Holiday Membership Show- Opens December 5th, 2009

2009 Holiday Show artwork by Mark Foltz

Jerome Artists Cooperative Gallery’s Annual Holiday Membership Show
December 5th- January 23rd

Opening with seasonal flair on December 5th, coinciding with Jerome’s very popular ARTwalk event, the Jerome Artists Cooperative’s annual Holiday Membership Show will feature a festive selection of its artists’ finest offerings.
From small stocking stuffers, and functional household crafts, clothing, and jewelry, to large-scale masterpieces, the membership will display a wide variety of original art to meet anyone’s budget.
With over 35 members, all local residents, the Jerome Artists Cooperative Gallery is a fantastic place to seek special gifts for those on your Christmas list. The gallery is home to fine art of all price ranges: paintings in oil, acrylic, ink, water color, and mixed media, photography, fiber art, jewelry of recycled materials, forged iron, steel, glass and titanium, sculptures and functional works made from gourds, turned wood, glass, papier mache, and clay. One may also purchase prints of original artworks, available in many different sizes, both framed and unframed. In addition to the great variety of art regularly displayed at the co-op, seasonal special items are available during this show, such as Christmas cards, ornaments, and other holiday themed goodies.

Opening night for the Holiday Membership Show is Saturday, December 5th, 2009, 5:30pm-8pm, during Jerome’s ARTwalk. The streets of Jerome will be bustling with holiday shoppers and the spirits of the season. Refreshments will be served, and co-op artists will be present, to share in the good cheer.

The Jerome Artists Cooperative is located at 502 Main, in the former Hotel Jerome (c.1917). Open daily from 10am-6pm, the gallery is managed and operated by its members, all local artists, ranging from Prescott to Sedona, with the majority of its members residing in Jerome, Cottonwood, Clarkdale, and Camp Verde areas.Phone 639-4276, or visit the gallery online at www.jeromeartistscoop.com for more information.

"One Woman Show" October 24-Dec. 3rd- New works by featured artist Judy Jaaskelainen

Clarkdale resident, Judy Jaaskelainen, a popular watercolor artist, and member of the Jerome Artists Cooperative Gallery since 2002, presents a brand new body of art in her upcoming “One Woman Show.” The featured show opens October 24th, and runs through December 3rd.

Jaaskelainen, a vibrant spirit, grew up in California, and was young mother of 3 before she was out of her teen years. “At 64, I am the matriarch of a large and loving family. It is rare to find a family so close and dedicated to maintaining the strong bonds that unite us. We are always present for one another in crisis.”
Always artistically inclined, Jaaskelainen began painting seriously in the 1970's while living in Southern California and recuperating from spinal surgery. “My painting experience up to that time was in oils and acrylics on canvas. I began to visit galleries, art museums and exhibits and developed a deep appreciation for the art of watercolor. In essence, I was hooked. I located watercolor artists in the area whose work I felt strongly about and studied with them to develop my skills”.

Jaaskelainen graduated from Loma Linda University with a degree in Occupational Therapy. “I specialized in the treatment of patients with Spinal Cord Injury, Arthritis, and Children with Physical Disabilities.”
She is a juried member of Northern Arizona Watercolor Society, and also a member of the Arizona Watercolor Association, and Watercolor West.

"I have been painting in watercolor for over 20 years. I love the transparent properties of watercolor paints and how I can let the medium ‘do it’s thing’ on wet paper which sometimes feels like the painting is creating itself,” she says with her typical bright-eyed enthusiasm.

Where does Jaaskelainen gather her inspiration? “The natural beauty of Southwest, beautiful people in my life, beautiful animals and my sense of humor,” she says, “I usually have 2-5 paintings going at the same time and the subject matter varies, so I have more than one palette going most of the time.”

“Some of my paintings are like children showing-off for their mother with bright, bold colors that shout, ‘Hey, look at me! See how my colors bounce off the paper!’ Other of my works are tranquil and serene.”

The opening reception for “One Woman Show” is Saturday, October 24th at the Jerome Artists Cooperative Gallery, 502 Main Street from 5:30pm-8:00pm. Refreshments and food will be served. The show will run through December 3rd, and will also be the featured show during next month’s ARTwalk, November 7th

The Jerome Artists Cooperative Gallery is open daily from 10 a.m-6 p.m. and until 8 p.m. during openings and art walks. For more information, call 928-639-4276 or visit http://www.jeromeartistscoop.com/ .

Ghost Walk in Jerome

This weekend in Jerome is the annual Ghost Walk, with various tours being given around town, that include lectures on Jerome's history, and stories about some it's most (in)famous permanent residents. Reservations are required, but if you don't make one, c'mon up anyway for a fabulous weekend on Cleopatra Hill!!

More info on the Jerome Ghost Walk at this link: Jerome Historical Society.

October ArtWalk

The October ArtWalk in Jerome was a great success! The full moon rising over the Verde Valley gave everyone a beautiful view from Jerome, and the mild weather brought a bunch of people out to our awesome little town.

Sarah Harms' parents were visiting from Chicago, and enjoyed the evening. Her Dad, Gil, is chillin' here near V. Norton's display of ceramics.

Some customers check out Christy Fisher's jewelry and Raina Gentry's paintings.

The new town manager, in center of pic, Claudia (forgot her last name SORRY), came to check out the gallery and chat it up a bit.

Sarah Harms worked the front desk, while her mom kept an eye on the snack table. Thanks Mom!!!

Mary Jardine in the featured artist's room, discussing her work with Sarah's mom, Carolyn. Mary sold 13 pieces yesterday!!!!

Jerome October ArtWalk

The ArtWalk in Jerome is this Saturday, Oct 3, for 5-8pm.

Mary Jardine will be on hand to discuss her latest works in fabric. Goodies will be served.

Arizona Landscapes in Fiber • New Works by Mary Jardine

September 12, 2009 - October 21, 2009

Mary Jardine, a popular artist at the Jerome Artists Cooperative Gallery for nearly a decade, presents a brand new body of fiber art in her upcoming featured artist show, “Arizona Landscapes in Fiber.” The show opens September 12th, and runs through October 21st.

Jardine is a fiber artist, known for her “Fabrications”, creating wall hangings and artful scenes, using fabric as her medium. Sewing, quilting, cutting and gluing, she brings together the different colors and textures of the canvas in unusual and delightful ways.

“After taking a class in papier-mache from ‘The Chicken Lady of San Miguel, Mexico’, Karen Letcher, at the Quilters’ Quarters in Cottonwood, I adapted my technique to three-dimensional and sculptural landscapes,” explained Jardine. Many of the materials she uses are recycled---clothing, yarns and silk flowers from the thrift store, discarded newsprint, dried bark, branches, pods, fungi and driftwood from meadows, forests and beaches.

“This new work has added many levels of the creative process to my fiber work, such as the papier-mache techniques of painting, molding and sculpting.”

Jardine, resident of Cottonwood, is a traveler, visiting wilderness and camping in her van,“I absorb wonderful landscape images and retrieve them from memory as I begin each new piece.”
A member of the Jerome Artists Cooperative since 2000, Jardine also exhibits at the The Quilt Store and Gallery in West Sedona.

The opening reception for “Arizona Landscapes in Fiber” is Saturday, September 12 at the Jerome Artists Cooperative Gallery, 502 Main Street from 5:30pm-8:00pm. Refreshments and food will be served, and Larry Aker will perform live music for the gallery’s guests.
Jardine's show will run through October 21st.

By Ellen J.D. Roberts

Artwork © Mary Jardine

Be it Ever So Humble... New Works by Michele Cokl Naylor

August 1, 2009 - September 9, 2009

Family • Mixed media collage by Michele Cokl Naylor

Ever look through a box of old photos, only to discover unfamiliar faces among the ancestors? It seems every family has a few snapshots nobody can identify. That became the foundation on which Michele Cokl Naylor built her new exhibition at the Jerome Artists Cooperative Gallery, "Be It Ever So Humble..."

As family historian, Naylor always tried to solve those domestic mysteries, to put names to faces and places. Yet when she wasn't able to do so, she found herself even more intrigued pondering the stories of these strangers. She began visiting antique stores in search of orphaned photographs from different eras.

Happiness • Mixed media collage by Michele Cokl Naylor

"I wondered about the lives of these people," Naylor says. "Were they happy? Was this their best suit of clothes? Why had they chosen to document that particular moment? Sometimes you can just see the hope and promise in their eyes. It was something I learned from my mother, that you never throw a photo away, even if you don't know who's in it. A photo always has worth because it captured a moment that will never exist again."

She gravitated to photos of families and their homes, a style that began in the late 1800s, as itinerant photographers carried their equipment through the countryside. Often family members would gather in the yard, sitting on chairs in front of their house.

"Owning a home was such a point of pride and it was a significant part of the family. Of course, it would be included in a photograph," says Naylor. "And now decades later, with so many people fighting to stay in their homes, we're reminded all over again of the powerful bond between family and house."

Known as a fiber artist and doll-maker, Naylor has been a member of the Jerome Artists Cooperative Gallery for 11 years. For her show, "Be It Ever So Humble…," she creates mixed media collage built around digitally enhanced photographs dating from the 1870s through the 1940s, all while incorporating her love of color and texture in the process.

"I have such admiration for women who, through the years, would work all day, then sit in the evening making quilts. I'm not a quilter in the traditional sense but have included fabric in many of the pieces for this show and often use a patchwork layout," says Naylor.

Braids • Mixed media collage by Michele Cokl Naylor

"Be It Ever So Humble…" is a portrait of a time very different from today, yet perhaps familiar as well.

"No matter how difficult things seem, we all want to concentrate on what's truly important and that will always be family and home," says Naylor. "I hope my show will evoke an appreciation of those who went before us, of how they lived and dreamed. And if anyone is inspired to look through their family albums, I would be delighted to create an original piece of art for them utilizing their own photos."

"Be It Ever So Humble…" will be on display at the Jerome Artists Cooperative Gallery from August 1 through September 9. The show's opening on Saturday Aug 1 at 5 p.m. coincides with the always popular Jerome Art Walk. Opening night will feature music from the 1920s and '30s, refreshments and a chance to meet the artist and discuss home and family and the creative process.

Yes We Can! • Summer Membership Show

May 22, 2009 - July 29, 2009
Opening Gala on Saturday June 8, 2009

Can we make it? Yes we can!

“Yes We Can” is the uplifting theme chosen by the Jerome Artists Cooperative Gallery members for their annual summer membership show. Determined to survive and thrive in these sometimes uncertain economic times, the artists are moving forward, creating new and exciting works, all with affordable pricing, and chock full of “can do” attitude that makes the United States a great land.

Featuring the works of nearly 40 local artists, and craftspeople, the Jerome Artists Cooperative has been an important fixture in Jerome since its inception in 1996.

Anchoring the lower portion of the shopping district, the co-op makes its home in the historic Hotel Jerome, built in 1917. Just as Jerome has seen boom and bust, and survived, the artists of the town are committed to making a go of it, even when the chips temporarily appear to be down. The “Yes We Can!” show promises cheerful ebullience, a light-hearted summery treat, with a little something for everyone. The show will run from May 21st through July 29th and feature fresh new works by all gallery members. “Yes We Can” opens on June 6th, from 5pm to 8pm, coinciding with the every popular First Saturday Jerome ARTwalk. The festive “star-spangled” opening gala will feature refreshments and a chance to meet local artists.

The “Yes We Can” theme also does double-duty in its meaning --the gallery members plan to hold a canned food drive during the show. Canned food donations are welcome at the gallery, to be donated to local food banks.

Victoria Norton • Abstractions

April 4, 2009 - May 20, 2009

An exhibition of exciting new works called “Abstractions”, by local artist V. Norton, opens at the Jerome Artists Cooperative in Jerome, AZ on Saturday April 4, 2009. The public is invited to the opening reception on that evening from 5 pm to 8pm, with music and refreshments.

The artist likes working with different geometrical forms. Combining these forms created breakthrough ceramic sculptures, including hanging Raku Wall pieces, which allows the clay to become the canvas for these contemporary interpretations.

Ms. Norton began her life long passion for ceramics after graduating from UCLA. Another love is calligraphy. “I’ve always loved letterforms and saw myself creating these beautiful shapes.” She then began 10 years of formal study with a master calligrapher. She now works as a free lance calligrapher and teacher, most recently at NAU.

The show will highlight a dramatic a new calligraphic presentation named, “Words” on an 8 foot unfolding scroll, as well as other new art forms.

Through the Jerome Artists Cooperative, V Norton’s art-works have been purchased by collectors worldwide. We invite you to the gallery to see her other creations as well as the wonderments of this show “Abstractions”.

Rex Peters • Wood That I Would

March 7, 2009 - April 1, 2009

Woodturner Rex Peters is one of the original founding members of the Jerome Artists Cooperative Gallery, and has been an active with the gallery since its inception in 1996. Peters is “passionately, maniacally, wildly enthusiastic about the co-op, as members of the co-op can attest.” His duties as gallery manager leave him with little spare time, so his upcoming featured-artist show, “Wood That I Would”, is only his 3rd in the past 13 years. This rare treat will showcase new and exciting works, such as sculptural pieces, and furniture quality pedestals, as well as favorites from the past decade-- bowls, boxes, and wine bottle stoppers. Peters has been turning wood for over 20 years. “In 1988 I turned my first bowl. It took me days to turn that thing. I still have it. I still use it.”

Using many local woods, Peters often creates using mesquite, black walnut and other woods found locally in Arizona. “I like mesquite because we’ve got a lot of it, and the tourists like it. I use apricot whenever I find it because it smells so good, like dried apricots.” He also now features copper inlays in many of his pieces because, as Peters says, “Copper screeches ‘Arizona’".

Red Pedestal and Natural Edge Mesquite Bowl with Copper Inlay by Rex Peters.

Peters is a native of Washington State. “I had always been self-employed. I went to trade school and studied hydraulics, and became a mechanic. Even though I had a lot of aptitude for being mechanical, I had no aptitude at all for being a salesman,” explained Peters. In the 1980s he began an annual winter trek to the southwest, camping in the deserts, and meeting artisans and craftspeople. Inspired by these encounters, Peters decided he wanted to be a craftsperson. Initially he began learning the skill of metal spinning, forming metal into shapes, after inheriting tools and a lathe left to him by his father. “I got sidetracked into making bowls and never learned to be a metal spinner.” After encountering friendly and encouraging artists in Jerome, Peters began a yearly winter pilgrimage there in the 1990s, specifically to sell his wares in Jerome’s Art Park. He finally moved to the Verde Valley full time in 1993. “I’ve been here since the police made me move here,” he says with a chuckle. He’d been living in his bus, renting shop space, and selling his work at the Art Park. “The police chief didn’t like that my bus was parked in his favorite shooting place. In the end we agreed I could stay if I got Arizona plates on my truck, a little orange pickup with a pumpkin bolted on top” Peters sold the bus and bought a small travel trailer and parked it behind a friend’s chicken coop, “much to the chagrin of the chickens,” he laughs.

Peters’ home and workshop are in Cottonwood. He makes his yearly pilgrimages in reverse now, visiting Washington and the Pacific Northwest each summer to reconnect with family and friends, and collect more wood to turn. The “Wood That I Would” show will also feature a heritage wood from Peter’s family history. His grandfather developed a strand of English Walnut, “Schaeffer Walnut”, adapted to survive in Washington, to develop as a cash crop. “But nut crops never took off like they did in California.” The show will also feature artwork made from a weeping willow that Peters used to play under as a child.

“Wood That I Would” will open on Saturday, March 7th, to coincide with the ever popular Jerome ART walk. Opening night will feature live music by Clarkdale musician Roger Curry, refreshments, camaraderie and a chance to meet the artist, an interesting and unusual fellow. “Wood That I Would” runs through April 1st, 2009.

Brice Wood • Wonderments

January 3, 2009 - February 18, 2009

Starting on January 3 the Jerome Artists Cooperative Gallery will have an exhibition featuring founding member Brice Wood’s new work. It being the start of a new year, the show is also something fresh and new from the artist, who explains, “This show is a departure for me and the gallery because the pieces are in related groups and the exhibition is more an installation about an idea than a traditional collection.”

Wood is a native Ohioan who spent most of his adult life in Los Angeles, before he and his wife arrived in Jerome in 1988. In California, Wood was an artist, animator, and designer. With education at the esteemed Cooper Union, in New York, and the Boston Museum School, Wood’s scholastic background influences a profoundly intellectual and deep thinking angle to his artwork. The Wonderments show is composed of several series, including crosses, collection boxes, and windows, all examined and expanded.

“The idea for the Roadside Memorial pieces came from something I saw when I was driving in rural Arizona . There were quite a few memorial crosses next to the road, but one in particular caught my eye. It was made of welded horseshoes. Lucky Jesus, I thought, I’ve never seen that before: a cross made of good luck symbols. At first it seemed jarring – like hearing a preacher talk about astrology. Then I thought, maybe it’s sort of like Christmas trees, which are pine trees festooned with garlands (originally festooned with animal entrails, we are told). The tradition started in Scandinavia in pagan times. It was later appropriated by Christians.”

“I like the idea of mixing things up and it set me thinking. There are a lot of examples. In the U.S. we talk about the separation of church and state, but our money announces “In God we trust,” and we include God in the Pledge of Allegiance. Surely these gestures were never anticipated by the Founding Fathers. What if we turn that around? What if we add secular elements to conventional religious symbols?”

This notion got Wood to thinking about crosses, as a symbol in particular.

“As so often happens when you are thinking about something, you begin seeing examples everywhere. Along with the predictable ones on churches and hung around people’s necks I was seeing them on t-shirts, tattoos, decals, license plate frames, and every imaginable surface.”

“There are a huge number of variants. And not all of them are nice. You only have to think of KKK cross burnings and the fact that Nazis painted crosses on their weapons to realize that Christian symbolism has a checkered past. And in our time some of the most graphically creative iterations of the cross have been the productions of prison gangs and skinheads. These often involve a mix of Christian and Norse, Celtic, or Nazi symbols. One thing led to another and I found myself producing objects that exist in – literally – crossed reality. Some are inspired by roadside memorials, some are images of religious symbols, others are reliquaries: boxes to hold miraculous objects. The reliquaries are related to Day of the Dead shrines and other Santos . Some of the style and imagery derive from tattoos and folk art. Collectively, I refer to these things as ‘Wonderments’.”

While making the cube-shaped bases for the Wonderments series, Wood noticed that one with a rectangular slot in the top looked a lot like an oversize collection box. This then spawned the “Collection Box” series. Similarly, it occurred to him that the piece of glass behind the door in reliquaries reminded him of bank teller’s and ticket seller’s windows—this then led into the “Windows” series. Thus, all installations were inspired and connected to each other. One must wonder what will come next, and in what ways viewers will find their own inspirations from the show.

“Wonderments” opens on Saturday, January 3rd, in conjunction with the very popular Jerome ARTwalk. The opening party kicks off at 5pm , and will feature music by guitarist Jimmy DuFresne, and refreshments for all guests.