A whole ostrich egg* covered with fragments of text from the 1855 essay Woman in the Nineteenth Century by Margaret Fuller, visible through the pointed surface of steel tacks, is cradled in black fur, providing a nest for the gestation of her feminist ideals (reconstructed from an antique muff hand warmer). The muff waned in popularity in fashion in the late 19th – 20th C. and so parallels Fuller’s writings which criticized the restricted role of women in society. The combination of artifact with the implication of her words provides a metaphor of promise, nourishment and hope.

*In the late 18th century, ostriches were nearly brought to extinction by hunting because their feathers were very fashionable in women’s clothing and the eggs highly collectible in the decorative arts.

Jill Cliffer-Baratta, New Members’ Induction Ceremony, Rubin Museum

Year two of my NAWA presidency has been truly amazing. Since our last newsletter, the 129^th Annual Exhibition has come and gone. We have a wonderful group of new member inductees, a new Chapter in South Carolina, and a remarkable anniversary year ahead of us. As always, we anticipate a plethora of exhibition opportunities for our members, and for artists who wish to exhibit along with us.

The 129^th Annual Members’ Exhibition was a resounding success in almost every way. Of note specifically: great exposure in the Lower East Side neighborhood on Chrystie Street; a 3-week residency with two weeks of exhibition time; a 7 day a week opening schedule; a top-notch street level pop-up gallery with a large volume of walk-in traffic; the wonderful management of all our volunteer gallery associates—installers, de-installers; and not least of all, the amazing artwork we were able to enjoy, share, and show to the discerning and appreciative attendees from all over the city, the nation and even the globe. The one exception to the successes was that we had no sales—a disappointing fact. The exhibition committee, as well as several others of us in the NAWA family have discussed ways to improve on this. We will report on some of our potential ideas, if and when they become more formalized.

With that said, some of our smaller exhibitions have had multiple sales, so that is encouraging. NAWA artists invest long hours and lots of dollars in their education, materials, and studios, so it is always a joyful thing to see someone acquire one of our exquisite artworks to own and enjoy.

The celebration of the 130^th Anniversary of NAWA will start the evening of January 31, 2019 from 5-7 pm, with a reception in the NAWA Gallery. This is the actual anniversary day of NAWA’s founding and we will have some fun surprises that evening. Then the celebration will continue through the entire year of 2019, with open exhibitions in 9 of the 12 months, and some other special events to be announced.

Of course, we celebrate every day the friendships and camaraderie that we have in our membership, and our accomplishments. In addition, we celebrate the many venues we have graced with the excellent artworks of our members, and the wonderful folks who have helped us facilitate those exhibitions. Perhaps most of all, we take this moment to celebrate our supporters, and the appreciators of the products of our labors. Art-making is a unique way to spend our effort and time. It is a special act of creating intrinsic value, whereby the artist solves a problem from within or from without, creating a product of extrinsic value. Often no one has asked the artist for a product she makes on spec (speculation that it might sell) and she then puts it out for sale. It is a risky business, so we truly and deeply applaud our friends, families and supporters in this, NAWA’s 130^th Anniversary, and we hope for your continued support.

Jill Cliffer Baratta
President, NAWA

From the National Association of Painters and Sculptors to the National Association of Women Artists.

The One Hundred Years – A Centennial Celebration of the National Association of Women Artists

by Susan G. Hammond

Carole Kunstadt, Self Portrait, altered and recombined

Carole Kunstadt

Carole Kunstadt’s vision transcends time. It’s a rare quality in an artist to be able to merge past, present and future in ways that make an indelible mark on the world. How does she do it? As a collagist, painter, book arts and fiber artist, she invokes a metaphysical quality to all she touches. Combined with artifacts, her works on/of paper reference the materials of antique books and bookplates. History, memory, domesticity and women’s political and personal place remain paramount in her art.

In the artist’s words, “There is a wonderful opportunity in collage to combine otherwise unrelated elements into a work and create totally new and unexpected connections. Through a careful selection of natural found objects, combined with handmade papers and mixed media, the unexpected and surprising is born.”

All these qualities were visible in her solo show at the Woodstock Artists Association & Museum, Woodstock, NY (December 1-30, 2018). Her installations OVUM and PRESSING ON from her Heroine Series evolved with the awareness of the life’s work and writings of feminist Margaret Fuller in the 19th Century and Hannah More, an abolitionist in the 18th Century.

Born in Boston and raised in a small New England town, she received a BFA, magna cum laude, from Hartford Art School (CT) and continued with post graduate studies at the Akademie der Bildenen Kunste in Munich, Germany. Five years ago, she moved to the Hudson Valley after 35 years in NYC.

Her awards include the 2017 Kuniyoshi Fund Committee Award, in cooperation with the Woodstock Artist Association & Museum Award Committee; Medal of Honor & The Anna Walinska Memorial Award 2017, National Association of Women Artists; and Award for Excellence 2016, Edward Hopper House Museum & Study Center, Nyack, NY.

Interview with the Artist:

• When did the idea of merging language, artifacts, art making and history begin?
I had been incorporating text in my collages for years from antique ledgers and ephemera. As a calligrapher I have a keen appreciation for words and letters. (“Words have meaning, type have spirit.”)

I began using antique books as a material, intellectual, and spiritual inspiration in 2006. My first purchase of an antique book was intended to be incorporated into a collage. When I started to work with the pages, my work changed. I was responding to the book as a repository of the history it held throughout the years, the experiences it contained. It was a new awareness and led to a ten-year exploration of the book’s materials which is my Sacred Poem Series. That work developed from collage, woven paper, sewn, knotted and gilded works to sculptural pieces which evolved into combining artifacts with the pages and gold leaf etc.

SACRED POEM X, 6.5 × 6 × 1.5 in. – thread, gampi tissue, paper: pages from Parish Psalmody 1844.
Book Arts Collection of the National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, D.C.

• What was an early inspiration?
Reflecting on my childhood in Massachusetts, Deborah Sampson was a hometown heroine. During the Revolutionary War, she disguised herself as a man in order to serve in the Continental Army. She is one of a small number of women with a documented record of military combat experience in that war. She sewed a uniform for herself and served as a scout until discovered 17 months later. (Michelle Obama mentioned her in one of her speeches a few years ago). I used to ride my bike on the road named for her and pass the cemetery with her tombstone. She was definitely an early influence regarding individuality, conviction, and history.

Fiber artist Lenore Tawney, friend of Agnes Martin, utilized objects and fibers in her work. I love her entire ouevre and sensibility—how she combines physical objects in her sculpture and addresses the ethereal. About Materiality: Power of Objects she wrote: “Meaning may come to us through forces inherent in the physical and material world.”

• Did your time in Munich influence your earlier work?
I was fascinated with everything while living in Munich and traveling in Europe. I very naturally collected labels, tickets, wrappers, leaves along the way and just tucked them into my sketchbook. When we came back and were living in NYC, I started to use some of these in small collages. The process assisted me in integrating the myriad of experiences I had living abroad for a few years. I was so captivated by the process of combining and layering that I devoted myself to working this way for many years. Not only did I collect materials that fell in my path but I started to purchase ephemera etc. to use.

IN THE BEGINNING, 7.25 × 7 × 0.75 in. – Watercolor, rice paper, letter from 1860, postage stamp, wooden egg, ribbon, thread on handmade paper. Collection of artist. National Association of Women Artists Miriam E. Halpern Memorial Award for Works on Paper 2006.

• In your current show (PRESSING ON, Woodstock Artists Association & Museum), you have created a testament to Margaret Fuller and Hannah More. As a feminist and an artist, do you have a new subject or subjects in mind in the past or the present?
More than five years ago, I had the intention of focusing on a female writer. I found a book from 1855, although not really informed about what it was at the time, in a book store in Sandwich, MA. In 2013, I started utilizing it—Women of the Nineteenth Century, by Margaret Fuller, who is regarded as the first American feminist. It had a long gestation period, and I completed the first sculpture in this OVUM Series in 2016. During that time, I became interested in developing other books-as-objects-of-art works devoted to women as a series of heroines. I have worked since 2017 with a book by Hannah More, an abolitionist and social reformer, creating over 90 sculptures using pages of her book 1791 combined with antique sad irons. (Currently installed in her solo exhibition at WAAM).

I am contemplating and researching a book by Catherine Beecher which she published in 1869 in collaboration with her sister Harriet Beecher Stowe. Unlike her sister, she was not an abolitionist. She dedicated her life to the education of women and was a champion for education reform.

The material, the content, and the artifact when used has to coalesce.

Carole Kunstadt: PRESSING ON
Solo Gallery, Woodstock Artist Association & Museum
December 1–30, 2018

For more information on Carole Kunstadt, please visit: www.carolekunstadt.com

129th Annual Members’ Exhibition, Chrystie Street Gallery, NYC

As President Jill Baratta mentioned in this issue’s President’s Corner, this year’s Annual was a resounding success. Perfectly situated in the artistic heart of the Lower East Side, we had a wonderful opportunity to display outstanding works by our members and attract denizens of art lovers and curious strollers discovering NAWA for the first time. Donald Kuspit, a Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Art History and Philosophy at State University of New York at Stony Brook said in his review of the show, “This exhibition, with its cornucopia of works of art made by women, is a testimony to their natural creativity, to the generative power of what Goethe called the eternal feminine. It is what makes them expressively convincing and culturally meaningful, however different their styles, themes, mediums.”

Over $10,000 was given in awards in all media and our Medal of Honor award winners were as follows:

Painting: Medal of Honor & Elizabeth Stanton Blake Memorial Award, Joyce Werwie Perry, Lunch in New Orleans

Works on Paper: NAWA Medal of Honor & Elizabeth Stanton Blake Memorial Award, Carol A. O’Neill, Blackberry Rush

Mixed Media/Collage: NAWA Medal of Honor & Anna Walinska Memorial Award, Felicia Olch, Mystery

Sculpture: NAWA Medal of Honor & Florence and Irwin Ziowe Memorial Award, Alison Golder, Candle Box

Photography, Printmaking, Digital: NAWA Medal of Honor & Judith Neuman Cantor Memorial Award, Susan Phillips, Roof Party Over

In other categories, the winners were:

129th Annual Members’ Exhibition, Chrystie Street Gallery, NYC

Any Medium
Cecile Adler Cliffer Memorial Cutting Edge Award:
Loretta Ana Kaufman, Kingfisher with Minnow & Dragonfly: Circle of Life Series

Cecilia Picon Award for Abstract Art:
Sally Schaedler, Eastern Lights

Bobbi Mastrangelo Environmental Art Award:
Phyllis Rosser, Sailing Forth

129th Annual Members’ Exhibition, Chrystie Street Gallery, NYC

Painting
Helen Stark Audrey Memorial Award:
Linda Lippa, Shadow

Dorothy L. Irish Memorial Award:
Irene Nedelay, Anastasia

Liana Moonie Memorial Award for Innovative Abstract Landscape Painting:
1st Place, Maria Coppola, Mack

Liana Moonie Memorial Award for Innovative Abstract Landscape Painting:
2nd Place, Leah Raab, Borders and Boundaries

Solveig Stromsoe Palmer Memorial Award for Conservative Portrait Painting:
Christie Devereaux, The Immigrant’s Mother

129th Annual Members’ Exhibition, Chrystie Street Gallery, NYC.

Works on Paper
Miriam Russo Enders Award:
Ingrid Van Slyke, Table for Two at Wood’s Inn

Eve Helman Memorial Award:
Charleen Kavleski, Quilt Top Study: Father’s Early Stripes

Virginia Hammond Memorial Award:
Mildred Kaye, Twinnies

Photography, Printmaking and Digital Art
Clara Viau-Deluca Memorial Award for Photography:
Cynthia Fleury, Tuscan Trees

Pauline Gartner Memorial Award for Photography:
Betty Guernsey, Alterations

Virginia Stukey Memorial Award:
Patricia J. Wynne, NMNH Thylacine Family

arttimesjournal Award:
Lucy C. Gans, Tracing My Roots: Robin

Mixed Media and Collage
Elsie G. Hammond Memorial Award:
Dail Fried, Notations

Alice Mae Hart Memorial Award:
Lorraine Klagsburn, Icelandic Landscape

Judith Neuman Cantor Memorial Award:
Barbara Kitty Williams, Golden Sunset

Sculpture
David Antar Memorial Award for Sculpture:
Priscilla Heep-Coll, Aging Gracefully

Esther M. Bjeldanes Memorial Award:
Bobbi Mastrangelo, Buckeye

Linda H. Orfield Memorial Award:
Anita Pearl, Window

Linda Stein Award for Sculpture:
Maidy Morehous, Fortun(at)e

Council of American Art Society Inc., Award for Excellence in
Representational Sculpture:
Pamela Conyers-Hinson, Dinka

Janet Suslak Indick Award:
Karla Leopold, Miscellaneous Treasures .05

Dr. Lionel E. Rebhun Memorial Award:
Marisol Ross, Yankee Stadium Train

Eyenga Bokamba beside her painting Decades in the Making.

EYENGA BOKAMBA

In 2018, the NAWA Gallery hosted Eyenga Bokamba’s solo exhibition What Will I do With All This Freedom. Her abstract works are lovely and luminous. She strives to invite through their beauty, the generous reconsideration of the expansion of possibilities for all people. “My greatest desire is to create work that pivots on an axis of understanding and advances our collective consciousness about what it means to be alive, thriving and empathetic in today’s world.”

Here is a link to Eyenga’s installation in Italy: https://vimeo.com/297703150. She was in residency as Esperienza’s inaugural international artist in residence in Pennabilli, Italy from September 5 – 21, 2018. During this time, she created six large-scale paintings in a series called “Blues for Bascio,” so named for the tower featured in the video. “I became obsessed with the tower once I learned that it is in the town that is considered the birthplace of DaVinci, and that it is in a state of disrepair due to the lack of preservation funding to address historically significant sites in Italy. I started to ponder the role of contemporary art in bringing attention to world heritage sites around the globe. I was honored to add my voice to the dialogue about the significance of such places.”

Readers may visit her artworks at https://eyenga-bokamba.squarespace.com/

Leah Raab stands beside her Self Portrait at Prince Street Gallery, NYC

LEAH RAAB

An active member of NAWA, Leah has straddled two worlds on a personal and professional level in her art. Born in Trenton, NJ, she received her BFA from the Bezalel Academy of Art in Jerusalem and her MFA at the New York Studio School. Her work has been exhibited extensively in the U.S. and Israel, most recently at the Jerusalem Biennale. Her most recent solo show BeLongings in NYC was on view November through December, 2018 at The Prince Street Gallery. She has taught art to all ages for many years on both continents, and is currently teaching at Touro College in New York.

Having moved back and forth between the cultures of Israel and the U.S., Leah addresses feelings of displacement, relocation and readjustment to different cultures. Paintings of significant and familiar scenes reflect internal tensions in a seemingly tranquil landscape, overlaid with a sense of impending danger that may explode at any moment. “On a personal level, it is about longing for homes I no longer inhabit, memories of people far away, landscapes, neighborhoods and communities in distant countries that I no longer belong to.”

Leah Raab, Lost Souls, Acrylic on canvas, 2018.

Susan B. Phillips with her Medal of Honor Award winning photograph Roof Party Over.

SUSAN B. PHILLIPS

An award-winning photographer and mixed media collage artist, Susan Phillips has also been an invaluable NAWA Gallery Coordinator for the past ten years. As a New York City and Woodstock resident, she is also an active member of The International Center for Photography, the Woodstock Artists Association & Museum, the Woodstock Center for Photography and The Woodstock Byrdcliff Guild.

Her photographs and collages have been exhibited throughout the U.S. and can be found in corporate and private collections. Museum exhibitions have included the Brooklyn Museum of Art (NY) and The Bergen County Museum (Paramus, NJ) among others. Recently, she was the 2018 recipient of NAWA’s Medal of Honor in the 129th Annual Exhibition at the 195 Chrystie Street Gallery (NYC). Two of her photographs have recently been selected, and were published (Oct 2018) in the Fall Edition of the art and literary magazine, Art Ascent, a magazine dedicated to art and literature, published six times a year by Skybase Publishing Inc. In addition, she was selected by the Kennedy Publishing Company for inclusion in the Best of American Photographers, Volume II. She continues to expand her photo portfolios of Graffiti, Puddle Reflections NYC, Rain, Reflections (ponds, puddles and stores) and Street Scenes.

“Many of my photographs require the viewer to gaze down instead of straight ahead; to see how things are magnificently transformed when one is looking “through” water…or after a fresh snowfall. I search for the aesthetic possibilities in that which passersby may overlook. I try to transcend the reality of the subject and bring a new perspective to the commonplace.” There is almost no subject that doesn’t hold interest for the artist: “Each of us has a unique perspective. My asparagus shot will be different from yours.”

Readers may see more of Susan’s work at www.susanbphillips.com.

Susan B. Phillips, Slow Shutter Photography

Susan B. Phillips, Slow Shutter 1, Photograph

Barbara Swan, Portrait of Abbie Zonies, 1978, Collection of the Art Institute of Chicago.

ABBY ZONIES

Abby Zonies earned her BFA from Boston University and her MFA from Tufts School of the Museum of Fine Arts. As a painting instructor, she taught at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA from 1980–2012. She has garnered many awards, most recently a Certificate of Merit from the Lord and Andra Gallery in New Rochelle, NY, (2018), the Elizabeth Morse Genius Award for Works on Paper, the Beamesderfer Gallery, NJ, (2017) and the Eve Helman Memorial Award: Works on Paper from NAWA’s Annual Membership Show at the Sylvia Wald & Po Kim Gallery, NYC (2016). Her works have appeared in many solo and group exhibitions and New Yorkers, guests and NAWA will have ample opportunity to visit her new solo show at Saint Peter’s Church, the Narthex Gallery, NYC from January 10 through March 21, 2019.

“I moved to Manhattan in 2013. The change in location and medium precipitated a period of experimentation in my work. I abandoned the image and felt liberated. In my new work, color and chaos collide to create boisterous displays of animated patterns. I allow color, movement and gesture to become the stars of the show.”

Southern Hospitality has Landed on NAWA’S Doorstep

By Co-Editor Sandra Bertrand

Group photo of NAWA’s South Carolina Chapter.

South Carolina may be the place where real Southern hospitality began, but it’s also the destination for one of the most vibrant of art and culture scenes in the country. And in November 2018, NAWA was especially proud to welcome this dynamic state as our third chapter, joining forces with Florida and Massachusetts. Known for a diverse array of galleries, museums and year-round festivals, it’s a great supporter of art in public places. Art is an integral part of the daily life in cities such as Charleston, Columbia, and Asheville, and the town of Bluffton in the Lowcountry, tucked between Savannah and Charleston, has been designated an artist and cultural district of note. It is from this region that many of the 21 new members just inducted into the national organization take their inspiration.

There’s an old saying that “water finds its own level” and in this case, the breathtaking beauty in the landscape and wildlife, the sunrises and sunsets of the Lowcountry are revealed in the paintings and photography of this remarkably talented group. Styles may vary but the passion and commitment to excellence is shared. When I had the opportunity to speak to Jennifer Stone, the new vice president of the chapter, I could see that it was her unstinting belief that these women would be a creative force not only for their own community but for the national organization as well. Born and raised in New York City, she graduated from the same college in New Jersey as NAWA Executive Director Susan Hammond. After retiring from her career as an art teacher, she moved to South Carolina in 2016 and began concentrating on her own art and making a new chapter for NAWA a reality.

Through the combined energies of Jennifer, Mary Burell, their Media Director, and other founding members, the chapter’s first exhibition will be held at the University of South Carolina in April and in October the chapter’s members will be featured artists in the Savannah Art Walk. In Mary’s inspiring reflections, “To be at the start of NAWA SC, is an honor. At our first meeting it was wonderful to see such a talented group of women from all different backgrounds. We are all on this journey of being artists together no matter what our backgrounds are. That is the feeling I got that first day and since then I have seen a lot of support, encouragement and friendships forming. Happy to be looking forward to watching us grow as a group and individuals.”

It’s an auspicious beginning and we have no doubt that their artistry, commitment to excellence, and support for one another will set the best of examples for all of us.

It seems only fitting that this edition of Tools of the Trade should focus on three visionary photographers from our new South Carolina chapter. These three artists—Suzanne Fiorino, Sari Kandel, and Melinda Welker—have not only perfected the art of “seeing” through their own individual lens but have proven to be harmoniously in tune with their environment.   Each in her own way has found inspiration in the wonders of the Lowcountry, whether it is capturing the first rays of sunrise, the drooping overhang of Spanish moss over an abandoned chapel, or a Great Egret before flight. Here, in their own words, they describe the journey to artistic enlightenment.

Suzanne Fiorino 

Suzanne Fiorino, Chapel of Ease, Tabby Ruins, Digital Photograph.

There is only one opportunity to capture a unique image at any given point in time. And, there is so much to inspire one here in the Lowcountry of SC. I find myself going out on intentional ‘journeys’ to attempt to capture a specific aspect of the area, be it a beautiful sunrise, a glimpse of Roseate Spoonbills, or other local scenery. And, then there are the purely happenstance moments when ‘I see’ the perfect shot in front of me and I have to stop and take a photograph with whatever tool I have available. I am constantly seeking to learn new and better ways to use my tools, be it the camera or a paintbrush.

My first camera was a Kodak Instamatic. I have since progressed through several different cameras throughout the years and am currently using a Nikon D750 paired with either an AF-S NIKKOR 24-120mm f/4G ED VR Lens or Tamron – SP 150-600mm F/5-6.3 Di VC USD G2 Telephoto Zoom Lens. I consider myself an ongoing student in training in both photography and other art mediums.

Sari Kandel 

Sari Kandel, Backyard Skyscape, iPhone SE digital photograph.

I chase the sunrise and sunset wherever I am, whenever I can, so my camera must be excellent, light, portable and multi-functional. I use an iPhone SE. I play with color and light until what I see on the screen mirrors the dramatic sanctuary I experience in the moment. The soul-stir space. My art is digital photography.

Linda Welker 

Linda Welker, Great Egret With Breeding Plumage, Digital photograph

Over the years, my style of photography changed as my career evolved. As a news reporter, my photographs were documentary, later, while working on food and lifestyle magazines, my focus centered on cuisine and travel photography. Once I retired and had more leisure time, I discovered wildlife photography, which has become my true passion.

I especially love photographing the wonder of birds in their natural habitats. I strive to capture the personality, behavior and beauty of birds as they go about their daily social behavior. Birds can be graceful, majestic and, sometimes, just downright funny. Birds are also skittish and elusive, making them a challenge to photograph. I use a shallow depth of field, or blurred background in such photos as the Tri-colored Heron or the Egret with the fish.

The greatest challenge is learning to anticipate their actions so as to photograph them when they catch a fish on the fly, preen, and display courtship or nesting behavior. My goal is to capture that image that people are unlikely to see every day and that give a feeling of movement. I can happily spend hours in a bird rookery, by a pond or in a wildlife sanctuary, waiting to capture that unique shot!

Suzanne Valadon, The Blue Room, Oil on canvas, 1923.

Suzanne Valadon

French self-taught artist Suzanne Valadon (1865–1938) was an artist’s model before becoming a respected painter herself. Part of a circle of artists living and working in Paris’s Montmartre neighborhood at the turn of the twentieth century, Valadon was one of the most notable female artists of the period, producing bold and colorful works to rival her contemporaries. Yet today, she is often more remembered for her many love affairs and as the mother of prominent French painter Maurice Utrillo.

 Valadon was born Marie Clémentine Valadon on September 23, 1865, in the small town of Bessines, located in northeastern France. As a child, she worked as a funeral wreath maker, a vegetable seller and a waitress. As a teenager her Montmartre artist friends helped her get a job as an acrobat at the Mollier Circus. Though injured by a fall, that stint remained one of her favorite memories.

Portrait of Suzanne Valadon, black and white photograph, 1885, © Jean Fabris.

She quickly caught the eye of Pierre Puvis de Chavannes, Auguste Renoir and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec as an artist’s model and appears in several of their paintings.   Through a liaison with Spaniard Miguel Utrillo, she gave birth to her illegitimate son, Maurice Utrillo. In 1890 she became friends with painter Edgar Degas. After seeing some of Valadon’s work, Degas encouraged her efforts to become an artist, buying some of her pieces and helping her get her career started. (Mary Cassatt, one of NAWA’s most distinguished exhibitors and supporters, was similarly encouraged by the renowned painter.) Due to encouragement from Degas, in 1894 Valadon became the first woman to show at the Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts, a major French artistic accomplishment. Readers are encouraged to read more of this passionate and driven artist. Recommended: Renoir’s Dancer, The Secret Life of Suzanne Valadon by Catherine Hewitt, St. Martin’’s Press.

Quotes: “I had great masters. I took the best of them of their teachings, of their examples. I found myself, I made myself, and I said what I had to say.”

“I paint with the stubbornness I need for living, and I’ve found that all painters who love their art do the same.”

Watercolor: Luminous Light

NAWA Gallery
315 West 39th Street, Suite 508
New York, NY

January 9 – 29, 2019
Reception:  January 17, 5-7pm

Read more…

Artwork by Winifred Breines

Women Celebrating Creativity

NAWA Online Gallery

February 1 – May 9, 2019

Prospectus

Artwork by Beatrice Lebreton

Transparency

Arts Club of Washington
2017 I Street, NW
Washington DC

February 1 – 23, 2019
Reception: February 1, 5-7pm

Artwork by Mimi Herrera-Pease

Read more…

Small Works Winter 2019

NAWA Gallery
315 West 39th Street
Suite 508
New York, NY
Reception: February 7, 2019

Artwork by Arline Mann

Read more…

Collage/Mixed Media/Digital Art

NAWA GALLERY
315 West 39th Street, Suite 508, NYC

March 9 – 27, 2019
Reception: February 7, 2019
Artwork by Carole Kunstadt

Read more…

Pushing Paint (Oil & Acrylic)

NAWA Gallery
315 West 39th Street
Suite 508
New York, NY

April 3–25, 2019
Reception: April 11, 5-7pm

Read more…

Drawing and Pastel (Line & Shade)

NAWA GALLERY
315 West 39th Street, Suite 508, NYC

May 8 –29, 2019
Reception:  May 16, 5 – 7pm

Read more…

Sculpture (On & Off the Wall)

NAWA GALLERY
315 West 39th Street, Suite 508, NYC

June 5 –26, 5 – 7pm
Reception: June 13, 5 – 7pm

Artwork by Lea Weinberg

Read more…

Hilma af Klint: Paintings for the Future, Installation view at the Guggenheim Museum of Art, NYC

Hilma af Klint at The Guggenheim Museum of Art, NYC

Whether you believe Hilma af Klint’s (1862-1944) extraordinary and utterly contemporary artworks on display were the result of the channeling of beings of higher consciousness or not, one thing is certain. The Guggenheim’s current show, Hilma af Klint: Paintings for the Future, displays the indisputable genius of one Swedish woman who listened to the insistent urgings of her brush and left her indelible mark on our cultural landscape. Roberta Smith, in her New York Times review from October 12, 2018, feels that af Klint’s canvases “may induce disorientation, not the least for the way they blow open art history.”

Hilma af Klint: Paintings for the Future, Installation view at the Guggenheim Museum of Art.

Several years before the world was welcoming the gigantic proponents of modernism, such as Wassily Kandinsky, Kazmir Malevich, and Piet Mondrian into the mainstream, af Klint was quietly creating her dazzlingly bold and colorful swirls, her biomorphic shapes and rectilinear constructions. The pull of the outside world had little interest for her. So little, in fact, that she stipulated that no one would see her creations until twenty years after her passing. The shocking fact is that forty decades passed before her inclusion in The Spiritual in Art: Abstract Painting 1890-1985 at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Women artists everywhere can now welcome af Klint into the immortal pantheon of fine art.

For more on af Klint and this once-in-a-lifetime retrospective on view until April 23, 2019, please visit www.highbrowmagazine.com for co-editor Sandra Bertrand’s review of the exhibition.

Kara Walker

Artist Kara Walker and composer/musician Jason Moran are featured in a documentary about their collaboration for The Prospect.4 Triennial in New Orleans and Port Algiers in February, 2018. Katastwof Karavan employs a 32-note steam calliope performed by Moran and housed in a wagon designed and painted by Walker. It is a moving tribute to all African-Americans who suffered under slavery. It is Walker’s way of giving these forgotten a voice.

KaraWalker/JasonMoran_KatastwofKaravan

New Members’ 2018 Induction Ceremony, Rubin Museum, NYC.

NAWA OPENED ITS DOORS WIDE TO 2018’S NEW MEMBERS AND NEW BEGINNINGS

The National Association of Women Artists (NAWA) has always been about opening doors to the most deserving and most talented women nationwide. Once again, on November 15, we came together at the Rubin Museum Theater in NYC to honor and welcome into our ranks artists that will embrace and enhance our mission to foster public awareness of, and interest in, visual art created by women in the United States.

The number of applications this year has been overwhelming. To choose among so many remarkably rich and varied entries is a challenging task, but it’s a labor of love. Each of the 86 artists chosen will have more opportunities than ever on the eve of our 130^th anniversary in 2019 to be part of online and gallery exhibitions, as well as the incredible chance to archive their name in museums, and libraries across the country. But more than opportunities, we trust they will experience a comradery and commitment from other members to make the national organization stronger than ever. A special reception was held from 3:00 – 5:00 pm at the NAWA Gallery to meet and hear about the new members’ works in Painting, Works on Paper, Mixed Media/Collage, Photography, Sculpture and Installation.

Susan G. Hammond, 129th Annual Members’ Exhibition, Chrystie Street Gallery, NYC.

Executive Director Susan G. Hammond’s Interview with Sanctuary Magazine

To read Susan’s online interview, please go to: click here.

Order your NAWA 130th Anniversary Commemorative Mug now!

$20 plus shipping (tax included)

THE YEAR ROUND SMILE

We think when you shop with AmazonSmile, you won’t just be shopping. As a member of NAWA, you’ll be doing it with a smile and here’s how:
When you click here, www.smile.amazon.com, just select National Association of Women Artists. Amazon will donate .5% of the purchase price to NAWA.

We know there’s a lot of worthy causes out there, but we think NAWA and its proud history of supporting women artists like yourself since 1889 is a very worthy one we hope you will consider.

NAWA FLORIDA CHAPTER

NAWA FL Annual Luncheon, Boynton Beach, Florida.

On Friday, December 14, the National Association of Women Artists’ Florida Chapter came together for our Annual Luncheon at Benvenuto’s Italian Grill in Boynton Beach. It was both a wonderful time to give thanks to all the hardworking current Board Members and to give thanks to past Presidents for keeping our Chapter moving forward. Also, with so many husbands present at the luncheon this year, it was a great opportunity to thank the spouses of our Board Members for their constant support.

Our luncheon began by reading a lovely welcome message from NAWA’s President, Jill Cliffer Baratta. I gave a short talk on why artists join art organizations and why NAWA is such a special organization for us to be a part of. I introduced our very interesting guest speaker and talented artist Sarah Knouse.

Sarah Knouse is a sculptor, designer, and educator. She holds an MFA from Hunter College and a BFA from Pennsylvania State University; with post-baccalaureate research and teaching work completed at Bucknell University. Sarah has exhibited her sculptures both nationally and internationally. She is the recipient of the 2015 South Florida Cultural Consortium Fellowship for Visual Artists from Palm Beach County. Currently, her works are on view at the Culture Lab Gallery in West Palm Beach.

Sarah spoke about the evolution of her sculptures. She walked us through the process of seeking and applying inspiration within one’s creative studio practice. She did so by communicating in a very entertaining and enjoyable way! Her art pieces were incredible and very inspiring, as were her creative methodology. She allowed us to ask questions throughout her entire presentation, so we could better examine her thoughtful approach to subject matter and her freedom to take risks and experiment with her art. And, of course, to understand the overall process of how she creates.

To see Sarah’s artwork, go to: http://sarahknouse.com/

Roberta Millman-Ide
President, NAWAFL

RECOGNIZING NAWA EXHIBTION AWARD WINNERS

This year’s Annual Awards recognized many worthy recipients but there are other artists we are proud to highlight from recent NAWA exhibitions:

Beamesderfer 3: Sea and Sky
The Elizabeth Morse Genius Award: Rita Herzfeld, Rush, Takayo Noda, The View

Big Action Small Spaces
1st Place: Lea Weinberg
2nd Place: Abby Zonies, Turbulance
3rd Place: Nine Maguire, Tribute to the Gulf War

Daydreaming
1st Place: Veronica Jaeger, Angelic
2nd Place: Jane McIntyre, Curiosity
3rd Place: Diane Lublinski, Light at the End of the Tunnel
Honorable Mention: Betty Usdan Zwickler, Cable News, Patricia Wynne, Naides, Patricia Zalisko, The Comforter

A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO OUR DONORS:

• The Minnie and Berk Foundation for their gift of $5,000 for the 2018 NAWA Catalog and the digitalization of the NAWA Archive at the Alexander Library at Rutgers University.
• The generous donation from Ann Hadley Lasusa that helped fund the Induction Ceremony at the Rubin Museum.
• The generous bequests of three past President’s Judith Cantor, Catchi Childs and Liana Moonie.

MARLENE BREMER, 1937-2018

Marlene Bremer was born and educated in Germany. She continued her formal education in the United States and held a Master of Art degree as well as a Certificate in Appraisal Studies in Fine and Decorative Arts from New York University. Marlene’s paintings and sculptures reflect her lifelong love for the beauty in nature and the environment, executed in an expressionist interaction of vibrant colors and vivid brush strokes. Marlene won awards from the Institute Audio Visuel, Paris, France, NAWA, Salute to Women in the Arts, NJ, Bicentennial Arts and Crafts Show, NJ, Window Display Award, District of Bavaria, Germany and various others. Her work was exhibited internationally in China, France, Germany and Greece, and her art affiliations are many. Along with NAWA, she was a member of Artist Equity Inc., NYC, Painting & Water Color Affiliates of the Art Center of Northern New Jersey and Salute to Women in the Arts, New Milford, NJ. She taught at The School of Continuing Education, Ridgewood, NJ and at Bergen Community College, Paramus, NJ. Her works can be found in corporate and private collections in the U.S. and Europe.

CATHERINE (CATCHI) CHILDS, 1920-2018

A past president of NAWA from 1981 to 1985, Catherine Childs, known as “Catchi” to her family and friends, passed away on September 12 in Morrisville, VT. Catchi, an only child, was raised on Long Island where her next door neighbor was John R. Neill, the widely-loved illustrator of the Wizard of Oz characters. Catchi served as one of his models for the Oz children, earning twenty-five cents an hour. When the family wintered in Miami Beach, FL, she collected seashells for cards that she sold to pay for her art lessons. She ultimately studied with Paul Wood, Leon Kroll, Hans Hoffman and Angelo Savelli in Italy. Landscape painting, printmaking and sculpting in marble occupied her time in her beloved Pietrasanta. A later passion was her rug hooking which demonstrated her great creativity and love of color. Her work has been exhibited in the U.S. House of Representatives and many galleries here and abroad. In addition to her presidency with NAWA, she was a past president of the New York Society of Women Artists among other prestigious organizations. Charitable gifts in her memory may be made to NAWA or the North Shore Animal League America, 25 Davis Avenue, Port Washington, NY 11050.

ANN PELLATON, 1921-2018

A past president of NAWA from 1985-1987, Ann Pellaton was born in Bridgeport, CT but moved at six years of age to Port Washington, NY where she remained for the rest of her life. Her college studies of art were interrupted by her marriage to Pierre J.J. Pellaton in 1940. She returned to painting in 1956, earning her Masters in Arts Education from Queens College and teaching art and industrial shop at local schools. She lived her entire life within sight of Manhassat Bay, which inspired many of her early paintings. Ann was a great traveler and a lover of music, dual passions which were reflected in the variety and rhythms of her subject matter. She was one of the first women ever admitted to the Chevalier Tastevin de Bourgogne. This December she will be honored for her long and illustrious career by The Art Guild. Loved by all whose lives she touched, she was known as The Baronessa.

Rita Price, Mamason, Mamason.

RITA F. PRICE, 1924-2018

Rita F. Price passed away on August 17, 2018, and will be greatly missed by her beloved family and friends. Born in the Bronx and raised in Brooklyn, NY, she passionately pursued the raising of her children and her career as a professional artist. After WWII, the family moved to Albany, NY and other parts of the state, including Fulton, Rochester, Plainview, and Long Island, finally settling in Deerfield, IL. She was an accomplished printmaker having graduated from the Art Institute of Chicago where she also led the alumni association there. She taught printmaking for over 20 years at the North Shore Art League, regularly exhibiting her own work at local galleries and fine arts events. Contributions in her honor can be sent to the School of the Art Institute of Chicago for the Beautiful Work Scholarship Fund. Gifts may be directed to SAIC, Office for Institutional Advancement, 116 South Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL 60603.

Rita Price, Temples of the Mind

Mary Ann Putzier

MARY ANN PUTZIER, 1940-2018

“My art talent is a God-given gift, ever evolving. I feel an urgency to produce, to share and to encourage others in their personal artistic development.” Those heartfelt words particularly resonate with our NAWA administration and staff. Mary Ann was just inducted in November into NAWA, and was an active part of the Bluffton women’s art community, and a new member of the recently formed South Carolina NAWA chapter. She will be sorely missed by all.

Having a talented self-taught artistic mother encouraged Mary Ann to pursue art from babyhood. She earned her master’s degree in art education, learning and sharing that information becoming her personal crusade. As an art educator Mary Ann taught and produced art in almost every medium to every age group, her favorite mediums being watercolor and porcelain painting. Representational art dominates her style but she pushed the boundaries with experimental pieces as well. Extensive travel and life experience motivated her and she was noted for capturing personality in her portraits. She won many awards and fulfilled many commissioned art assignments.

A resident of Sun City since 1996, she was very involved with their Art Club, chairing the Education Committee. The Society of Bluffton Artists was very dear to her heart and she served on their Board of Directors.

Adele Grodstein
Piermont Fine Arts
218 Ash Street, Piermont, NY
Solo Exhibition
November 29 – December 16, 2018

Carole P. Kunstadt
Solo Gallery
Pressing On
Woodstock Arts Association & Museum
28 Tinker Street, Woodstock, NY
December 1 – 30, 2018

Leah Raab
Belongings
Prince Street Gallery
530 W 25th Street #402, NYC
November 27 – December 27, 2018

Nancy Staub Laughlin
Pastel/Photographs: Assemblages
The View, Vandervort Gallery
Central Adirondack Region
Old Forge, New York
July 27 – September 15, 2019
Reception: TBA

Virginia Mallon
#brokenwomenmendstronger
ARC Gallery
1463 W Chicago Ave, Chicago, IL
January 9 – February 2, 2019
Friday, January 11, 6:00 – 9:00 pm

Karlene McConnell
Perspective
Arts on Douglas
123 Douglas Street, New Smyrna Beach, FL
May 4 – 25, 2019
Reception: May 4, 4:00 – 7:00 pm

Candace Whittemore Lovely
The Intersection of Great Art & History
LifeLong Learning
700 Tidepointe Way, Hilton Head Island, SC
Winter/Spring Semester 3 Wednesdays, 1:30-3:30, February 6, 13, and 20.
3 Wednesdays, 1:30-3:30, February 6, 13, and 20.

Abby Zonies
The Liberation Series
New York, New Work
Saint Peter’s Church
619 Lexington Ave, NYC
January 10 – March 21, 2019
Reception: January 17, 6:00 – 9:00 pm

PAINTING
Mary Ahern, NY Suzanne Aulds, SC
Chapman Bailey, SC
Donna M. Belber, SC
Heather Buechler, MA
Mary Jo Carew, NY
Julie Chang, NY
Christina Chang, MA
Barbara Childs, SC
Katherine Coakley, FL
Diana Danz-Bassin, NY
Carin Doben, MA
Jane Feigenson, MA
Anne Gaffey, MA
Annabel Lee Hammet, SC
Janel Houton, MA
Linda Hugues, FL
Michelle Iglesias, MA
Debra K. Jayne, NH
Lisa Daria Kennedy, MA
Juliana Kim, SC
Louisa Lama-Aknin, NY
Candace Whittemore Lovely, SC
Linda N. Mann, AZ
Marie Massey, CO
Madolin Maxey, RI
Kim McAninch, PA
Joan Moreau Mckeever, SC
Laurie Elizabeth McKinley, CA
Cynthia McLouglin, UT
P.L. Meriam, VT
Amanda Case Millis, MA
Linda Kurgan Nickles, SC
Marilyn Orner, MA
Ginny Paternite, SC
Barbara Z. Pecce, SC
Terry Plater, NY
Lynn Ray, MA
Cynthia Samuelson, MA
Sharon Sayegh (Molk), NJ
Judy Saylor (McElynn), SC
Susan Siefer, MA
Susan Meyer Sinyai, NC
Jennifer Rocco Stone, SC
Joanne Tarlin, MA
Toni Truesdale, ME
Nancy Vineburgh, SC
Zhixin Cathay Walker, TN

WORKS ON PAPER
Shirley Good Bacher, SC
Mary Burrell, SC
Elinor Freedman, MA
Sheridan B. Jones, MI
Wilma Josephs, NY
Ann E. Kozeliski, FL
Julia Michry, NY
Audrey Montgomery, SC
Joyce Tilley Nagel, SC
Ann Parry, NY
Dorothy Amore Pilla, MA
Mary Ann Putzier, SC
Carolyn Rogers, DC
Nancy S. Rosen, NY
Ingrid Van Slyke, NY
Kathleen Zimmerman, CT

MIXED MEDIA/COLLAGE
Denise Bricker, NY
Rose Cofield, SC
Margo Duke, SC
Jo Dye, SC
Terry Lynn Hickernell, WVA
Constance Shattuck Kolman, MA
Joan Lewis, NY
Denise Cormier Mahoney, WA
Cecilia Picon, NY
Pascale Queval, MA
Vasundhara Tolia, MI
Gina Torkos, FL

PHOTOGRAPHY
Suzanne Fiorino, SC
Sari Kandel, SC
Dee Ann McCarthy, FL
Melina Welker, SC

SCULPTURE
Valerie Brochard, NY
Shosh Cohen, FL
Julie Warren Conn, KY
Brenda J. Drayer, IN
Helen (Eleni) N. Pappas, NY

INSTALLATION
Renee Creager O’Brien, NY

A WORD (OR TWO OR THREE…) FROM YOUR CO-EDITORS

By the time you read this, we will have shared warm moments with family and friends and eaten some of the holiday sweets if not all! For NAWA, the New Year will be filled with exhibits, workshops, events and ongoing efforts to increase awareness of our mission to support and encourage women artists across the country. Our work will be especially meaningful in light of our 130^th Anniversary Year, and we urge you to reach out to libraries, galleries and museums in your communities to tell them about NAWA. We also hope you will keep updated about deadlines for the many exciting opportunities to submit your work throughout the year.

Remember, this is your newsletter and we want to publish as many of your solo/two person shows as well as other biennial/triennial exhibits and publications that you send us. For images of your artwork it is essential that you provide your name, title of work, size, and if possible, date of creation. Your letters are much appreciated as well. We want to hear about your activities and thoughts about being an artist in these challenging times.

Wishing you the healthiest, happiest and most creative New Year ever!