Pictures speak volumes! Here is my wonderful evening as a presenter for ARTable. Thank you Nashville Arts Magazine and Paul Polycarpou for the coverage and fun auction. My sincere gratitude to Matt Fischer (Picture This) and Deann Bradford (Leadership Donelson-Hermitage) for this opportunity; and to Danielle “The Clay Lady” (Clay Lady Studios) and Tami Archer (Mid-South Ceramics) for being such gracious hosts at their gorgeous campus.
Thanks also to everyone who helped and to those who came out in support! I hope you all enjoy your new artworks! More pieces are available now at Picture This (my gallery page on their website is being updated as I write).
In the meantime you can browse my website under Current Work for info and pricing. Let me hear from you and be sure to share pics! Contact me here or at Artwork Cubed on Facebook and enjoy your fall season!
Before: Ron in our presentation space
Getting set up
Me with Matt Fischer (Chair, Metro Arts Commission and owner of Picture This Gallery)
My wonderful assistant, Erin and Matt Fischer of Picture This Gallery
Display all ready!
2015 ARTable: Organizing for presentation
Getting close to start time.
Sunburst Mosaic: Chosen by Deann Bradford of Leadership Donelson-Hermitage for the “Arts at the Airport” permanent collection, Nashville Internat’l Airport!
Starting one of 4 sessions
Yours truly with Birthstone Bowls and Signature Platter Series
Demonstrating pot melts (“Autumn Glow” and “Contemplating Gaia”
More on pot melts…
One of the 4 sessions
“A Star is Born” (center/front); Contemplating Gaia #’s 1 & 2 (discs to right rear)
I am absolutely thrilled to announce that during my presentation at ARTable last Saturday night, one of the pieces from my new “Astral Musings” collection was chosen to become part of the permanent collection for Nashville’s “Arts at the Airport“!
I am deeply humbled by this privilege. My sincere thanks to Deann Bradford (Exec Director, Leadership-Donelson Hermitage) and Matt Fischer (Chair, Metro Nashville Arts Commission) for this honor. And uncharacteristically at a loss for other words to express my gratitude and excitement! Stay tuned for more info and pics of 2015 ARTable!!!
As my favorite month comes to a close and I begin to gear up for ARTable in the fall, I realize I’ve been so busy that I haven’t had time to share our May trip to DC! (There are several pictures/galleries as you scroll through the story.)
This was our first trip and thanks to cousin Haley, a graduate student at George Washington University and the Collections Management Intern for Museum Anthropology, the best vacation ever!!!!
We stayed in a townhouse with Aunt Chris and Uncle Butch a few blocks from Eastern Market on one side and the Navy Yard on the other.
The Townhouse
Aunt Chris, Uncle Butch and Haley at Eastern Market
Navy Yard wading pool and bridge
We visited a different area each of the 7 days we were there. But of all the sites, activities and art I have to say “The Divine Comedy, Heaven, Purgatory and Hell revisited by Contemporary African Artists” at The Smithsonian was the most engaging and thought provoking: mixed and multi-media, photography, installation, video…you name it…so skillfully done! I’d love to see it again. No pics of the exhibit but here a couple shots of the grounds:
Smithsonian grounds; Haley, me and Uncle Butch
The original castle
I even got to meet and have lunch with my friend Elaine Pirozzi (click here to read her story) who was the first to interview me for Career 2.0. Here we are in front of Kramer Books, Dupont Circle, after lunch:
Afterwards we visited the nearby “Phillips Collection“. A private collection of some of the most amazing art that is a must see, even for folks who think they don’t know art. You will. A famous and unbelievable surprise at every corner from classic to contemporary!
We traveled on foot, by Metro, DC Circulator and taxi (when necessary) to all the usual destinations and then some. We went from one end of the mall to the other. We shopped in Georgetown, visited the Old Stone House, wined and dined at some delectable eateries including Founding Farmers, partook of the offerings at Eastern Market, enjoyed fine cocktails at the exclusive speakeasy, Harold Black, brunched like royalty and and lest I forget, set sail on a day trip to Alexandria to visit The Torpedo Factory on the Potomac! Enjoy these select shots and I look forward to seeing you in the fall!
Happy to be done packing. Off to airport tomorrow!
Metro: Stand right, walk left!!!
Goofing in the Metro
More Metro….
The Old Stone House
Uncle Butch and me: Old Stone House Garden
Potomac cruise to Alexandria
Memorial Bridge from the Potomac
Aunt Chris and Uncle Butch; Potomac cruise
Jefferson Memorial; Potomac cruise to Alexandria;
Docking at Alexandria
The Torpedo Factory-Artist Studios-Alexandria, VA
Me at the Torpedo Factory
Having fun on the pier in Alexandria
At the Navy Yard
On the bridge; Navy Yard
Navy Yard: Wading pool and falls
The Natural History Museum
Natural HIstory Museum dinosaur
Opening 2016: Nat’l Museum of African American History and Culture
Ron at Lincoln Memorial
Yep…me after a 20 min jog to the end of the mall and up all those stairs!
“Resonance” 3 pcs: Kiln formed glass fountain, poem in poet’s hand fused and slumped
Fountain close up: Kiln formed glass, copper,
What a thrill and an honor to have my work in the company of such amazingly talented artists and creatives! (Click here for some great candid shots by my dear and talented photographer friend Chris Scruggs (“The Other Chris Scruggs.)
I’m still basking and processing it all. Stephanie Pruitt has pulled off the season’s most smashing art soiree! Pre-ticket sales were record setting and last check there were over 600 visitors! Wow! What a whirlwind immersion experience. I reconnected with folks I haven’t been able to speak with in a while and made some new friends, too. I can’t thank Stephanie and everyone at OZ Arts Nashville for this unbelievable opportunity.
Here’s the poem we all interpreted, by Stephanie Pruitt. My piece represented the lushness of alliteration in the phrases “the floats and falls” and “shadow and shine”. The recirculating water was a metaphor for “The End is an invitation to begin”.
Close Reading (bold emphasis mine)
Ask questions both obvious and obscure.
Grow to appreciate the shadow and shine,
how most simmered pots of good vs. evil are an unseasoned soup.
Notice what is there and not. Notice patterns. Notice what you notice.
Embrace the barreling grasp of fear that can propel,
and the freedom of a blank page that can paralyze.
Know that scissoring backwards from the conclusion
can’t pinky promise an aha, but proves you’ve survived the floats and falls & …ever after,
rememberingThe End is an invitation to begin.
Summertime….my absolute favorite season of the year. Our July 4th trip: to see a bazillion uber-cool motorcycles at Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum in Birmingham, AL. We couldn’t think of a better symbol of American freedom!
So Ron and I rode our bikes down to stay for a couple of days, lounge around the hotel pool, catch some in-room movies, and then…spend an entire day visiting the immense and carefully curated collection of bikes owned by the Barber empire.
Hubby Ron (aka: “He Who I Cannot Live Without”)
Me, the Aprilia and the Concours
The Building and the grounds are spectacular. There are huge, metal sculptures inside and out and the landscaping is impeccable. Wish I had more shots of the grounds but whew what a day!
Ron
Concours (his) and Mana (hers)
Yours truly…
Concours and awesome sculptures
View of racetrack from one of the Museum’s floors
Wheel bench: pretty cool. Love the spokes!
This tracks the round the world on bikes trip made by “The Investment Biker”
Underside of massive sculpture over the elevator doors.
Here’s one that’s inside. He’s at least life-sized.
You really have to see it to believe it. To illustrate, here’s a life-sized car that looks like the Bat-mobile ON TOP of the glass elevator that spans 5 floors of sheer awesomeness. Look closely and you’ll see the multitude of bikes just in that area. (Click for larger images on any of the following pics).
In fact, Ron found all but two of the many motorcycles he has owned. The yellow one, for sure but who’s counting? Here are a few random shots. Hubby’s a Kawi man…
Yellow bike is like Ron’s first!
A small part of one of the many awesome displays.
Meet Mr. Max (thank you, Yamaha).
Honking V12…yes, you read it right.
Race bike
Ron and Kawi
You know…
And it goes on and on….
Just to prove that SEARS made a motorcycle (said Ron).
And, unassumingly nestled amongst the throngs, sits The LEGENDARY Vincent Black Shadow. (Cue the disturbingly alluring music and goose bumps.) Here I am trying not to touch it. (Click to look closely at the background and you’ll get a small idea of how massive the collection is.)
It was quite a day. But the staff wanted to go home so we had to call it a day 🙂
Vincent Black Shadow tail light.
Hope you enjoyed. Check out Barber for your own personal experiences: www.barbermuseum.org. Have a great summer!
Well, Cube’sters since we can’t speak directly I’ll choose and tell you the not so good news first. The jury is in (literally) and my “Water, water everywhere…” work is….wait for it…OUT!!! So no out-of-state gallery exhibit for yours truly. And while it would’ve been nice to be accepted on my first attempt I have to admit being a tad relieved. I have SO MUCH going on right now and going into production for the installation was a daunting idea.
So meanwhile, back at the ranch…my current awesome artist/mentor hooked me up with another opportunity: the chance to work with the curator of the Parthenon Museum (Centennial Park, Nashville, TN). We had a chance for a sit down that went exceedingly well but, alas, this time it was I who opted out. This was a difficult decision but I’m learning to listen to my instincts. This meeting prompted me to reexamine my journey and begin the process of narrowing, of weeding out, of focusing on exactly what is right for me – in this moment.
So a door closed and window opened. And I? Let’s just say I’m enjoying the fresh air.
Hey Cube’sters! Just finished a new piece today. It’s an 8″ x 8″ x 3/4″ deep “sample piece” I’ll ship tomorrow for an out-of-state juried exhibit. If I am chosen to participate I’ll go into production to make the required additional 19 original works within my chosen theme: “Water, water everywhere…nor any drop to drink”. My installation will be a visual reminder of the vital role that water plays in all our lives and a reminder that although approximately 3/4’s of the Earth’s surface is covered in water roughly a billion folks still lack access to a clean source. Because glass is neither a solid nor a liquid it behaves differently when exposed to different temperatures so it serves as a perfect representation for water, which also changes forms depending on temperature and conditions. And as you know I’m a metal-head in many senses of the word; the blue color and bubbles within the glass resulted from thin copper being fired between the layers of glass. The sides are covered in silver leaf and I’ve also included some re-purposed shim stock for that industrial feel. So without further ado, here are a couple of pics:
Here’s to Artwork Cubed meeting Art Squared! Stay tuned for the results and wish me luck!
Lest you begin to suspect that engaging in art is all work, work, work….this post comes courtesy of our summer “stay-cation”. Of course we’ve partaken of the mandatory summer blockbuster movie, motorcycle riding (see my Facebook page for pics at https://www.facebook.com/alice.shepherd.79), done a bit of shopping, dining out and sleeping in, and piling up to watch recorded movies at the house while munching taboo snacks. We also highly recommend Bruce Munro’s extensive light exhibit at Cheekwood (no pics but you’ll find plenty online). And now, without further ado, selected photos (yes, this is one exhibit where photography is allowed) from our docent guided tour of Art Deco cars and motorcycles. Happy summer, everyone!
My husband/best friend/he who I cannot live without.
The Frist was once the main post office in Nashville. The architecture alone is worth multiple visits.
Truly a work of art: built by Henry Ford’s son and never put into production.
Here we are with one of the most luxurious cars in the collection; it was a wedding gift from the Shah to his beautiful bride who coincidentally passed only the week prior at age 91.
ALICE E. SHEPHERD 
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