Macarons de Paris. Leana D. McGuire, artist
By Julie Ann Bell
Celebrate!
Six artists at Trackside Studios interpret this concept from six entirely different directions. Dance, colorful confections, a whimsical animal, nature, homage to others and embracing potential are all both forms of, and reasons for, celebration. The exhibition in the Stairway Gallery is open daily from 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. throughout June. An artist reception will be held Saturday, June 14, from 2-4 p.m., with artist talks at 2:30 p.m.
Just HangN’. Peggy King, artist
“When people are dancing, they are in a happy celebration,” says Sahar Fakhoury, whose oil painting Flamenco captures the movement of dancers she witnessed in Spain. She used her photographs to create her own composition reflecting the movement, dresses, shawls, hair, jewelry and hands that had caught her imagination.
Peggy King was inspired by her “love for fine wine and fun” to create Just HangN’. “He’s just hanging and celebrating life in its finest moment,” she says. The joy and whimsy continues elsewhere in the gallery where other primates are depicted by King as joyriding in a golf cart, meditating under a hair dryer or singing at a cabaret.
The idea to create On The Mark came to JonQPublik, he says, “when trying to find something else on my phone to show to someone, but I got distracted by an image of a Mark Rothko work. I do not remember the piece specifically, but the seed had been planted. Could I create an image that celebrates his legacy, but in my own style without being too on-the-nose?” JonQPublik’s style involves using two types of tape on Yupo paper then painting with alcohol inks. The tapes either protect areas from color or allow for some bleeding effects.
Portal of Infinite Possibility. Raphaella Vaisseau, artist
“I’d like to invite you into a breathtaking sanctuary where land meets sea in harmony of color and light,” says Cynthia Llanes of her oil painting Imagine. “This is a place where dreams take flight, where the heart finds peace and where the mind is transported to a paradise untouched by time. My painting is not just a scene—it is a doorway to the beauty we long for, a reminder that such places exist both in the world and within ourselves.”
Macarons de Paris is based on a photograph Leana D. McGuire took when she was in Paris. “I love color, Paris and sweets,” McGuire says, “so they had to be painted. They are a celebration of joie de vivre.”
Raphaella Vaisseau painted Portal of Infinite Possibility, she says, “after the flood in a moment of bold confidence in moving forward into possibility.” Finding cause for celebration after disaster and also celebrating the potential of moving forward are sentiments felt by so many people in this region. Vaisseau’s painting provides inspiration in its bright central light and surrounding color.
We look forward to your visit to see these pieces and the works of over 60 local artists.
Trackside Studios is located at 375 Depot Street, in the River Arts District. Hours are 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. daily, and by appointment. Learn more at TracksideStudios.com.
