Stephanie Willis Studio

Dusk, Midday and Dawn are the titles of this tryptich depicting the progression of the sun. I love this technique of thin watercolor-type washes over a scratched and textured acrylic foundation. These canvases are 60×24″ each and this tryptich is at Freed Gallery in Lincoln City, Oregon.

Here are a couple of new pieces delivered to the Freed Gallery in Lincoln City this week. I like to work on a heavily textured canvas and sometimes add collaged elements to the mix, too. This one, Paleolithic Mapquest, reminds me of a cave painting, if cavemen had roads and maps! The colors and the incised lines are very appealing to me, but I am not sure if it is too somber?

I also have the 2nd in the Cyberspace series, Cyberspace II which I have been working on for over a year. It has the incised textures and also a collage of squares of various textured papers, which have been covered in gold and copper leaf, then glazed over. This series is inspired by how I think about the stream of electronic information and how some bits (bytes) occasionally escape from the stream and meander into that vast uncharted ether. It is my visualization of what has occurred when a file won’t open. Most people think it is a landscape, and that’s a legitimate connection.

The show looks wonderful! The reception was well-attended with lots of interest and quite a few sales. I sold Blueprint #2 on the right of this photo. The show remains up until the 28th of July. For more information please call the Freed Gallery at 541-994-5600. Show hours are 10-5 daily, closed Tuesdays.

EXCAVATION, 40×30″ acrylic, collage on canvas, (c) 2006

This painting, which was previously posted on this blog, will be featured in The American Art Collector 2007, an annual publication with juried art from across the nation. Expected publication date is October, 2007

Yesterday we delivered the work to Freed Gallery for the show that will be hung this week and I am adding the images. This painting is titled “Sgraffito #1″ and was the first of a series of “scratched” texture paintings that I have been working on. The grooves or scratches will show a contrasting color due to the way paint collects in the grooves. It creates a very lush and intricate surface, something like a tapestry.
Sgraffito#1, 48×30″ acrylic, collage on canvas.

I am also continuing my work on the Enlightenment series. This also has a surface of gracefully arcing textured grooves, but is also dependent upon a underpainting of watercolor like washes. This is Enlightenment #4, 48×48″ acrylic on canvas (c)2007

Jim, Stephanie, and Shannon Willis will be featured in a month-long exhibition, entitled “A Family Affair” opening Saturday, July 7, 2007 at the Freed Gallery in Lincoln City. You are invited to view their newest works and meet the artists at the opening reception from 3-5pm at the Freed Gallery, 6119 SW Hwy 101, Lincoln City, OR 97367. The painters Satsuko & Earl Hamilton, and Ken Dust & Sandra Fraser-Dust will also be featured. For additional information call 541-994-5600 for details or go to http://www.freedgallery.com.

Sgraffito #2 acrylic and collage on canvas, (c)2007 Stephanie Willis

My abstract painting group, PDX!WAM, is featured at the Eye For Art gallery in Brookings, Oregon from June through July. Our show is entitled Seeing Red! and explores the many moods of the color red.

If you are in the Brookings area, near the California border on the beautiful Oregon coast, stop by the gallery and take a look. For more information about this show call the gallery at 541-469-2985.