The Aesthetics of Nature - Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art

Brian Ferrell
Ferrell returned to Pennsylvania in 2006 and opened his own studio,
Brian Ferrell Designs. Now fully engaged in the creation of furniture
and tableware, his work is featured in group and solo exhibits on a
national level. Ferrell’s work was published in 500 Tables and Pewter
Studio by Lark Books, and has been purchased by private collectors
in the United States and Europe. Ferrell was honored with a solo
exhibition at Fallingwater during the summer of 2008, and received a
full page review in American Cra magazine for his exhibition at the
Appalachian Center for Cra (Smithville, Tenn.) in January 2010.
In my furniture, a mix of exotic woods like padauk and
purpleheart are complemented with domestic woods such as
maple and walnut. In my tableware and hollowware, pewter
and various woods continue this exploration between materials,
utilizing lines and surfaces to draw one’s eye into a nuanced
rhythm of intricate detail and open space. ese subtle
juxtapositions begin a dialogue between visual and physical
balance, precariousness and stability, and positive and negative
space.
My work forces the viewer (or user) to be completely aware of
the piece by reducing the form of familiar objects beyond the
expected. Carved irregular surfaces and steel cable invite the
sense of touch and further the awareness of the composition and
its materials. Allowing functional necessities to enhance the form
creates these undulating surfaces.
Translucent, solid, or hand-painted, the colors enrich the effect
of space by emerging out of shadows or wood grain. Subtle
variations help to create delicately changing landscapes that fade
into one another. Together, these concepts and techniques build
complex architecture around very minimal forms.
- Brian Ferrell
Lauren Adams
Lauren Adams is a painter
who resides in Fairmont,
West Virginia. She is a
graduate of Fairmont State
University and West Virginia
University, from where she
earned a BA in Studio Art
and a BFA in Painting,
respectively. While at
Fairmont State University,
Adams studied with
acclaimed painter Lynn Boggess.
e landscapes are created en plein air – painted rapidly on
location with a variety of utensils. e act of painting is
central to the work. My process involves a combination of
media and approach. Most of the works are begun with a
thin acrylic layer or gesture done with a large brush and then
completed with a palette knife in oil. I smear, scrape, and
thickly layer the oil paint, until the essence of the landscape is
found.
Painting in this direct manner is a means to emphasize the
importance of experience and reflects a desire to capture the
fluidity and power of nature. e works are not images of
sweeping vistas, but the views found exploring the interior of
West Virginia. ey reveal its true character and a feeling of
place through semi-abstraction. Retained is a relative
simplicity of form along with an economy of strokes that are
utilized to construct a strong image.
- Lauren Adams
Adams offers colorful, vibrant landscapes with a palette knife and oil paints. Ferrell creates unique furniture concepts by marrying
wood, cable and paint. Both artists are masters of their medium. Together, their work inspires the viewer, bringing the majesty of
the natural environment inside our museum walls.
When I was first approached by Sommer Toffle, Site Coordinator of the Ligonier
Valley Museum, regarding her plans for this exhibition, I must admit I wasn’t
quite sure how she was going to pull the two genres together in one exhibition.
Now that the work is done, I am pleased to say she did exactly what she
proposed. She has curated a wonderful show that celebrates nature through
various aspects of artistic expression – color, shape, line, depth, texture and form.
Brian Ferrell and Lauren Adams
The Aesthetics of Nature
A special note of thanks is due Sommer for her unwavering commitment to this
exhibition, her creative contributions to the content, and her professional
collaboration with the artists in bringing this dynamic exhibition to our
constituents. I thank the Museum staff for their work on the exhibition. My
gratitude is extended to the Emma Clyde Hodge Memorial Fund for their
financial support of this exhibition. I thank the members of our Director’s Circle,
Museum Associates and Education Sponsors, as well as other donors who give
generously to help make our work at the Museum possible. Finally, I recognize
an active and involved community whose continued support is critical to SAMA’s
future.
G. Gary Moyer
Executive Director
Director’s Circle
Miss Susan F. Crary
e Donald & Sylvia Robinson Family Foundation
Franciscan Friars, T.O.R.
Mrs. Shirley D. Lingenfelter
Mr. and Mrs. Harry McCreary
Mr. and Mrs. Edgar Dean Nelson
Museum Associates
Memorial Medical Center of Conemaugh Health System
e Rev. Sean M. Sullivan, T.O.R.
Mrs. Mary Weidlein
Education Sponsors
Mr. and Mrs. William Benzel
C & G Savings Bank
Central PA Community Foundation
Dr. Betty Cottle
Fiore Brothers, Inc. Leasing Company
Gingrich Agency, Inc.
e Gleason Agency, Inc.
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Gleason
Harold & Betty Cottle Family Foundation
L. Robert Kimball & Associates
Leonard S. Fiore, Inc.
New Enterprise Stone & Lime Co.
e PNC Financial Services Group, Inc.
Mr. and Mrs. Gerald P. Wolf
Exhibition Sponsors
Dr. and Mrs. Magdi Azer
Dr. and Mrs. Joel E. Borkow
e Hon. and Mrs. Timothy Creany
Mr. and Mrs. Donald Devorris
Mr. and Mrs. John K. Duggan, Jr.
July 5th – Prickett’s Creek, 2009
Editors:
Travis Mearns
Sommer Toffle
Printer:
Unity Printing
Catalogue Design:
Color Scan LLC
This exhibition is sponsored in part by the
Emma Clyde Hodge Memorial Fund
© 2010 Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art
This catalogue is published by the
Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art
Post Office Box 9
Loretto, PA 15940
(814) 472-3920
Hours:
Tuesday through Friday: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Weekends: 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Closed Mondays
Admission is free
Cover:
Brian Ferrell, Shelf System, 2009
Lauren Adams, September 5th, 2009
by the A
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e artist’s work has been exhibited at venues including EA
Gallery in Swainsboro, Ga.; Cooper Gallery in Lewisburg, W.Va.;
James Brooks Gallery in Fairmont, W.Va.; e Clay Center for the
Arts and Sciences of West Virginia in Charleston; and Arts
Monongahela in Morgantown, W.Va. Adams is a juried artist of
Tamarack’s David L. Dickirson Gallery. In 2009, she was juried
into the Emerging Artists of West Virginia exhibition at the West
Virginia State Museum, where she was awarded Best of Show and
a spot in the museum’s permanent collection. Her work is
included in private collections throughout the country. e artist
will be exhibiting a solo show at the Slingluff Gallery in
Philadelphia in April 2011. Adams also writes a blog titled Journal
of an Emerging Artist, which chronicles her career as an artist and
acts as a resource for others.
Jagged or water-worn rocks, moss-covered earth, gleaming
birch trees, and chameleon rivers of West Virginia are my
subjects. Nature has always been an important component in
my work. I thrive on working from life.
e Aesthetics of Nature, the Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art at Ligonier Valley’s exhibition featuring the artwork of Lauren
Adams and Brian Ferrell, is an expression of nature in two media – painting and functional sculpture. Both artists present their
interpretations of nature through their respective vehicles of expression.
• ACCR
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Settling in Haverhill, Mass., Ferrell was a studio assistant to worldrenowned glass artist Dan Dailey. During this period, Ferrell
stretched his problem-solving skills assisting Dailey with complex,
large-scale glass projects. At the same time, he was expressing
himself through the design and construction of furniture.
I create sculpturally functional objects that can be held in the
hand as well as objects that hold or support. My work blends
asymmetrical geometry, basic shapes, and gradual shis in
composition. ese pieces rely on subtlety, as lines and shapes
intersect through careful transitions of form to create an
uncluttered composition.
OF MU
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Brian Ferrell is an artist who creates
sculpture in functional forms,
designing one-of-a-kind furniture
and custom tableware with details
one would expect to see in fine
jewelry. Born in southwestern
Pennsylvania, Ferrell grew up using a
number of woodworking and
metalworking tools. e artist
studied jewelry/metals at Indiana
University of Pennsylvania and
received a BFA in 2001. He furthered
his studies at the University of
Massachusetts – Dartmouth, from
where he would receive an MFA in 2004.
Acknowledgment
An exhibition organized by
the Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art at Ligonier Valley
Catalogue
Curator’s Statement
Upon first coming to the Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art
at Ligonier Valley, I was immediately inspired by the
overwhelming interior and exterior beauty. From the gardens
around the Museum to the fields and trees surrounding the
property, there is a breathtaking view with each passing season.
When stepping into the Museum, one can see how the natural
environment was incorporated into the architectural design of
the building. Inspired by the beauty inside and around this
Museum, my desire was to create an exhibition that would bring
inside the majesty of the outdoors.
is exhibition aims to combine functional art with art created
for the sake of beauty, just as occurs in nature. Brian Ferrell and
Lauren Adams have brought that very vision to life in e
Aesthetics of Nature, marrying organic and contemporary
imagination. e exhibition explores our natural environment
through their interpretations of form, texture, color and
movement. Given their inventive styles, Ferrell and Adams are a
perfect twosome, celebrating their own individual artistic style
while complimenting the other’s innovation and technique,
resulting in an incredible visual outcome.
Brian Ferrell has received national attention through his solo
and group exhibitions featuring his one-of-a-kind furniture
November 1st, Prickett’s Creek, 2009
designs. Ferrell’s compositions incorporate traditional furniture
concepts with new and exciting elements, mixing natural woods –
both exotic and native – while integrating vibrant paint and metal cables. e end result is equal parts organic, intellectual
and elegant. His interpretations of shelves, tables and chairs capture the function of each piece while adding innovation.
His work has the ability to stand alone as sculpture. Ferrell’s designs are both practical and beautiful with a sublime
mixture of the organic and architectural form.
Lauren Adams works from life, submersing herself in nature to create extraordinary plein air palette knife oil paintings.
Her compositions focus on organic forms, incorporating trees and streams with vibrant colorful layers of thickly applied
paint. Her landscapes encompass her love of nature with her refined technique. Adams eloquently captures the kinetic
movement of water and emphasizes the glistening light shining on snow and grass-covered banks with quick lines of
vibrant color. Her work showcases the power of nature with an elegant simplicity through her use of expressionism,
abstracting her landscape in such a way that it leaves the viewer with the impression they can smell the water or feel the
leaves crunching beneath their feet.
M. Lauren Adams (American, b. 1983)
Brian Ferrell (American, b. 1977)
April 12th, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 12” x 9”
Private collection
February 20th, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 18” x 14”
Courtesy of the artist
May 30th, 2009
Oil on canvas, 24” x 20”
Courtesy of the artist
April 17th, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 17” x 14”
Courtesy of the artist
February 21st, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 24” x 20”
Courtesy of the artist
November 1st, Prickett’s Creek, 2009
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 15” x 13”
Courtesy of the artist
April 19th, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 12” x 9”
Courtesy of the artist
February 28th, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 24” x 20”
Courtesy of the artist
November 22nd, 2009
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 15” x 13”
Courtesy of the artist
April 20th, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 12” x 9”
Courtesy of the artist
January 16th, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 18” x 14”
Courtesy of the artist
November 28th, 2009
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 15” x 13”
Courtesy of the artist
April 28th, 2009
Oil on canvas, 7” x 6”
Courtesy of the artist
January 18th – Mon River, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 15” x 13”
Courtesy of the artist
November 29th, 2009
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 24” x 20”
Courtesy of the artist
August 20th, 2008
Oil on canvas, 14” x 11½”
Courtesy of the artist
January 23rd, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 24” x 20”
Courtesy of the artist
August 27th, 2009
Oil on canvas, 18” x 14”
Private collection
January 31st, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 18” x 14”
Courtesy of the artist
Marion County – May 9th, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 7” x 6”
Courtesy of the artist
Prickett’s Creek – March 27th, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 7” x 6”
Courtesy of the artist
Cooper’s Rock, 2009
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 7” x 6”
Courtesy of the artist
July 5th – Prickett’s Creek, 2009
Oil on canvas, 24” x 20”
Courtesy of the artist
Marion County – May 16th, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 7” x 6”
Courtesy of the artist
September 5th, 2009
Oil on canvas, 18” x 14”
Courtesy of the artist
February 7th, 2009
Oil on canvas, 7” x 6”
Courtesy of the artist
June 1st, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 24” x 18”
Courtesy of the artist
May 1st, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 12” x 9”
Courtesy of the artist
February 14th, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 15” x 13”
Courtesy of the artist
March 7th – Marion County, 2010
Oil on canvas, 17” x 14”
Courtesy of the artist
May 9th, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 12” x 9”
Courtesy of the artist
March 9th, 2010
Oil on canvas, 7” x 6”
Courtesy of the artist
May 9th – Marion County, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 17” x 14”
Courtesy of the artist
Marion County – February 10th II, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 7” x 6”
Courtesy of the artist
May 16th I, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 12” x 9”
Courtesy of the artist
Marion County – February 28th, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 7” x 6”
Courtesy of the artist
May 16th II, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 12” x 9”
Courtesy of the artist
Marion County – June 2nd, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 12” x 9”
Courtesy of the artist
May 22nd – Prickett’s Creek, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 7” x 6”
Courtesy of the artist
Marion County – June 3rd, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 24” x 20”
Courtesy of the artist
May 23rd, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 7” x 6”
Courtesy of the artist
Marion County – May 1st, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 48” x 30”
Courtesy of the artist
May 23rd – Prickett’s Creek, 2010
Oil and acrylic on canvas, 7” x 6”
Courtesy of the artist
I hope viewers enjoy this exhibition for its beauty, function,
form and innovation. Walk through the Museum and take
note of how objects interact with their environment.
Experience for yourself the interrelation of art and nature, and
perhaps you will leave here asking yourself, where does one
end and the other begin?
Sommer Toffle
Exhibition Curator
Coordinator, Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art
at Ligonier Valley
Coffee Table, 2010
February 21st, 2010
January 18th – Mon River, 2010
October 4th, 2009
Oil on canvas, 18” x 14”
Courtesy of the artist
3 Vases, 2006-2010
Pewter, walnut, maple, and purpleheart,
14” x 6” x 6”
Courtesy of the artist
Ash Shelf, Cabled, 2009
Ash, cable, 30" x 28" x 12"
Courtesy of the artist
Bench, 2010
Padauk, cable, painted plywood, artificial
leather, 18" x 45" x 17"
Courtesy of the artist
Cabled Lounge Chair, 2008
Padauk, painted wood, cable, artificial
leather, 38" x 36" x 26"
Courtesy of the artist
Wall-mounted Side Table, 2010
Cabled Walnut Shelf, 2010
Walnut, cable, 18" x 43" x 10"
Courtesy of the artist
Shelf System, 2009
Spanish cedar, painted poplar, steel, cable,
felt, 67" x 70" x 16"
Courtesy of the artist
Centerpiece, 2009
Poplar, 38" x 7" x 2"
Courtesy of the artist
Single Tumbler, 2009
Pewter, 7" x 2 ½” dia.
Courtesy of the artist
Coffee Table, 2010
Sepele and painted plywood, 21" x 27" x 28"
Courtesy of the artist
Small Spanish Cedar Shelf, 2009
Spanish cedar, 1½” x 16” x 5”
Courtesy of the artist
Dining Chair, 2008
Spanish cedar, painted plywood, cable,
38" x 18" x 28"
Courtesy of the artist
Small Walnut Shelf, 2010
Walnut, 2" x 22" x 5"
Courtesy of the artist
Dining Table, 2008
Spanish cedar, painted plywood, cable,
32" x 36" x 70"
Courtesy of the artist
Lounge Chair, 2010
Painted plywood and artificial leather,
32” x 28” x 50”
Courtesy of the artist
Towel Rack/Shelf, 2010
Spanish cedar, 2" x 29" x 7"
Courtesy of the artist
Wall-mounted Side Table, 2010
Hickory, painted plywood, cable, 42" x 61" x 19"
Courtesy of the artist
Martini Set, 2009
Pewter, painted wood, and sepele,
7" x 12" x 12"
Courtesy of the artist
Mint Julep Cups, 2010
Pewter and walnut, 6" x 2 ½” dia.
Courtesy of the artist
Shelf Cluster, 2010
Ash, 32" x 80" x 8"
Courtesy of the artist
Dining Chair, 2008
Shelf Cluster, 2010