Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation

2009 Featured Artist: Liz Heeren

Trying to find a recognizable object in a work of nonfigurative art can be futile. What inspires abstract art can be drawn from the world around or from deep within the artist herself.

"It's not as easy as taking something in front of you and simply reconstructing it in a different way," 2009 featured artist Liz Heeren says. "Sometimes it goes so far that you lose the connection to the physical object, and you're relying on intuition."

That was the case when Heeren created "Collective Momentum." Her sensibilities about the changing urban landscape came together with her curiosity about how human technology interacts with the natural environment. The result, Heeren says, has "a spontaneity that resonates with the pace and momentum in Sioux Falls right now. There's a quickness to it and a smattering of many different colors and qualities that gel into a cohesive whole."

At least that's what she experiences as she looks out from her studio window, where she's encouraged to see signs of renewed public interest in aesthetics -- downtown revitalization, "green" architecture, and SculptureWalk.

"The potential for growth in an artist's perspective happens really naturally when this type of optimism is there, she says referring to the city's cultural evolution. "To me, it's a playing field with no boundaries.

See Heeren's work at Ipso Gallery, 400 N. Main Avenue, or at www.lizheeren.com online.

	2008 Featured Artist: Gary Hartenhoff Gary Hartenhoff developed an early interest in visual arts and took every course offered in high school. His painted designs on cars and store windows let to his own business, Hart Signs. His years of sign painting and graphics experience proved a solid foundation when, in 1989, he moved to southern California to study oil painting. There, he learned from professional fine artists scattered along the Pacific coastline. Hartenhoff returned to Sioux Falls and brings his full experience to the still-life subjects and Midwest landscapes he most enjoys painting. "Sunday Picnic," which depicts the long-gone Seney Island, is representative of his style and interest.
	2007 Featured Artist: Sheila Agee Like most of her work, "Nature's Gift" is a composite of scenes she gathers from a variety of resources. Sheila's hilltop studio between Sioux Falls and Brandon affords her a panoramic view of the prairie. Neighbors have given her an open invitation to roam their land, which boasts an abundance of natural grasslands and wooded thickets. The artist takes advantage of their hospitality often, photographing and painting en plein air as she discovers new scenes to capture. As an artist, Sheila bears in mind the importance of light and a sense of place before choosing the best path for each painting. Her work reflects the peace she finds in the outdoors.
	2006 Featured Artist: Carl Grupp Carl believes everything he creates becomes autobiographical in some way. "Arrowhead Tea Party joins his love of Arrowhead Park -- the nature area east of Sioux Falls on Highway 42 gifted to the city by Dale and Dorothy Weir through SFACF -- and his attraction to a silver tea service he spotted while visiting friends. He originally conceptualized a still life and arranged the tea service on a marble table top that reflected the vibrant oranges he added. Since the idea was still taking shape, he photographed the created scene, and tucked it away to focus on other projects. One of those projects was vistiting Arrowhead Park to photograph the frogs that inhapit the area. His treks to the park inspired him to blend the borrowed tea set with an outdoor landscape.
	2005 Featured Artist: Mary Selvig Gardening enriches Mary's life. Her fondness for the growing things that are so much a part of her world shines through in the richness of the watercolors she used to create "Pathways to Good." Mary chose to focus on the wildflowers and vegetation that might appear along a traveler's path rather than the path itself. "The pathway is implied," she says. "I'm attracted to plants in the natural world and their exquisite interaction of color, texture, and pattern."
	2004 Featured Artist: Paul Schiller A picture is worth a thousand words. But the striking images captured by Paul Schiller say much more. Known for his bold, vibrant images of nature, Paul is especially fond of macro photography. Captured clos up, what seems ordinary becomes extraordinary. In this case, his in-laws' back door led to the source of inspiration for "Abundance". When he chanced upon the fruit-laden grapevine during a stroll through their yard, he knew he had the perfect image to commemorate SFACF's 20th anniversary.
	2003 Featured Artist: Mary Groth Country Living says Mary Groth’s “evocative images reveal a strong sense of place and the vitality of the people of the plains.” The assessment bears out in “Mary’s Home Cooking.“ In this piece, her choice of palette is inspired by the warm golden tones that bathe South Dakota on a late summer afternoon. The setting sun's light washes across the figures in the foreground, casting shadows on the storefront behind them, turning windows a deep gray blue. The daytime breeze has calmed to a mere whisper that ruffles a hemline and gently lifts the woman's hair from her face. Like most of Mary’s work, this piece contains an element of mystery: the man in a suit. His demeanor is hidden as he looks down and fiddles with something in his hands. “He’s someone to speculate about; draw your own conclusions,” the artist teases.
	2002 Featured Artist: Chad Mohr During his lifetime, Chad Mohr has produced thousands of drawings and illustrations. While subject and design inevitably change, two elements remain constant: his cross-hatching technique and circles. Circles appear prominently in virtually all of his creative work and many of his commercial pieces. In this piece, "An Endless Harvest," Mohr’s trademark represents the sun, something he believes sustains everything on Earth. In Mohr’s “An Endless Harvest," the sun represents SFACF donors who take the time to volunteer, share their treasure, and use their creativity to make the Sioux Falls area an even better place to live. The light they shine nurtures seeds planted for an endless harvest that will be reaped for generations to come.
	2001 Featured Artist: Martha Baker The Big Sioux River at the south edge of Yankton Trail Park inspired Martha's design for the 2001 annual report. "A Legacy is Like a River" is a multiple-color print, a single image pulled from the artist's original artwork. Martha began by drawing the scene freehand and tracing the sketch onto a rubber mat. After deciding to use ten colors of pigment, she carved away part of the image, applied the lightest color to the mat, and made thefirst impression on paper. She repeated the carving and pressing process until all the colors had been used and the final image emerged.
	2000 Featured Artist: Marian Henjum Little is known about the "1888 Barn." The barn was rumored to have been designed by Wallace Dow, the same architect who designed the Old Courthouse Museum and historical landmarks in Sioux Falls. The barn was originally located in East Sioux Falls, a town known for quarrying. When the Panic of 1893 hit and the town fell into decay, many of the buildings were moved to new sites. Historians say the barn was at its present location by 1916. In the height of its use, the barn was probably used for stables and housing buggies and wagons. Today, the barn is a part of Arrowhead Park, located between Sioux Falls and Brandon.