FLUID FORMS

Original Exhibit Dates: February 17 to March 7, 2009
The February exhibit at Watson MacRae Gallery, Fluid Forms provides a look at three artists who look to the sea for inspiration. Jill Brougher’s charcoal drawings of shells, Hollis Jeffcoat’s variations on seascapes and Elodie Holmes’ liquid-light glass sculptures give this beautiful exhibit a tranquility that exudes from the masterly crafted work.

Using the Florentine Academy approach of fine marks on toned paper, Jill Brougher has elevated the drawing of shells to high art. The size, composition and formality of her ten works go beyond charcoal drawings and present us with portraits of her beloved Sanibel subjects. Brougher’s placement of one shell within another creates a tableau that is both simple and powerful. Her sensitivity of touch, clear handling of charcoal and smooth surface creates beautiful works that draw us in, and then hold us entranced.

Known as an extraordinary colorist we see Hollis Jeffcoat’s versatility with color in the new small works she created in 2008 that follow her move from New York to Sanibel. The two “Seatuck’s” glimmer and glow from subtle layering. The Lake Series, more geometric with bolder colors, seem flat, but upon longer viewing move and create great space in a little format – exemplifying Hans Hoffman’s concept of “push/pull.” In her new series, Blind Pass Jeffcoat uses a method of fixing pastels she discovered that enables her to maintain the trueness of the color and capture the subtle light of Sanibel exquisitely.

Elodie Holmes is the fourth member of her family to blow glass. Her unique work is hand-sculpted using traditional methods of glass blowing to create modern glass sculptures and functional vessels. The four Aurora sculptures in this exhibit, each with a different palette and organic shape are fascinating front and back. Holmes’ use of color is both clear and complex creating beautiful patterns in her sculptures that remind us of the sea. The thinness of her glass, the graceful forms and breathtaking color tell us she is a Master.