A SEA in the Desert Gallery: May 2015

May 28, 2015

May 28 Heather's Birthday. And we've been back from Europe for over a week and are back to 'normal' New Mexico schedule. In Leipzig I saw a large, wonderful (and educational) Paul Klee exhibition; it contained very few of the well known paintings but focused instead on unpublished work (many paintings given by Klee to his wife) and other were studies for masterpieces that are well known; still others were more informal versions that developed into the final works that are known publically. So it vastly increased my awareness of Klee's development, methods and themes.
In Berlin I biked a lot, especially through the Zoogarten where i again studied the Amazon on Horseback, and also discovered the Gallery Schwind (which is usually only seen in Leipzig) which focuses on the type of realism I am most moved by.
Our trip to the Baltic Sea (Usedom) was successful. From Berlin I traveled to Dresden where Peggy Lange is still holding a few of my paintings. I picked out three to take with me to show the curator, Dr. Aumann, whom we had met a year ago and who accepted my bronze of Werner Von Braun into the Permanent Collection of the Technisches und Historisches Museum of Peenemuende [Usedom] and who has agreed to an exhibit of my art focusing on environmental and social isssues. Dr. Aumann liked the paintings [Berlin; Eden after Durer and Madonna of the Tree] agreeing to include them in the Exhibition because while they are not directly addressing missiles and other political issues, they relate to the major themes in my total body of work. The show is tentatively to occur in 2016. The curator requested that I send him the images I would like to include. So I have my assignment.

Tomorrow is the monthly Railyard Artwalk from 5 - 7 pm. A SEA Gallery will feature new Abstracts and Nudes by David Rogers

About our Gallery

A Sea Gallery has gone through several stages over a 10 year period. A Sea stands for "Association of Socially Engaged Artists" which began about 2002 with meetings of artist discussing the state of art in Santa Fe as well as politics of the United States and the world at this time. Most of the artists either were or had been political activists, against war, corporate exploitation, empire, etc. and committed to honoring the earth. Over the years since that time I have thought a lot about the artists roll as mirror to a society, addressing social ills and aspirations. It seemed the Santa Fe ‘art scene’ had become increasingly commercial: ‘successful artists’ making a recognizable product for wealthy private collectors or corporations. Much of the art shown was about prestige and investment. The art I was drawn to in major art centers in the USA and in Europe was deeper and more challenging than that. While Santa Fe may have more art galleries than the current economy can support I felt there is room for one more: a gallery of challenging work supported by the artists themselves- a Collective (rather than a cooperative) as the structure is evolving. It’s aesthetic philosophy: Art is shown because of its merit rather than salability. It has an owner (Monika Steinhoff) but no profits are taken out of the gallery. Artists participate in paying expenses, gallery sitting and decisions about running the gallery. Proceeds from sales are between 50 and 70% to the artist, depending on artist involvement. The gallery is small and can have up to 10 members. It has existed at its present location in the Railyard since July 1st 2011.