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The title of the show, Approaches to Abstraction, describes the variety of the pieces in Dave Voelpel’s show.  The media of the pieces range from acrylics, oil, watercolor, collage, and mixed media.  These seemingly diverse pieces are tied together through layers and the theme of landscapes.  In the piece to the left (Voelpel has not titled any of the pieces in this show), there are at least three abstract landscapes combined into one painting. The horizontal layers contain the possibility of multiple landscapes stacked vertically within the picture plane.  There are also translucent layers that add depth to the images.  These physical, tactile, textural layers are complemented by layers that are constructed for composition or to provoke thought.

Most of Voepel’s paintings are spontaneous and en plein air (painted outdoors). Instead of carefully composing before he paints, he chooses items for his collages out of a bag.  “Every piece is new, fresh, and original,” says Voelpel, when discussing his process.  When he is working on an acrylic abstract painting, he uses both, additive and subtractive approaches. He treats the paint in a variety of ways with the result that it emulates watercolor, glaze, and sometimes encaustic.  Voelpel does not include titles with his pieces so that viewers can interact with the image without being influenced by a title.

The opening for the exhibit is April 2, 2010 from 6:00 – 10:00.  The show will be in place April 3rd through April 24th by appointment only.  To make an appointment, call Dave Voelpel at 317-345-3426.

Five Seasons Studio Gallery
1125 Brookside Avenue
Indianapolis, IN 46202
April 2, 6pm

Detail of a piece that has a Newspaper comic page as a base with collaged faces and translucent layers of acrylic paint.

This small piece has an encaustic appearance with depth created by subtle use of white. The layers of white give an atmospheric appearance.

It  would have been a great night to start a fire and cuddle with my hubby, but instead we braved the slush and visited several galleries along IDADA’ s First Friday Gallery walk.   Before I go into detail about what I saw, I want to reflect on the similarities of the three shows that I saw this evening.  They all had layers of ideas and used a type of collage method.  They were all bodies of work that were abstract with identifiable realistic elements.  Two of the shows were more serious in nature.  One was in fun.  At least one had self-portrait elements.

We started out by visiting the Harrison Center for the Arts and seeing Elizabeth Guipe Hall’s exhibition entitled A Beautiful Mind.  Her show was based on the theme of the the brain and the mind.  She creates encaustic paintings with layers of wax, some translucent while others are opaque, and collage elements.  Examples of some of the layers in her paintings include the following: an underlying drawing, geometric spirals, ribbons of color, and more clean cut shapes that have a ’stenciled’ or ’stamped’ look.  Her paintings are designs that sometimes contrast exact geometric shapes and free imperfect forms with uneven edges.  Colors, such as red, orange, blue, and purple, are used purposefully, while an overall off-white layer gives the pieces an atmospheric translucent dimension.

The theme of the brain is expressed with images of the nervous system and branching patterns.  Titles, such as Long-term Memory, or Connecting, initiate thoughts inside the viewer of the functions of the brain and mind.

Right and Left Reacquainted by Hall

The opaque surfase of the encaustic reminded Stephen of Frosting.

Long Term Memory by Hall

Then we went down to Fountain Square to visit the AV Framing Gallery and view Strumpets and Squares, mixed media works by Jenny Elkins.   Her materials ranged from clippings, to photos, to buttons, to fabric and beyond.  It is a juxtaposition of design and humor. A strumpet is an archaic term for a loose woman, and a square is a slang term for a nerd.

After narrowly escaping being stuck in a parking lot in Fountain Square, we made our way to the Circle City Industrial Complex.  I saw the third collage exhibition of the night in Wug Laku’s Studio and Garage.  Undertow by Kate Oberreich was a series of collage paintings reminiscent of landscapes of the west Michigan shoreline.  Symbols of pebbles and homes were repeated in a few of the paintings.  She used a limited palate in many of the paintings and the shapes became important in her design.

Congratulations to the opening of Flame Art Studios! I stopped by and saw the new space that is occupied by the female flame artists: Nancy Lee, Jari Sheese, and Bonnie Ramirez. Along with displaying their beautiful works of art (that you can often wear!), they also offer classes and workshops in a variety of mediums such as metalsmithing, beading, jewelry, clay, enameling, lampworking, sculpture, and welding.