2018 Festival Jurors

KEN ROWE, BRONZE SCULPTOR

Born in Arizona, Ken Rowe’s life seems to have been shaped and forged by the rugged beauty, culture and history of his native land.

Influenced by drawing and painting with his mother, along with his love of the outdoors, Ken’s first introduction to wildlife art was in the field of taxidermy.  For fourteen years, he and his wife, Monica, owned and operated a successful taxidermy studio during which time Ken submerged himself in a profession that demanded an intense study of anatomy and wildlife physiology.  Ken believes this in-depth knowledge is an extremely important quality to possess as a wildlife artist.

In 1987, Ken expanded his talents into the creation of bronze sculpture and has been a full-time sculptor for more than twenty-two years.  He has become known for his anatomy, composition and, most importantly, the expressive life one can see in his pieces.  For thirty years, the scale of his work has ranged from small maquettes to large monuments.  When viewing Ken’s bronzes, one can readily see the history of his life and the reverence he has for animals.

Ken has resided in Sedona since December, 1995.


MARLYS K. MALLET

Marlys K. Mallet is the rare abstract artist with an education in traditional art.  She received her art education at the Burley School of Professional Art and the Cornish School of Allied Arts in Seattle, followed by tenure at John McCrady Art School in New Orleans.  In California, she continued her studies at Stanford University and at the Pacific Art League in Palo Alto where she later taught.

Mallet’s work has become a diary of her life boldly expressing her personal visions of the places and people that have inspired her throughout her journey. They include glacier climbs in the Cascades and transferring those experiences onto canvas. In the South Marlys captured Louisiana’s mysterious bayous, the nightlife on Bourbon Street and Mardi Gras Celebrations. All experiences deserved her attention as she painted the cityscapes and waterfronts of New Orleans, Boston, San Francisco and marketplaces and peoples from around the world. After scuba dives in the South Pacific she portrayed the elusive underwater world and later she captured the power of the major rapids of the Colorado River.


Michael Redhawk

Welcoming others into the exciting world of gemstones, Michael has been creating jewelry and cutting stones for over forty years.  His expertise includes owning several of his own custom jewelry stores, winning numerous awards for his personal jewelry designs as well as judging jewelry competitions.  His work has been sold coast to coast in the finest boutiques and galleries from Del Mar to Martha’s Vineyard and in the prestigious ski resorts of Colorado, Utah and Wyoming.  Goldie Hawn and Chuck Norris are among his notable clients.

In the 80’s Michael expanded his artistic energies encompassing the art form of oil painting. Michael sought out professional artists for tutoring, including William Scott Jennings, winner of the National Arts for the Parks competition. Michael was featured as Artist-In-Residence at the Cornerstone Gallery in Sedona, Arizona, and his work is represented by galleries across the US, including Nan Miller Gallery in NY and Goldenstein Gallery and Modern Masters in AZ.

As an avid sailor and river rafter Michael spent considerable time in his canoe or kayak or boat exploring rivers and Lake Powell.  His artwork features the beauty of waterways as well as the back country of the Southwest where he often paints plein-air. Michael has also captured the mountains of Colorado and the beaches of Northern California, honoring their special qualities. The sense of purity and awesome beauty of nature is of paramount consideration throughout all of Redhawk’s paintings conveying a pristine landscape before the intrusion of man.  Romantic Realism is the term used to describe his painting style.


Eric Hultquist

Eric Hultquist was born in Victoria, Texas in 1949. He has successfully worked in a wide variety of materials: ceramic, wood, neon, steel and acrylic. Heavily influenced by Cubism, his work concentrates in the area of functional sculpture and art furniture. The Cubist influence results in a manipulation of space and form that creates novel distortions. These emerge in his paintings as a kind of amorphous surrealism. His re-interpretation of traditional elements and designs using techniques of Concrescentism results in hybrid decorative motifs and forms. These influences inspire artworks that are expressed in well-defined lines and carefully delineated geometric forms that are most frequently juxtaposed or contrasted against organic movement and natural flow patterns like those derived from water or smoke.

Considered a Master Artist, he has produced works using several mediums, including ceramics, neon, painting (acrylic), wood and metal. Underwent extensive training in sculpture at Arizona State University.

Every artist has a favorite material. No material has captured my imagination like steel. Steel is heavy, durable, massive, and permanent. With a little heat, it becomes as pliable as clay but when the heat is removed, it returns to its former inflexible state.

“Various motifs consistently reappear in my work in much the same way that a particular configuration of notes is used by a composer or a cast of characters appearing in a play. Among these motifs or elements are: the squared spiral, the irregular zigzag, the trapezoid, an elongated teardrop, along with standard geometric forms (such as: squares, triangles, circles), stylized “flow patterns” as seen in: smoke, water, clouds or other illustrations of organic motion. The juxtaposition of these basic motifs and design elements result in a hybridizing of geometric pattern linked to organic flow But it’s the way in which I combine and use these that produce truly unique creations. My work isn’t about the random attachment or combination of these dissimilar forms or shapes in a conglomeration but rather about achieving a harmonious resolution in the interconnection of dissimilar forms. In fact my work is probably more about the achievement of this balance than anything else.”

 

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