Light Conversations

Nearly each of those years, the artists in the collective open up their studios to the public the weekend before Thanksgiving. Though Jason won’t be one of the artists sharing his work this fall, he will be busy with his own group show called “Elemental: Metal, Wood, Paper” with fellow artists Bryan Webster and Sarah Vandermeer. The show will be open to the public on Friday, October 4 from 5-9 p.m. and Sunday, October 6 from 12-5.

Join us for a conversation with Eliza Fernand, local artist whose work has involved all of our GRPS 4th graders in her newest work at the grounds of the Grand Rapids Public Museum during Project 1: Crossed Lines, a temporary public art exhibition brought to you by ArtPrize. That work is called “Flexible Fence,” and is a six foot tall wooden fence, created in two intersecting circles 14 feet across.

You may have seen her work at Rise Authentic Baking’s new storefront, where she has a large mural of her line drawing portraits, or at one of the many shops and galleries that carry her work in the area. We talk to Chelsea about her own artwork, and the growth she’s had in her own work over the years, as well as how she feels she had no choice but to become an artist. We dive into those assumptions society has about artists—we’re sad, tortured, disorganized, starving, all cutting off our ears—and how Chelsea’s own work seems a contrast to all of those assumptions. It’s full of joy and energy, with a lyrical quality to much of her line work.

Nora walks us through the process of working with clayboard, and why she uses this particular material, as well as telling us all the steps from acrylic to oil paints to leaves to sand to anything she can find that draws her interest.

To learn more about her life as an artist—including her life on the road in The Green Bus, a smaller school bus converted into a traveling tiny home that she, her husband, and their toddler Daisy traveled in throughout the U.S. and Canada—while Shelby sold her artwork along the way.

Lisa could be described as a “recession success story,” and admits she started small—including writing down what she wanted in a notebook—after an interview ended with the interviewer noting that he didn’t think she wanted the job she was there to interview for, and suggested she do what she wanted to do. She explains how she made that happen, including ending up running artgoodies and vintagegoodies, and getting her work featured on huge platforms like Apartment Therapy, Better Homes and Gardens, Real Simple, The Today Show, and the list goes on.

She creates prints, cards, enamel pins, stickers, baby leggings, and more—including the popular “We go together like Frida Kahlo’s eyebrows” print/card. In our conversation, she talks about the inspiration for that piece, and talks about how much of her work is inspired by her love of nature.

But Sierra also makes woven scarves on a loom, and spins her own raw wool to make yarn. But Sierra also makes fine art work, featuring her fibers as well. We talk about her collaborative work with Tom Duimstra, combining her ethereal wool pieces with Tom’s industrial wood scraps. We also get to learn more about her collaborative work with Barbara Lash called The Department Project, creating a series of yarn bombing, adding color to the formerly-drab parking lot that now hosts Movies on Monroe with DGRI.

In this conversation, we learn about the process of inlay in woodworking and where Steve finds his inspiration and the role design plays in his decisions. “Function is secondary in everything I make,” says Steve. He calls his shelves “sculptural shelves,” and his shelves and other works are all one of a kind.

We get a chance to talk to him about his journey to pottery and how his time as an apprentice with a well-established potter taught him not just the craft of ceramics but the business of art, as well.