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Painted Paper Collage by Daniel Heron

"Dwellings," 48" x 32" Painted Paper Collage, $1,600

"Checkered Animal," 31" x 34" Painted Paper Collage, $1,050

"Faithful Wounds," 9.5" x 12.5" Painted Paper Collage, $200

"The Visitation," 9.5" x 12.5" Painted Paper Collage, $200

"Tulum," 20.5" x 30.5" Painted Paper Collage, $600

"RedRabbit," 24" x 36" Painted Paper Collage, $900

"Saddle Blanket," 20.5" x 31.5" Painted Paper Collage, $640

"Smoke Dancing," 24.5" x 42.5" Painted Paper Collage, $1,000

Coming November/ December 2012
The Proverbial Art Show: Painted Paper Collage by Daniel Heron
Meet the Artist Reception: Saturday, November 10th from 6:00 - 8:00 p.m.

Daniel Heron was born in Detroit in 1948 to Millard and Estelle. His father was a Baptist minister, who along with his mother, gave him a strong foundation for life. His mom fostered his early interest in art by providing him with painting and drawing lessons.

The artist's work is inspired by early native American arts in all of its forms —- the colorful geometrics of the Great Plains tribes' bead work, the Navajo' weavings, the Mimbres' pottery, the designs and motifs painted on teepees -- horses, weapons, faces; and the mysterious rock paintings found all over the American West. He draws from these earthy primitive colors, textures, designs and stylized figures and combines these elements to create new abstract forms. He has also been influenced by the abstract expressionists.

Heron began marketing his paintings in 1997 when Billy Hoxie, then owner of Watermelon Sugar Gallery in Traverse City, Michigan, first accepted his work. About a year later, the artist met Joe DeLuca. Joe is well-known throughout the Midwest for his abstract paintings and is a retired art professor from Western Michigan University. His advice and mentoring have greatly shaped Heron's work.

See the above eight paintings at Gallery Fifty now or call for more information: 231-932-0775.

Time, Space and Matter: Paintings by Amy Kerr Hardin

Turtles, All the Way Down
Oil on Canvas, 16" x 40", $1,000

Microcosm
Oil on Canvas with Mixed Media, 24" x 24", $700

Orrery
Oil on Canvas, 48" x 48", $1,500

Apeiron
Oil on Canvas, 36" x 48", $1,400

Musica Universalis
Oil on Canvas, 48" x 36", $1,400

Arts and Letters
Oil on Canvas, 24" x 48", $1,200

Paper Chase
Oil on Canvas, 30" x 24", $1,000

Coriolis
Oil on Canvas, 40" x 30", $1,200

Brother-Sister
Oil on Canvas, 36" x 24", $1,000

Mother-Daughter
Oil on Canvas, 36" x 24", $1,000

Father-Son
Oil on Canvas, 30" x 24", $900

Amy Kerr Hardin has been an oil painter for four decades ever since she discovered painting at the age of twelve. At about the same time she entered junior high school and took a science class titled “Time, Space, and Matter”. Here she gained a lifelong fascination with the physical universe - - those properties known and those of theory became Amy’s area of interest.

This collection titled “Time, Space, and Matter” is an homage to that long-ago science class which inspired that nascent artist with an inquisitive mind.

Mythology, fantasy, and the world of dreams is woven into these works. Amy also took inspiration from the study of the human mind’s perception of the universe. Bilateralisation, also known as “left-brain/right-brain” plays an important role in this collection. Each piece stimulates both the linear left hemisphere and the holistic right hemisphere. These paintings represent both our inner and outer universes.

Amy’s style is bold and meant to be attention-grabbing. They are not intended to be the docile companions of beige sofas. Her works have been purchased regionally, nationally and internationally by collectors with an eye for her bold style and confident hand.

Amy maintains a busy studio overlooking the beautiful woods of Williamsburg, Michigan. Each season brings new light and new inspiration to her and her work.

The show will be up through September 6, 2011. Please contact Gallery Fifty at 231-932-0775 to inquire about Amy's work.

James Blanchard's "Fordite" Jewelry

Fordite (or “Detroit Agate”) was taken in its raw form from the spray booth at the Ford River Rouge plant in the 1970s. Chunks of layered automotive paint were painstakingly scraped from the conveyor, then cut and polished into gems. Patterns emerge from the Fordite depending on the angle of the cut or depth of the polishing. Since technology has replaced the spray booth, Fordite is becoming increasingly rare and valuable.

Is that a... ring!?

James Blanchard makes jewelry because it feels good. Each tiny sculpture he creates inspires him to make another. Working primarily in sterling silver, clean lines are formed using simple geometry and balance. He considers his approach to be “contemporary.”

Typically, his pieces are constructed using bright metal and a gemstone as the focal point. Lately, he’s been experimenting with Fordite cabochons set in oxidized sterling settings that have been filed to create a distressed finish.

Because he didn’t go to art school, he considers himself an artist of his own making. James rarely works from sketches, relying on an uncanny ability to transmit designs directly from his brain to his hands. His hope is that the work stimulates the senses and evokes questions.

James shows at about 5 art fairs annually and is represented exclusively through Gallery Fifty in his hometown of Traverse City, Michigan.