Let's Get To Know Our members - Betty Franco Handmacher

Betty Handmacher's work express her cultural, ancestral and traditional background. She is a native of Atlanta GA but her ethnicity forms part of a minority. 

Handmacher absorbs the ideas and culture of her minority group and integrate it into the wider American society. She says: "I feel this theme has universal appeal" 

Of her latest work she says that it relates to her family, most of whom are gone, and the past in which they lived.  She uses embroidery, paper, fabric, lace, photography, drawing, ribbon, buttons and some paint to express the melancholy aura on raw canvas.

Kind Regards,
Corlia

Little Red Journal Apply starting Friday night, after midnight, March 3 Hi WCAGA Artists, We have an interesting project to announce. Our chapter is participating in a national project which culminates in the creation of a single work of art to be auctioned at the 2013 WCA conference. Each participating chapter is gathering small works from members which will be inserted in the Little Red Journal when it arrives in their city. WCA/GA will receive the LRJ in September 2012. We will keep it for a month and then send it on to the next location. Collecting the work of hundreds of women in a single journal will give insight to the artistic climate of 2012 in the United States, and provide a record of the 40th anniversary year of the WCA. We have chosen the address insert of the LRJ to hold our submissions. This gives us approximately 29 pages. We are offering one page per participating artist. This limited opportunity is available on a first-come basis. You can apply by emailing Barb Rehg starting Friday night (technically speaking this is Saturday morning), 12:01am March 3, 2012. Artists will be selected using the email time stamp until all spots are filled. Early submissions will be discarded. Please read the info below from the project's creator, Priscilla Otani from San Francisco, to better understand the project, and how you might participate. Judy pres ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Little Red Journal January 22, 2012 Instructions for the Journal 1.Topic: open to your creative inspiration - remember 2012 is WCA's 40th anniversary celebration. 2.Artists may create 1 – 3 pieces.  If desired, more than one person can collaborate on a piece. 3. Artists may create separate pieces on their own and mail them to the liaison, or create pieces at a chapter meeting. 4. Work can be created directly on the pages of the journal or created separately and affixed to the journal. Please note that it will become increasingly difficult to create work directly on the journal, as thicker artwork will begin to fan out the pages. 5.Diary pages may also be altered via folding, sewing, cutting, piercing, burning, taping, etc. 6.Artwork Size:  No more than 4 inches high x 3 inches wide x 0.25 inch thick. Smaller is good! Piece(s) must fit into page(s) of a small journal so anything larger than the defined dimensions must be trimmed down. 7.Media: any original art – painting, collage, photo, fiber, drawing, printmaking, sculpture (flat or skinny), artist book (skinny), ceramics (flat or skinny), calligraphy, mixed media, folded paper, combined words/image. 8.Identify artist’s name and chapter on each page. 9.Adhesives: best and easiest is Scotch brand permanent double-sided tape. Glue stick for thin pieces. You can also hand-sew pieces on but that gets tricky. 10.Your artists do not have to wait for the journal to arrive to start working on their pieces. Getting a head-start enables artists to have more time to create pieces. 11.Your chapter does NOT have to fill all the pages in the month. Empty pages can be shared by smaller chapters, caucuses and members-at-large. 12.Document every art piece. Please email low-resolution images titled with chapter & artist’s name to mrpotaniatyahoo.com.  You can see artwork created here:www.ncwca.org. 13. A few days before shipping to the next chapter, contact your liaison to let her know the journal is coming. 14. Mail artwork to the next chapter, no later than the deadline noted, via priority mail + delivery confirmation.  Any Questions? Contact Priscilla Otani at mrpotaniatyahoo.com Journal Travel Schedule  1.      Northern California: Oct 15 – Nov 28, 2011, Decorating January 2.      Washington DC:Dec 2, 2011 – Feb 23, 2012; Decorating July 3.      Los Angeles Conference: Feb 23 – 26, 2012; Decorating Month: March. 4.      St Louis:Feb 26 –  Mar 31, 2012;  Decorating February 5.      Philadelphia:Apr 6 –  May 11, 2012;  Decorating September 6.      Minneapolis:May 18 – Jun 29; Decorating Month: May 7.      Indiana:July 6 – Aug 10; Decorating Month: October 8.      Michigan:Aug 15 – Sept 17;  Decorating Month:  April 9.      Atlanta:Sept 21 – Oct 22;  Decorating: Address Insert. 10.Open: Oct 26 – Nov 26 11.Open: Nov 30 – Dec 30 12.Open: Jan 4 – Feb 4 13.Feb 8: Back to Priscilla Otani.Throughout the year I will be collecting individual pieces from members-at-large and chapter members who want to send something individually and adhering them to empty pages. A completely fat journal filled with fabulous art will be brought to the 2013 WCA Conference in NYC for all to see.

Correcting For Drift

Jim Cherry Learning Resource Center Gallery
by the Women’s Caucus for Art of Georgia
February 27 to March 30, 2012

Reception: Wednesday, February 29, 6-8pm

This WCAGA Member show will be a multi media exhibit showing 2D and 3D works from our
artists.  Leap year occurs every four years. It is the scientific means of correcting for a movement
in the heavens that requires adjusting our calendar occasionally to keep things aligned. The term
they use is Correcting for Drift.  How do we make our own Leap to make things work out?  Do we normally work large but occasionally make small work to adjust our perceptions?  Maybe we’re driven to try something unusual or alter our palette.

Sometimes we over correct and find a whole new path of possibilities. The heavens have their own
laws to follow, we are lucky, we get to make our own rules, especially when we are trying to make
something that has demanded we make a ‘leap’ to create a balance in our lives.

MARCH ARTSHARE

March 2012 

When: March 7th, 2012 from 6:00 to 8:30 pm

Where: The studio of Barbara Davis. bevandavisatme.com

What to bring: Bring finished work or work-in-progress to share, and a nibble and a beverage of choice.  Please keep your presentation and discussion to no more than about 10 minutes  .....Or just come and enjoy the company. Guests and prospective members are always welcome to join us.

Please RSVP by email to susanksatgmail.com or to Barbara at bevandavisatme.com if you are attending or have questions.

The program, ART SHARE, is a forum for members of WCAGA to show their work for the purpose of gaining feedback and insight, a sort of a critique, and a place to network with other artists and art professionals. Please email me if you would like to host an ART SHARE, have a suggestion for a venue or format, or would like to be involved in some way.Susan Ker-Seymer, susanksatgmail.com

Let's Get To Know Our Members - Ann Rhodes

Ann Rhodes, an artist that shows her love for landscape and art through impressionistic brushstrokes and colorful compositions. Grey is not just grey but becomes a purple grey or a red grey in her knowing gaze and accomplished hands. One of her secrets to make her work different is to prime her canvas with the red that reminds of the red clay of Georgia. The strong, vibrant energy that can destroy and create in Nature is visible in her work.

Rhodes explains her work as follows: “Celebratory landscapes are the focus of my work. Personal response to the intensity of nature’s force informs my painting in which loose brushwork and overlapping layers of paint represent the complexity of the universe. I am fed by nature’s light and color, comforted by its underlying geometry, awed by its muscularity.” (Artists Website - Artists statement)

You can find her work in Artifacts in Alabama, The Art House, Flint Gallery, Left Bank Gallery in Georgia and Providence Gallery In North Carolina.

For more information, more art, contact details please visit her website. 

Talk again soon,

Corlia

February Newsletter and Members Listings

The February newsletter is here. Paying members please check your the email from Kate. Ido have a link to the mailchimp PDF and hope you can open it. This is the first time that I try the mailchimp PDF.

Another post you can check out is the Memberslisting posted on February 1, 2012 by Michelle Stein.

WCAGA Artists part of "Song of the Land" in Los Angeles California

    

Maxine Hess 
Greyton Marsh II
16 x 20 inches 2011

Encaustic Painting on Board with Japanese Paper

Maxine Hess

www.maxinehessstudio.com

Art is how I communicate, how I integrate my spirituality, Jewish heritage and life experiences as a woman. I believe that art transforms; a way to mindfulness, a way to awareness. The Torah commands personal responsibility, respect for others and caring of G-d’s sacred creation. On a recent trip to Greyton Beach State Park, I was inspired to create a series of encaustics and works on paper to capture the metaphysical exquisiteness of it as well as its spiritual nature. Greyton Beach sings to me as Eden sings to us from the Torah. I am awed by both and my hope is that others will be so awed and moved to respect and protect our natural world.

Flora Rosefsky 

Divide The Waters 

Mixed-Media 38” X 68” 2009

Flora Rosefsky

www.florageart.com

In Divide the Waters, interwoven cloth and paper segments explode in 144 crocheted squares, symbolizing Earth’s precious resource juxtaposed with a Torah narrative written over 3,000 years ago. The mystery of how God created this life-sustaining force is a universal story still powerful and relevant today as it was thousands, if not billions, of years ago. Today over 70 percent of the earth is covered with water; what took ions of time to give birth, human beings destroy. In the Book of Genesis, Chapter 1 6:8, when the waters were divided, these words illuminate and transform into spontaneous patterns of line, color, shape, and texture.

Simone Soltan 
Where Will They Go if the Forests are Cut Down? 
Soft Pastel collage,25" x 18.75"  2008

Simone Soltan

Planet Earth, our only home, is in danger:

Over the eons human needs have taken priority over nature: since the rise of the Industrial Revolution the toll on the Earth has been devastating.  Forests are cut down causing animal species to decline or become extinct.  Our air and waters are polluted by the release of waste products into the air from industrial plants and vehicle exhausts. Our natural resources are being depleted at a rapid rate and cannot be replaced. Global climate change has occurred around the Globe: gases and pollutants in the air hold heat and act like a thick blanket over the Earth.  What can we do to save our planet?  As an artist, I can use my work to raise awareness of the situation.  As an individual, I can support people and policies that promote ways to protect and sustain our beautiful Earth.  

 Location:  Hebrew  Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion – Jack H. Skirball Campus, 3077 University  Avenue, Los Angeles, CA  90007

Event:  Exhibition and Meet the Artists Reception – 

         Meet the Artists Reception: Thursday, February 23, 5:00 – 7:00 PM

Free and Open to the Public

        Exhibition:  Song of the Land -  ongoing through May 31, 2012      

The Jewish Women Artists Network (JWAN), the only national non-profit organization of professional Jewish women artists in the United States, and a self-selected special interest group within the Women's Caucus for Art, announces its 2012 Annual Juried National Exhibition,  Song of the Land.

The theme of Song of the Land challenges the artist to consider contemporary issues of environmental sustainability:  Earth is our only home and our constant and precious companion through life. We are the stewards of the earth. Lack of loving and knowledgeable care of our Earth and the inter-connectedness of all forms of life and the cycles of nature has led to depleted natural resources, water and air pollution, destruction of wild animal habitats and the loss of much of the Earth's natural beauty.  Aware and concerned about our environment physically and spiritually, how do we, as artists, focus attention to the challenge of preserving, sustaining and protecting our planet? How do we help ensure the future of Earth's blessings? 

Close to 100 artists from the entire USA submitted works for consideration. Of the near 200 works entered, Juror, Ruth Weisberg, artist and former Dean of the Roski School of Art at the University of Southern California selected 44 works representing 43 artists.

A full color catalogue is available.

Please contact us for interviews, more information or additional materials:

Fay Grajower and Simone Soltan

Co-Chairs, JWAN National Exhibitions

wca.jwan@gmail.com

Let's get to know our Members--Ann Rowles--Founding Mother

Ann Rowles created WCA of GA in 2000. She is our “Founding Mother.” She runs as Program Chair today and as the Southeastern Regional Vice President on WCA National Board.

Her services to Art and Culture are not limited to the WCA, she served on Youth Art Connection Gallery’s ArtSHARE Mentoring program. She was part of lectures and panels on issues of Body Image and Feminist topics. She was also part of the BeltLine clean up Project in 2010. 

Rowles' work examines cultural and historical questions on the body relating the Psyche. Aging and fat are the two dominant directions she scrutinizes. She says: “I am both attracted and repulsed by the desire to re-form the body through the self-inflicted bodily trauma of surgical intervention.” The betrayal of one’s body and alienation to one’s body comes out in her work. She uses wire mesh, crepe hair, rubber, bone in a combination of silk screened, painted and photos. Her latest work was ignited by caring for her ailing mother. She uses crocheted forms, acrylic and cotton thread and vinyl tubing.

To see more of her work and achievements please visit her Website

Kind Regards
Corlia

Members' Exhibition Listings for February 2012

Artists: Maxine Hess, Flora Rosefsky, Simone Soltan
Website: www.huc.edu
Show Title: Song of the Land
Location: Hebrew Union College - Institute of Religion
Address: 3077 University Avenue - Los Angeles, CA 90007
Phone number: 213-765-2106
Artist’s Reception: February 23,2012 - 5-7PM
Show Dates: January 20-May 31, 2012
Hours: Mon.-Thurs. 9am-5pm; Fri. 9am-3pm; closed Sat. and Sun.
Closed for Jewish and National Holidays

Artist: Maxine Hess
Artist Website: http://www.maxinehessstudio.com
Show Title: La Grange National XXVII Exhibition
Location: La Grange Art Museum
Address: 112 Lafayette Pkwy., La Grange, GA 30240
Phone Number: 706-882-3267
Opening/Closing Reception: February 10, 2012, 6 – 8 PM
Artist’s Talk/Book Signing: N/A
Show Dates: February 10 – April 20, 2012
Hours: 9 – 5 PM Tuesday – Friday; 11- 5 PM Saturday

Artist: Thelma Johnson
Show Title: Martin Luther King Mural
Location: Defoor Center
Address: 1710 Defoor Avenue Atlanta, GA 30318
Phone Number: 770-991-6475
Show Dates: January 1 - February 29, 2012

Show Title: Correcting for Drift
Location: Jim Cherry Learning Resource Center Gallery
Address: Georgia Perimeter College, 555 N. Indian Creek Rd.,Clarkston, GA
Phone Number: 770-991-6745
Opening Reception: February 29, 2012
Show Dates: February 27 - March 30, 2012


Artist: Flora Rosefsky
Artist Website: www.florageart.com

Show Title: RITUALS and SHELTER & SANCTUARY
Location: Marcus Hillel Center at Emory University
Address:735 Gatewood Road NE - Atlanta, Georgia 30322
Phone Number: 404-963-2548
Show Dates: August 5 - March 31,2012
Hours: M-Th 9:30am-6pm; Fri. 9:30am-4pm
Open for activities and special events. See calendar. www.emoryhillel.org

Show Title:The Joy of Judaism: The Art of Flora Rosefsky
Location: The Rosenzweig Gallery at Judea Reform Congregation
Address:1933 West Cornwallis Road - Durham, North Carolina 27705
Phone Number: 919-489-7062
Closing Reception: February 12, 2012
Show Dates: December 7,2011 - February 12, 2012
Hours: Mon.-Thurs. 9am-5pm; Fri. 9am-3pm

Show Title: National Collage Society 27th Annual Juried Exhibit
Location: ONLINE www.nationalcollage.org
Phone Number: 330-656-3673
Show Dates: November 1, 2011 - October 31, 2012
Hours: 24/7 online

Artist: Rosemary Benavides Williams
Show Title: A Body of Water
Location: Aurora Theatre
Address: 128 W Pike St.; Lawrenceville, GA
Phone Number: (678) 226-6222
Opening/Closing Reception: Saturday – February 4th, 2012
Show Dates: Now through February 28th, 2012
Hours: Check theatre for hours of operation