True West Gallery
After a decade on Canyon Road, artist Chris Turri is now represented at one of Santa Fe’s favorites, True West Gallery, a half block off the Santa Fe Plaza. For years, Turri has fabricated unique sculptures incorporating various reclaimed metals including the skins of old vehicles from the 1940s, ’50s and ’60s. From the shadows of his metal work he has recently released a new line of mixed media art he calls “patina on cloth.”
“The idea came to me organically as I was experimenting with textures and patinas on my sculptures and then it became intentional. Now, as I continue to create sculptures, the patina on cloth is curing, layer by layer. So, the new pieces really are the shadows of my original work,” says Turri. “I use reclaimed cloth, and the process is a little like painting with metal rather than on metal.” The imagery in Turri’s new two-dimensional series echoes the stories in his sculptural work with abstracted human figures, petroglyphs and animal symbols, carrying on his desire for viewers to observe the past through a contemporary lens. The artist says, “I have so many ideas that I’m playing with in this new medium, collectors may be surprised by the next phase—i often am.”
130 Lincoln Avenue Santa Fe, NM 87501 www.truewestgallery.com
Carolyn Lindsey, a resident of Cuervo, New Mexico, creates paintings in oil, oil pastel and watercolor using the people and places in the area as subject matter. She feels painting from life is paramount in the understanding and use of color. Plein air painting evokes the connection Lindsey has with the subject matter through the freshness and immediacy of the paint application. The uncertainty of the outcome when starting a plein air painting adds to the excitement when it becomes a success.
More often than not, the painting is a learning experience and the information gained travels back into the studio. The hope is that knowledge translates into creating larger pieces that retain the authenticity achieved when working from life. “The point at which you leave the subject matter and allow the painting to dictate its own ending is important in completing a successful original work of art, whether on location or in the studio,” says Lindsey. “Creating art is a continual learning process, with many ways to achieve success.”