Artist and Art Lover

My infatuation with the Harrison Center began in April 2017 after meeting Quincy Owens who was lecturing at Rukus Makerspace.  Quincy’s answers, poise, and passion resonated with me and I reached out to him to see if I could assist with any projects he may have going on and pick his brain about his day to day professional artist’s life.  Fortunately, he accepted the offer and our friendship grew as did my exposure to the Harrison Center.

In May 2017, I quit my job at Eskenazi Health in Trauma Project Management in favor of being a full time artist.  Upon becoming a full time artist, I was sure to lay out my mission statement and business plan to keep me on track.  One of my top goals is to procure art as I sell my own art. It’s important that I keep the wheels greased for others as I find sales success.  This goal is terribly convenient as it’s an absolute joy to be able to own pieces that my fellow Harrison Center artists create.

I’ve procured 6 pieces in the past year from some of my favorite Harrison Center artists.

Kipp Normand’s “My Heart Was Full” was the first piece I was able to purchase.  Kipp is a character in his own right and his work is phenomenal; he’s a local celebrity in my eyes.  Kipp is known for his collage work, knowledge of history, and broad collections.

Matt Kenyon’s art glass has always spoken to me.  He creates vases, awards, drinking glasses, flowers, ornaments and teaches glass blowing.  I inherited a paperweight collection and was able to add to it with the largest paperweight yet.  This glass piece reminds me of the urchins and coral that I observe while diving in Cozumel, Mexico.  (I became his Harrison Center studio mate in September 2018).

Benny Sander’s “Central State” is a plein air painting with perfect brush marks that capture light and reveal a warm underpainting.  I not only admire Benny’s work, which is completely different from anything I could ever paint, but I admire his work ethic. Benny utilizes social media, business planning, and campaigning with much thought and skill.

Another genius artist whose business acumen and skill I appreciate is Alicia Zanoni.  She was able to raise capital by pre-selling paintings to fund her Summer 2018 plein air painting trip to Greece.  I was able to grab a pre-sale slot before they sold out. Alicia’s ability to capture cloud and water originally drew me to her work.  She’s a very spiritual and thoughtful painter. I selected a work from the Greece trip that captures her love of architecture and perspective.  

When I enter the Harrison Center, I typically do so in a way that allows me to travel the route in front of Art Mix.  I adore their mission statement, their artists, and their ceramics. I’ve purchased several of their pieces as gifts for friends and family and I held onto this one for my own art collection.

The most recent piece I added to my collection is from William Denton Ray.  I appreciate his whimsical pieces, attention to detail, and his graphic design skills.  The piece I grabbed was in his archives from 2009. “Idol of a Thousand Eyes” checked off all the boxes of what I adore about a quintessential William Denton Ray piece---color, movement, and funk.