ARTSPEAK @ Lit Hop 2024
Janet Chaffee and Benito Huerta with Sandy Bates Emmons
Saturday, July 27
6-9pm @ Bathhouse Cultural Center
521 E Lawther Dr 75218
ABOUT JANET CHAFFEE: “My Current Work Is An Intuitive And Playful Exploration Of Abstract Composition, Color And Nature. The Initial Drawings for this work are derived from found rock formations along the border of California and Mexico, as well as, the Continental Divide of the Rocky Mountains. I also draw from found lace work. The lace is found both regionally and abroad, including locations in Germany, Italy and Cuba. In these paintings, I use a narrow range of dry pigments, beeswax and oil paint. Both materials and imagery are combined in layers recomposing landscape and nature to suggest metaphorical connections between the thrill of making and my awe for nature. Calcium Carbonate, one of the the dry pigments used, is a common compound comprising three elements—carbon, oxygen and calcium. It is found in pearls, seashells, limestone, in streams and lakebeds throughout Texas and the midwestern United States. Mica, another dry pigment, is found in the southeastern United States and is used iin various products from electronics to paper. This combination of imagery and material allow me the opportunity to intuit process, chance and discovery of unforeseen possibilities while making the work. The fluidity and stillness of the wax allows for the work to expand and explore implicit movement. Each encaustic painting becomes the custodian of past moments in time.” Janet Chaffee is originally from Denver, Colorado but has lived in Texas most of her life. She earned her BFA in painting from The University of Texas at Arlington in 1999 and received her MFA in painting from Texas Christian University in May 2002. After graduating, she taught drawing at TCU, UTA, The Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth and has been in several individual as well as group shows throughout the state of Texas and New Mexico. She has been recognized with numerous awards for her work and has collaborated with Benito Huerto on an exhibition for The Art Museum of Southeast Texas. In 2006, she was awarded The Murrin Family Award for an exhibition held at The Fort Worth Community Arts Center. During the summer of 2010 she was awarded a “Once Upon a Time” Grant from Trinity Valley School of Fort Worth to attend the residency, Atelier Hilmsen in Germany.
ABOUT BENITO HUERTA Benito Huerta’s works are included in the public collections of the Menil Collection, the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, Albuquerque Museum of Art, the Art Museum of South Texas in Corpus Christi, the Art Museum of Southeast Texas in Beaumont, the Sheldon Museum of Art in Omaha and the Spencer Museum of Art in Lawrence, Kansas, to name a few. Huerta is the retired co-founding editor of theTexas art magazine Artlies, the retired director of the Gallery at the University of Texas at Arlington, curator of many exhibitions around the country, and participant in numerous public art commissions throughout Texas. Huerta’s work derives visual influence from many sources. From his ethnic background, history, art history, pop culture, movies, and books, he assimilates and interprets information into unique pictorial energy. Huerta’s subtle command of intellectualism mixed with his visual vocabulary demonstrates his maturity as a communicator and artist. Benito Huerta was selected for one of the public art commissions at the Dallas/Fort Worth Airport, International Terminal. He has completed public works for the Mexican-American Cultural Center in Austin, the Dallas Area Rapid Transit Station Design Project, having created work integral to the architecture for the Richardson Station, and the Houston Metropolitan Transit Authority Light Rail Station Design Project’s Medical Center station. The Dallas Center for Contemporary Art awarded Huerta with its Legend Award.
Sandy Emmons will introduce and facilitate a discussion between the artists. Emmons is an environmental activist, animals empath, gourmet chef, arts writer and supporter. She grew up in South America and has traveled extensively. She lives in Waxahachie with her husband, the painter Andy Don Emmons.
