Ephraim, Wis. (August 28, 2020) — Fine Line Designs Gallery concludes their 2020 season with an exhibit full of wonder, curiosity, and appreciation for the world around us. The gallery’s third exhibit features four artists — oil painter Dean Bradshaw, mixed media artist Terri Beck-Engel, woodturner Dave Turner, and oil painter and pastel artist Bonnie Paruch — and kicks off on Saturday, September 5 with a artist reception from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm. Paruch will also be featured in an artist demonstration on Sunday, September 6 from 11 am to 2 pm.
Dean Bradshaw’s upbringing in the Santa Monica Mountains of Southern California had a profound effect on his life — and his art. As a kid, he spent every moment he could outdoors, hiking and observing the light and form of the environment around him. Now living in the mountains of northern Utah, he renders his visual wonderland into compelling landscapes by using both a brush and a palette knife, creating textured landscapes that focus more on feeling than detail. That feeling also translates into Bradshaw’s saturated color palette. “When I come across a scene I want to paint, it’s usually because of a strong design element and dramatic lighting,” he says. “I’ll do a lot of driving and hiking if it means finding that one great scene.
Mixed Media artist Terri Beck-Engel discovered a passion for painting in her teenage years — and returned mid-life to explore the joy of creating art. “Creating art makes me feel a bit like a kid who’s discovered a hidden world right in their own neighborhood,” she says. “The wonder, the playfulness, the curiosity — it’s a joy.” Although she works in several mediums, it’s often her oil and cold wax work that allows her the most discovery. “The process of adding and removing layers creates a history in the paintings,” she says. Natural landscapes, shapes and forms, and imaginary places tend to be Engel’s most frequent sources of inspiration, with the abstract being a window into the human inner landscape that exists in all of us.
“He who works with his hands is a laborer. He who works with his hands and head is a craftsman. He who works with his hands, head, and heart is an artist.” This quote sums up the work of woodturner Dave Turner perfectly. Turner, who first started woodturning when he was 55 years old, uses a special technique to color his pieces, using alcohol-based dyes and inks. “Sometimes the dye is applied directly, other times the wood is sealed and the dyes are applied over the sealer,” he says. “People who see my work often think the pieces are ceramic or porcelain based on the coloring.” Turner’s work ranges from abstract to impressionism to realism — anything that allows him to use his curiosity to evolve his work and see what his medium will allow him to do.
Oil and pastel artist Bonnie Paruch has explored the creative possibilities of several mediums over the years — and each one “has placed its own unique stamp on my work,” she says. Oils led her to experiment with acrylic, watercolor underpaintings paved the way for pastel work, but one thing has always remained the same — a foundation rooted in strong abstract design. “If I had to use one phrase to describe my direction these days, it’s moving toward ‘abstracted realism.” Paruch says. “In recent years, I’ve embraced the abstract identity in each painting — even with a long history of landscape work.” It’s her hope that viewers will find their own interpretations and discoveries in the work, and be as inspired by the color, light, and texture as she is.
Fine Line Designs Gallery, located in scenic Door County, is housed in a 1950s chicken coop that was renovated in 1999 and turned into a multi-level gallery space. The gallery showcases seasonal, monthly rotating exhibitions, highlighting the works of selected artists along with the general display of works by over 100 regional and nationally-acclaimed artists. The gallery features original paintings, glass, jewelry, clay, custom wood furnishings, sculpture, and fiber rich in color and texture in addition to a two-acre sculpture garden adorned with pieces created from bronze, stone, metal, copper, and stainless steel. For more information, please visit www.finelinedesignsgallery.com or call (920) 854-4343.
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