6 to 96: The Stevens Family
May 5-26, 2017
6 to 96: The Stevens Family
Opening reception: Friday, May 5, 5:00-9:00 PM
Exhibition hours are Monday-Friday, 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM. Please note, the Emporium will be closed on Monday, May 29.
Very few artists have been successful without the contributions of family, community and teachers. “6 to 96: The Stevens Family” is a group show consisting of artists from an extended family with ages ranging from six years old to 96 years old. Like the distance between six and 96, there is a spectrum of styles, perspectives, and experiences displayed. There is an inherent poetry created by the family unit. It is where one first learns to love, function, forgive and inspire. “6 to 96” is a show about the grace and beauty that emerges when immersed in a supportive creative environment.
Exhibiting artists:
Virginia Butkus Gould-Painter 96 years of age
Virginia Butkus Gould born, May 17, 1921, considers herself a grandma Moses, having taken up painting late in life. She remembers painting at nine years old, sharing it with her mother, who sat at the dining room table. Family appreciation has always been a part of the art experience for her. All of her offspring, and extended family participate in the arts, following in her tradition.
Carol Grant Stevens -Painter
Carol Grant Stevens has been active in the arts all of her life. She begged to take Saturday morning art classes at a very young age. Following that passion, she graduated from University of Wisconsin with a broad field art education degree. An art teacher of thirty years, and professional photographer for 12 years, she now enjoys retirement, painting and traveling. The work here is a reflection of her recent visits to Asia. Having a photographer’s eye, she looks for the light in each composition. An element of art history usually enlivens the work.
Ray Butkus-Ceramist and Jeweler
Artist Bio:
• B.S. In Ed and Studio Metalsmithing from Northern Illinois University
• M.A. In Studio Ceramics from Northern Illinois University
• Art Educator 34 years at Downers Grove North High School in Downers Grove, IL
• Past President Artist Guild at Fairfield Glade in Crossville, TN
• Current resident of Crossville, TN
Artist Statement:
I was trained to appreciate art from all cultures, but have primarily been nurtured in the forms and techniques of Japanese, Chinese, and Korean ceramics. I have taken this cultural background and try to incorporate texture, simplicity of design and the natural world into a mixture that speaks to who I am as an artist.
Allison Rae Nichols-painter
Allison Rae Nichols lives and works in Sedona, Arizona. She was raised in an environment full of artists, so the symmetry between art and life has always been an obvious but gracious reality for her. She earned a BFA in painting from Northern Illinois University, and has shown work throughout the country including Chicago, New York and New Mexico. She was an artist-in-residence at the Historic Santa Fe Foundation in New Mexico and at the Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona. Her paintings explore themes of romance and relationships, love and loss.They offer a unique sense of time and place, and allow the viewer to give the work clarity through their own memories and sense of nostalgia.
Jonathan Grant-painter
Jonathan lives and works in Taiwan. He has his own classroom where he teaches creativity and expression while solidifying interest of second language acquisition to the youngest of minds. Jonathan studied art at the University of Minnesota and went on to explore the depths of human experience in various organizations such as the Peace Corps where he worked and lived in Uganda. He is inspired by the strangeness of quantum physics and quantum computing which leads him to create works that have great depth and evoke meaning.
Kathryn Lindsay Grant-painter
Kate Grant received her degree in drawing from the Milwaukee Institute of art and design. Since that time she has been entrenched in a Human Resources Career, and resides in New York City. The city that never sleeps, sometimes hampers her need for solitude. Self expression is an important factor in her life, and time alone helps her find her balance. As a strong willed and highly motivated individual, she engaged in the process of producing new works of art, for this family show, as a personal challenge. The inspiration for the new series derives from recent travels to Asia, and life in Manhattan.
Nate Butkus-drawing and mixed media 6 years of age
Hi. I’m Nate. I’m in first grade and host a science podcast called “The Show About Science.” I’m very interested in art and science. I usually like to do either scribble scrabble art or I like to design new creatures when I draw. With scribble scrabble, I use a rainbow of colors. But with creatures I like to use black. I also love to take pictures with my camera, often capturing images of light bulbs, light and nature. When I’m not creating art or working on my podcast, I’m either at school or learning about science. Sometimes I draw on the weekends or before school.
William Stevens-painter and sculptor (deceased)
William Jacob Stevens 1924-1998, aircraft mechanic and artist, had an early interest in photography and started sculpting during his military service in Okinawa, Japan during WWII. In 1971 he began creating busts of family members starting with Charlie, which won him first place in a local art show in Sarasota, Florida. He started painting before retiring, (it was easier to do in their apartment) and accomplished quite a catalog of work that would often include references and scenes from other impressionist work. His favorite painters were Manet, and Monet. His favorite sculptor was Rodin, whose museum he visited often when in Philadelphia. His love of art spread to all his sons.
Charles Stevens-sculpture and jewelry
Charles Thomas Stevens lives and works in Crossville, Tennessee. Often assisting his father finish his sculpture and visiting art museums together, gave appreciation for 3-D work which peaked at the Milwaukee Institute for Art & Design. His work has been shown in Long Beach, Milwaukee, Mount Pleasant, Oakland, Oakridge, Orlando, and most recently in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA, at the International Juried Exhibition – Wearable Expressions. His sculptural objects are abstract, with attributes suggesting familiarity from the world around us, and what we have made.
Carl Stevens-functional design
Living and working in the greater Milwaukee area Carl Stevens sculptures reflect the maker community he is part of. His work features materials unusual for their application in every day items. It is also important for Carl to use reclaimed material when ever possible as so much of our consumer society makes more trash that art. Carl’s goal in creating is to inspire others to make, build, bend, or tinker with something that interests them.
Connor Stevens-Drawing
Connor lives and works in Madison, WI after graduating with a BFA in Art from Saint Scholastica in Duluth, MN. Connor is currently doing custom cabinetry design and installation for a small business in Wisconsin.
Terry Stevens – painting
Terry lives and works in Phoenix, Arizona. After graduating from Manatee Community College and the University of Illinois, he worked as a captain for Eastern Metro Express in Atlanta, America West Airlines, and then US Air until he retired in 2014. Currently he is the Operations Director for Liberty Wildlife, the largest native animal rescue and rehabilitation center in Arizona. In addition to running the day-to-day operations for Liberty, he provides the group with photojournalism and graphic arts to help promote this non-profit organization.
Mark Stevens-photography
Mark William Stevens, retired and living in Bayside, a North East suburb of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, began his interest in art drawing as a child with the encouragement of his father, Bill. He studied art in high school and later went on to earn a BFA from the Layton School of Art (now mutated into MIAD) in Milwaukee, majoring in Illustration. However, while at Layton he developed a fascination with multi-image slide presentation and consequently spent 31 years in multi-image slide show production, with involvement in show design, art for slides, camera stand photography, sound production, and programming. The pieces submitted by Mark were achieved with back-lit high contrast negatives and colored filters shot on a Maron/Carrol programmable motion control camera stand.