by Paulette Thenhaus

This is a special edition of the Art View column intended for those who are interested in professional Galesburg artists who maintain studios, exhibit regularly, receive awards and perhaps have artworks for sale.

The objective is to promote the invited artists to the general public for the purposes of commerce, collection and documentation.

Here are profiles of 16 of the finest Galesburg fine artists.

Ric has this to say about his work: "I believe that my work reflects my years as a photographer. I attempt to capture that one frozen moment in my subject’s life that I hope can be translated through something as rigid as steel. Much of my work currently centers around ballet dancers as they rest or exercise, a much loved subject during my time with cameras." His price range is $45 to …. He can be reached at ric_larson@hotmail.com or (309) 734-9373.

Mary is a Galesburg native with a studio open by appointment at 957 N. Seminary Street. She is best known for her portraits of people and animals. She also does traditional silhouettes and Christmas portrait miniatures. Mary accepts commissions by contract. Her work is regularly shown in the Quad Cities, Galesburg, Monmouth and Springfield. This year she won a painting prize in the Galex National Exhibition. She is represented in the Rifkin Collection in Chicago. Her price range is negotiable. She can be contacted at (309) 342-5762.

Tom Foley was born in Galesburg. His father, Bill, is also a native. Both Tom’s professional studio and private studio are located in the same building, the old Brown’s Business College in downtown Galesburg. Though the private studio is not open to the public, Tom’s black and white photos can be seen in the Galesburg Civic Art Center’s gift shop. Price range is $100 and up. He has this to say about his work: "My photography attempts to show the places, people and culture of the American Midwest. I capture and make images of my surroundings both with film (or wet) cameras and electronic digital cameras. My pictures are mostly clear and direct, but some are abstract and blurred." He can be reached at (309) 342-9411 or e-mail foley96@galesburg.net

Originally from Chicago, Carla met her husband, Tom Foley, through Studios Midwest. She then relocated from California. Her studio is also in the old Brown’s Business College, on the second floor. It is available to the public by appointment. Carla’s artwork is oil on canvas, representational landscapes, portraits and, recently, still life paintings. She accepts commissions for drawings and paintings of portraits and homes. Carla shows regularly at area art centers and has an upcoming group show at the Peoria Art Guild (July 9). She has work in several public collections in California. After teaching for six years at Monmouth College, she will be offering classes in her studio this fall. Price range for her drawings start at $100, and $300 for paintings. Contact her at 3443-8923 or carlamarkwart.com

John Vellenga is not native to Galesburg, but he has lived in Monmouth since 1955 and has working and other ties to Galesburg. His photography studio on the 9th floor of the BTC Building at 620 S. Main Street in Monmouth is open to the public by appointment. John is best known for his black and white photography of landscape and portraits. He accepts commissions of some commercial work and portraits. His work is shown locally and has received awards. In the 2000 Galex Exhibit he received the Best of Show, and in 2002 a second place in "Photography as Art Object" at Western Illinois University. His price range is $85—$800. He can be contacted at (309) 734-6902 or Vellengaphoto@gallatinriver.net or by mail at 620 S. Main Street #15, Monmouth, IL 61462.

Harland Goudie arrived in Galesburg to teach art at Knox College. His studio is located in his basement and garage workshop. It is not available to visitors. Much of his early work was abstract. This is particularly true of the intaglio prints which he did during his studying with Mauricio Lasansky at the State University of Iowa and which he continued to do in the studio at Knox College. Later he gradually did work that was clearly representational. This began at Iowa in a series of figure paintings. In recent years he has been doing landscapes near a summer retreat on Ashley lake near Kalispell, Montana and in areas north of Galesburg. At present he is doing 3D portraits of his parents.

Harland is known for his prints and/or 3D paintings. He does pro-bono portraits of Knox College faculty and administrators. Though he does not show regularly, he did have a show at the Gilman Gallery in Chicago for his 3D work. Later one of the paintings, "The Watchers," was part of a Pop Art show at the University of Missouri in Columbia. Harland has an extensive exhibition record including many one-man shows. He is also represented in a number of museums and private collections. His work has been reproduced in Printmaking Today (book), American Artist, Art in America and Artist’s Proof.

He comments: It might be interesting to some that during the Korean War I was called back into the Navy and sent to Pacific Fleet Headquarters at Pearl Harbor where I produced series panels named "Navy Heroes" and "Little Known Facts About Your Navy" for publication in American newspapers. As to his price range, he jokes: "The interested party should know that they will have to negotiate with a Scotsman who is loaded with Viking DNA." Harland can be contacted at (309) 342-3095.

Joanne is not a native. She moved here in 1954 with her husband, Harland Goudie. Her main studio is in the home, though some works are done on site in Galesburg, Montana and Fairview Heights. Her studio is not open to the public.

At present, her primary medium is oil paint; the subject matter, landscape or still-life. She also does beadwork, stitchery, paper mache, collage, photography "and anything that catches my fancy." Joanne has taught at Carl Sandburg College. She has done murals, and one is on display at the Carl Sandburg Educational Technology Center; another is on view at the Muscatine, Iowa Power Administrative Building. She may accept mural commissions and does ink drawings of homes.

Though she does not regularly show work, in the past she has frequently entered and won awards at Art Center shows and other regional exhibits. Her thesis paintings are at the State University of Iowa. Decorah College in Iowa has one of her still lifes in its collection. Her jewelry is in the Galesburg Civic Art Center gift shop. Joanne can be contacted by phone at (309) 342-3095 or by mail at 691 Jefferson Street in Galesburg.

Coming from Switzerland in 1982, Werner found affordable property in rural Galesburg. His wife, Sharon, was from this area. Werner’s studio is private. "I like to do my artwork in quiet, without interference from the public," he says.

Werner is most known for his landscapes in acrylics and figurines carved of local basswood. The commercial (selling) aspects of art are no longer of interest to him, as he states that he is over 70 years old and retired. He does regularly take part in GCAC and other regional shows. In 1984 he received a Galex purchase award. Besides the GCAC collection, he is also in the permanent collection of the Museum of Fine Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Werner has this to say: "Having been a stage backdrop painter (large formats, 36 feet x 65 feet) for many years, my work is still representational and I enjoy painting the local landscape with its pronounced seasons." An example of Werner’s large-scale painting is a mural at the Knox County Humane Society. Werner is not available for commissions.

Originally from St. Louis, I came to Galesburg as a graduate student (SIU-C) for Studios Midwest in 1986. Before that I lived and taught at Berkeley, California for six years. I returned to Galesburg in 1990 as Director of the Art Center.

My studio is located on the second floor of a downtown storefront. It is available only through invitation. My paintings are views that combine landscape and still-life. They are loosely representational with emphasis on high-key color. I am not a portrait painter but would accept commissions for most other subjects, including homes and property.

My work is exhibited regularly in the region and beyond. Major awards include a $3,000 top prize/purchase award from the Evansville Museum of Art and Science (Indiana) and a Best-in-Show and purchase in Watercolor ’89 at Eastern Illinois University. Among works in collections are two paintings purchased by the Illinois Percent for Art at the Giant City Lodge in Southern Illinois, one in the Cincinnati Bell Collection and also the GCAC and Peoria Art Guild. My general price range is $150—$2,000. I can be contacted at (309) 342-3547.

Originally from Galesburg, Tom was "transplanted" to the Chicago suburbs and returned to Galesburg about twenty years ago. His Studio 214 is "nestled amidst a forest-like setting between a small quiet street and a country timber." His studio is available for business by appointment and invitation, though drop-by patrons are welcome "to see what is being hammered on the anvil."

Sculpture is Tom’s main avenue of expression. These range from representational to semi-abstract figurative subjects. His main medium is hammered and welded steel, though he ventures into bronze, copper and chiseled stone. He also paints. Best known for his interpretive, stylized treatment of the human figure, Tom uses Cor Ten steel for permanence. Eighty percent of Tom’s work is via commission.

Public outdoor display works include the Orion Methodist Church; Scott County, Iowa Schools; Lutheran Trinity Church, Galesburg; the Dick Blick Home Office and the Seminary Street Pub architectural gate design. There are other indoor public works throughout Illinois, Iowa and Wisconsin.

The most recent honor was to have a public sculpture, "The Gossips," selected as the People’s Choice Award and eventually have it purchased for the "Downtown Davenport on Second" program. The life-sized work is a part of the new art development on Second Street, along with the building of the new Figge Art Center. Upcoming exhibits for Tom include Art-in-the-Park, the new Moline International Airport Gallery (July-August), Riversance in Davenport (September), the Mid Coast Gallery West in Rock Island (two-man show, March).

Of his work, Tom says, "My challenge in metal sculpture is to apply heat, hammer and torch to cold lifeless steel in such a way that will transform it into a fluid form. In essence I hope to…make steel dance."

Tom’s price range is $300—$5,000. He can be contacted at (309) 289-6851 or lytle@galesburg.net or 214 W. Grove Street, Knoxville, IL 61448.dance."

Marjorie is from New York, just outside New York City. She came here when she recently accepted a teaching position at Monmouth College. Currently her studio is in her home, though she will soon be moving to Monmouth. While her works are in storage for the move, she has slides of her work to show clients. Marjorie describes her work: "My paintings are done in acrylic and are very organic, expressionistic, abstract works growing from my interest in the subtle movements and the rich presence of nature. In the past the spirituality of nature was the primary inspiration of my work, but now I’m growing just as interested in cosmology. The color in my work tends to be bold, whether they are bright or earthy colors. I sometimes also do watercolor or oil pastel on paper. These may be abstract or realistic with slight abstraction."

As to accepting commissions, Marjorie says, "I was commissioned by the Metropolitan Transit Authority in New York to design a glass mural for a train station in Mount Vernon, just north of the Bronx in New York City. It consisted of twelve 4’ x 4’ panels. I also painted a cow (of my own painting style) for Cow Parade NY 2000. I have also done a couple of murals and some decorative wall painting in private homes. I would love to do more public commissions as well as paintings for people’s homes – these might be wall-hung paintings or murals/decorative work."

A significant award for Marjorie was a 2002 Arts Award from the City of Mt. Vernon in recognition of the glass mural designed for their renovated train station. She also won several small artist’s grants in New York. A show of her paintings is now on view at the Galesburg Civic Art Center till June 13th. She can be reached by e-mail at quinacridone@yahoo.com

Sheridale is a Galesburg native. Her studio is in her home and it is available by appointment to the public. She also displays and sells work through From the Heart at 67 S. Seminary St. in Galesburg. Of her work, she says: "I look for the details in life, especially in nature. The microcosms that make up the whole picture. I prefer to work on natural products such as gourds and wood. I burn in details and paint (or not) with acrylics."

Sheridale does commissions and "loves the challenge of designing, detailing and interpreting customers’ ideas to fit their world." Her prices vary from piece to piece but "are affordable in a wide price range." The public can contact her at (309) 342-6294 or sheridale@webtv.net

*Note a name change from Hopping to Davis.

Susie is a Galesburg native. Her studio is in her home but her favorite, most used location is outside with nature. The space is available by appointment. Friends drop by on a regular basis. She describes her work as colorful, honest and evolving. Susie is best know for pottery, especially pieces for the garden and finer, one-of-a-kind bowls, platters and wall pieces glazed in a colorful and painterly manner. She recently began painting on canvas. Her clay tile mosaic work is on display in the Discovery Depot. A six-foot mosaic is in the Bates Collision Center.

Susie’s price range is wide – from a few dollars for small pieces to several hundred for larger clay pieces and paintings. She regularly shows at outdoor art fairs – Galesburg’s Art in the Park and Walnut Grove Farm in Knoxville (October and November), among them. On Saturdays she might be found at the Farmer’s Market. About her work she comments: "I create mostly to make people feel good about what they see with a style distinctly my own." Susie can be reached by phone: (309) 343-3615 or e-mail susie_designer@hotmail.com

Michael is not a Galesburg native but his wife Heather is. Both are Knox graduates; Michael in ’89, Heather in ’90. His studio is available by appointment only. It is located at the corner of North and Prairie Streets.

Acerra is a realist leaning toward traditional subject matter: still-lifes, portraiture, landscape and figurative, genre painting. He is recognized for his murals at Chez Willy’s and Mother Goosebumps. He accepts custom artwork in murals and portraits. In October he will have shows at both The Innkeepers and Chez Willy’s.

Michael can be reached by phone at (309) 341-4346; e-mail at acerra@grics.net; mail at 325 N. Prairie Street, Galesburg. www.acerrastudios.com has all the information you may need.

Mary is originally from Michigan, but lived in Illinois a few years before moving to Oklahoma. There she taught at Phillips University, where she met her husband, Rick Sayre. They moved to Galesburg when he took the position of Director of the Library at Monmouth College. Mary’s home studio faces north on the upper floor. It is available by appointment to visitors.

Mary works in a variety of media, particularly 2-D and water-based, such as watercolors, acrylics and inks. She also works in pastels and graphite. She works both representationally and abstractly, often with a reference to nature. Besides her painting, she is known for her calligraphy, and accepts commissions for both.

Locally, Mary has displayed at Chez Willy’s, the GCAC and The Innkeepers. Among awards she has received are the Dodge City, Kansas Art Show and the Maryland Pastel Society Show. Mary is in the Siena Heights University Collection. As to prices, her small watercolors start at about $125 and larger paintings at about $400. Mary can be reached by phone at (309) 343-8614; e-mail at phillips@monm.edu; mail at 1673 N. Kellogg Street.