Agua XVI: Ripple, Award winner of ABSTRACT: The Space Between,
NAWA online exhibition. Copyright © Muffy Clark Gill

In the painting Agua XVI: Ripple, water is the focal point. While studying the water’s surface at a Florida spring, a sudden movement occurred. As the water started to boil and ripple, a Manatee’s head slowly broke the tension of the water’s surface. The ripples continued to grow and spread. The abstracted fluid movements of the ripples were then translated to create a Yin and Yang type of image painted onto the surface of the silk. Reflections of trees gave an additional burst of color to the scene.

I create paintings utilizing the Japanese style Rozome/Batik wax resist process and mixed media techniques. I am stimulated by the “happy accidents” that often occur during the creation process. Using Japanese brushes made of bamboo handles with badger hair heads, I paint layers of soy/beeswax onto the silk, alternating with layers of silk dyes, which are pushed into the wet fabric rather than immersed. Steaming the painting once the wax is removed completes the process before finishing and framing.

Jill Cliffer Baratta addresses members at NAWA’s Annual Luncheon, The National Arts Club, NYC

Happy summer to all the  NAWA women and friends! The Annual Luncheon at the National Arts Club was a resounding success. We had many guests in this lovely and meaningful venue. It is always a good feeling to be next to historic Gramercy Park, close to where I used to live and work. Joanne Mattera was an organized and inspiring speaker, and I think everyone enjoyed the artistic and social aspects of the luncheon. Let’s do it again next year!

A warm welcome to NAWA’s three new Executive Board members—Dana Albarella James, Nansi T. Lent, and Gregory Moonie. We already have had some exciting new ideas brewing from this fresh group of faces!

NAWA is moving energetically forward with plans for a spectacular 129th Annual Exhibit at 195 Chrystie Street. Members, please make sure you read the prospectus carefully as “some of our menu items have changed!” It has always been a goal of ours to have a street level gallery, and now we “have” it for 3 weeks in October. It’s a great art neighborhood (Lower East Side) to inhabit for those 3 weeks. I hope all will participate in this exciting Annual in October 2018. There will be approximately $10,000 in awards, and we invite you to sponsor one. If you are so inclined, please contact me or the office. Please enter, participate, and if possible, volunteer! We do have a 6-hour volunteer requirement for all members. Annual volunteering counts towards your 16 hour minimum and honors you with a spot in our Art Angels exhibit in October when the Garment District Arts Festival sends studio tours going through our building and gallery.

We are already fully booked for 2019 in anticipation of our 130^th Anniversary year. We want to make a big deal out of this amazing accomplishment. It is not easy to continue passing the torch and surviving intact for 130 years! We hope all hands will be on deck for our 6 or 7 inspiring outside exhibitions plus an exciting lineup of open medium-based exhibitions in our own NAWA Gallery. Please keep in touch and watch for more information and events coming up to help us celebrate.

NAWA has several members who live outside the New York headquarters area and are very active in participating in our association. Mimi Herrera Pease, for one, is one of our newsletter editors. She is in San Francisco! Our Public Relations Committee meets on Zoom.com, so we have members stoking interest in membership and exhibitions in outlying areas as well (Arkansas, Tennessee, and more). While the world of art has undoubtedly expanded to numerous vibrant local communities across the USA, we at NAWA are still a fighting force for women to have parity in the elusive and mercurial art market. Please consider how you can contribute time, energy, word-of-mouth, and of course, funds…

Please visit the NAWA Facebook page: wwww.Facebook.com/TheNAWA and click on “like” so you will be informed of all NAWA activities, events and interesting articles.

Yours in creativity,

Jill Cliffer Baratta, MFA
President, NAWA

MARY CASSATT, After the Baby’s Bath, pastel on paper, circa 1913, collection of Arnold and Anne Gumowitz[

From the Woman’s Art Club to the National Association of Women Painters and Sculptors

by Susan G. Hammond

The end of the twentieth century closed on a positive note with the Woman’s Art Club’s (NAWA’s predecessor) 9th Annual Exhibition at the National Arts Club at 37 West 34^th Street, NYC. Mary Cassatt was included in this exhibition with her work, Toilette.

Things were looking better for women artists in the early 1900s. Membership doubled in the Society of American Artists, and nine of them were female: Cecilia Beaux, Louise Cox, Lucia Fairchild Fuller, Laura C. Hills, Dora Wheeler Keith, Edith M. Prellwitz, Rosina E. Sherwood, Alice K. Tyler and Sarah W. Whitman. Women were finally starting to win prizes for their artwork.

Under the direction of Ruth Payne Burgess, the Woman’s Art Club became a solidly established organization with approximately 100 members. It held annual exhibitions in major New York art clubs and galleries. Prize and award monies increased as well as contributions towards the annual exhibition. Sculpture gained prominence.

It’s worth noting that in 1913 the now legendary Armory Show that introduced Americans to European modernism included four members of the Woman’s Art Club: Josephine Paddock, May Wilson Preston, Anne Goldthwaite and Abastenia St. Leger Eberle. That same year, the Woman’s Art Club voted to change its name to the Association of Women Painters and Sculptors to reflect the importance of sculpture. This change significantly recognized the professional aspect rather than the social one implied by the word “club.”

The 23rd Annual Exhibition of the Association of Women Painters and Sculptors was held in 1914. It featured ninety-four paintings, 8 miniatures and 18 sculptures. Membership grew from 100 to 183, with 30 Associate members. The National Academy had 280 members, but only two were women. However, other opportunities were becoming available for women to exhibit their work.

In 1917, the organization changed its name again to the National Association of Women Painters and Sculptors to reflect its growing national reputation. The organization grew rapidly to 500 members living in all parts of the United States. As more opportunities opened up for women artists, there was greater interest in women’s art, which increased the prestige and relevance of the organization.

During the second decade of the twentieth century, The National Association of Women Painters and Sculptors held numerous social events such as visits to private collections, teas at artists’ studios, and an annual dinner with a guest speaker. The Association added more shows, including traveling shows. When World War I began, the Association considered its patriotic duty to contribute to the war effort by joining the Art War Relief Committee. It raised money toward the purchase of an ambulance for the Red Cross in Italy. The ambulance bore a plaque engraved: “In honor of Fra Angelico. The National Association of Women Painters and Sculptors.”

Regular membership at that time was $5. The organization was able to rent a small office in the rectory of the Church of the Holy Communion in New York City and hire a secretary to handle the correspondence and business. With members increasing and activities growing, an attempt was made to organize chapters in various regions of the country, including Philadelphia and Baltimore, but it was too complicated to be practical. Instead, members decided to create a program that organized traveling exhibitions to various parts of the U.S.

ALICE SCHILLE, Mother and Child in the Garden, watercolor on paper, 1912, private collection, courtesy of Jenny and Johnson Gallery

BLANCHE LAZZELL, woodblock for West Virginia Hills, wood with ink, 1919, collection of The National Association of Women Artists

CECILIA BEAUX, Portrait of Alice Davidson, oil on canvas, 1919, courtesy of John H. Surovek Gallery

Harriet FeBland amongst her “totem” sculptures, circa 1975 (photo courtesy of the artist)

Harriet FeBland

With heavy hearts, we are sorry to announce the passing of Harriet FeBland on Sunday, July 1, 2018. All of us at NAWA will always treasure the great and unique talent she displayed in her career and her continued support of women artists.

We are honored to feature on the Red Carpet the distinguished and Pioneer constructionist sculptor and painter Harriet FeBland, who has been a NAWA member for 58 years! Ms. FeBland lives and works in New York City and has exhibited in major invitational shows and has had 55 solo exhibitions worldwide. A New York City native, she was educated at Pratt Institute and New York University, then relocated to England and France where she gained an international reputation early in her career, exhibiting at the Musée D’Art Moderne, Paris, and Alwin Galleries and the Drian Gallery, London. She married and had two sons while in London then returned to the United States after 11 years abroad.

Early in her career, in 1960 Ms. FeBland was one of a seminal group of artists who pioneered the use of acrylic as a sculptural medium and is documented as one of the earliest adopters of the material. In 1961, her solo exhibition Plastic In Art at the Galerie Internationale in New York City featured transparent, multi-surfaced and self-illuminated works in “acrylic polymer” on Plexiglas (the names of both the medium and the substrate were just coined at the time) as well as some of the first acrylic paintings.

The Encyclopedia of Polymer Science credits her as one of just several artists who introduced plastics and electricity as an art form, and she was hailed as an “innovator” and “visionary” in published articles of the day. As Plexiglas was new and relatively unknown at the time, her work drew the interest of Thelma Newman, who was researching how artists were exploiting the new material. Ms. FeBland was featured in two of Newman’s early books: Plastics As An Art Form (Chilton Books, 1964) and Plastics As Sculpture (Chilton Books, 1974). Another striking innovation as early as 1959 was her wall-hung and standing sculpture, incorporating nails as a design element which she called sculptural pointillism. These works were produced well before The Museum of Modern Art premiered Gunther Uecker’s nail paintings in 1963. She was also one of the first artists to incorporate functioning electric light bulbs as a design element in her work.

Harriet FeBland in the print studio, Soho, NYC, circa 1986

She had always been a painter and found herself incorporating relief elements into paintings to the extent that they became wall-hung sculpture which she called wall-relief constructions. She also produced freestanding construction sculpture in painted wood and Formica over wood in a distinctive geometric style. Ms. FeBland has produced some monumental outdoor sculptures. A 17-foot tall aluminum sculpture, Electra 2, was commissioned for permanent loan. Another monumental sculpture, Great Wings, executed in fiberglass over marine ply is in the collection of Mercy College, Dobbs Ferry, NY, originally appeared in a New York City show that included Hans Van de Bovenkamp. Ms. FeBland has also produced sculptural boxes, many incorporating electric lights and mirrors, and has exhibited these small works with other specialists in form, notably Joseph Cornell. Her curiosity is legendary—she is also recognized for her mastery of the monotype and large fiber-art wall hangings.

Ms. FeBland vividly remembers the outright discrimination she experienced early on as a woman artist trying to gain recognition and opportunity in a male-dominated art world. She has appeared in many high-profile discussion groups and art shows on the issue of women’s equality in the arts. Notable exhibitions of the era she participated in were: Women in Art, Brainerd Art Gallery, SUNY Potsdam, 1972 in which she showed with such luminaries as Marisol and Beverly Pepper, and Women Choose Women, New York Cultural Center, 1973 in which prominent women artists had chosen artists to show with whom they respected and admired.

Harriet FeBland, In and Out, acrylic and ink on canvas

She has taught art at New York University, and from 1963 to 1993 operated the Harriet FeBland Art Workshop, which offered Master classes in painting for advanced students and presented workshops at Bennington College; London University, UK; Iona College; College of New Rochelle; Santa Fe Art Institute and elsewhere in the U.S. She is past President of New York Artist Equity Association and Past President of the American Society of Contemporary Artists where she is now President-Emeritus. She has also served as Secretary for the American Art Committee, United Nations from 1978-81. The Agnes K. Haverly Foundation, a major collector of FeBland’s work, produced the film Harriet FeBland in 1983; in 2009 it produced and distributed to museums a DVD version along with a full color brochure of her work.

NAWA celebrates Harriet FeBland as an artist whose beautiful and revolutionary artworks can not only stand beside the very best produced in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, but will, we are certain, stand the test of time.

Penny Dell, Women’s Studio Workshop, 2013

PENNY DELL

Penny Dell, born in Mexico City, came to the US at age thirteen. She was lucky to be exposed not only to the riches of Mexican culture but also to the many other cultures in the expatriate community nurtured in postwar Mexico. The artist Francisco Dos Amantes and the zoomorphic figures of Aztec friezes influenced much of her early work. Dell studied English and French Literature at Simmons College and the Sorbonne and painting at the Triveni Kala Sangam Akademi in New Delhi, India. These intersections of cultures, techniques, and philosophies have fueled Dell’s creative investigations – through drawing, painting, and print. Her most recent solo show, “Starring Hive/Security” was featured at the Hall Gallery, Cunneen-Hackett Arts Center in Poughkeepsie, NY from April 3-May 30. Penny has taught printmaking and experimental transfer processes throughout the New York metropolitan area. Her works are in many corporate and private collections, including Cablevision, Rutgers University and the New York Public Library. From 2005-2007, she served as President for the National Association of Women Artists. Penny lives and works in Poughkeepsie, NY.

Penny Dell, Witness 27, Xerox Lithography, 2013

Here is an abbreviated description of Penny’s latest “Starring Hive/Security” exhibit and its process:

“Hidden in plain sight are all sorts of unconventional artists’ materials. I’ve found a haven in the patterns revealed in the interiors of security envelopes. Your bank statement, your insurance company summary, your utility bills…are all protected by the very different interior camouflages printed there.

Security blankets…when I began using hexagons, it led me to the rich vocabulary of quilting. The hexagon deconstructs in many ways, but now a favorite, diamonds + chevrons create yet another rich referent: an optical effect known to quilters as “tumbling blocks.” It’s very applicable to many security concerns today. The optical “pop” of this series is enhanced by using printmaking methods – primarily woodblocks and a paper overlay which adheres the layer at the time of putting the block and its receptor through the press.

Recently I found a new app—fruit stickers. Layered onto the security spills, it reminds me of the global sources of our fruit. From Chile, from Morocco, from Australia, from Costa Rica, much of our fruit comes from very far away. Is this an energy privilege we can count on?”

KARLA LEOPOLD

It is with great pleasure that we bring our readers a message from Karla Leopold, a Louisiana NAWA artist and arts therapist who has touched the lives of so many still suffering the aftereffects of Hurricane Katrina.

Karla Leopold facilitating an art therapy session at Baton Rouge River
Center Arena shelter after the devastating floods.

The Healing Powers of Art:

There is little doubt that art heals and we, as artists, have the power to make this happen. For the viewer and the creator art brings what is deep within to a conscious level. Creating art allows the maker to process and disclose the raw rumblings of trauma and pain, hope and joy in a noninvasive manner. For the traumatized, art becomes a means of creating images that words fail to express.

Art therapy participants, Baton Rouge River Center Arena shelter.

The souls of many children and adults affected by trauma have been and continue to be touched by art therapy. I, working along with artists, art therapists, and support teams have viewed the healing powers of art in the post-Katrina world—shelter work following the devastating flooding in Louisiana as well as work among the poor communities in Baton Rouge. The support of funds and supplies from the members of National Association of Women Artists and others were and are essential to the success of our work. You share in the healing of those who have lost so much and have so little.

My outreach art therapy work began shortly after Hurricane Katrina (2005) when I joined Sister Judith Brun, a Baton Rouge children’s advocate, to bring healing, relief, and a means of processing pain, loss, and hope for the children and adults affected by Hurricane Katrina. Thirteen years later, the work continues. As an outgrowth from our Art Therapy efforts with the survivors of Hurricane Katrina, Loyola Marymount University developed an Art Therapy clinic and training program to serve those affected by trauma and loss. Take Care is Sister Judith’s current focus, to reduce generational poverty through neighborhood rejuvenation, with specific attention to pregnant women and infant care. We are in the process of incorporating the healing arts.

Karla Leopold: Reflecting and processing the essence of the souls touched through my work with the arts with those touched by trauma.

Upon reflection, the art which brings me most pride is that produced by the children and families affected by trauma and loss (www.katrinaexhibit.org) and the continued work using art to heal. My most important personal art work is the art created by translating and processing deep intimacy of shared pain, loss, fears and hopes from those lives I’ve touched through the healing arts. An example of this work is Shelter Souls, which was exhibited at the Sheltered exhibition sponsored by NAWA.

It makes me proud to be a member of the National Association of Women Artists, an organization that continues to use art to support struggling and emerging women artists developing their creative powers to reach out to others. We create powerful art and exhibits, teach in the schools, libraries, and communities, provide scholarships and opportunities for upcoming artists, and spread our passion for the arts. May the healing powers of art continue to touch the souls of others and may we watch it grow with the upcoming generations.

To view the children’s art work: www.katrinaexhibit.org
Karla’s art work: www.karlaleopold.com
Instagram: www.instagram.com/ggleopoldart/?hl=en
Sister Judith Brun: www.cibr.org,  www.takecarebr.org
Loyola Marymount: Art Therapy/Marriage and Family program: https://cfa.lmu.edu/programs/mft/

Judith Modrak in her Union Square studio, NYC.

Judith Modrak

Judith Modrak’s Our Memories, first unveiled as part of the 9^th annual Governors Island Art Fair in New York in the fall of 2016, is an evolving audience-participatory installation. Recognizing the need to record one’s personal experience, these neuron inspired sculptures contain cavities in which the participants place a color-coded “memory stone.” Viewers recall a powerful memory and then share the memory by depositing it in a sculpture. The “memory stones” are color-coded into six emotive categories: joy, anger, love, sadness, fear, and surprise. New sculptures were filled during a one-day event on April 20th, 2018 at the Naumburg Bandshell in Central Park and will be completed on May 4th in Thomas Paine Park. The seven sculptures will then be on view for 10 months. The Our Memories project is both a collective memorial piece, made complete by thousands of individual memories from people all over the world, and an experience that connects us to our core and to one another.

Judith Modrak is a New York-based artist exploring scientific advances that increase our understanding of psychological and neurological interior landscapes, including the nature of memory, brain physiology, and the experience of emotion. Modrak’s work has been exhibited in solo and group shows in galleries and museums throughout the United States including Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions, the Trenton Art Museum, Point Park University, the Palm Beach Art Armory, the Woodstock Museum, and the Hartnett Gallery. Modrak has received a Chashama/National Endowment for the Arts grant and two gold medals in sculpture from the National Association of Women Artists, among other awards. The documentary Memories Recorded, Memories Stored, about Modrak’s project Our Memories won Best Science and Education Documentary at the Madrid International Film Festival in 2017. NAWA congratulates the artist for her passionate and committed artistry.

Judith Modrak, Our Memories, fiberglass resin cast with acrylic stones, Thomas Paine Park,
NYC, on view through March 2019.

Red, the Artist in her studio.

Red, The Artist (Tracy Sagalow)

Congratulations to Red (Tracy Sagalow), whose series 100 Women and More had its first gallery showing at the Founders Hall Gallery at Soka University of America in Aliso Viejo, CA from January through May of this year. The series focuses around portraits of women from history who made an impact in their own times and field of study. Each portrait shown has the woman’s story accompanying it. Red has been creating these portraits since 2016: “There are a few moments in an artist’s life that remind you why you create art,” Red said, “and this show was one of them.”

The response to the showing was more personal and heartfelt than she had anticipated. Visitors to the show helped by adding over 120 women’s names for Red’s research and the subsequent portraits. Some of the personal responses she received were from a father, so grateful to have been able to bring his daughter to the show and how they both learned a lot about their favorite women, Harriet Tubman and Shirley Chisholm. Another woman was so moved to see her cousin Virginia Apgar included in the show that she called Red to let her know. While Red was taking the exhibit down, another visitor to the show returned to let her know the impact she felt from seeing so many women’s portraits and stories in one place. “I was moved to tears,” Red confessed. “These responses make me even more determined to keep making portraits of women and sharing women’s impact on the world. This show has reinforced my belief that art can make an important impact in people’s lives.” You can view all 163 portraits on her website at www.redtheartist.com. Additionally, she published a book of the first 100 women’s portraits she created which can be purchased through her website.

Red, the Artist’s 100 Women and More received write-ups by Liz Goldner at ART AND CAKE and Beth Fhaner from the Los Angeles Times (see below).
www.latimes-soka-exhibit

Red, the Artist (Tracy Sagalow), Shirley Chisholm, Mother Teresa, Michelle Obama, Marian Anderson, Malala Yousafzai, Helen Keller, Golda Meir, 100 Women and More at Soka University of the Americas.

Red, the Artist (Tracy Sagalow), Rosa Parks, Queen Elizabeth I, works included in 100 Women and More at Soka University of the Americas.

www.artandcakecontemporary-soka-university

Harriet Livathinos, Bursting Forth, ink on mylar, 8 x 12 in

The Joys of Experimentation: Harriet Livathinos

Through my whole artistic life I have been drawing, mainly as underlying structure for landscapes, cityscapes, and figure paintings using oil paint on canvas. That is, until I started attending Meredith Rosier’s class on Abstraction in Drawing at the Woodstock School of Art. Meredith is an extraordinary artist and teacher (also a NAWA member) who opened my eyes to the freedom allowed by the practice of abstraction.

Abstraction allows freedom to experiment, which encourages the use of a multitude of media and surfaces. My practice thus far involves employing graphite, conte crayon, pastels, charcoal and mixed colored inks on a variety of surfaces–-pastel and printmaking papers—smooth, rough and handmade–cardboard, graph paper, sandpaper, canvas, vellum, Mylar drafting film, and Yupo plastic paper, using a variety of implements from twigs to typewriter, including all manner of brushes, pens and pencils.

The opportunities afforded by ink to express what is difficult to say in other media, I find intriguing. The fact that it is a flowing medium that can be poured, dripped, splattered, blotted, or directed, gives me an intuitive vocabulary rich in emotional potential for examining the subconscious. It spreads with water, creating puddles, and dries, forming lines impossible to get any other way. A water-filled brush can coax the ink into unexplored territory, and a nearly dry brush can pull out a form in a still damp area. My search for surprise and invention is often fulfilled with ink’s affinity for transparent overlay and interlacing of shapes.

Harriet Livathinos at The Sky is Falling, Carter Burden Gallery, NYC.

I’m crazy about how ink behaves so differently on absorbent Japanese paper and plastic infused Mylar drafting film. Ink on Japanese paper predictably spreads into starbursts and dainty tendrils of color. Ink on Mylar allows for more surprises.

I’m also particularly partial to brushing ink onto Mylar and as the ink doesn’t stick uniformly, it creates surprising effects which forces decisions as to what to do next. Also, the chemical makeup of Mylar interacts with some ink colors. I had the experience of a toffee brown turning a lovely dark green when it dried, one of the joys of exploration! The photo included is of part of my recent installation The Sky is Falling at the Carter Burden Gallery, made up of ink on Mylar panels.

Roberta Millman-Ide, Selfie.

Roberta Millman-Ide

NAWA’s Florida Chapter  has been moving in a strong direction as we have been creating new board member positions and strengthening existing ones. In addition, we have been reaching out to create more connections in our Florida art communities. This past February, we participated in Delray’s Art on the Square. This was a great way to meet artists, promote our organization, and sell our member-donated 6 x 6 inch artworks. Monies raised from sales went toward our NAWAFL Dreyfoos Scholarship Fund. In the month of March, we exhibited in Fort Lauderdale at Gallery Six in the Broward County Main Library with a show entitled Deep Six. Award winners were: Mary Lou Siefkar (1st place); Jane McIntyre (2nd place); and Janet Gold (3rd place). Honorable Mentions went to Debbie Rubin and Anabel Peicher.

From September 22 – November 17, NAWAFL will be hosting the NAWA exhibition Daydreaming at the Coral Springs Museum of Art. Our reception on Saturday, October 27, will coincide with the Museums’ Annual Fundraiser, bringing together some of South Florida’s most generous patrons of the arts for one evening.

Another notable event is NAWAFL’s Envisioning Miracles from November 1, 2018 – January 9, 2019 at the Nathan D. Rosen Museum Gallery in the Levis JCC Sandler Center in Boca Raton. This is followed by a February–March 2019 show at the Cornell Museum in Delray Beach. The spring exhibition, scheduled for April – May 2019 will be at the Art Gallery in the Center for Creative Education (CCE) in Northwood. These opportunities are made possible by our wonderful V.P.s of Exhibitions Karen Salup and Janet Gold. Pat Zalisko has been busy scouting locations to bring more of our NAWAFL exhibitions to Florida’s West Coast.

It should be a busy autumn season and upcoming year of NAWSFL Art Exhibitions. We’ll be welcoming our snowbirds back to our sunshine state with our luncheon at Benvenuto’s on Friday, December 14.

Mya Heavener, NAWA Florida Chapter Scholarship Award winner.

NAWAFL continues to encourage the next generation of women artists to strive for even more visibility in the art world. And, this applies to more than just fine art. It can be for young women who will make their mark in animation, video gaming, medical and fashion Illustration and so much more. One of the ways we do this is through our NAWA Florida Chapter Scholarship Award given to a talented Senior art student at Dreyfoos School of the Arts, who is continuing her art education (in the college of her choice) with the hope that she will continue her life path in the visual arts, become successful and someday be able to mentor the next generation of women artists. A.W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts is a Magnet Public High School in West Palm Beach, Florida. The students, who come from all backgrounds, must audition to be accepted into Dreyfoos. And many of these talented students rely greatly on scholarships and grants to continue their academic education

Our Scholarship Coordinator, Lore Baer, has done a wonderful job heading the Scholarship Committee. The committee reviewed the many portfolio submissions, resumes and artist’s statements, then selected this year’s scholarship recipient. On April 11, during the Dreyfoos students’ Spring Art Exhibition, we awarded our two scholarship recipients. It was at this time that I was able to deliver a brief speech to a full house(!) about NAWA ‘s and NAWAFL’s history and mission statements. And, of course, I spoke of the reason for giving our Annual Scholarship Awards. The award monies will be placed into the recipient’s Art College account to be used for her art and school supplies.

Siless Vasquez, NAWA Florida Chapter Scholarship Award winner.

Again, these scholarships can make a big difference in furthering the future of these talented and worthy young women artists. We welcome any donations that can help to continue our Scholarship Program. If you are interested in giving to our Scholarship Fund, please send a check (made out to NAWAFL with the memo “NAWAFL Scholarship Fund”) and send to myself or to our Treasurer. Or, you may contact our Treasurer regarding PayPal payment. All monies donated go directly to the Scholarship Fund.

To read more about this year’s scholarship award winners go to: http://nawafl.org/scholarships.php

To donate, please contact our treasurer Beth Scher: bscher774@gmail.com

Or you may contact me, Roberta Millman-Ide: roberta.millmanide@gmail.com

As President of NAWAFL, I am honored to be a part of an organization that has been committed to supporting and empowering women artists for 129 years and through our combined efforts, I know we will continue that tradition for many years to come.

EYENGA BOKAMBA

Solo Exhibition
What Will I Do With All This Freedom?

NAWA GALLERY
315 West 39th Street, Suite 508, NYC
June 6 – July 5, 2018

Eyenga Bokamba

ABSTRACT: The Space Between

NAWA Online Exhibitions
nawaonlinegallery.org
July 11 –  August 8, 2018

Artwork by Elena Francesca du Plessis

ABSTRACT: The Space Between

SMALL WORKS

NAWA GALLERY
315 West 39th Street, Suite 508, NYC
June 1 – August 3, 2018
Reception: July 19, 2018, 5-7pm

Artwork by Denise Bricker

SMALL WORKS

BEMESDERFER 3: SEA AND SKY

Bemesderfer Gallery
6 North Second Avenue
Highland Park, NJ

September 13 – November 15, 2018
Reception: September 16, 6-8pm
The B. Beamesderfer Gallery in Highland Park, NJ, has joined with NAWA to present Beamesderfer 3: Sea and Sky. This is the third year that the Gallery has shown the finest works of NAWA’s members in a diverse selection of media. The exhibition is curated by Jeffrey Wechsler, a member of the NAWA Executve Board of Directors and former Senior Curator of the Zimmerli Art Museum. About ten minutes from the Gallery, Zimmerli Art Museum of Rutgers University serves as the home of the historical art collection and archives of NAWA. Evan Brownstein, the owner of the B. Beamesderfer Gallery, is a highly respected preparator and framer of art with clients in New York and New Jersey. This exciting collaboration should benefit both the gallery and NAWA in broadening their ongoing outreach.

Lea Tomaino, LEAHBRA handbag, brown paper bag collage.

Leah K. Tomaino

Solo Exhibit
PIECES

NAWA GALLERY
315 West 39th Street, Suite 508, NYC
September 6 – October 2, 2018
Reception: September 12, 2018, 5-7pm

The National Association of Women Artists, Inc. (NAWA) is proud to present an exhibition of Leah K. Tomaino’s recent works of art, “Pieces.” Featuring painstaking and pioneering collage applications of acrylic paints, paper and canvas, her paintings and handbags give a new definition to the brown paper bag.

Ms. Tomaino’s lush and vibrant artwork springs from simple materials transformed. At first glance, one appreciates the beauty and serenity of each of these paintings. Yet each is the product of months of work, in which Leah paints ordinary brown bags with vivid colors, tearing them into a myriad of miniature pieces which she hand-applies to realize her vision. Inspired by nature’s beauty, her interest in this medium relates to the cycle of life and nature, as the bags start out as trees, are made into paper bags, which she recycles, paints, tears and collages into an image of the natural world.

Also, on view will be the LEAHBRA handbags. The 7 small handbags are covered with the same brown bag collage technique and are in the form of a nude female torso. Proceeds from the sale of a Leahbra handbag will be donated to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

Leah Tomaino, Spanish Jewels 2, collage, paint & paper on canvas, 11 x 14 in

Ms. Tomaino’s artworks have been featured in numerous exhibitions and are held in both public and private collections. Ms. Tomaino has received significant national recognition and numerous awards, including the Medal of Honor & Elizabeth Morse Genius Foundation Award for Works on Paper by the National Association of Women Artists, Inc. Public television and various press celebrated Ms. Tomaino’s work in the esteemed 2014 exhibitions at The Morris Museum and at The George Segal Gallery, Montclair State University. Ms. Tomaino is represented by the National Association of Women Artists, Inc., Sidetracks Art Gallery, New Hope, PA and Fiedler Gallery, Greenport, NY.

For additional information on Leah K. Tomaino, please visit www.leahktomaino.com

DAYDREAMING

NAWA NATIONAL &  NAWA FLORIDA CHAPTER
CORAL SPRINGS MUSEUM OF ART
2855 Coral Springs Drive, Coral Springs, FL

September 22 – November 17, 2018
Artwork by Roberta Millman-Ide

Member Prosepctus

ART ANGELS
Volunteer Exhibition

NAWA GALLERY
315 West 39th Street, Suite 508, NYC
October 5 – 26, 2018
Reception: Thursday, October 18, 2018  6-9pm

Volunteer Guide

129th ANNUAL MEMBER’S EXHIBITION

195 Chrystie Street (104 South Gallery), NYC
October 9–19, 2018
Reception: October 11, 6-8pm

Member Prospectus

Judy Chicago with The Dinner Party (photo courtesy the artist) Hyperallergic online publication.

Judy Chicaco

As a young high school student in Southern California who was well on my way to discovering a passion for the arts, I was fortunate to visit Judy Chicago’s studio on a field trip while The Dinner Party installation was in full production. I vividly recall the white plates in their pre-firing stage. I had no idea what a huge impact the piece would eventually have on the art world and feminism as a whole. Recently, I experienced the installation in its completion at the Brooklyn Museum, where it is on permanent display. Absolutely stunning!
– Mimi Herrera-Pease

There never was a better time to bring the gallery to your table, than to consider the new series of limited edition The Dinner Party plates from legendary artist and feminist Judy Chicago. Thanks to a new collaboration between the artist and homeware purveyor Prospect NY, the collection features replicas of four plates, dishwasher safe, crafted in fine bone china. Prospect NY works with contemporary artists to develop small batch collections of household objects, from towels to candles. Chicago’s representational place settings depict the Primordial Goddess, Sappho, the Amazon warriors and Queen Elizabeth I or Elizabeth R. Available for purchase online, each plate is a limited edition of 150. Available in one of two sizes: seven or 10.75 inches in diameter, the cost is respectively $135 and $155. A brief description of each muse in question is inscribed on its reverse side. On permanent display at the Brooklyn Museum’s Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art, The Dinner Party was produced between 1974 and 1979. In an interview with Hyperallergic, Chicago remarked that “with the coalition of women marching for their values in cities across the world, the #MeToo movement, and the movie Wonder Woman, there is a new generation of Amazons leading the way.”

Judy Chicago addresses a gathering of volunteers in The Dinner Party studio, ca. 1978, (photographs by Amy Meadow), Judy Chicago Visual Archive, Betty Boyd Dettre Library & Research Center, National Museum of Women in the Arts.

Left: Judy Chicago’s The Dinner Party Home Collection, produced in collaboration with Prospect NY
Right: Judy Chicago’s The Dinner Party Home Collection, produced in collaboration with Prospect NY
photo credit: Alec Kugler

NAWA Arts Workshop, New York Public Library, Mulberry Street Branch.

BASEBALL, SPRING, AND THE MOON AND SUN:

Natalia Koren Kropf, NAWA’s Exhibition Chair, NAWA’s Library Coordinator of Exhibits Anita Pearl and President Jill Cliffer-Baratta continued  their free 2-hour art workshops at the New York Public Library’s Mulberry Street Branch. March was ushered in with the start of baseball season. A reading of Ernest Thayer’s 1888 poem, “Casey at the Bat” got everyone in the mood. April’s theme was “Spring into Spring” with a floral theme. In May and June, two universal themes prevailed: Moon and Sun, feminine and masculine, yang and yin as a source of inspiration; also recognizing Mother’s Day and Father’s Day. The theme for the May workshop was Mother’s Warmth (the energy of the Moon)—Mother Nature, healing and inspirational aspects of the Goddess archetype. Father Time (The Legacy of the Sun) followed in June. Anita read from King Lear for inspiration about appreciating fathers, and the students’ work honored the “solar power” with bright colors and angular shapes.

In order to keep this educational outreach program alive in local communities and expand into additional libraries, we are asking for help in the amount of $4,000 to cover 6-8 months of workshops. If you would like to help support NAWA Arts Workshop, please go to the NAWA GoFundMe campaign.

Artwork created at NAWA Arts Workshop, New York Public Library, Mulberry Branch.

Artwork created at NAWA Arts Workshop, New York Public Library, Mulberry Street Branch.

Two artists—different continents, different lifestyles, and yet sharing a twin passion for the flora and fauna of the natural world, immersing themselves in the spirit of place.

Frida Kahlo Lying Down (1946), photo by Nicolas Muray, Collection of Museo de Frida Kahlo

FACES OF FRIDA – GOOGLE ARTS AND CULTURE

Google’s new virtual exhibition reveals a deeper layer of Frida Kahlo’s life and work. Faces of Frida unveils newly digitized paintings and invites users to virtually tour the locations that influenced the celebrated artist.

artsandculture.google.com/project/frida-kahlo

Left: Portrait of Luther Burbank, 1931, Collection of Museo Dolores Olmedo.
Right: My Nurse and I, 1937, Collection of Museo Dolores Olmedo.

Frida Kahlo de Rivera (July 6,1907 – July 13,1954) was a Mexican artist who painted many portraits, self-portraits, and works inspired by the nature and artifacts of Mexico. Inspired by the country’s popular culture, she employed a naïve folkart style to explore questions of identity, postcolonialism, gender, class, and race in Mexican society. Her paintings often had strong autobiographical elements and mixed realism with fantasy. In addition to belonging to the post-revolutionary Mexicayotl movement, which sought to define a Mexican identity, Kahlo has been described as a surrealist or magical realist. This virtual exhibition is an in-depth look at this complicated and brave artist and her extraordinary works.

Harold Stein’s Georgia O’keeffe, 1939, photographed on Leho’ula Beach, near Hana, Maui, Alfred Stieglitz/Georgia O’Keeffe Archive, Yale Collection of American Literature © Estate of Harold Stein.

GEORGIA O’KEEFFE: VISIONS OF HAWAI’I

THE NEW YORK BOTANICAL GARDEN

This landmark exhibition offers a rare focus on 20 of O’Keeffe’s depictions of Hawai‘i from a nine-week sojourn in 1939 while on commission to produce images for a Hawaiian Pineapple Company promotional campaign.

nybg.org/event/georgia-okeeffe-visions-hawaii

Pioneering American modernist Georgia O’Keeffe (1887–1986) conveyed a distinct sense of place with innovative depictions of her surroundings, from stark New Mexican landscapes to New York cityscapes. Yet flowers and plants were subjects that engaged O’Keeffe throughout her career. Curated by Theresa Papanikolas, Ph.D., of the Honolulu Museum of Art, this landmark exhibition offers a rare focus on 20 of O’Keeffe’s depictions of Hawai‘i from a nine-week sojourn in 1939 while on commission to produce images for a Hawaiian Pineapple Company promotional campaign. A short video of her trip, accounted in her letters and narrated by Sigourney Weaver, provides stunning archival footage of the artist and her own photographic impressions. A lush exhibition in the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory explores the remarkable beauty and variety of Hawaiian flora—as well as its complex botanical and cultural history. ALOHA!

Left: Waterfall, No. I, Iao Valley, Maui, 1939, oil on canvas, Gift of Art Today 76.7
© 2018 O’Keeffe Museum/Artists Rights Society (ARS)
Right: Hibiscus with Plumeria, 1939, oil on canvas, Smithsonian Art Museum, 2004.30.6
© 2018 O’Keeffe Museum/Artists Rights Society (ARS)

“If my painting is what I have to give back to the world for what the world gives to me, I may say that these paintings are what I have to give at the present for what…Hawai’i gave to me.

Maybe the new place enlarges one’s world a little. Maybe one takes one’s own world along and cannot see anything else.”
-Georgia O’Keeffe, 1940

Left: Renata’s student days at the Antioch Foundry, Circa 1952.
Right: Renata Manasse Schwebel and her sculpture, Segmented Columns.

Renata Manasse Schwebel

An accomplished and acclaimed sculptor, Renata passed away at the age of 88 on April 25, 2018 in Pound Ridge, NY. She has been described by family and friends as a person of incredible strength, decency, intelligence, and loyalty. Her sculptures, primarily constructions of stainless steel and aluminum, have been exhibited here and abroad, including Japan, Sweden, Germany, Kenya, Israel, and Egypt in many public and corporate collections. An alumnus of Antioch College, with an MFA from Columbia University, she studied welding at the Art Students League, and served on several boards, among them the Sculptors Guild from 1975 to 20014 (President from 1980-1983) and the New York Society of Women Artists. She was an inspiration to all who knew her.

Renatta Manasse Schwebel, Kantu, painted aluminum, 2001.

In 2017, Renata was featured in a retrospective solo exhibition at the Herndon Gallery at Antioch College, where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1953. Please see the article, A Gutsy Pioneering Sculptor by the Yellow Spring News.

REMINDERS FROM YOUR CO-EDITORS SANDRA AND MIMI:

We won’t ask you to tie a ribbon around your finger or tattoo NAWA on your arm. But we do ask that you check in regularly to the NAWA website (www.thenawa.org) for vital news and updates of importance to you. And there are lots!

Keep in mind we would like to feature in our October 1 issue (deadline September 15) Arts and Vacations. How do new vistas and experiences inspire your artistic urges and what forms do they take?

The Artist Registry acts as a portfolio for our members. It’s your portfolio for NAWA’s special exhibits and permanent archives. Please check the NAWA website for information on submitting.

Honor a Special Person with a NAWA Award. Your gift will not only be in remembrance but will reward a female artist for her excellent work.

Go Fund Me is underway for an arts education outreach program in New York City libraries. We need help with purchasing the supplies and tools to keep these monthly workshops active in our area and beyond. To donate, please go to: Go-Fund-Me-NAWA-Workshops

We know that many of you have submitted news about your exhibits and awards, which we always welcome. PLEASE NOTE: We will be considering Biennial/Triennial group exhibitions on a state, national or international level. If you have questions about whether your exhibit qualifies for listing, please contact us.

High on my list of important and unforgettable exhibits I visited and reviewed this year was Radical Women: Latin American Art, 1960-1985 at the Brooklyn Museum. Please feel free to visit the webpage below. – Sandra Bertrand

www.highbrowmagazine.com/9210-brooklyn-museum-latin-american-women-artists-take-stand

Wishing you a safe, happy, and creative summer!

Emails should be sent to: Mimi Herrera-Pease, Sandra Bertrand