The Overland Gallery, downtown Kinston, NC, put out a call to artists for work under the theme of “AN ABERRANTLY BEAUTIFUL DIPTYCH”. This will be a juried show.

I’ve enjoyed responding to the Overland’s calls, and couldn’t miss this one. I wanted to do something to integrate photos and clay. I thought through a lot of pieces I may still make, but finally settled on something really simple. I made a pair of panels out of my usual stoneware, and picked an image that would work well on the dark “framing” provided by the dark clay. The result is a folding diptych I’m calling “Hippy Chicks”.

The panels are a little over 1/4″ thick and approximately 6″ x 8″. They’re tied together with a coarse garden twine. It is intended to be free-standing and is very stable if it’s not folded out completely. It weights about 1.5 lbs.

The images are all variants of a photo I took in Santa Cruz, CA last fall. The hens-and-chicks plant was enormous and very healthy and growing in the swale between a busy downtown street and sidewalk. The progression of the ranks of leaves fascinated me. Each ring draws the eye closer to the barely revealed heart of the cluster.

I found  different aspects of the pattern were accentuated by different color treatments. Each treatment is intended to bring the viewer into a closer inspection of form and order of the plants. Or maybe I just liked the bright green on the dark brown. I hope you’ll find something interesting in it, too.

“Hippy Chicks” will be on display and available for sale from the Overland Gallery. The Public is invited to the Artist’s Opening Reception – Wednesday, May 21, 2014 from 4 -7 PM. Artwork will be on display through the month of May and June.