Sep 30th, 2009 by hotinlittlerock
|
|
A Splattering of Talent
|
|
|
On October 11, The Centers for Youth and Families will hold its annual Splatters party at Pleasant Valley Country Club. While this party originally was simply the precursor to the golf tournament that happens the next day, it has really evolved into its own event.
This is the second year that Splatters has held a juried art competition in conjunction with Splatters. Over the next week, we’ll introduce you to the top three finishers of that competition. The judges came from art departments, galleries and ad agencies. They were all highly qualified, and had to pick from over fifty entries.
Their most favorite piece was by woodturner Drew Kelso. Kelso lives in Little Rock. After he retired from the information technology world, Kelso was able to make is hobby of woodturning a full-time endeavor. He has studied at the Arkansas Arts Center and at the Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts. Kelso not only enjoys working with exotic woods, but also with woods that have imperfections in them – like knots or holes.
 The piece he submitted to the Splatters jury is entitled “Egyptian Bowl.” It is created from Tiger Maple and African Ebony woods. The finished product is smooth and quite amazing to behold. Yet the process it lengthy. It involves many little pieces and lots of time. But the end result is nothing short of gorgeous.
It’s always interesting to us to see how an artist begins his journey. Kelso’s journey begins with a slab of wood. He may have an idea of what is going to come out of that wood, but often, he says, that product changes as the wood directs him in another way. And as that slab of wood is cut and turned, it becomes a piece of art. You can see the progression of Kelso’s piece on our website.
We think it is quite fitting that the top piece of art from Splatters is an Egyptian Bowl. Egypt is all the rage right now, with the Arts Center’s ambitious launch of The World of the Pharaohs. Join us on October 11 and bid on Kelso’s Egyptian Bowl. Not only will you be taking home an extraordinary piece of art, but you will also be helping kids and families all across Arkansas. Now that’s a win-win proposition.
“Egyptian Bowl”
By Drew Kelso
Splatters
October 11, 2009
Pleasant Valley Country Club
Visit www.youthandfamilies.org for more information and for tickets.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Tags: Centers for Youth & Families
Posted in Art
