Last night was CSA’s first pick-up event of the year at The Faculty Lounge. The artwork for the Spring Share was finally revealed and it really blew us away! The four artists (Chambers Austelle, Elizabeth Calcote, Chris Nickels, and Karin Olah) went above and beyond, creating work that is fresh and exciting. That’s not even the best part! There are still some spring shares available, so you can have a piece from each of these collections brightening up your home. To make it easier and more accessible, we have the option of purchasing via a payment plan. Make a deposit of $200 to reserve your share, then pay the balance ($225) plus tax when you’re ready to receive the work. We offer free delivery in the Charleston area, or you also have the option to receive your share at the upcoming Meet + Greet at Lowcountry Local First Local Works on June 18 or our Summer or Fall pick-up events (August 6 & November 5 respectively).
Chambers Austelle
Austelle works from her home studio as a photographer and painter. Her work is surreal in concept, influenced by her interest in Biology and Psychology. She employs fundamental elements and principles of design to explore the complexity of human perception. This body of work focuses on the dialogue between the conscious and the unconscious. “My entire life I have dreamt intensely, so much so that sometimes it is difficult for me to discern between real memories and dream memories. Using dematerialized bodies paired with discernible faces, I reflect the strangeness of memories not understood or explained. I balance the duality of the imagery using simple elements of color, composition, and space.”
“The 32 paintings I created for Charleston Supported Art’s spring 2015 share, is a continuation of the body of work, Portraits. Each piece was created from my home studio in Charleston, SC and painted with Golden Acrylics onto a 6 x 6 inch birch wood panel. Although characteristics familiar to my work, such as negative space, dematerialized bodies, and juxtaposition between two-dimensional and three-dimensional spaces, were incorporated into these paintings, my focus was the face. Each composition depicts a cropped, precise moment in time. The movement and gestural lines of the hands are contradicted by the stillness and isolation of the face, while the color palette offsets the tension of disembodiment.”
Elizabeth Calcote
For thousands of years, women told their story through textiles, unable to read or write due to lack of education, or confined to activities such as needlepoint and weaving. I follow in that tradition, using symbols, patterns, and colors to tell a narrative from history.
The Lucas is inspired by Eliza Lucas Pinckney. At 22, she cultivated the first successful strain of indigo in the Carolinas and gave the seeds to other planters in the region. As a result, indigo became the second largest export of our state in the 18th century. The center of the pocket square is modeled after the rose window on one of Eliza’s homes, Hampton Plantation. The columns are ionic, like the columns of Eliza’s downtown Charleston home, which was destroyed in a 1861 fire. The paisley pattern comes from an embroidered tea cloth that Eliza stitched with threads dyed in her indigo. The block ink is indigo blue, and the charmeuse silk is hand-dyed using natural pigments. The block ink is indigo blue and the charmeuse silk is hand-dyed using natural pigments. The Lucas comes with a poem in a block-printed box.
Chris Nickels
When Nickels puts down his pen he enjoys the outdoors, graphic novels, old cameras, and trying new foods. He loves conveying a narrative through images, whether it be an abstract interpretation or a memorable scene. The focus for this project was to create a series in which to explore color, texture and composition in similar ways, but leave each piece feeling very individual. In this series, Nickels interprets and amalgamates archetectural imagery that he has gathered while living on the Atlantic Coast. They are repurposed from specific elements of memories, images, and experiences into something completely new.
Karin Olah
Spending time near or on the water has a positive effect on mood and health. Lucky for Olah and her fellow Lowcountry water- lovers, they have plenty of the wet stuff surrounding and influencing well-being. She’s soaking in the inspiring views and excited to share her own twist on a beloved subject.
Olah’s collection for CSA began as 8 panoramic paintings based on photos she took at Charles Town Landing, Folly Beach, and Shem Creek. She started with a background sketch, then under-painted the landscape, then applied fabric soaked in rice starch, then painted details using gouache, pastel, and pencils. Next, Olah cut the panoramic paintings into individual paintings, carefully choosing my favorite scenes for the CSA series. Each painting is unique and has “sibling paintings” that share its story.
She is interested in finding metaphorical connections between fabric and subject matter. This is why she pastes fabric into her paintings. Fabric has a load of memories that comes with it. It’s something everyone connects with.
PURCHASE THE SPRING SEASON
Many thanks to our talented Spring 2015 artists for creating some extraordinary art for the program, The Faculty Lounge for being such gracious pick-up event hosts, and the Frothy Beard Brewing Co. & Cannonborough Beverage Co. for offering up some tasty beverages for our guests to enjoy.
We’re preparing to reveal our third and final round of artwork for 2015! The spring and summer share pick-up events were held earlier this year at The Faculty Lounge and Mixson Bath & Racquet Club, respectively. The next pick-up event, dedicated to the fall season, takes place on Thursday, November 5, from 5:30-7:30pm at Blue Ion, located at 301B King Street in Downtown Charleston. Shares may be purchased on site or ahead of the event here.
