Current Exhibit:
Abstract, Abstraction Show
Abstract, Abstraction Show
Reality is overrated! Time to imagine, twist, and create new realities or have no reality at all.
Abstract art does not reflect anything found in “real” life. It is not of anything. It’s “Art for Art’s sake.” Patterns, shapes, color studies, medium studies and exploration. Think Pollock, Mark Rothko or Kandinsky.
Don’t like abstract? Those of you who can’t let go and revel in the “real” world, it’s time to play with it. Come see real life altered. Stretch it! Expand it! Abstraction is taking the real world and altering it to be something you would not see in real life, but is based in reality. Having a man with an apple for a face is not something you will see in the real world but it is based on a thing you recognize from real life. Landscape and portrait artists use other techniques to convey real life, like pointillism, cubism, smearing, splattering or adding surreal visions.
Come spend time with us for this exhibit and make the clock melt!
Current Featured Artists:
Laura Miller & Evelyn Olthof:
Introducing Laura Miller
Self portrait mixed media
Laura is not just an artist, most people describe her as a jack of all trades. She has been an artist all her life, but never really saw herself as one.
“I never gave it focus. I did it as part of my design work for other projects or offered art pieces as gifts. I had gone to school for it and even sold some pieces; yet still didn’t see myself as an artist. I was like many people who live in a world that tells you being an artist is a hobby; it’s not serious; it’s not important; it’s not a career; you can do better than that as a career. So I never gave it honor, not until I lost everything.”
Laura is referring to a life changing trauma she still has difficulty talking publicly about, but expresses through her art now.
“Even before losing everything, I have always been a survivor; but when I became an actual “survivor,” my world had to change, because I changed. Traditional jobs weren’t an option for me at the time, but I needed purpose for my drive of living life. I had survived for a reason; to live. I finally got to a positive place where having the normal world reject me was encouragement to play by my own rules and see what many things I could do. The world of art has welcomed me back to my roots and given me way more than I could ever have asked for.”
Laura was born in Connecticut and has lived in several states throughout the U.S., but calls Muskegon her home. She was always the new kid that everyone wanted to meet.
Her first childhood dream career job was to be the first woman President; later her dream career was to become a Supreme Court Justice all the while taking art courses and excelling in them. She started out Pre-Law at Western Michigan University, but art starting to call to her and she attended Kendall College of Art and Design. After a few years and no more money to attend, she entered the RV career world until the 2008 recession. She returned to college at Ferris State University and decided to take a career that would use both her skills in the art world and her experience in the business world and graduate as an Art Director.
She continues to explore and expand her talents and is a proud member of City Center Arts where she is a dedicated Art Director.
Laura’s Artist Statement: Be Bold!
“Be bold is the title and focus of my pieces. Being bold to choose what to say or not say. Being bold in expressing through loud colors and shapes, being bold to a world that wants you to “Be Calm”, complacent and settled only to gain nothing more than what people give you when they want to care about you. I hope my pieces inspire people to take space for themselves, to take the risk to ask for fulfillment in your life, to advocate for balance in your life, to have bright colors and solid boundaries in your life. Be Bold with life!” – Laura Miller
Introducing Evelyn Olthof
Evelyn Jane Olthof
Evelyn Jane Olthof was born and raised in North Yorkshire (UK) and moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan (USA) in September 2018 after completing the marriage visa process with her MI native husband, whom she met while he was on missions in the UK. Evelyn has been a creative soul since childhood with encouragement from her large family of artists, tailors, musicians and bakers, inspiring her to pursue dreams in art and music. Her strong interests in music led her to Leeds College of Music, earning herself an Extended BTEC Level 3 diploma in classical music working predominantly on clarinet. This encouraged her to embrace other creative talents in her spare time, including art and textiles, practicing ink drawing through lectures and classes to help with concentration and productivity throughout the less creative sessions.
Giving is a strong passion of Evelyn’s and is at the heart of what she does, she recently began volunteering at City Center Arts (Muskegon MI) as a member artist, giving her the ability to display her art. She has also been volunteering in the Scouting movement in both the UK and USA since 2016 after taking part as a scout for most of her teenage years. This developed some key social and life skills, allowing for creativity and leadership to flare and for her to provide the same life changing, new and crucial experiences to other teens and leading them in making change in their community, and the world.
Most works are inspired by whatever is on the mind or comes to mind, mainly with focuses of freedom, captivity and personal expression through challenging life experiences, like the ambitious intercontinental move at a young age. Evelyn never attended art classes and her main mediums lie in ink and acrylic, however has interest in mixed medias. Now after having her first child, her vital concentration is being as environmentally conscious in her works as possible, giving the Earth a voice and Providing a cleaner, more sustainable future for her child. Encouraging others to donate everyday items, using found materials, reusing and recycling are important practices, prevalent in a lot of works and a consistent focus when using social medias as a platform, giving beauty to trash, and supporting others in their sustainable journey.
Evelyn is looking to soon expand horizons in terms of mediums, in the hope of recycling items such as pop tabs, bottle tops and tires, to make sculptures and furniture items, further expanding the sustainable and planet friendly intentions. The strong drive to make a difference in the world comes from the desire for others to see the world through her eyes, with empathy, compassion and consideration. Although dwindling qualities amongst today’s society, all are important and she hopes that her art, and statements made through it, will inspire others to be more conscious and caring in their actions toward each other, their communities and their planet.
Check out what is coming up next…
- 2020 Artist Show Schedule
- Exhibitions
- Featured Artists
- Receptions
- Calendar
