Bernice Strawn
 Bernice Strawn Salida, Colorado - United States | ABOUT THE ARTIST For the last 50 years I have concentrated on wood and metal constructions which are mostly wall hung; some are free standing. I am attracted to the warmth and versatility of wood and I frequently recycle old wood which shows the scars of its history. I am pursuing simplicity of shape, an individual gesture in each piece and refined color. I spend much time applying and removing acrylic until it seems to be part of the wood. I started wood constructions in Yellow Springs, Ohio where I found used oak fence posts. We moved to Colorado where I became familiar with Southwest Santos. Ancient petroglyphs and pictographs also gave me inspiration for numerous wood figures I called Spirit Figures. Later I wanted to build out into space and I developed boat forms with thin wooden strips. These became Spirit Boats with the space moving thru them rather than being closed vessels. The potential poetry of this theme led to many kinds of boat forms and groupings that hang freely in high atriums. Some of the boats had developed wings which led me to the idea of making Flyers, and a large installation of invented flying forms for the Dairy Center of the Arts in Boulder, CO. Recently I have returned to an old inspiration, the art of Japan. I have made a series of Temples with the characteristic roof lines of Japanese temples. This has led me to a rewarding simplicity of form. EXHIBITIONS Galleries Since 1980: Inkfish, Denver, CO Elizabeth Schlosser, Denver, CO Clay and Fiber, Taos, NM Wm Havu Gallery, Denver, CO cultureclash gallery, Salida, CO EDUCATION BA and MA - University of California-Berkeley Post graduate work in sculpture, University of Denver TEACHING Elementary schools, Adult education programs, Recreation programs, Denver Art Museum Adams County, Colorado, elementary schools 70 video tapes for art instruction COLLECTIONS Mac Donald’s Corporate Collection, Chicago Safeco Corporation, Denver Kaiser Permanente, Denver REI flagship store, Denver Heart of the Rockies Medical Center, Salina CO Medical Center, Alamosa, CO. Numerous private collections. PUBLICATIONS Colorado Abstract, Painting and Sculpture by Michael Paglia and Mary V. Chandler, 2008 |