Sunday, May 15, 2011

A Charleston Affair...or two

L ast weekend, I was in my beautiful hometown of Charleston, SC.
It’s always nice to go down to the Lowcountry and soak up the
city just like a tourist.
 

Rainbow Row - downtown Charleston, SC
 




















Last Saturday, I also attended a wedding reception for my good friend Amanda while I was in town.  
She and her husband Steven seem truly in love, and I could not be happier for them. They are such a great couple!

and with another beautiful picture
of the old Cooper River Bridge, a gift from friend Christine.


The happy couple with an original painting of the new
 Cooper River Bridge,
 a gift from Steven's Aunt who is an artist.



 






















I also attended an Art Walk in downtown Charleston and got the chance to meet some artists that call the Lowcountry home. I met local artist,Victoria Pratt Ellis, who is also my mom’s art instructor. Here she stands with one of her many paintings, which encompasses pieces of maps. She paints around the torn map pieces, and her works come together in a jigsaw puzzle fashion.

                              

















Victoria’s artwork can be found at the Ellis-Nicholson Gallery on Broad Street or online at http://www.ellis-nicholsongallery.com/







At COCO VIVO Interiors & Fine Art, I came across this unique silk scarf.

 



Mary Phelps and  Kate Lackett, both Senior Designers, own and operate COCO VIVO Gallery and provide interior design services as well. In addition to their Charleston studio on Broad Street, they also have Coast and Cottage, their flagship studio, located in the seaside town of Boothbay Harbor Maine. For more information or to inquire about an interior design consultation, please visit  Coast and Cottage.





 Local artist Stephanie Shuler Hamlet with her latest colorful series of artwork at Hamlet Gallery

These pieces are all new and are currently untitled; however, she will likely name the piece left of center “Jubilation”.  Stephanie says this series is much more colorful than some of her past works, and she is in a new life phase which makes her happy and has inspired her to incorporate a lot of bright, bold colors in her artwork. For more information about Stephanie's paintings, please visit the website for her gallery at  http://www.hamletgallery.com/.


Over at Bernie Horton Gallery, were some more traditional oil paintings by artist Bernie Horton.  His paintings really capture the natural beauty of the Lowcountry. I like his use of lighting in these paintings,which adds to the overall mood of each piece.


















For more information, visit Bernie Horton Gallery online at http://www.berniehortongallery.com/





A trip to Gallery Row would not be complete without a stop at Atmah Ja's The Art of Core Consciousness Gallery, which doubles as a yoga and massage studio.  Gallery Director and Co-Founder, Atmah Ja, exclusively features the work of dynamic artist Iamikan, a native of West Virginia who draws most of the inspiration for his artwork from nature. Iamikan's pieces mainly consist of abstract works in oils, acylics and epoxy resins on a wide variety of materials such as steel, wood, canvas, glass and shoji pressed paper. Atmah Ja, a certified yoga instructor and massage therapist, met the artist through a mutual friend and discovered that their business goals coincided. The rest was history.

a piece from Iamikan on acrylic glass




another piece from Iamikan constructed on shattered glass

For more information about The Art of Core Consciousness Gallery, please visit http://www.atmahjas.com/



While I was in town, I also made some time for a little window shopping on King Street.....

Spring Clutch by Addlibb Designs at Sally Bette's, $84




Tie Dye dress at Seeking Indigo  

  
Elizabeth McKay Beach Club Dress in Navy Elephant 
 at Sally Bette's, $265


Snakeskin bathing suit by Melissa Odabash,$195
and Dubai coverup by Escapada, $68 at Sally Bette's


 











  
    
 

Sunday, May 1, 2011

Sunday fun @ The Inman Park Spring Festival


Today was a nice, relaxing day in Inman Park, Atlanta's oldest suburb, for the annual Inman Park Spring Festival.  


the Old Trolley Barn at Inman Park

Aside from the heat and humidity, this day could not have been more perfect.


                                       

I very much enjoyed strolling the tree-lined streets and admiring the historic, ornate Victorian homes which the area is known for. All the while, I found myself imagining how I would furnish and landscape such a house if I were to own one. One can dream, can't they?

















This was my first time attending the festival, and I was overall impressed with the number of vendors on display. I wasn't expecting it to be as large as it was. Local artist and illustrator James Dean (not to be confused with THE James Dean), whose famous Pete the Cat art can be found all over the city, had a booth displaying his art work which was a real treat to see.





I especially loved these beautiful collage tree pictures, for sale by another artist. As an artist myself (with an affinity for mosaics as well as collages), I was truly inspired.




All sorts of other nice things could be found as well from home and garden decor to fashion accessories.