Holiday Arts Tour Stop: Kelly Moore Bag and Embellishments

17th annual Holiday Arts Tour, November 20-23, 2014 Today's Tour Stops include Kelly Moore Bag and Embellishments. Here you will see works by Joey Slaughter and Emma Melville, as well as hear the music of Monty Russell.

Ruston is fortunate in that Kelly Moore  Clark, of Kelly Moore Bag, is one of our local ladies. Kelly ships her camera bags around the globe and she's opened a brick and mortar store right here in downtown Ruston.

For this year's Tour she will host Joey Slaughter. Joey's artwork investigates the "look" of digital information as it is transmitted around us, providing an overabundance of stimuli and therefore, distractions. He combines the hands-on acts of painting and sculpture with digital media, using a blend of tight and loose, machine and man, all working together for a unified whole. The combination of these traditional and non-traditional processes is important to Slaughter, and allows for a play between spontaneity and precision. Joey is Associate Professor of Art at Louisiana Tech's School of Design, as well as Graduate Coordinator and a Gladys Lawson Rogers Endowed Professorship in Liberal Arts. Check out this recent article about Joey in the November issue of Bayou Life.

Monty Russell will kick off the Tour's Friday performances with a show at Kelly Moore Bag from 5-6pm. Monty Russell is a singer, songwriter, Americana radio personality, and concert promoter based in Northern Louisiana. After having been taught to accompany himself by sliding a knife blade over an open E tuned guitar at the age of 8, and having been immersed throughout his youth with the honky-tonk, gospel, western swing, and blues music played by his Grandfather Leon Russell, a rural self-taught barrelhouse piano player, guitarist, and fiddler, Monty set out on a musical journey that has lasted over 30 years. He has played theatres, listening rooms, festivals, honky-tonks, churches, and any other place people would listen.

Over the past decade, he has shared the stage with the likes of Willie Nelson, Dwight Yoakam, Billy Currington, Gary Allan, Little Feat, Merle Haggard, Reckless Kelly, Blues Traveler, Irma Thomas, Marcia Ball, Charlie Daniels, Confederate Railroad, Bucky Covington, Robert Earl Keen, Delbert McClinton, David Alan Coe, Pat Green, Jerry Jeff Walker, Paul Thorn, Cross Canadian Ragweed, Del McCoury, Radney Foster, Reckless Kelly, Pete Anderson, and many others.

Just down the street a bit is Embellishments, a privately owned shop that offers a wide selection of gifts, home decor, bamboo bedding, jewelry and more. Tanya Florence, shop owner, will be hosting Emma Case Melville. Emma is a local potter who's recently begun a line of functional ceramic items, called Chene  Clay Company. For this year's Tour she will be offering an assortment of niche items, such as shaving bowls and yarn bowls, in addition to other more traditional pieces. A shaving bowl--what a great gift for the hard-to-shop-for man! Of her new business Emma says, "My family comes from a place in Louisiana called Bayou Chene. They were a hard-working people who lived off the land and water. Though the community of Bayou Chene was forced to disperse to make way for a spillway, Chene Clay Company is a continuation of the spirit of my family and the people who worked hard to live good lives and give back to their community."  Emma made some beautiful mugs for NCLAC during our Fall 2014 Membership  Drive. Thanks, Emma!

Holiday Arts Tour programming is free and the public is invited to enjoy! HAT is supported in part by a grant from the Louisiana Division of the Arts, Office of Cultural Development, Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism in cooperation with the Louisiana State Arts Council and administered by the Shreveport Regional Arts Council. 

Fall Crawl Is Nearing...

 

Now that we have passed Labor Day, I find myself yearning for Fall. Most of September is officially the fall season, even though Louisiana weather often disagrees. However, everyone is back in school, football has begun, and our minds begin to wander toward pumpkins and cooler weather. To celebrate this new season and enjoy an early evening outdoors, be sure to come downtown for the Fall Crawl. Several arts-businesses in downtown Ruston are joining together for a great evening on September 19, from 5-8pm.

Fine Line Art Supply will be featuring Frank Folino, OFM, of St. Thomas Aquinas. Father Frank’s mixed media paintings, with bold color and deep relief, are expressionistic and engaging. Kelly Moore Bag will be featuring husband and wife photography team Hannah Cooper McCauley and Zachary McCauley. These artists are Masters Candidates at Louisiana Tech and each has been recognized, awarded, published and exhibited nationally in the last year. This is a great opportunity to buy works by artists on the rise. Kelly Moore Bag will also be hosting music by Josh + Jenn.

Be sure to stop by Main Street Exchange, who will be featuring toys created by Christiane Drieling, whose craftsmanship is impeccable. Main Street Exchange’s featured nonprofit of the month is NCLAC—so sales at the shop will support our organization this month! Makers Union will have James Gilcrease from Day Old Blues Records with a pop-up shop chock full of vinyl. He’ll be spinning records, of course, so head over to treat your ears.

Just down the street at Studio 301 is another husband and wife team, Robert and Andi Moran, who will be exhibiting sculptural works.  Robert and Andi are a creative powerhouse, with experience as designers of furniture, ceramics, lighting and more.  Around the corner at Pastry Moon, owner Bonnie Ferguson will have her new autumn soaps as well as the artists she regularly features, such as Dorene Kordal’s felt, Whitney Caskey’s photography, and Lora Lee’s jewelry. I hear a buzz about a musician at Pastry Moon as well... Frame of Mind will be exhibiting new works by artist Peter Hay, who recently graduated from LA Tech’s MFA program, but has since moved back to Oklahoma. Peter is a fine printmaker and painter, with a style rooted in surrealism, often depicting beautifully illustrated animal imagery.

At the Dixie Center for the Arts, Dubach artist Nina Stephens’ oil paintings will be featured. As a self-taught artist, Nina channels her emotions and energy by creating pieces that represent personal journeys along with locally inspired pieces and animal portraits. Art Innovations is joining the Fall Crawl, and will have an installation titled A Walk in the Woods, featuring bird houses and bows by Francis Carson, and small paintings by Jackie Cochran. Alexandria Bozeman will be on site creating “Energy Portraits,” and there’s rumor of hot dogs and s’mores!

Plans are still begin generated, with conversations about food, music, and book readings, so be sure to mark this date on your calendar. If you remember, there was a Spring Crawl earlier this year, and there were people everywhere! It was a wonderful night. Let’s make it happen again. Grab a friend and head downtown after work. Join our facebook event for continued details.

Today's Art Talk Monday is written by Jessica Slaughter, NCLAC Executive Director

Dog Days of Summer - Art Crawls in downtown Ruston

Galleries and arts businesses will be participating in downtown Ruston’s Dog Days Art Crawls: June 4^th and 18^th, and July 9^th and 30^th. Arts enthusiasts are invited to each location to view work by local artists, enjoy live performances, and more. Participating sites include: Kelly Moore Bag, Makers Union, North Central LA Arts Council at the Dixie Center for the Arts, PAIR Gallery, Studio 301, Pastry Moon with Frame of Mind, Fine Line Art Supply with Stitchville, and Main Street Exchange.

Each location will feature its own art-happening, which will vary by location throughout the summer. Dog Days Art Crawl hours are 7-10pm, and the activities are free of charge.

Here at the Dixie Center for the June dates, NCLAC will be featuring fine woodworking by the Dudgedemona Woodcarving Guild of Jackson Parish. Members of the guild use techniques such as turning and carving to make beautiful art objects for the home.

Across the street at PAIR Gallery, Gallery Director MC Davis has assembled a show titled Local Art at Local Prices, featuring work by many of our region's artists...priced to sell.

Each of the participating locations will be open late, so enjoy these warm Wednesday nights and come out for the Dog Days Art Crawls!

For more information, contact the NCLAC office at nclac5@gmail.com, or by phone at (318)255-1450. For more details about activities, contact each location directly.