Beauchamp’s Gallery to Feature Colorists Diane Lawrence and Debra Clemente

Fans of bright colorful artwork will see plenty to like in Beauchamp’s upcoming exhibit- New Works by Debra Clemente and Diane Lawrence. Both artists utilize bright pure color to inject energy and emotion into their paintings. Clemente applies heavy colorful oil paints on canvas with a pallet knife. Her works have a textural quality that seems to be influenced by the impressionists like Van Gogh. Lawrence applies thin layers of equally colorful pigments to delicate silk fabric. And though the color is just as striking, the surface quality of her work is much different than Clemente’s. Lawrence’s use of silk gives each painting a shimmering effect that is unique to the medium and a nice contrast to Clemente’s heavy oils.

For Clemente, much of her inspiration comes from the landscape. However, she is in no way focused on an exact interpretation of a particular scene. Rather, she is much more interested in using color to express the emotions that she feels. Similarly, Lawrence puts it this way, “Forms that radiate vibrant color energize my soul and lead me into a delightful journey into expression….” In the past, Lawrence’s focus has been florals and depictions of colorful Koi fish and this show has good examples of such work. However Lawrence, like Clemente, will also present a number of works influenced by the landscape.

New Works by Debra Clemente and Diane Lawrence can be seen at Beauchamp’s Gallery starting December 31, but an opening reception for both artists will take place on Friday evening, January 8th at the gallery. The public is invited.
Beauchamp’s is Topeka’s premier provider of original fine art, classic custom framing, art restoration/repair, and consulting. Located at 3113 SW Huntoon in the Westboro Mart, Beauchamp’s has been a mainstay of the Topeka arts community for over 35 years.

Novembers Are A Blessing At Beauchamp’s Gallery

It was November, 1975. Paul Beauchamp had recently moved his business to the Westboro Mart and was exhibiting the artwork of old friend Bob Sudlow. In those days, teenagers still bought eight track tapes and wore bell bottom jeans. President Gerald Ford lived in the White House and politicians argued about America’s dependence on foreign oil. Earth Day was still a new idea and Bill Gates had just launched a little venture called Microsoft. Things have changed somewhat since then……but not everything. You can still buy those bell bottom jeans. That nasty “oil problem” is still with us and the whole idea of “saving the planet” seems to have really caught on lately.

And something else remains the same- a November exhibit of Sudlow paintings at Beauchamp’s Gallery. At 89 years young, Bob Sudlow’s age is catching up with him a bit. He doesn’t paint as much in the fields as he’d like, but he still paints. That’s because painting is not just what Sudlow does, it’s who he is. And if the weather, (or those damn knees), keep him from venturing into a spring pasture as he would prefer, he can still be found toiling away in his studio; working amidst wafts of oil paint and stacks of drawings. Sudlow is a blessed man and he knows it. After all, how many people discover their calling so early in life and also have sense enough to answer the call? Sudlow did and did. And his blessing has been that for nearly 70 years he has been able to do exactly what he was born to do – paint.

And Sudlow’s paintings have been Beauchamp’s blessing. This November, Paul Beauchamp will once again welcome his old friend Bob Sudlow to an artist’s reception. The two will sit and reminisce. They will talk about the first Sudlow painting Paul ever bought…. over 50 years ago. They will talk about that canoe trip long ago when Paul made the best eggs anyone ever had. Paul will comment about what a great selection of art is on the wall this year and Sudlow will scoff and say he should have done a little better. But regardless of Bob’s humility, Paul will be right. There will be a great selection of art on the wall this November and Bob Sudlow will still be one of the best artists in Kansas……just like in 1975.

This year, the reception for Bob Sudlow will be held in conjunction with the First Friday Art Walk on the evening of November 6th. His show is called Sudlow; Paintings & Lithographs and the public is invited to stop by an visit with the artist. Included in the exhibit will be older ;landscape paintings, newer landscape paintings and a good selection of stone lithograph prints. The show will be displayed through December. Beauchamp’s Gallery is Topeka’s premier provider of original fine art, classic custom framing, art restoration, and repair. Located at 3113 SW Huntoon in the Westboro Mart, Beauchamp’s has been a mainstay of the Topeka arts community for over 35 years.

Beauchamp’s Gallery Goes Beyond Realism

For better or for worse, Ye Wang is a man caught in the middle; straddling two dramatically different cultures . Having moved from China to Canada about 10 years ago, he has yet to fully acclimate himself to western culture. Even since coming to the United States in 2004, he still feels separated by a kind of “glass wall” from the world in which he lives. At times, the glass is absolutely clear. But sometimes, reflections in the glass distort his understanding of the culture he is experiencing. In fact, even when his perception of the culture is perfect, he still has difficulty interpreting what it is he is perceiving.

Ye’s latest collection of paintings provide a metaphor of his personal issues with cultural perception. At first glance, his artwork seems to be a well executed example of photorealism, a type of painting so precise in its dedication to realism that it appears more like a photo than a painting. But Ye’s art goes well beyond realism. He uses multiple photo references in each painting, purposely adding reflection and distortion where it doesn’t really exist. And a glass barrier is always present in Ye’s work- a window, door or mirror. Some elements of his paintings are presented with unnatural clarity while other elements are deliberately blurred. The end result is a type of art that exists somewhere in between Ye’s classical painting roots and the type of abstract painting so prevalent in his adopted western culture. The viewer sees an image that is at the same time both perfectly clear and frustratingly confusing- just like Ye’s cultural experience.

Beginning the first week on October, Beauchamp’s Gallery will be exhibiting Ye Wang’s paintings for 5 weeks. Also, being shown with Ye’s work will be the “trompe l’oeil” or “fool the eye” paintings of Robert Swain and the popular figurative soft sculpture of Beverly Dodge Radefeld. All three artists will be on hand for a Friday evening reception that will be held in conjunction with the First Friday Art Walk on October 2nd.

Beauchamp’s Presents Three Points of View (Take Two)

There’s nothing like late spring in Kansas. New wheat turns the fields vivid green, wild flowers dot the Flint Hills, and children start counting the days ‘til summer vacation. And of course there are the thunderstorms. On any given afternoon, they might roll in off the prairie bringing with them buckets of rain, breath taking lightning and sometimes even hail or twisters.

However, as much as the folks at Beauchamp’s Gallery love a good gully washer, the storms do have a way of putting a damper on an artist’s reception. On Friday, May 15th that’s exactly what happened. Though a hundred or more brave souls did venture out that night to meet artists Mike Henry, Steve Denny and Colleen Gregoire, at least as many more chose not to venture away from the safety of their basements. And so…. Beauchamp’s will host a “re-reception” for all three artists in conjunction with First Friday Art Walk on June 5th.

The show Three Points of View features artworks by Henry, Denny and Gregoire, three veteran artists who have been “visually connecting” with Kansas art patrons for over 25 years. With his new collection of drawings, Mike Henry seems most interested in understanding the light and space that surround and define the world in which he lives and works. Mike’s drawings are especially compelling when depicting unusually strong light, which adds an element of drama to his work. Steve Denny contributes a group of watercolor paintings to the show. His subject matter often deals with the intersection of human works and nature; especially animals. Like Denny, Colleen Gregoire’s oil paintings sometimes depict a similar intersection. For this exhibit, however, Gregoire focuses most on the light, color and beauty of the natural world; notably the Kansas landscape. All three artists have a straightforward way of communicating their vision. Their work holds no hidden meaning or underlying psychological element. Either you “get it” or you don’t. And with the artwork of Mike Henry, Steve Denny and Colleen Gregoire, Kansans definitely “get it”.

All of the artists will be on hand for the First Friday reception at Beauchamp’s Gallery from 6-8 PM. The public is invited. Their artworks will be on display through the month of June.
Beauchamp’s is Topeka’s premier provider of original fine art, classic custom framing, art restoration/repair, and consulting. Located at 3113 SW Huntoon in the Westboro Mart, Beauchamp’s has been a mainstay of the Topeka arts community for 40 years.