Entries include biographical information about the artists, personal statements from artists about their work (wherever possible) and the location of each piece. This volume also features artwork at Oro Valley’s town government campus, various roadway art displays and several projects completed under the auspices of the Pima Association of Governments Transportation Art by Youth Program. Since Oro Valley adopted its 1% for Public Art Program in 1997, artists have created more than 100 unique works of art throughout the town.

In the following slide show you will see some of our local artists featured within the book.

Slide 1 of 12.
Joe Tyler's "Leaves Unfolding"
Source: Photo by Gail MundenSlide 2 of 12.
Matt Moutafis' "Spirit of Oro Valley"
Source: Photo by Gail MundenSlide 3 of 12.
David Voisard's Stainless Steel Sculpture (close-up)
Source: Photo by Gail MundenSlide 4 of 12.
Steve Farley(tile Mural) & David Voisard(metal sculpture) "Reflections"
Source: Photo by Gail MundenSlide 5 of 12.
Steve Farley's Tile Mural
Source: Photo by Gail MundenSlide 6 of 12.
Susan Gamble, Saint Theresa Tile Works Mural
Source: Photo by Gail MundenSlide 7 of 12.
Gail Munden's "At The End Of The Day"
Source: Photo by Gail MundenSlide 8 of 12.
Carrie Seid's Silk Wall Sculpture
Source: Photo by Gail MundenSlide 9 of 12.
Amy Kyle's "A Day In Havasu Falls"
Source: Photo by Gail MundenSlide 10 of 12.
John Davis' "Sky Ranger"
Source: Photo by Gail MundenSlide 11 of 12.
Mark Rossi at Splendido (Untitled)
Source: Photo by Gail MundenSlide 12 of 12.
Paul Orzech's "Celebration In Blue"
Source: Photo by Gail Munden

In May 2007, the National Endowment for the Arts invited SAACA to tackle a community-focused project. The Alliance received a grant through the “Challenge America: Reaching Every Community Invitational Initiative,” which it used to publish the book. Gail Munden – an artist, Oro Valley resident, and SAACA board member photographed most of the art depicted in these pages, contacted the artists and was responsible for the overall layout and design of “Excellence by Design.”
 
 ”Since its adoption, the town’s public art mandate has resulted in a collection of sculpture and fine art that establishes Oro Valley as excellent by design,” Munden says.

On Wednesday, November 18, the books went on sale at a public introduction in the community room of the Oro Vista Luxury Apartments at 1301 W. Lambert Lane.  The reception had over 20 local public artists attending.

SAACA Executive Director Amanda Kate Marquez says “Excellence by Design” will document for posterity the depth and breadth of Oro Valley’s commitment to the arts. Certainly, when compared to other communities of its size, Oro Valley boasts one of the nation’s largest collections of public artwork. By passing a public art mandate, Oro Valley signaled an ongoing commitment to create beautiful surroundings and enhance the quality of life for all who live or work in the town. This book reflects the success of that effort.”

 On a recent visit, she told me with wry humor that she couldn’t afford to buy the originals and certainly wasn’t about to steal them, so the best alternative was to reproduce them.

Jane Poston and her paintings

“I’m a great appreciator,” she says.

 Her favorite is her rendering of a Picasso that hangs on the wall of her room at the Via Elegante assisted living home on the city’s Northwest side where she now lives.

Jane Poston's favorite painting

Her eye and her imagination see a story in that painting: a woman boldly emerging from a jungle – some dark and foreboding past – her left arm strongly muscled with the hand clenched into a fist ready to fend off danger – her right arm and hand in a nurturing, cradle-like arc – an iconic image into which one might even read the whole 20^th century struggle of women for a place of equality in a world of strife and conflict.

At age 86 that’s a struggle Jane Poston knows something about. Whether it’s a story Picasso intended in the original, who knows, but it’s one she sees there and that makes the painting her favorite.

 While she no longer paints, the paintings she loves, her acquired collection of fine art and the stories it tells to her continues to adorn the walls of her room and the corridors of the home she shares with others.

 Her collection is as eclectic as her own experiences in life.

She’s lived in Beirut, did a stint in the Peace Crops, served in the WAVES, resided in Java, Bali, Germany and Guam and with her husband even had a brief jig as a jitterbug dancer in Bangkok when that was the rage. She’s taught yoga and English, was drawn to Buddhism while living in Cambridge and for 40 years has counted Tucson as home.

 She’s drawn to color and imagination and says of cubism, “The invention of the camera changed art dramatically. After the camera they had no use for narrative realism.” She loves a hidden tiger in a Klee, the drapery of a huge eucalyptus tree in a village scene, the warmth of color that glows from several of the pieces she’s chosen to make her own.

“I’ve put more into these pieces and gotten more out of them than I can describe,” she says in a comment on her paintings that could as well be a comment on her experience of life.

Full of It by Art Toones

Award winning artist Art Toones is opening her studios this weekend as part of the TPAC Open Studios Tour this Saturday 11/15 and Sunday 11/16. There are over 167 artists this year opening their studios to the public.

On Thursday, November 12, I attended the Open Studios exhibition at Gallery 801 Main St. put on by the Tucson Pima Arts Council.  Art professor, Alfred Quiroz, of the University of Arizona was chosen as judge to pick the “best of show.”  Art Toones , ceramic creation was selected for first place and receives a check for $500. Out of all the great art at this exhibition this piece really stood out as exceptional.

The winning ceramic sculpture titled ” Beneath” is the creation of professional Tucson artist Art Toones. I was so impressed with her work I immediately called her and received information for this article and recommend art patrons to visit her at her studio called Reality Check Studios.  Her location and that of the other artists participating this weekend can be seen at at: http://www.tucsonopenstudios.com/ost/ost-online-program-2009.pdf

Ceramic Sculpture BENEATH by Art Toones

Side view Ceramic Sculpture BENEATH by Art Toones

ArtToones started her career many years ago doing paintings through college and graduate school and got involved in figurative sculpture working on her MFA thesis. The cohesive element in her work has not been the medium but the “narrative” and the narrative has dictated the medium. She consistently works in series thinking of each piece as a chapter in a book.

After moving from the East coast to Tucson her new series dictated sculpture and she is now working in porcelain paper clay and bronze. Some of her new pieces include both mediums in the same work of art. She told me “ I only have a vague idea as I begin each piece and the story evolves as I work.”  Her latest creations have been influenced from her reading Alice in Wonderland and 1984 again. The children in her narrative sculptures she thinks of as Hummels with attitudes and for some unexplained reason she stated the pieces need a nest as evidenced in Beneath.

Ceramic Sculpture Egghead in the Company of the Muse by Art Toones

Egghead in the Company of the Muse (close view) by Art Toones

A professional artist for over 40 years, her unusual narrative type art has received many awards and museum exhibitions.  Her “Narrative Sculpture” will be on exhibition at the Las Cruces Museum of Art, Las Cruces, New Mexico, Sept-November 2010. To see more of her work online please visit her web site: http;//www.arttoones.com

The fastest way to find the studio of Art Toones is to put the address 2871 N. Lone Dove Trail, Tucson, AZ 85749 in Google maps with your address and you will get precise instructions. Isn’t the internet amazing?

Karen’s award winning work certainly speaks for itself. Her vision seems to always come from somewhere inside herself as each of her subjects speak through her, revealing some meaning of itself and herself in the finished photograph.

She says the process of selecting the precise second to expose the film comes through a meditative process where her intuition takes over and light, form and feeling are transposed through her camera and herself. Her spiritual insight has given her an eye for the unusual from the ordinary.  By viewing the images below you will SEE the unique professionalism she has achieved.

Slide 1 of 20.
First Day at Nursery School
Source: Karen Dombrowski-Sobel PhotoSlide 2 of 20.
Street Violinist In Boulder, CO
Source: Karen Dombrowski-Sobel PhotoSlide 3 of 20.
Julia Osinchuk
Source: Karen Dombrowski-Sobel PhotoSlide 4 of 20.
Bill Boynton-Mars Mission
Source: Karen Dombrowski-Sobel PhotoSlide 5 of 20.
Mayor Bob Walkup
Source: Karen Dombrowski-Sobel PhotoSlide 6 of 20.
Sabino Canyon Skeleton
Source: Karen Dombrowski-Sobel PhotoSlide 7 of 20.
Snowy Sabino Canyon
Source: Karen Dombrowski-Sobel PhotoSlide 8 of 20.
Textured Tucson Tree
Source: Karen Dombrowski-Sobel PhotoSlide 9 of 20.
Tohono Chul
Source: Karen Dombrowski-Sobel PhotoSlide 10 of 20.
Cow
Source: Karen Dombrowski-Sobel PhotoSlide 11 of 20.
Hummingbird
Source: Karen Dombrowski-SobelPhotoSlide 12 of 20.
Riley Triptych
Source: Karen Dombrowski-Sobel PhotoSlide 13 of 20.
Super Chilli
Source: Karen Dombrowski-Sobel PhotoSlide 14 of 20.
Frank's Pet World
Source: Karen Dombrowski-Sobel PhotoSlide 15 of 20.
Mexican Wolf
Source: Karen Dombrowski-Sobel PhotoSlide 16 of 20.
Beth's Rose
Source: Karen Dombrowski-Sobel PhotoSlide 17 of 20.
Bird of Paradise
Source: Karen Dombrowski-Sobel PhotoSlide 18 of 20.
Beech Tree
Source: Karen Dombrowski-Sobel PhotoSlide 19 of 20.
Beech Tree With Vines
Source: Karen Dombrowski-Sobel PhotoSlide 20 of 20.
Ancient Bristlecone Pine
Source: Karen Dombrowski-Sobel Photo

For more examples of her photography visit her web site at: http://www.kadsphoto.com and view the many subjects she has captured. Everyday she is creating something new following her passion. The sensitive Portraits, unusual Textured Photographs and her Nude photos on her web page clearly demonstrate her uniqueness and sensitivity to her subjects.

Karen is presently focused on photographing trees and plants for an upcoming book titled: Visualizing a Greener Planet. She senses the urgency to show how important and beautiful trees are to our existence.  She feels man’s effort to fulfill the desire for bigger homes and buildings, has been obliterating our natural growth. She hopes this new work will help create an intimate relationship with nature that the viewer can feel.

The photographer and her husband moved to Tucson from their former home in New York City a few years ago. The life changing 9/11 tragedies had a major effect on their lives since her husband was working on Wall Street as a stock trader a short distance from the World Trade Center collapse. He experienced first hand the horror of something that most of us can only imagine. In a few short minutes both their lives were changed forever.

It is obvious to anyone viewing Karen’s work the sensitivity coming through her images and the abundant love she has for her subjects. The Flux Gallery (2960 N. Swan Road, Suite 136) at Plaza Palomino and Arts Marketplace (40 W Broadway Blvd) are presently exhibiting her work.

For several years the City of Tucson has made gestures to help save the historic warehouse district by trading ADOT for city owned property which would have included 1 E. Toole. Anyone knowing anything about the arts district in Tucson knows the City talks more about preserving the arts district than actually doing any positive action.  With the present economic situation they perhaps have an excuse for not implementing their Master Plan created by the city over 5 years ago.

At this mornings auction there were three bidders. The starting price was $165,000 and the final selling price was $252,000 offered by Patricia Schwabe of Peach Properties. Peach Properties has a good reputation for supporting the arts district and owns several art related properties in the area.

 He’s Tucson’s muralist, adept at the trompe l’oeil (trick the eye) style of bringing three dimensional vistas to large two dimensional wall spaces.

Jos Villabrille at home with his own seaside view

Not only that, but Jos’s skill as a painter ranges credibly over a multitude of schools and styles – Renaissance, Baroque, Romantic, Southwestern, he’s even done futuristic murals of galaxy hopping spaceships in the Star Trek tradition. 

Jos Villabrille is definitely not a man confined to a box.

 His training was unconventional, rigorous and perfect for the work he now does.

Ceiling angels by Jos Villabrille

As a boy in the Philippines, Jos when to the movie theatre where he father ran the projector, and became fascinated by the fast working painters who created 12 by 12 foot poster displays for the features running that week.

 He took up the work himself while an art student at college and was soon doing posters for a pair movie houses while pursuing his studies. The work led him to Hawaii where he did large signage work for a tourist firm and finally to Tucson in 1988 where his projects included hand painting 14 by 48 foot billboards.

Fountain mural

These years of training made him comfortable with large, wall-sized formats, and a huge variety of topics and styles to which he added his own meticulousness of technique which belies the speed with which he works.

 Jos’ work is also informed by his love of travel. “I’ve been to 32 countries so far,” he says. “Every time I go to a different country and experience a different culture, I see something I can add to my palette. It’s learning and I never want to stop learning.”

On a recent visit to his home, Jos told me he’s always steered away from advice to simply hone a particularized, individual style. “I don’t want to be categorized,” he says.

 That shows in his work – that includes portraits of classical realism – and in his love of travel, entertaining, dancing and even a jig as the vocalist in the band he recently formed with friends, Jimmy and the Jitterbugs.

 Since coming to Tucson, Jos has painted roughly 200 murals, many at area homes and others at the Desert Diamond Casino, several restaurants, hotels and malls.

He dreams of someday doing a huge mural of Tucson’s history and cultural richness. “I don’t want to be limited. I want to be versatile. Every time I see a blank wall, I see pictures.”

More of Jos’ work is available at his website www.muralsbyjos.com.

Sponge Bob as Dracula

For weeks I traveled by a little shop on N. Stone and kept noticing paper maché sculptures drying outside. Recently I ventured into the shop called the Party Factory to discover a fun new world: The world of Piñata creation.

Paper Mache Sculptures Drying Outside The Party Factory

Sculptures Drying Inside Party Factory

This family operated store specializes in making over 250 different Piñatas in about every shape imaginable. The family business is third generation Piñata craftsmen. They are originally from Aqua Prieta, Sonora, Mexico and their family has been master Piñata craftsman for over 75 years. A fourth generation is learning the trade today from the father.

The Party Factory has been in business at 640 N. Stone Ave. for about seven months at this location and offers a variety of party materials as well as the hand crafted Piñatas. Mexican & American candies, Jumping Castles, tables & chairs, party supplies, complete party decorations for any occasion as well as hand crafted natural and artificial floral arrangements.

Buzz ready for take-off

They produce about 30 Piñatas a week sizes 18” to 48” and will do custom orders to fit your imagination. Prices range from $15 to $35 depending on the size. Each piece is a handcrafted work of art utilizing recycled materials such as newspaper, cardboard, wire and put together with flour/water and special Mexican glue called Engrudo.

Cute Female Piñata

Each Piñata holds five pounds of candy but if more candy is desired then they must know this before creating the piece for you in order to beef up the container materials holding the candy.

Piñata Purse

The actual history of the Piñatas is quite interesting. Marco Polo discovered the Chinese fashioning figures of cows, oxen or buffaloes, covered with colored paper and adorned with harnesses and trappings. Special colors traditionally greeted the New Year. When the mandarins knocked the figure hard with sticks of various colors, seeds spilled forth. After burning the remains, people gathered the ashes for good luck throughout the year.

As this custom passed into Europe in the 14th century, it adapted to the celebrations of Lent. When the custom spread to Spain, the first Sunday in Lent became a fiesta called the ‘Dance of the Piñata.’ The most traditional style piñata looks a bit like Sputnik, with seven points representing the seven deadly sins, pecados - greed, gluttony, sloth, pride, envy, wrath and lust. Beautiful and bright, the piñata tempted. Candies and fruits inside represented the cantaros (temptations) of wealth and earthly pleasures.

Today, the piñata has lost its religious symbolism and most participate in the game solely for fun. Piñatas are especially popular during Las Posados, traditional processions ringing in the Christmas season and at birthday parties. During festivities, people traditionally sing songs while breaking the piñatas.

There are many creative ideas for using a piñata, such as for a birthday party, a holiday celebration, or just as a toy. Today, piñatas are not only popular for use as kids birthday party games, but they also serve as festive party decorations, centerpieces and many other uses.

 That was seven years ago. Yamaguchi was stuck in a high pressure, deadline driven job that she felt was draining her life away. When she asked herself what would make her happy, the answer came instantly: woodturning.

Maple burl hollow vessel by Lynne Yamaguchi

Woodturning? She’d never done it, didn’t know how. No tools, no shop, no training.

She quit the job, took some turning classes at Woodcraft on North Oracle and began the pursuit of her dream.

 Today Yamaguchi is an accomplished artist, a member of the newly opened Flux Gallery  and the creator of bowls, vessels and wood sculpture that convey a sense of beauty, simplicity and inner calm.

Lynne Yamaguchi

She’s also enthusiastically happy, as I found on a recent visit to her converted garage shop, chock-a-block with two turning lathes, a band saw and drill press, wood blanks, cut sections from whole trees, sawdust and projects in progress.

 “I’m Japanese-American,” she explained. “My upbringing was very much infused with Japanese culture and esthetics. The shape of vessels, like rice bowls, from my childhood is part of my sense memory and is deeply a part of my hand.

Yearning to Soar, Lynne Yamaguchi

“I am attracted to containers, bowls, vessels, boxes. I like to hold them, stroke them, just touch them.”

 Her approach to a new project with a fresh blank of wood “is very much a dialogue,” she explains. “I think about what’s in there, what’s to be revealed. Sometimes I’m right. Sometimes it has something in it that makes me change my idea. Flaws become features.”

Nestling, Lynne Yamaguchi

She enjoys working in pear – “such a sensuous wood” – in cottonwood – an untypical species for turners – and in walnut. “We’re really lucky here in Arizona to have mesquite,” she says, “with its richness of color and complex character.” She sees wood as a metaphor for people, with the record of survival showing in a person’s face just as it does in the grain and texture of wood.

 Yamaguchi’s pieces range in price from as low as $30, up to $1,800 for her hollow formed In Her Dream nestled among black stones, a sculpture that is a perfect island of peace. Making ends meet can still be a struggle, she says, particularly in the current economic downturn where the market for art is one of the first to suffer.

In Her Dream, Lynne Yamaguchi

To remain viable, Yamaguchi became a founding member of the Flux Gallery, a cooperative inspired by painter/sculptor/photographer Steven Derks to give artists control over their own marketing efforts. The Gallery, featuring the work of nine local artists, is located at Plaza Palomino, 2960 N. Swan Rd., Suite 136. You’ll see more posts on them here in the weeks ahead.

 Day to day, Yamaguchi remains active in her shop, turning perhaps two small pieces in one session, holding her dialogue with wood. “It feels,” she says, “like I was born to do it.”

The EVIL ONE! Photo by (halfpricecarboncredits.com)

The Evil One has returned and his minions are trying to hijack the new Magic Carpet Land from the Genie. Will the Wizard and the Genie have enough power to stop him?  Return to the land of fairies and gnomes and embark on a mystical adventure armed with nothing more than your Magic Stone to help protect you and the Valley of the Moon from the forces of evil. The play is spooky but not frightening to younger children.

Three Witches scene from Magic Carpet Chaos at the Haunted Ruins ( Photo by halfpricecarboncredits.com)

As with all productions at the Valley of the Moon visitors follow a costumed tour guide winding their way throughout the enchanted park. This years fundraising event is one of the most unique ever performed at the fantasyland and includes performances at the newly arrived Magic Carpet statues and the recently restored grassy amphitheater.

Newcomers and return visitors to this historic park will be amazed at the transformation that has taken place in the past year. The four new sculptures from the closed Magic Carpet; Pygmy Hut, Old Stump, Spider Tree and the Castle, add a new magical fantasy to the front section of the park.

On September 12, the 40+ Days of Caring volunteers did wonders in beautifying the historic property by planting over 100 trees and flowers and new grass sod in the amphitheater. This is the first grass there in over 10 years and will now allow the Valley of the Moon to once again open for weddings, birthday parties and special events. The entire property is being converted to solar lighting and phase one was completed prior to this event.

Magic Carpet Pygmy Hut illuminated. Photo by: (halfpricecarboncredits.com)

The proceeds from this year’s Halloween fundraiser will go to restore some of the historic structures presently closed to the public. The most popular “Enchanted Garden,” a highlight of the founder George Phar Legler’s creations, is scheduled to be the first to be restored when funding is available.  This year’s Halloween show has over 50 unpaid volunteers dedicated to keeping the tradition of George Phar Legler alive and his message of kindness to all.

The remaining performance dates for this week are October (21), 22, 23, 24, 25,  and next week (28), 29 and 30. The Valley of the Moon is never open Halloween night.  Show times are 6:30 – 9:00 PM nightly. Tours leave the gate every 30 minutes. Admission: Adults $7, Kids 7-13 $5, and 6 & under free.  On Wednesdays the 21st & 28th admission is 2 cans of food for the food bank and only $3 Adults and $2 Kids 7-13. Helping the food bank has been a tradition for the last 36 years.

Valley of the Moon is located at 2544 E. Allen Rd, Tucson, AZ. More information at the Halloween event can be viewed at :http://www.tucsonvalleyofthemoon.com or by calling 520-323-1331.

Known nationally and beyond as a premier southwestern gallery of photography as well as of painting and other traditional art forms, this exhibit, Etherton says, “was a leap of faith” to create an ensemble from some of Tucson’s finest artists in a setting resembling spaces an exquisitely appointed home.

 The result is a welcoming balance among furniture with the design qualities of sculpture, marvelously hand blown glass, bold mural sized paintings and warm hand woven rugs.

Mesquite furniture by Stephen Paul; King's Canyon painting by Jim Wald.

On entering the gallery at 135 S. 6^th Ave. some people react by saying, “This is so beautiful, I want to live here.” While that may not be possible, all Tucsonans can experience this first of its kind exhibit though it run to November 28.

 As a woodworker myself, I was especially pleased to see furniture and cabinetry exhibited as works of art. In making the rounds over the past two years I’ve lived here, the names of three woodworkers consistently rise to the top. One is the door and entryway maker Wayne Hausknecht who was profiled in this blog earlier. The other two are Stephen Paul and Scott Baker whose works are part of the current Etherton Gallery exhibit.

Stephen Paul furniture with lamp by Paul and Tom Philabaum and rugs from David Adler.

Paul is the master craftsman in chief at Arroyo Design, 224 N. 4^th Ave., designers and creators of hand made mesquite furniture that ranks among the finest being made in the country today.

 Baker, the partner in BAKER-HESSELDENZ design, 8125 E. Moonstone Dr., is arguably this region’s preeminent master cabinet and furniture maker.

Wall suspended server in cherry and steel by Scott Baker; Agua Caliente painting by Nancy Tokar Miller.

Their work is displayed along with several excitingly colorful blown glass pieces by Tom Philabaum, who has also been profiled earlier on this blog and whose studio at 711 S. 6^th Ave. is one of Tucson’s artistic gems, and a selection of contemporary Tibetan rugs collected by David Adler of David E. Adler, Inc. in Scottsdale.

Blown glass by Tom Philabaum.

Large contemporary paintings by Tucson artists Jim Wald and Nancy Tokar Miller help frame the exhibit creating a space both beautiful in itself and abounding with ideas to create beauty in one’s own home.

 “Our goal here is to set a high bar,” Etherton says, “one with warmth where everyone is welcome. Shows like this help us meet that standard.”

 My take: Go. See. Enjoy.