Toronto, ON, and around the Pacific Northwest. His sculptures were selected by jury for exhibitions such as the City of Woodinville’s Juried Invitational Exhibition, Woodinville, WA and the Bainbridge Island Invitational Classic for the Arts, Bainbridge Island, WA. Robinson’s sculptures have been selected for numerous public art collections and site-specific sculpture commissions such as for Swedish Medical Center, Issaquah, WA; the Las Vegas Cleveland Clinic designed by Frank Gehry, Las Vegas, NV, and the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard Memorial Plaza, Bremerton, WA. His work has also been included in dozens of corporate and private collections across North America.

To learn more about Will Robinson and to see available works please visit his page.