Introduction

Blogspot’s Eclectic Virtual Art Gallery is located online at undertheumbrellasea.blogspot.com.  The gallery is operated by Linda Delgado, a fledgling art enthusiast who has collected pieces of art from different mediums in the form of photography, digital art, laser graphics, sculpture, and painting. 

Exhibition Introduction

Exhibition

Under The Umbrella Sea

Artists

• Tiffany Bozic
• David Burdeny
• Daniella Jones
• Christian Riese Lassen
• Larry Lehman
• Jeanette Lindblad
• John W. Megahan
• Hiroko Reaney
• Mary Michael Shelley
• Martin Waugh

        The sea and sea life have an array of possibilities for many artists, and the works on display are those that express all aspects of and pertaining to the sea.  They come from a number of artists who use different mediums to portray their creative vision of the sea.  Many of the pieces focus on water, however, there are a number of components in which the ocean is comprised of, and therefore I have chosen to present those other elements.  I have selected these artists to broaden the observers perception to give the opportunity to contemplate and discover a variety of forms that the sea and sea life has to offer.

White Chalk

Artist: Tiffany Bozic

Title: White Chalk

Media: Painting - Acrylic on Maple Panel

Dimensions: 35” x 45”

Date: 2010

Tiffany Bozic was inspired by nature at an early age.  Her work digs into a profound and imaginative outlet of the world and nature.  She finds her art to be a therapeutic process in which she can find a way to connect with life and find sense in the world around her.  From November 2006 to 2007 she was a participant in the California Academy of Sciences Artist in Residence Program.  Her work has been shown in galleries all over the U.S. and Europe, and has been published in various magazines including the cover of Coast Magazine.

“The pieces are about the shared intimate feelings that many people feel that they are not able to articulate to one another.”  - Tiffany Bozic

This piece of art is one of fifteen from another art exhibit.  Here she uses examples from nature to help her express progressively involved emotions which elaborate her own symbolic language.  This work is a little reminder that we are nature, linked to everything.

The White Chalk painting illustrates crayfish falling from a cluster of other marina objects, such as sea shells, sand dollars and starfish.  All are depicted just above an endless sea.  I chose this piece to convey how the artist used softer and muted colors to depict the articles in the painting.  Bozic uses her artwork to express her emotions that she otherwise wouldn't be able to verbalize, as a result, I feel this work is expressing a subdued emotion for the viewer to recognize and grasp.

Snorkeler

Artist: David Burdeny

Title: Snorkeler (After Misrach)

Media: Photograph, Archival Pigment Print

Dimensions: 45” x 55”, 32” x 40”, 21” x 24”, 13” x 16”

Date: 2011

David Burdeny became interested in photography at the tender age of 12 when he began to photograph landscapes of the prairie in Canada.  Essentially self taught, he deliberately shoots near dark and in inadequate lighting, using particularly long exposures to observe what the eye normally cannot.  David has a Masters in Architecture and a degree in interior design.  He has numerous exhibitions, been published in various magazines and received many awards for his work in photography.  

"Traverse" is David Burdeny's newest collection of photographs focusing on the areas of the Pacific region. Varied in subject matter, the range reminds us of past works from his early series, "Ancora," and the celebrated "Shorelines" series, of the encompassing architectural imagery of 2009-2011, and Burdeny's ultimate and signature theme, the ocean.

 – Jennifer Kostuik Gallery

This work demonstrates Burdeny’s sharp skill when working with natural light.  He recently introduced people into his photographs, which is shown in his “Snorkeler” piece.  According to Burdeny, including people in his photos involve a bit of a narrative, but mostly form and light are key ingredients to his art.

Burdeny’s “Snorkeler” is the only piece in my exhibition that involves a person.  Though small in comparison to the entire photograph, the snorkeler is a vital feature of the product.  A person is necessary for the title of the piece, which this photo validates attractively with a sole snorkeler at a beach in Maui, Hawaii.  I find the snorkeler, swimming in the ocean, illustrates how we as land animals, can dive into another environment, one that endures under another umbrella of existence.  Snorkeling allows people to see into that environment, where a world of animals can live in such a different atmosphere, with its own aquatic flavor and beauty.

Sea Horse

Artist: Daniella Jones

Title: Seahorse

Media: Canvas Print

Dimensions: 5” x 7”

Date: 2007

Daniella Jones work has been shown in many exhibitions and galleries.  She has been creating artworks for over 20 years now and is an award winning Australian artist. She likes to focus her work on Australian wildlife and has found a particular interest in using soft pastels.

"What a wonderful piece of artwork! The eyes, so expressive, WOW! Extremely happy"  
  - Judy, New South Wales, Australia (satisfied customer)

Daniella resides in the tropical rainforests of Far North Queensland, Australia and has the Great Barrier Reef at hands reach.  The natural environment provides for the necessary inspiration for her artwork, such as the “Seahorse” seen above.

The “Seahorse” print demonstrates an example of an animal that resides below the sea.  This piece was originally created using pastels.  I chose this work because the seahorse is poised upright, yet appears almost diagonal the way it’s depicted on the canvas, making it symmetrical and pleasing to the eye.  I also enjoy how the artist uses deeper blues to accent the ocean in which the seahorse floats.  The blues then transition into black, which conveys the deep ocean to where the eye cannot see.

Hawaiian Night

Artist: Christian Riese Lassen

Title: Hawaiian Night

Media: Painting, Lassengraph AP 50 CRL 100 SN 100

Dimensions: 24x18

Date: 10/10/06

Christian Riese Lassen is another self taught artist who grew up in the Hawaiian island of Maui.  Unsurprisingly, he found the ocean and nature to be a natural influence to his work.  He has been recognized in magazines, television and film, such as 20/20 and The Travel Channel.  His artwork is internationally renowned and collected.

“As one of the world's most renowned marine artists, Christian Riese Lassen's visionary images emanate a light that touches some deep chord within us all. The mastery of detail, the richness of subject matter, even the surprising magical points of view are somehow secondary to the incredible intimacy that this contemporary master is able to achieve. Christian's worldwide popularity is due to his uncanny ability to awaken in each of us a positive awareness of ourselves and to restore the hope that we can indeed contribute to the healing of our home.”       – artbrokerage.com

“Hawaiian Night” is a painting that is now available through the medium Lassengraph.  With the beautiful backdrop of Hawaii as Lassen’s main influence, this depiction of a typical night in Hawaii illustrates Hawaii’s main features, the ocean shore, palm trees, and beauty.

This gorgeous artwork conveys the beauty that is found above the sea.  .  I selected this piece because I truly enjoyed the charm the artist maintained in his artwork.  Many are familiar with the bright and sunny pictures that come to mind when one thinks of the Hawaiian Islands.  However, this painting flaunts the Hawaiian beauty that is noticed less often, the beauty of the evening sky.  The brightness of the moon illuminates the lapping ocean against the sandy beach, and the stillness of the palm trees.  The sky is dotted with distant yet bright stars.  Here, splendor can be captured by the jewels of the sky, which highlight the beauty of the sea.

Ocean Sunset

Artist: Larry Lehman

Title: Ocean Sunset

Media: Digital Art

Dimensions: 3000 x 22500 image (full-resolution)

Date: 1/2/09

Larry Lehman currently resides in Sunland, California.  His creations are available through his art site online.  The site is dedicated in memory of his sister who passed away from cancer recently and where 100 percent of the proceeds are donated to help fight and cure cancer.

“Ocean sunset was drawn in Microsoft Paint using the mouse as a pencil and my right-hand instead of my left.”

     – Larry Lehman

The artwork was done on a basic computer program which required the use of his non-dominant hand to operate the mouse.  It is a landscape creation of the sun setting in the background of a lively sea.

This piece was chosen because “Ocean Sunset” was created using a more menial type of program, Microsoft Paint.  That in itself is what makes it the piece so intriguing.  The artist creatively portrays rolling waves of the ocean against a backdrop of the sun setting.  Lehman had to meticulously draw the animated colors of a waving sea, along with the reflection of the setting sun on the ocean.  Though Microsoft Paint is a very simple artistic tool, this artist created a piece that is much more involved and complex, portraying a great talent to a man who uses different mediums to create his work.

Red Octopus in the deep blue

Artist: Jeanette Lindblad

Title: Red Octopus in the deep blue

Media: Digital Art – Digital Collage From Ink Drawing

Dimensions: 2144 x 2528 (full-resolution)

Date: 2/27/11

Jeanette Lindblad lives in Lilburn, Georgia and has a passion for drawing and painting.  She likes to use different materials and methods on her work.  She did attend a few classes for a Commercial Art Degree, which she unfortunately had to drop due to family issues.  Most of her portfolio works are 5-10 years old.

“This is a collage created from an original pen and ink drawing with the background digitally altered.”

 – Jeanette Lindblad

As stated above, the artist first created the piece from ink, then had the background altered digitally.  The piece is now a digital collage that can be found online.

The “Red Octopus in the deep blue” drawing skillfully captures an interesting organism of the sea.  The octopus here is drawn in red, contrasting against the blue of the sea all around her.  The arms of the creature are shown at different angles and views, elaborating on the two rows of suctions cups that are located underneath.  The artist uses swirls throughout the background of the drawing, perhaps to emulate the tips of the arms.

Coral Reef

Artist: John W. Megahan

Title: Coral Reef

Media: Painting - Acrylics

Dimensions: 20” x 13”

Date: 2007

John W. Megahan has a Bachelor of Arts Degree and a Masters of Biology.  He has a passion for both art and biology and eventually decided to combine the two and become a biological illustrator.  In 1996 he became the Sr. Biological Illustrator at the University of Michigan’s Museum of Zoology, he teaches at the University of Michigan’s School of Art, and does freelance work.

“John Megahan’s work is a stunning combination of precise realism and artistic expression.  Inspiration is found in varied landscapes from deserts to sea coasts, serene rivers to austere mountain views.  His wildlife portraits are truly captivating in their spiritual understanding of each animal he paints.”  – Pierre Paul Art Gallery

The piece “Coral Reef” is a painting that was one of the many illustrations Megahan created for a children’s book, “W is for Waves”.  The piece was created using acrylics.

The “Coral Reef” illustration now has a scene set under the sea.  The setting allows for us to see coral reef and a few creatures below the surface of the sea.  The foreground begins with a shaded orange piece of coral, which then moves to the far distance of the background, depicting more coral of various shapes and colors.  At the top of the drawing sits the beginning of the ocean, where sunlight beams down to help illuminate the coral reef down below.  The way the artist captured just below the surface of the sea and the light radiating down from the sunlight are key components as to why this piece struck a chord with me.

Sea Turtle

Artist: Hiroko Reaney

Title: Sea Turtle

Media: Painting – Acrylic on Canvas Board with Gloss Finish

Dimensions: 9” x 12”

Date: 2004

Hiroko Reaney lives in Homeland, California with her husband and two children.  She enjoys painting inspirational art, seascapes, fantasy fairies, angels, and mermaids.

“I made this piece in 2004. I just love the ocean so I often make art that is ocean-related. There are two other pieces I made around the same time that have a similar monochromatic color theme. “  

   - Hiroko Reaney

This work of art is a painting that was done with acrylics on a canvas board.  Reaney used a monochromatic color design to portray an aerial view of a sea turtle.

I chose an additional work of art that involves another resident of the sea, the sea turtle.  The animal is set directly in the middle of the canvas, where the piece gives the essential outline of what a sea turtle looks like from above.  The sea turtles’ shell, head, and limbs are drawn as if the creature is buoyant in the sea.  The color scheme used for the painting is that of aqua, which is used in differing hues over the entire piece, getting darker as one moves towards the corners of the canvas.  I sincerely appreciated how this piece demonstrates a creative side that can be accomplished using a monochromatic theme.

Mermaid

Artist: Mary Michael Shelley

Title: Mermaid, Number 7

Media: Carved Pine, Acrylic Paint

Dimensions: 16” x 9” x 3”

Date: 2011

Mary Michael Shelley graduated from Cornell where she majored in creative writing.  However, upon graduating, her father gave her a painted wood carving he created for her, which prompted her to also start carving creations.  Soon she was no longer writing, but engulfed in visual art instead.  She has had her work in major exhibitions beginning in 1978 to current, has been published in magazines and art books, and also has pieces in the permanent collections of an array of museums, such as the Smithsonian.  

“My artwork is entirely carved in white pine and then painted with acrylics. Each piece is a unique handmade original.” – Mary Michael Shelley

This sculpture is carved from pine wood and hand painted with acrylics.  This piece stands 16 inches tall and would cost a potential buyer $450.00.

The “Mermaid” carving jumped out at me because it was not the average elegantly seductive creation of a mermaid.  This artist used her expertise to craft a mermaid resting atop two rolling waves as if the ocean is her lounge chair.  Although mermaids are only fantasy in the ocean world, they are depicted quite often in ocean art.  Mermaids incorporate the world of humans and sea life, where fusing the two together create an extraordinary life form.

Juggling Red and Blue

Artist: Martin Waugh

Title: Juggling Red and Blue

Media: Photography

Dimensions: 1366 x 2050 pixels

Date: 2006

Martin Waugh has a B.S. degree in Physics from Lewis and Clark College in Oregon.  He uses high-speed photography to enable him to capture soft, graceful curves of liquid.  His work can be found in museums, corporations, as well as private art collections.  Martin Waugh describes himself as a father, engineer, and artist.

“Liquid Sculpture images are fluids in motion, frozen in time by a flash of light. They are droplets witnessed in mid-splash.” – Martin Waugh

Martin Waugh coordinates these creations by perfectly aiming the varying drops and freeing them with precise timing.  Letting nature take its course, he then photographs the liquid forms unfolding.  He manipulates the liquid properties by altering the droplets’ direction and controlling the color, viscosity and surface tension.  He captures these sharp moments with a digital camera and electronic flash. 

Water is the single most important component of the sea; it takes up the most volume of the ocean.  I chose this artwork because this artist scrupulously captures water in the smallest forms.  This piece titled “Juggling Red and Blue” is a wonderful example of how he literally shows water playing with water.  He uses dye to accent the body of water that appears in juggling form.  The body and head are blue, while the arms are red.  The pieces he juggles are tinier pieces of itself.  The lighting, coloring, and timing the artist uses must be so exact that it is hard to discern how such a picture is even possible.  This artist displays how water, such a hard component to handle, can be manipulated to create such an astonishing and striking work of art.

Conclusion

Conclusion

            I have learned so much with this process of organizing this exhibition.  Researching works by various artists was extremely challenging, yet very fascinating with the copious amounts of work available online.  Although I wasn’t able to use some of the works that I found most fascinating, it was still enticing to see how artists work so differently from one another, using different mediums, tools, and themes.  I learned how much work must be put into creating an exhibition.  One must gather pieces of work, information about the artists, information regarding the pieces, and also arrange promotions to enlighten others about where and when the exhibitions take place.  Choosing pieces of work that visually struck my eye came natural to me, because of course, I would choose what appeals to me.  Challenging was being able to choose pieces due to the lack of information provided by some artists.  For instance, I really loved, and wanted to use a piece from the artist Elena Kalis.  Her work focuses on underwater photography and has many pieces that are "Alice In Wonderland" inspired.  Another challenge came from the theme I chose, which focused a lot on water and the sea.  I found a few water installations by a few artists that I wasn’t able to use due to the lack of dimensions.  As a result, I found that the job of a curator would be quite demanding and he/she must be very knowledgeable regarding all forms and genres of the art world.  I myself am very new the field of art.  I am not exactly creative in a painting, sculpting, or drawing sort of way, but I have found that art can be in many different forms.

            I discovered that connecting artists work with their own experiences to a common theme was central to their artwork and how they feel best to expose their work.  Some artists in my exhibition grew up or lived in scenic areas such as Hawaii and Australia.  Several of the artists used nature as their muse and reflected their emotions through their art.  Demonstrating how they felt connected to nature and how nature connected with them.  Which is exactly why I ended  up taking on water and the sea as my theme.  I feel very connected to the ocean, loving the water and the sound of the waves.  This project opened up another world to me, the art world.  I found how the sea can be portrayed under an umbrella of artists and their various amounts of artworks.