GALLERY O

With our new house studio gallery finally completed we had an inaugural showing on Barack Obama's inaugural day. Included in the tiny space is a showing of over one hundred photos from the news services from his life and campaign. The gallery was painted blue on the day that he was elected to office and opened on inauguration day.

Maybe we're jumping on the Obamania wagon but it is fitting to make a grass roots space here close to home to show not only our miniature works but invite other artists as well to show in our alternative art space. The response to our small "grand" opening was great with lots of friends and neighbors attending.


In the new Gallery O the emphasis will be on the miniature arts. Melanie and I are in the process of putting together ideas for the shows. Upcoming shows this year will include exhibits of miniature kites, a Bird House show, a photo show of turn of the century Tintype photography, a miniature printmaker show, drawings on paper and a show of peep boxes featuring a revised look at natural history.

If you're too far away to drop by for the openings (complete with miniature drinks and foods) please check our blog occasionally and see what's showing. Or go to our new Gallery O blog with announcements of upcoming shows, photos of the current works on display and further writings on the "Art of the Miniature".

TODD WALKER - A Legacy of Images

This month was an opening of Melanie's father's photographic art works at the Stephen Cohen Gallery in Los Angeles. Todd Walker passed in 1998 but left a great legacy in the photo and art world. In his 81 years he worked as a set painter for RKO studios, working on Citizen Kane and polishing the floors that Fred Astaire danced on, a flight training instructor for the Army Air Corps during WWII and a free-lance photographer for Chevrolet during the 50's. He taught photography at the prestigious Art Center School in Los Angeles as well as the University of Florida in Gainsville and the University of Arizona in Tucson. He spent the later part of his life after retirement from teaching being a digital pioneer after spending many years generating more than 12,000 photographic works, screen prints, lithographs and prints done in historical photographic processes. He had a small press called the Thumbprint Press and self published art books, printing and binding them in his home studio in Tucson. His work spanned many directions as he explored processes of digital photography in the early 80's creating his own photo software for manipulating images. In this work he pioneered much of what we take for granted in PhotoShop.

This will be an important showing of Todd's works since his passing. The show will be up through February 21st and will be a part of the annual Photo L.A. art exhibition.

FLYING ON NEW YEARS DAY

Every year for about twenty seven years we have flown kites on Jan first. It's a good way to get the cob webs out, celebrate the first day of a new year and see who is crazy enough to come out and fly in the middle of the winter. Some years were spent fighting blizzards, snow storms and swirling winds on top of Bald Mountain a short distance from Boulder. Then a few years back we discovered the winds of the prairie greenbelt surrounding the city. Sometimes perfect winds, warm days or absolute blow downs and hold on to your hats. It blows the old year away and puts smiles on all the friends that are brave enough to come out. Old Christmas cookie tins are emptied and hot chocolate warms the bellies.

If you're ever out here and don't have anything to do but recover from too much partying the night before, come on out and fly a kite with us.

the greenbelt plateau makes a perfect kite flying field

we flew a lot of kites that day

Santa Chris & Mrs. Elizabeth Claus showed up on their new red scooter

So happy high flying 2009!

THE NEW BLUE GALLERY

Out of the ashes the phoenix bird is born....or rather our new tool shed has arisen. It was finished on the day before Christmas after a two month long construction period following the fire we had back in September that crisped and blackened the structure and the surrounding trees . The new shed roof features a "flying nun's hat" design that raises the interior ceiling space considerably.

With the new outside patio area and cover in place, track lighting and interior cabinets we've both concluded that the space is much too nice to put old burnt and carbon stained tools in. It is now our studio/house art gallery space and summer party kitchen. We'll relegate the tools to our dirty space studio numero 2 at "Rancho De Ville" north of town and out in the prairie lands where the sounds of table saws and loud music won't bother anyone.

In our pint size art gallery we will probably be showing smaller works of ours on a regular basis. The folks here in the Boulder area will receive notices for the openings starting in the spring. Shows of miniature kites, small sculptures, photos, paintings and other themes will occupy the walls and counters. Intimate is the operational word with the three or four person at a time capacity. The new outside garden patio area holds a much larger space for the chat and drinks room. We're both excited about the new gallery space and will somehow find time between all the other projects coming up to put on a show or two. Come if you can!

George and friend, Todd... the intrepid builders at work

and....the finished patio and new gallery painted BlueBama and white.

...and here's the back alley blue view

Yes, this really is where we do most of our work. Sometimes it astounds even us that we fabricate these large scale projects here in our home studio space and then truck them to the far corners of the country and world. We've used the alley as well as our spill over space with awnings for cover. The curious passers by sometime get petitioned to help us along with nieghbors. We do have our Rancho De Ville dirty space studio as well as Melanie's home space in nearby Louisville for sewing projects. Never enough room! Then again, our favorite studio space, the small space in our heads always seems limitless.