News & Announcements

January 18,2010 (link toCommercial Appeal Article) Kristie Duckworth –public mosaics are on
display at White StationMiddle School, CancerSurvivors Park at AudubonPark. Speaking about herart career with examples.She works in variousmediums, e.g.photography, mosaics,painting, ceramics.

February 15, 2010 – Annabelle Meacham
March 15, 2010 – Bill Branch & Jane Croy Re: TN
Arts Commission Conference 10/09.
April 19 and May 17 – to be announced.
June, July – no meeting.
June – Summer Social event – to be announced.
Contact Bill Branch if youʼd like to speak at a meeting orbe the next Vice President

Artistsʼ Link Critique at Gail Buchmanʼs house 8048Rivertrail Cove, Cordova. 2/7/10 at 2 PM. Bring 1 or 2 pieces. Call if youʼre coming 901 757 5375.

Brepols has just published two books by Jim Blythe, “TheLife and Works of Tolomeo Fiadoni (Ptolemy of Lucca)” and “The Worldview and Thought of Tolomeo Fiadoni (Ptolemy ofLucca)” (1236-1327) Fiadoni was a student of ThomasAquinas and the first medieval writer to develop a theoreticaldefense of republicanism and attack on monarchy

Jeanne Reynolds was commissioned to paint asepia pastel portait of the adult grandchildren of Dr.Willis Campbell (founder of Cambellʼs Clinic) as wellas an oil portrait of “Sugar Ranta.”
Her acrylic painting of George Harrison called “HereComes the Sun” will be auctioned off for the BluesBall/Memphis Charitable Foundation. She had ashow “Sensory Treasures” at Splash Creative onSam Cooper off Broad as part of the Annual BroadAvenue Art Walk.
Connie Grayson and Phyllis Boger's exhibit
"Raw Silk" continues at Christian Brothers
University until March 11th.

St. Georgeʼs Independent School Arts AllianceFine Art Show and Sale 1/30/10, 6-9 PM. ArtistsʼLink members involved include Helen Argo, BillBranch, Sue Foell, Jeannine Paul, and LaurieSamuels.

Jeannine Paul is the featured artist in March with
Helen Ingolia at Gallery Fifty-Six on Central

Workshops / Classes
Beginnerʼs landscape painting workshop by JaneCroy at the Thomas Kinkade Gallery in Saddle
Creek. $100 includes supplies and light lunch.1/23/10. More info at: www.jjmcroy.com.
Phyllis Boger – batik, resist painting technique onfabric 2/20, 1PM – 4 PM, Memphis Botanic Gardens.$95 – non-members $85 – members, supplies included.

All Thatʼs Clay – Pottery Show and Sale 2/26 (5-7PM), 27 (10 AM-5 PM) and 28 (1-5 PM), Dixon
Gallery and Gardens 901 761 5250 by AgnesGordon Stark, www.starkpottery.com.

Jeanne Reynolds will host Pet Portrait Classes(charcoal, pastel, acrylic and oil) Tuesdays 6:30-
8:30 PM at Jeanne Reynolds Studio.Jeanne teaches art classes on art history and self
expression for ages 9-12 (Tuesdays 3:30-5 PM andages 6-8 (Wednesdays 3:30-5 PM at her studio.Classes begin 1/18/20. Call 336 3122.
www.jeannereynolds.com.
Watercolor workshop with Bill Branch at DixonGallery and gardens 4/23-24, 2010, details in future newsletters.

This is a shortened newsletter without pictures and other announcements found on the website.

Schedule of Upcoming Meeting Programs:
September 28, 2009 – Jeanne Seagle
October 26, 2009 – Agnes Stark
November 23, 2009 – Tom Donahue
December 6, 2009 – Holiday Party instead of
Meeting
January 18, 2010 – Kristi Duckworth
February 15, 2010 – Annabelle Meacham
March 15, 2010 – Critique (to be announced)
April 19 and May 17 – to be announced.
Meetings will be at Jasonʼs Deli – Poplar and
Highland.
Holiday Party Gift Exchange – remember that this
year we will be exchanging art, approximately 5 x 7
in or smaller, wrapped. Itʼs not too early to start
making your piece. Date: December 6. Time: 6 PM –
9 PM. Meal served at 6:30 PM. Place: Audubon
Square Clubhouse, entrance from Crossover Lane.
Bring your favorite dish and your drink. The meat will
be provided.

Opportunity for members to display their art:
Samuels Furniture will begin showing and selling
art in their three locations. Artwork will be selected by
Lesley Samuels Marks, Karen Pennington or Laurie
Samuels. Call one of them at 761-4998 or call
Laurieʼs cell at 487-6319 or at
lauriepaints@gmail.com for more information.

Artistsʼ Link will send Jane Croy and Bill Branch to
a two day conference sponsored by the Tennessee
Arts Commission entitled “Reflect, Recharge,
Reset...Working together in Tough Times”, October
13-14 at Paris Landing State Park.

The September meeting of Artistsʼ Link at Jasonʼs Deli was a huge success. About 25-30 members came early and had dinner then about 50 members showed up for the meeting at 6:30. Jeanne Seagle presented a wonderful program.

As I write this message, I have recently embarked on my journey to become a full time professional artist. I did this once before in my life and the result was a small gallery that some of you may have fond memories of, Artists on Central. This time, however, I am going it on my own and one thing I really miss about the gallery is the day to day contact with other artists
and their artwork. Thank goodness for my membership in Artistsʼ Link. When I speak to some of my non-artist friends or my significant other I often watch their eyes glaze over as I speak of “foreshortening” or “kiln firing” or “glazing the surface”. However, I can rest assured that those terms and others will be met with excited responses among my fellow Artistsʼ Link members.
No matter how lonely the art world can get I know that here is a group of artists who share my passion for creation, my desire for artistic communication, and the need for the support and
camaraderie of other artists. Artistsʼ Link provides tons of
opportunities to interact with other artists. Itʼs important and beneficial to take advantage of these opportunities by attending our meetings, enjoying our speakers, gathering for our breakfast
at Dinos, enjoying the fellowship of other artists at our parties, participating in our shows, and watching for our soon to be planned, weekend trips and excursions. And donʼt forget to join us for our newest opportunity to meet for supper about 5:00 or 5:30 before our monthly meeting
at our new location at Jasonʼs Deli. Youʼll be sure to find an artistic sounding board.
Jane Croy

Annabelle Meacham had three pieces in a show entitled “The Memphis Show” at the Jay Etkin Gallery in Santa Fe,New Mexico, August 15 to September 30. The image is of “The Collector” (acrylic on canvas), 30 x 35 inches.

Constance Grayson had several pieces accepted at
shows in Italy as follows:
July 2009 Artisti dal Mondo Mostra di Pittura Terza
Edizione; Cacciano, Fabriano, Italy. Pieces accepted:
“Pietralunga Portal” and “Umbria Rossa”.
August 2009: invitational exhibit at Galerie DʼArt De
LʼOffice Du Tourisme; Spa, Belgium. Pieces accepted:
“Umbrian Spring”, “Pietralunga Portal” and “Umbria
Rossa”.
Kayʼs “Key West” was juried into the Kentucky Watercolor
Society Aqueous USA exhibition.
Helen Argo – Judgeʼs Award for Creativity for “Misami”

Bill Branch will have a solo art show
(On Location: The Watercolor
Paintings of Bill Branch) October 1-
29 in the Baum Gallery at the
University of Central Arkansas in
Conway, AR.
www.uca.edu/art/baum/baum_alumni_exhibit.php

Artistsʼ Link will have an exhibit
October 16- December 10, 2009 at Christian Brothers University in the Ross Gallery.
Opening reception
October 16, 5:30- 7:30 PM. Theme: “Artistsʼ Link
Goes Green” Remember to drop off your art work at CBU on October 10 between 8:30 and 9:30 AM. 52 have entered. 11 were chosen for the invitation (Phyllis Boger, Gail Buckman,
James Blythe, Marilyn Califf, Kay Cop, Saj Crone, Sharon Grinspan, Jenny Miller, Norman Soskel, and Frances Vaughn, Bill Branch). These are already juried into the show.

Bill Branch will teach a watercolor workshop at the
Dixon Gallery and Gardens, Friday, October 23 and
Saturday October 24, 2009. Beginners and advanced
students. On Saturday students will paint the fall foliage
“en plein air” Dixon members, $100, others, $130. Call
901 761 5250 for reservations.
There will be another plein air session, this time at
Historic Elmwood Cemetery, 824 Dudley Street,
Memphis, TN 38104, October 17, 2009, 9AM lead by Bill
Branch. See also www.elmwoodcemetery.org.
Sue Foell will teach a Monday evening 6-week Portrait
Oil Painting session at the DeSoto Art Academy in Olive
Branch from 6 - 9:00 p.m. starting October 5. Please call
Sue at 662-890-2512 for more info and for her ongoing
sessions at the Memphis Botanic Garden.
Patty Simon: Colored Pencil Basics: Monday mornings
10 noon, September 28-Nov 2. Six two hour classes $85.
Call 491 4154 for more information. See her artwork
www.rivertowngallery.net and click on Patty Simon.

Constance Grayson is putting her art studio and house
in Pietralunga, Italy up for rent during the upcoming
summer 2010. If interested please call her at 870 636
0917 or e-mail her at info@caifiordi.com. To see more
about the art school see www.caifiordi.com.

Sign Up Now for Fall and Winter Classes at the
Ornamental Metal Museum. Classes are scheduled for
both beginning and advanced blacksmiths, and special
classes for all levels in enamel, pewter, sand casting,
and copper weather vanes are also available. Click here
to get the full schedule and enroll online, or contact Judy
Davis at 901.774.6380. Classes are filling up fast, so
reserve your spot today! www.metalmuseum.org.

DeSoto Art Academy Fall Classes. All Ages. Maxine
Mason will be the watercolor teacher. Sue Foell teaches
oil painting classes. Contact Cecilia Clanton 662 429
3377 or 901 647 7144. Classes started September 15
and go through December 15.

NOTE: Member news included in newsletter will be
limited to personal art information and only one notice of
classes taught by members. Subsequent newsletters will
include only a name and phone number or e-mail
address regarding recurring classes.

Bill Branch led a plein air sesson at the Dixon Galleries,
August 22. 12 Artists showed up and 6 had lunch at Davis
Kidd Bookseller afterward.

Skippy Gronauer had a show at the Levi Gallery at the
Buckman Performing Arts Center August 14, 2009.

General Exhibits/Events

Two new shows ongoing at the Ornamental Metal
Museum.
Master Metalsmith 2009: Elizabeth Brim, known for her

Bill Branch will teach a watercolor workshop at the
Dixon Gallery and Gardens, Friday, October 23 and
Saturday October 24, 2009. Beginners and advanced
students. On Saturday students will paint the fall foliage
“en plein air” Dixon members, $100, others, $130. Call
901 761 5250 for reservations.
There will be another plein air session, this time at
Historic Elmwood Cemetery, 824 Dudley Street,
Memphis, TN 38104, October 17, 2009, 9AM lead by Bill
Branch. See also www.elmwoodcemetery.org.
Sue Foell will teach a Monday evening 6-week Portrait
Oil Painting session at the DeSoto Art Academy in Olive
Branch from 6 - 9:00 p.m. starting October 5. Please call
Sue at 662-890-2512 for more info and for her ongoing
sessions at the Memphis Botanic Garden.
Patty Simon: Colored Pencil Basics: Monday mornings
10 noon, September 28-Nov 2. Six two hour classes $85.
Call 491 4154 for more information. See her artwork
www.rivertowngallery.net and click on Patty Simon.

Constance Grayson is putting her art studio and house
in Pietralunga, Italy up for rent during the upcoming
summer 2010. If interested please call her at 870 636
0917 or e-mail her at info@caifiordi.com. To see more
about the art school see www.caifiordi.com.

Sign Up Now for Fall and Winter Classes at the
Ornamental Metal Museum. Classes are scheduled for
both beginning and advanced blacksmiths, and special
classes for all levels in enamel, pewter, sand casting,
and copper weather vanes are also available. Click here
to get the full schedule and enroll online, or contact Judy
Davis at 901.774.6380. Classes are filling up fast, so
reserve your spot today! www.metalmuseum.org.

DeSoto Art Academy Fall Classes. All Ages. Maxine
Mason will be the watercolor teacher. Sue Foell teaches
oil painting classes. Contact Cecilia Clanton 662 429
3377 or 901 647 7144. Classes started September 15
and go through December 15.

NOTE: Member news included in newsletter will be
limited to personal art information and only one notice of
classes taught by members. Subsequent newsletters will
include only a name and phone number or e-mail
address regarding recurring classes.

Skippy Gronauer had a show at the Levi Gallery at the
Buckman Performing Arts Center August 14, 2009.

General Exhibits/Events

Two new shows ongoing at the Ornamental Metal
Museum.
Master Metalsmith 2009: Elizabeth Brim, known for her

Everything about the exhibition "Artists' Link, Memphis Area Visual Artists" is top-notch, including its venue, the Dixon Gallery & Gardens, and the high-quality catalog. Barbara Satterfield, director of the Baum Gallery of Fine Art at the University of Central Arkansas, has chosen artworks representing a wide range of mediums and genres created by artists pushing their signature styles in new directions.

In Annabelle Meacham's acrylic-on-panel Paper Moon, a sharply angled origami bird points up toward a bouquet of calla lilies taped to burnt-sienna wallpaper printed with an ochre-gray flower motif. Meacham's high-flying paper bird, lilies the color of moonlight, and sly title make this work a deeply satisfying meditation on the fine line between illusion and reality.

Saj Crone's C-print Mississippi River Flood slides our point of view down the trunks of tall trees, deep into flood-stage waters, and around the bend of a river. Blurred by mist and the soft ripples in the water, Crone's image appears more painterly than photographic. Tree trunks floating along the banks look like they've been slathered with brushstrokes of gray and green oils.

Two of the exhibition's portraits — Sue Foell's Girl with Blue Pitcher and J. Powell Miller's Melissa — are poignant companion pieces regarding coming of age. Foell's daughter, age 9, gently presses a blue pitcher against her chest. Her beautiful, gentle, contemplative face, tinged with sadness, records life's fragility as much as its promise. Miller's model, "Melissa," is close in age but worlds apart in attitude. Her face, handsome and strong, looks up at the viewer — lips pursed, chin thrust forward, determined to meet life head-on.

Richard Bowman's dead branches appear still full of energy as they twist and turn across the surface of his painting Yellow Vase, Orange Bowl. Bowman's complex, often unorthodox palettes — in this painting, orange, chartreuse, and blood-red backdropped by brilliant lavender — and haunting syntheses of beauty and decay are both upsetting and stimulating.

Mickey Hollis' jazzed, crowded, nearly chaotic Ocean Series II, Blue feels like a visual equivalent for the digital networks that keep our world buzzing.

For her black-and-white oil on canvas Horsin' Around, Betsy Bird reaches deep into childhood and her knowledge of art history and comes up with a herd of quirky but beautiful creatures that look like hybrids of saw horses, stick figures, African motifs, and Franz Kline abstractions.

There are no cross-outs or paint-overs in Bill Branch's confident watercolor Overlooking the Rio Grande. With minimal information (transparent washes, touches of ochre, a pale blue ribbon), Branch re-creates wisps of clouds, sheer rock faces, patches of sagebrush, and the Rio Grande winding through an arid landscape.
Bill Bailey is a skilled Impressionist. In Rainy Day, trolley-car lights bleed into the fog. With the work's blurred-edge and domed building topped by a sooty-ochre sky, Bailey evokes the mystery, ambience, and perhaps early stages of pollution of a centuries-old city.

In John Sosh's abstract painting Hidden Agenda, Cy Twombly-like doodles, by turns figurative, iconic, and calligraphic, make the painting a powerful portrait of the experimental/ephemeral/expressive.

The artistic sensibilities of Constance Grayson's collage textile La Primavera lie somewhere between those of the quilts of Gees Bend and Chinese landscape painters. Grayson's lean, lush, and layered textile evokes the Italian countryside in Umbria with its mosaic of pines, fields of sunflowers and wheat, and patches of blue for the lakes that dot the region.

Some of the show's most evocative works are the smallest, including Phyllis Boger's 5-by-7-inch oil on canvas Golden Day. Clouds, quickly gestured, move across a Cezanne-like patchwork of craggy mountains. In this tiny, pared-down landscape, the crimson and ochre and stark-white color fields could be iron-rich deposits, meadows of flowers, or roiling streams. This simultaneously intimate and majestic scene suggests how we shorthand and downsize our experiences of vastness and grandeur so that we can hold them in memory and the palm of our hand. Through June 21st