Upcoming Exhibitions
June 9 - August 18, 2013
Christine Morla: Kaleidoscopic Gaze a series of mixed-media paintings that celebrates and reflects the diverse cultural landscape of Oxnard. Each piece consists of hundreds of two dimensional paper constructions that are adhered to a wood panel creating a larger image. The paintings are built by first collecting discarded, multi-colored packaging from Filipino snack foods. This serves as amaterials palette. The found papers are then cut into thin strips and meticulously woven together into geometric and floral shapes. The resulting images are unashamedly decorative “eye candy,” but there is a strong autobiographical component undergirding the artist’s approach, as she weaves the narrative of her life and identity into the works. A Filipino American, born and raised in Oxnard, the artist explains that her father was a professional weaver, so she is, in a sense, continuing a family tradition with her recent works. Using unconventional materials that are intended to be thrown away (packaging and sweet wrappers), there is an implicit critique of how we casually discard “waste” in our consumer society, as the artist creates beauty out of trash. The focus on using cast-off elements further offers an elevated or renewed life to materials that are otherwise thought of as industrial detritus. This research and production of this series was made possible through a grant from the City of Oxnard Cultural Arts Committee. As a part of her exhibit at the Carnegie Art Museum, Morla will also create a site-specific wall installation to harmonize with the painting series and integrate with the galleries’ classical architecture. Christine Morla is an interdisciplinary artist and arts educator. Her practice includes drawing, painting, and installation. Ms. Morla graduated with a B.A. from Loyola Marymount University and received her M.F.A. from Claremont Graduate University. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally at Art Frankfurt, Germany, Rimjaus Gallery, Mexico City, The Armory Show, New York, Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum, Riverside Art Museum, Huntington Beach Art Center, Raid Projects, Los Angeles and 18th Street Arts Center among other venues. Currently, she is the Chair of the Art Department at Oxnard College and Gallery Director of the McNish Art Gallery. *Fluorescences (detail), candy wrapper, paper and acrylic on panel by Christine Morla, 2011. Diffusion: Paintings of Blinding Light, Kevin Short
A recent body of over thirty plein air paintings created on location along the shores of San Diego County and the Central Coast. Possibly his most abstracted plein air work to date with little reference to specific settings, these works concentrate
on the squinting reflections and brilliant, white out effects of sunlight’s glare and glow. Beach light so intense it dissolves perspective and linkages between forms. Yet Short’s scenes strikingly convey the reality of looking into blinding light that we have experienced during a summer’s day at the beach. Kevin Short is a native Californian. He was born in San Diego in 1960 and raised in Goleta. After excelling in art during high school he focused on an art career with studies at the University of New Mexico, where outside of class, he painted murals and worked for the US Department of Defense generating artwork for the Airborne Laser Laboratory’s Boeing NC-135. Next he studied at Pepperdine University, and in 1984 graduated with honors from the Art Center School of Design. Before graduating from Art Center, Short introduced himself to his childhood hero, Rick Griffin who created iconic surf posters. The young artist requested an internship, but Griffin responded instead with an offer of friendship becoming a guiding factor in Short’s artistic development. From 1984 to 1989, Short primarily worked as a freelance commercial artist which greatly helped in refining his painting skills. He painted advertisements for PepsiCo, Microsoft, Xerox, IBM, The Walt Disney Company, and various newspapers and magazines. Since 1989 Short has focused his full time attention on producing contemporary impressionist style landscape paintings, done right on location while viewing the subject. His paintings depict a wide range of subjects from tropical scenes of the South Pacific to the arid landscapes of the American Southwest. From untouched wilderness regions to bustling cityscape views, always seeking to capture the present, as it is being changed. He has won numerous prestigious awards; best of shows, awards of excellence, and first places. Short has been featured on the cover of the Los Angeles Times, and as the cover artist for the Surfer’s Journal. Southwest Art Magazine has frequently featured him and his work. Kevin Short now resides in Capistrano Beach and continues to sail, fish and ride waves. His love, respect and continued interest in the ocean and shoreline is clearly evident in his many paintings of the California coastline. * Slack Tide Rising, oil on canvas by Kevin Short, 2012. |
Sponsorship Opportunities
To sponsor one of the museums upcoming exhibits, please contact Suzanne Bellah / or 805-385-8179 Or, please visit our Sponsor Page for additional information. Opening Reception
Saturday, June 8 3-5 pm |
 |
|
