Bill Belvin, April Bower, Art Hiscox, Joanne Hiscox, Neil Kennedy, and Christie Palmer
The Sedona Arts Center represents over 100 professional local and regional artists. The Fine Art Gallery on campus is a dynamic, ever-changing display of juried local and regional talent in all dimensions and forms. Part of what makes the gallery dynamic is the bi-monthly featured artists program, currently featuring a diverse group of artists that specialize in photography, ceramics, jewelry, acrylic painting and unique stone mosaic tables and sculptures.
About the Featured Artists
Neil Kennedy
Neil grew up in New England where he received a lot of inspiration from Cape Cod ceramicists. It wasn’t until college that Neil’s dialogue with clay started when he studied figurative and Renaissance art in Rome, Italy. When he returned to the states Neil took ceramics classes at multiple institutions studying with some of our nation’s leading ceramicists. Neil Kennedy currently teaches Handbuilding ceramics and Pottery Wheel for Beginners on an ongoing basis. His next six-week classes in Handbuidling starts October 13 and Pottery Wheel for Beginners starts on Saturday, October 17.
Neil’s pieces are represented in many collections in Southern California and New England.
His ceramic pieces range from functional thrown forms to coil and slab-built figurative sculptures. His current clay pieces meld thrown forms, slabs, altering, incising and sculpting. The glazes on the functional pieces, fired in an electric kiln, have been developed to give the surface the depth and beauty traditionally associated with reduction firing. Neil’s pieces meld a spiritual simplicity with a figurative rhythm and physical energy. This comes from being a kinetic individual, from a lifetime of playing sports, and his appreciation of Japanese ceramics and classical sculpture.
Bill Belvin
Bill is a Sedona based fine arts photographer specializing in creating richly detailed images of the American Southwest wilderness. He loves capturing the patterns and symmetries present in sandstone and sharing the results with others.
Bill has traveled extensively throughout the United States and abroad, and has backpacked in the northwest and Alaska. He is a graduate of both Outward Bound and the National Outdoor Leadership School and is comfortable hiking both on and off-trail and at night. This comfort level allows him to photograph subjects in difficult to reach places and at night. Bill is a Fellow of The Casualty Actuarial Society and a Life Member of the New York Academy of Sciences. His background in computer science, mathematics, and statistics has served him well in dealing with the more technical aspects of photography.
April Bower
April Bower has always been fascinated by all the varied processes involved in metalworking. After receiving a Bachelors of Fine Arts Degree, she spent 18+ years doing bench work in fine jewelry stores in Arizona. Her focus has spanned from fine jewelry to copper fountain sculptures. Using those same chemicals used to color the fountain parts, she developed “Patina Painting” on thin copper sheets, originally salvaged from industry leftovers, supported by wood backings.
As Artists like to work in many mediums Bower also creates with watercolor and chalk pastel and teaches at Art Retreats and Studios throughout the US. Her Jewelry is contemporary, extremely wearable, one of a kind, and limited editions. Bower now works mostly in silver, bi-metals and copper, using color & texture as the main ingredients.
Art Hiscox
“My architectural art combines man-made materials with nature’s own art (marble, granite, slate, fossils). My use of color, texture and resin compels viewers to actually touch the surface of my pieces. I frequently use river stone, granite, marble, copper, shell, tree bark, semi-precious stones and fossils in combination with man-made materials to create functional art pieces that convey nature’s peacefulness. Many of my pieces depict rivers, streams, landscape, birds and bright colors.”
Joanne Hiscox
Not only did Joanne begin selling her work at Sedona Arts Center, she and Art also taught mosaics and fused glass for 10 years at the Arts Center after learning skills and techniques from workshops offered at the center. In her work, strong design and color choices are balanced with the integrity of the materials. Then there are the unique accents…in some of the tables currently on display there are fossils embedded in the stone that make up the mosaic.
A theme of flowing water runs through both Joanne and Art’s current designs. Resin creates the look of real water, enticing viewers to actually touch the river to see if it is real. The tables, depicting a river flowing as seen from above, are bordered by granite, marble or exotic soapstone slabs. The river itself is made of crystals, glass, ancient fossils and semi-precious stones from around the world. Art Hiscox’s current work depicts wall and standing sculptural waterfalls through a similar use of stone, glass and resin.
“I love to create architectural art that blends nature with style, incorporating man-made mediums with nature’s own art. My tables startle the viewer by juxtaposing natural elements (copper, semi-precious stones and fossils) with man-made materials, compelling the viewer to actually touch the surface (bringing in another sense besides sight). My goal is to create sculptural art pieces that are new and different, constantly changing in design and material composition. My sculptural fused glass works showcase my strongest point: that I’m a “no-fear artist.” Present me with a new challenge and I’m on board instantly.”
Christie Palmer
Known for organically integrating landscape and abstraction, as well as her atypical use of acrylic on paper, Palmer creates distinctly original work. Her technique employs enigmatic shapes, an expert use of color, and fuses drama with serenity. Using acrylics much like watercolor, and layering infinite washes, her methods achieve a richness of color built gradually and patiently. Extensive blending comes into play, and as a painting nears completion the resulting fluidity of its lines and glow of its washes emerge. Whether an expansive landscape or a small object, each is taken to heart in the personal and inspirational journey to the painting’s completion.
In private collections throughout the United States and abroad, Christie Palmer’s paintings are recognized by their clean lines, flawless technique and the peacefulness which they radiate. Her paintings have been awarded in juried shows in the Chicago area, Southern California, and Sedona.Neither truly realistic, surreal or abstract, Palmer’s paintings are graced with enigmatic shapes, a fusion of drama and serenity, and an intuitively expert use of color. Whether an intimate study of a small object or the vastness of a landscape, her work reflects her singular observation of the world and encourages the viewer’s participation in a closer engagement with her subject.
The Fine Art Gallery is now open Wednesdays through Sundays from 10 am to 5pm.
Sedona Arts Center is one of Northern Arizona’s most well-established cultural organizations and serves as the creative heart of Sedona. Founded in 1958, the nonprofit 501(c)3 organization is based at the Art Barn in Uptown and offers year-round classes, exhibitions, festivals, and cultural events that enhance the creative life of the Verde Valley. The Center’s Fine Art Gallery promotes the original works of over 100 local artists and regularly offers special assistance for collectors and art buyers, offers private studio visits, and fosters hundreds of arts education opportunities each year.
Visit SedonaArtsCenter.org to learn more.
