Colleen Wallace and Ralph Slatton Featured Artists

Online, August 5, 2010 (Newswire.com) - Wallace states that animals have frequently been her choice of subject, but they present many challenges. In her work entitled, "Anagoric," she presents forms in a way that is aesthetically pleasing but not overly realistic. Clay is a medium that gives her this contrast. It is pliable and can be molded to any shape. Forms can be delicate, and yet after firing they are literally turned into stone. The idea of soft and hard plays into her forms through subject and medium. By portraying rabbits as dead or dying, she creates tension in the form. Dead rabbits have a terrible beauty that she finds compelling. The form is easily manipulated. When viewed from a certain perspective, one can certainly appreciate it. There is a certain amount of morbid curiosity involved, in which she challenges people to view death in new ways that expand their vision. She is motivated by helping the viewer even through a better appreciation of death.

Ralph Slatton's imagery also deals with the beauty and darkness of animal forms. His chosen medium is printmaking, also known as intaglio or etching. He utilizes the themes of entrapment, in which ferocious dogs, rabbits, and other creatures find themselves in painful situations. Viewers often misunderstand the nature of his imagery. It isn't about animal cruelty or sadism, but rather the symbolic traps common to individuals, and to a larger extent, humanity. Slatton's work also embraces a duality, where humorous icons carry serious content. An example of this can be found in pre-Columbian figurines, where cute plump dogs, at first glance, appear whimsical. On the darker side, the dogs are supposedly eaten by their masters during the journey to the underworld." Slatton's influences are considered fantasy gothic, an often-dark view of fable, humor and personal lore. Slatton states, "As I embrace this duality, my animals laugh and cry, wear disguises of the strong and weak, experience entrapment and freedom."

Colleen Wallace grew up in Chattanooga Tennessee as the youngest of two. Even as a small child, she remembers drawing on the backs of church bulletins. Her father was a graphic design professor at a local collage and her mother graduated with a BFA, so Colleen was immersed in art from the beginning. She graduated with a BFA from East Tennessee State University in the spring of 2010 and is now currently living in Chattanooga where she continues to make art.

Ralph Slatton grew up in the early 50s, surrounded by the rural cotton fields of Arkansas. He graduated from Arkansas State University with a bachelor of fine arts and a master of arts before completing his studies with a master of fine arts in printmaking from the University of Iowa. While employed at the U of I, Art of Museum, he accompanied an exhibition of African art to the Taiwan Museum of Art in Taichung. He is currently professor of art at East Tennessee State University in Johnson City, where he has taught since 1990. Slatton has conducted technical workshops throughout the United States and his work has been featured in numerous one-person and group exhibitions both nationally and internationally.

"Creature Discomforts," will be featured at SR404 Contemporary Art Gallery, 404 South Roan St, Johnson City, Tennessee 37601, M-F business hours, through the month of August 2010.