Assemblage and Recyclates
August 1^th – September 13^th, 2008

Assemblage and Recyclates is a recycled art exhibition featuring nine contemporary local and national artists. Assemblage was a popular art form with artists such as Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) and Marcel Duchamp (1887-1968) in which found objects are used to create fine art. Recyclates are materials that can be used to form new products, in this case, a piece of artwork. The creation of artwork from found objects continues today with eco-conscious artists. Sixteen works will be on display with materials that range from ordinary found objects such as metal, wood, glass, and plastic to unusual art materials such as Tyvek and old maps.

Artists exhibiting include Pat Aaron, Betsy Blumenthal, Anne Bossert, Junko Brackin, Jerry De La Cruz, Leo Franco, Sara Goldenberg White, Adrienne Outlaw, and Joseph Shuldiner.

Urban Mosaics
Sandhi Schimmel Gold and Joshua Stone
June 20^th – July 26^th, 2008

Sandhi Schimmel Gold upcycles unusual resources such restaurant menus, cruise itineraries, and gallery opening cards to create her art and give others’ images and words a new life.  She questions the ideas of the face and beauty, and uses tesserae or tiles to represent the elements from which people are created.

In his youth, Joshua Stone spent well over a decade painting street graffiti and commissioned murals with other top artists of the genre. In his current body of work, graffiti elements combine with blocks of images stitched together providing complexity of detail and simplicity of composition

Ordinary Alchemy
May 9th – June 14th, 2008

In the exhibition Ordinary Alchemy artists Cassandra Tondro (Santa Monica, CA) and Christina Yocca (Eau Claire, WI) transform ordinary materials into their artwork. Tondro uses Home Depot's "Oops!" latex paint in her flowing abstract paintings. "Oops!" are house paints that were incorrectly mixed, rejected by the buyer, or simply left behind and are offered at a discounted price. Inspired by nature, Yocca borrows building techniques from past cultures and the contemporary natural building movement to form vessels and wall pieces.  Her work derives color from Earth clays that she purchases or digs locally. 

Deborah Kruger
February 15 - March 15, 2008

Deborah Kruger graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York with a degree in textile and surface design. Her newest textile paintings evoke ideas of contemporary feminism and West African culture. In a deliberate effort to blur and possibly eliminate the dichotomy of art and craft, Deborah Kruger has invented a unique blend of fiber and encaustic. Although these materials are rarely seen together, Kruger has paired them to create a body of work that is both contemporary and archetypal. The visual vocabulary of these triangles conveys come aspect of her sensation and experience of being female in this culture. Although this work is abstract, it is evocative of indigenous art from West Africa and the tribes that inhabit the rainforests of Brazil. 

James Koehler
January 1st, 2008 - February 8th, 2008

James Koehler is one of the most sought after weavers in the southwest. His vibrant tapestries attract the attention of important collectors and museums around the world.  His work can be found in The Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian in Washington D.C., the Denver Art Museum and the U.S. Embassies in La Paz, Boliva and Reykjavik, Iceland.  This year, he was named "American Artist Abroad" and received the New Mexico "Governors Award for Excellence in the Arts".  Koehler finds inspiration for his work in the extraordinary landscape and the unique cultures of New Mexico. His tapestries often include pan-cultural motifs and evocative symbolism which stem from his monastic background and work in anthropology.

Off the Wall - Surface Design Association
August 31, 2007 – October 27, 2007

Off the Wall is a show of innovative three dimensional fiber and textile creations by Surface Design Association members in the Southwest Region.  The show was conceived as an opportunity for the members to showcase the creativity and experimentation of dimensional fiber art works that are breaking the boundaries of flat wall work, challenging us to incorporate spatial relationships within our surface designs.

Flow, Regional SAQA Show
July 20, 2007 – August 25, 2007

SAQA Mountain Region presents FLOW, a show juried by Marilyn Dillard.  The show will present interpretations of FLOW through its various definitions and applications, from fluids, to conversation, to energy. FLOW def. -to move gracefully; the feeling of complete energized focus; hang loosely in an easy manner.

Maximo Laura
June 15, 2007 – July 14, 2007

Peruvian artist Maximo Laura weaves a world that reflects his personal and cultural views. His works are three-dimensional representations of Andean mythological themes drawn from Peru's rich history of pre-Columbian cultures such as the Incas and their modern day descendants the Quechua Indians.  He uses historical textile techniques of the Andes combined with innovations in the international field of tapestry to create vibrant and dynamic images.

Under the Skin

Under the Skin examines what lurks under the human’s largest organ, probing cultural responses to the mechanisms of the human body.  Does this visual dissection reveal a Frankensteinian horror or a series of delicate patterns?  Is beauty only skin deep?  Cloth is frequently referred to as a “second skin” for the same protective qualities it offers as the epidermis.  The artists exhibiting engage with traditional and non-traditional fiber materials and processes, from video to beadwork and fake fur to animal skin.  They utilize fibers many metaphoric references and its sensual, tactile and subversive qualities to query presumptions and reveal possibilities.  Artists: Samantha Bennett, Jeff Hand, Christine LoFaso, Lindsay Obermeyer, Adrienne Outlaw, Laura Splan