2012 Baltimore Ave I Kansas City, MO 64108 I 816.474.1919 I Thurs-Sat, 11am-5pm

May 2, 2014

6pm-9pm

Artist Statement

 

My work is a direct product of my surroundings, the emotional, psychological, and physical world in which all life inhabits. Intuitive and in the moment I translate emotion and experience through the act of creating.  My work teeters between the gestural and the technical.  Much like life, the reality of the universe I create is multi-dimensional, a bridging of motifs both light and dark.    

 

There exists a nasty tendency in the human condition, an aggressive and instinctual selfishness, our Id, the Dominator. The desire to seek immediate satisfaction has become rampant. Why do we alienate ourselves from each other and our environment, our Earth-Mother and deny the interconnectedness of all life? Was there a time in human evolution in which the ability to dominate, kill, rape, and pillage was not only advantageous but necessary? Was there an age of back-stabbing, face eating boogymen that eventually decimated their own species into dilution, ultimately evolving into what became a human being?  Whatever the case, the Dominator gene has survived and flourished in our psyche, having been passed down through the millennia. You can see it in our collective attitudes, governments, entertainment, in endless war, and amongst other hominids. This affliction is simply that, a disease of the mind, body, and soul. To identify the Dominator in yourself is to abolish its power.  Now is the time for mankind to transcend the chains of this evolutionary psychosis. My role as an artist is to investigate consciousness and the human condition. Playing the part of shaman and social commenter I regard my creations as reliquaries of spirit, emotion and consciousness, informed by experience. My work is a cathartic ritual that I must engage in. 

 

Artist Bio

 

Skyler Bieberly is a Kansas City Art Institute, Sculpture BFA recipient from 2008. During his time at KCAI and in the years following his graduation he has increased his involvement in local galleries, group shows, public arts projects, and critiques. Bieberly has previously shown in such group shows as "WITNESS:  Perspectives On War" at the Leedy-Voulkos Art Center as well as group shows at The Dolphin Gallery and The Late Show Gallery. "DOMINATOR" will be Bieberly's second solo show, his previous "The Hidden Temple" took place at The Late Show Gallery in July 2011. Over the past year Bieberly has been curating one-night-only art openings for The Guild event space while simultaneously creating his new body of work for "DOMINATOR."

 

www.skylerbieberly.com

Artist Statement

 

Syncretized Patterns is a collection of small edition linocuts and screen prints that blend the influences of Native American weaving, Jazz music and contemporary printmaking.

 

Artist Bio

  

Travis (tArvis) Porter moved to Kansas City in 2003 to attend the Kansas City Art Institute School of Design. Since graduating in 2005 Travis has worked as a designer for Champion apparel and Barkley's Collective Studio. When tArvis is not in the office he is pursuing printmaking with his hand-me-down vandercook proof press and screen printing.

  

theporterhaus.us

Artist Statement 

 

Weaving is an art that emphasizes process. One Thread at a Time represents the tension between control and happenstance during the process. From the start of a project - drawing out the plans, drafting the pattern, dyeing yarn using a color-mixing and percentage-gradation process - Barrett-Jones' woven panels reveal not only the communication that passes between one color thread intersecting another, but shows the range of control in both the complete and deconstructed. Barrett-Jones' ultimate goal is to let the viewer see not just the complete, clean finished project but give the viewer a glimpse of the pre-weaving process, much of which can be painstakingly tedious. However, this attention to detail is equally essential to the actual work on the loom.

 

Artist Bio

 

Debbie Barrett Jones is a graduate of the Kansas City Art Institute Fiber program and has run her weaving business, Billy Sue Textiles, since 2008. She has also exhibited her work widely and completed commissions in the Kansas City area for Children's Mercy Hospital, Community Christian Church, and more.

 

www.debbiebarrettjones.com

 

 

 

The Leedy-Voulkos Art Center Shop is excited to announce the addition of Browning Co. to its roster of Artists.  Browning Co. is the brainchild of husband and wife duo: Paul and Sarah Ann Browning. Not long after they met, the couple discovered they had both studied printmaking and shared a fondness for deliberate products designed and crafted with care by local artisans. Together they pursued their dream of working on their own products with that same level of commitment and passion.

 

Browning Co. prides itself on its craft. Production is handled in their Kansas City studio and closely monitored from inception to completion. Materials are sourced from responsible, sustainable producers and each item is handmade with determination and loving attention to detail. Browning Co. products are minimal, reasonable, and sophisticated. The brand strives to provide customers with the best possible product while leaving the smallest possible footprint.  In truth, Browning Co. is the passion project of two makers with strong standards, lofty goals, and a simple maxim: everything counts.

 

The shop will initially carry a selection of Browning Co. soy candles and wax melts, featuring fragrances such as Lavender Vetiver, Rosemary Mint, Campsite, Citrus Basil, Coriander Vanilla and Patchouli Rose.  Stop by the shop this First Friday and smell for yourself!