Dr. James Harken, a retired dentist in Spokane Valley, Washington, never dreamed of becoming an art collector. He spent his formative years in Cartersville, Montana, where his family lived without running water, indoor plumbing, or electricity. “My father became an attorney after putting himself through...
The gorgeous lady may be staring at you, but don’t feel self-conscious. She stares at everybody. If you are staying at Chicago’s Kimpton Hotel Allegro, you’ll inevitably meet Lady Lucent of Awakening, an 8-foot-tall self-portrait of artist Sarah Raskey that always surprises guests during check-in. [caption...
Pulling on a pair of borrowed rain boots, I hop into an ATV with Tim Soderquist, land manager of Spread Oaks Ranch. We drive off, splashing through the occasional puddle. It’s a foggy spring morning, a little moody out after last night’s thunderstorm, and there’s...
If you think Nashville is just about the music, you’d be right — and wrong. The city embraces the soubriquet “Music City U.S.A.,” but it’s so much more. Long before it became the home of country music, it was known as the Athens of the...
Modern Screen by Jesse Small With a dual major in sculpture and ceramics, artist Jesse Small explores the idea of “decoration,” believing that the word itself is deceptively benign. Throughout his 20-year career creating art around the world, he’s found it fascinating that in other cultures...
Some architects say the fun of problem-solving keeps their practices vital. But those at Prentiss Balance Wickline (PBW) say that it’s finding a site’s potential that excites them. That may sound like an optimistic way of expressing the same concept, but after a discussion with...
In 1948, a young photographer named Gordon Parks spent weeks getting to know and aiming his camera at the gritty world of 17-year-old Leonard “Red” Jackson on the streets of New York City. The photo essay that resulted, “Harlem Gang Leader,” was published in Life...
Panoramic views of the Jemez Mountains greet David McElroy when he enters his studio on the high plains of New Mexico. A window in place of two garage doors provides unobstructed views, and, from time to time, a herd of grazing pronghorn antelope draws his...
Mosaic artist Marlea Taylor began her fine-art career in printmaking. But frustrated with the limits of working on paper, she decided to delve into mosaics, using tiles and repurposed broken pottery and plates. She hasn’t looked back since. “I’m a retired teacher and taught kindergarten through...
Jamie Burnes creates his art through encounters with environmental detritus. The found objects he uses in his sculptures reveal themselves as tree trunks, petrified wood, stones, and other natural materials. It’s the happenstance of life put into form. “My work is very process-oriented,” Burnes says. “I’m...