<\/p>\n
Flying pigs, statuesque chickens, wall-size oil paintings and beginner chalk-works and drawings all have a similar theme at the latest Cortez Cultural Center exhibit \u2013 \u201cArtists of Agri-culture.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe wanted to honor our community roots by having our beloved local artists interpret agriculture,\u201d said Cultural Center Director Anne Beach. \u201cWe had a great response, young and experienced. A lot of local talent, a lot of history.\u201d<\/p>\n
The exhibit kicked off with the obligatory wine and cheese, beer and nuts, and dips and chips. On cue, artists were fashionably late, stylishly dressed and eager to explain their works.<\/p>\n
Janae Garcia, a budding artist and senior at Southwest Open School, shrugged off an attempt to mine the mysterious mind of an artist. Responding to the requisite inquiry of deeper meaning and symbolism of her hay-barn chalk piece, Garcia is casual, \u201cI liked it. It\u2019s peaceful.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fair enough. Agricultural art portrays that simplicity \u2013 a snapshot of a moment in rural Montezuma County we all recognize, but preserved forever in a work of art.<\/p>\n
Beauty products assist in the final product for the young artists. Garcia uses hair spray to seal in the chalk. Her friend Cassie Rivas, a Southwest Open School junior, pulled black eyeliner from her purse to accentuate a nicely portrayed common farm bird winging away against a colorful sunset.<\/p>\n
Some works go for the surreal, a more whimsical interpretation of everyday scenes. Enjoy Vivienne Kenyon\u2019s pastel water-color of the county fairgrounds, a lively, off-kilter collage of the swirling events at a local carnival.<\/p>\n
\u201cI go for abstract. The county fair is always an important part of farm life. In my mind, this is how I see the amusement and fun of it,\u201d she said. \u201cIt is a free-er technique mentally.\u201d<\/p>\n
Born in McElmo Canyon, Kenyon has deep local roots, and describes herself as a professional volunteer. Her artworks are viewed through a lens of stylized impressionism and have a professional avant-garde appeal.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve taken a lot of classes over the years. I love the process. It takes a lot of practice,\u201d she said. It\u2019s dedication that has brought public appreciation, the artist\u2019s Holy Grail more than profit.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve had my art hanging in the state Capitol,\u201d she proudly shares. \u201cIt\u2019s a satisfying form of artistic expression, but they\u2019re for sale, too!\u201d<\/p>\n
Local artist Jan Heyl forever preserves the portrait of a favorite black cow she has been watching grow up near her home. Looking at the viewer, it seems to mock our complicated lives as it contentedly chews on grasses after a snowstorm, tucked in one of those inviting mini-canyons bordered by crumbling cliffs and elevated steppes of pi\u00f1on-juniper forests.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s always digging for food. He\u2019s always watching me, so I decided to watch him,\u201d Heyl says of her furry bovine friend living on Road M. \u201cFarm life is deep in my blood.\u201d<\/p>\n
She has an expert eye for light and shadow, giving her paintings a mesmerizing and vivid presence. A close-up painting of a sunflower reveals nature\u2019s intricate details, an iridescent luster most dismiss, but Heyl forces us to more closely examine its beauty. Check out her website at www.janheylart.com<\/p>\n
For Robert H. Blair, of Aztec, 50 years of oil painting, puts him squarely in the fine arts category. His works are larger-than-life, panoramic depictions of historic life on the farm and pioneer life.<\/p>\n
A farmer steering a pair of horses pulling a dump rake is how Blair\u2019s dad used to do it before tractors were common. The scene\u2019s looming background bluffs could be somewhere in New Mexico, or Weber Canyon near Mancos, places familiar to Blair.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur relatives here could not afford tractors,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s a time when horses worked. That\u2019s what they want to do.\u201d<\/p>\n
Blair was classically trained at the Chouinard Art Institute, was a commercial artist, and taught oil painting classes at San Juan College in Farmington. Visit his website at www.roberthblair.net<\/p>\n
The Agri-culture Art exhibit runs through Oct. 5 at the Cortez Cultural Center at 25 N. Market St. in Cortez. All works are for sale.<\/p>\n