Review of "Sound and Silence" by Rosemary Poole-Carter

Louisiana Portrait Project: Sound and Silence by Lisa Qualls

Rauch Gallery at Gaston College, Dallas, North Carolina

September 2016

By Rosemary Poole-Carter 

On September 29^th, the final day of the Rauch Gallery exhibition of Louisiana Portrait Project: Sound and Silence, I attended the artist’s talk and viewed the exhibit along with a full gallery of art lovers and budding artists. Already a fan of Lisa Qualls’s work and sharing her affinity for the state of Louisiana, I expected to enjoy her exquisitely detailed drawings of human forms and her imaginative installations—and was not disappointed. On one wall, a great swath of canary paper cascaded from ceiling to floor in a multi-layered rendering of camellias, irises, and magnolias, as if these flowers had been pressed among the translucent pages of an enormous book. Then, across the room, voice recordings of Louisianans telling their stories provided sound over silence above a panel drawing of multiple pairs of intriguing eyes. What I had not anticipated was how much the reactions of other attendees would enhance my pleasure in the art of Sound and Silence.

Gallery patrons clustered in front of a large painting of Mr. Charles Robinson in a Louisiana cemetery, paused in his work of painting a tomb with “tombstone white” to offer a smile expressive of his devotion and pride in tending his parents’ grave. Several art students asked Lisa Qualls to pose with them for photographs and selfies beside her work, each one grinning as broadly as the man Lisa had captured on canvas. Patrons discussed and lingered over a wall of graphite portraits of Louisianans, each meticulous drawing as revelatory of a unique personality as of the artist’s consummate skill. The gallery hummed with questions and comments for Lisa and with conversations sparked by her work. I felt the respect that Lisa showed in her portraits for her subjects’ intelligence, humor, heart, and experience crossed the divide that night between art and life. With a nod to Shakespeare’s Prospero, I think Lisa proved to all of us in the gallery that we are such stuff as art is made of. Her choice to celebrate the humanity and beauty of Louisiana is particular, but, like all true artists, she makes the particular universal, drawing us all into her art.

Above: Mr. Charles Robinson, Terrebonne Parish, Oil on paper

Holding Pattern

Unfortunately, the political unrest, the early summer flooding north Louisiana and more recently the flooding in south Louisiana has kept me from making most of the research trip to parishes that I had planned.

My heart goes out to the families who have lost their homes in the flooding this year.  I drove along I 10 and highway 190 two weeks ago and witnessed some of the destruction in Denham Springs and around Lafayette.  I talked to a few people but it was too painful to record stories when people are still in shock and  out searching for supplies.

If you are interested in donating to organizations that are helping both displaced people and animals this article from CNN has a good list of organizations to donate money to.  

While I am not adding to my research, I have been reading Louisiana and other folktales from the South.  These stories are contributing to ideas and characters for a new series of drawings and paintings.  

Experiments in Paint and Paper

Sometimes my interpretations of Louisiana come in the form of memories about color, texture, light, smell and taste. 

The artwork resulting from my trips to Louisiana began as figurative  realism. The pieces are becoming increasingly abstract and more expressive of moods and memories  than than representations of specific images. 

Gardens and Drawing

I realized this morning that I approach creating a garden the same way that I create a drawing. Sometimes the garden is completely planned out ahead of time - plants, locations, balance... everything.  Other times I work on the garden a little at a time adding things that I like then removing and transplanting until an organization begins to emerge.  

Most recently I have started to plant gardens based on what I want to photograph and draw as well as what I want to look at.  I think about plants that will be interesting at different times of year, the flowers and fruit and perhaps even the roots of the plant.  

A garden composed of things that I want to draw is taking shape.  Some large very colorful pieces will happen in the next year based on these ideas. Seasons, growth, stages and time to observe are becoming more important to me as a person and as an artist.

Above:  Bear's Breeches or Acanthus Mollis.  Not native but works beautifully in part-shade locations in the Southern US.  Slowly multiplies to create nice groupings.

Textiles and Paper

For several years now I have been using paper to create textile forms and textiles  to create sculptural forms.  The above photo is a detail of a blouse constructed on a sewing machine using tissue paper.  Below is a detail of sculptural silk forms that I constructed for an installation a few years ago.  

I have been working with photography, drawing and painting for the artworks exhibited so far in the Louisiana Portrait Project exhibits.  I am working now on some sculptural pieces that will be exhibited in 2017.   

Some of these pieces will be made using textiles and others will be cast with plaster or clay.  I usually let the idea dictate the form that a piece will take.  I am looking forward to a period of experimentation with some new ideas and direction.

"A Collection of Silence" Opens in Hattiesburg, MS Tonight!

Muse 1, Part 1 and 2

The above installed image of "Muse I, Part 1 and 2" and the subtle reflection of Southern Portraits in the historic library that the Hattiesburg Cultural Center and Arts Council now inhabit says it all about this exhibit. It is about Southern culture and history, past and present. 

"A Collection of Silence" opening tonight in Hattiesburg, MS. Reception from 4 - 6 pm, 723 North Main Street, Hattiesburg, MS.

Masur Museum Fundraiser

The Masur Museum's yearly fundraiser Off the Wall  will be Friday, April 1, 2016. I would love to be there but have an opening at the Hattiesburg Cultural Center to attend that night for my exhibit "A Collection of Silence". 

The two paintings pictured "Penny Candy Bag" 12 x 12.5" oil on paper (above) and "Study for Nest with Leaves"  8 x 8" colored pencil and oil on paper (below)

will be in the auction and available at a crazy low starting bid. All works $500 or under and starting bids begin at $75 or lower.

Please go this wonderful event if you can and support the Masur Museum.  It is a fantastic regional museum with a fantastic permanent collection and cutting edge contemporary exhibits.

Information for tickets here.

A New Series of Drawings

A new series of drawings predicated on conversations in Louisiana about the definition and use of the word Creole. One conversation on the use of this word prompted more research into this topic. 

A series of drawings in two and three parts is called "The Definition of Creole" with each figure depicted being a muse. 

Many beautiful people and interesting discussions come from this idea of lineage and generations. 

Large Florals

I am working on some large paintings of flowers from private gardens.  The photographs that I took last year of gleaned blossoms are perfect imagery for these paintings. It is nice to see the forms and details so large.  They become very sculptural even though the presentation is two dimensional. 

Removing the color, or most of the color, from the images can produce wonderful results. The form, shadows and highlights become almost tangible.

A detail of a peony below.  Painted with ink and oil on paper,  40 x 40".

Floral Portraits

I will be taking portraits of garden flowers from Louisiana soon. This is the first lavender rose of the season.

Henry James and Winter

Remembering last year's photos of Louisiana in winter brings to mind a quote from Henry James describing Versailles in winter.

"But all deserted places and gardens should be seen in the chill and leafless season.  Then nature seems to give them up to your sympathy and they appear to take you into their confidence."  

This quote from "Parisian Sketches"  seems to describe perfectly a reclaimed area near Monroe, LA that is now a Waterfowl Preserve.  

53rd Juried Exhibition at the Masur Museum

My piece Tenure and Terpander has been selected by juror Holly Hughes, Godin-Spaulding Curator for the Collection, Albright-Knox Art Gallery for the 53rd Annual Juried Competition Exhibition at the Masur Museum.  The exhibit opens March 9 to July 5, 2016. 

http://www.masurmuseum.org/upcoming-exhibitions