This weekend the Greater Ithaca Art Trail hosted an Open Studio Weekend. The trail passes through Ithaca, Trumansberg, Spencer, Lodi, Interlaken, and West Danby. I was able to spend this beautiful, warm fall Sunday with my friend Michele visiting a handful of studios in Trumansburg. Below is a short synopsis of each we visited:
Carol Bloombgarden paints and uses micrography (small writing) to represent poetry. I was struck by how detailed and time-consuming her work is. In a few pieces, the print is so small and ingrained in the piece of art that I almost wouldn’t have noticed it if I didn’t know to look.
Celia Bowers focuses on the study of light and color in the sky. I love the Japanese word Komorebi, which means “sunlight shining through trees,” and a concept that I thought a lot about in Bower’s work because I think she captures it well.
Hannah Graeper runs a working pottery studio. I like the way she uses vibrant color and design to decorate her pottery, which is useful and beautifully done. The studio itself was a piece of art, too.
Jim Kozlowski uses acrylics and colored pencils to create abstract pieces and representations of animals and plants. My favorite pieces were those he does of vegetables, and when we visited the studio he was working on a still-life drawing of mushrooms.
Laurin Ramsey, Nathan Lewis, and Laura Rowley run Revival Book Arts. They set metal type and printing with letterpress machines, make handmade paper, and sew books by hand. I got the satisfaction of making a print myself!
Sarah Gotowka does dry-pressed flower art and loom weaving. Her flower art is delicately done, and the results are gorgeous.
I am especially drawn to ceramics, photography, and painting, so these are the artists that caught my eye. Look on arttrail.com for more information regarding studios and artists, as well as a map of the trail. Their studios are open to the public, if scheduled in advance.
The artwork featured on the cover image is created by artist Celia Bowers, to see more of her work visit celiabowers.com
by Kathleen Malnati
