Kate Breakey’s “Painted Light”

Friday, November 12, 2010 , posted by Laura Roberts | (94) Comments

 The Stephen L. Clark Gallery held a book signing for Kate Breakey’s Painted Light by University of Texas Press on Sunday night.   This is a follow up to her first book Small Deaths and is very much a retrospective from her earliest mathematical work and still lives through small deaths of flowers and birds, cacti, and memories and dreams.

A Kate Breakey opening at the gallery is always a fun event.   Andrea caught some fun photos of Kate meeting photographer James Evans for the first time and also Kate signing book.   Do you know anyone in this photo?

I am quite a fan of Kate’s work and by lucky chance own the front and back cover of her first book.  Upon opening the front leaf of Painted Light for her to personalize her signing to Steve and me – my friend and client Sondra Murray and I gasp and look at each other when we see a horse that looks like a mystical being galloping on the sand.   We have been looking for just the right horse photo for her family room.  Kate advises us that almost all of the photos in the book are on display at The Wittliff Collections at Texas State-San Marcos where they had a book signing the evening before.

My Photos friend, Andrea Turner, pipes in that she would love to join us if we take a trip to San Marcos.   The deal was done.   We enjoyed a lovely morning at the Wittliff Gallery.   It was an easy trip down I-35.   Andrea’s comment at the exhibit was that it gave her a whole new appreciation for Kate as an artist and for just how hard she works.   All of us felt it was a precursor to a museum show.

If you make the short trip from Austin then have lunch at Palmer’s and sit in the garden paradise as Bill Wittliff suggested to us. Congratulation to Kate for another beautiful and enduring book. You can get signed copies at the Stephen L. Clark Gallery.  Painted Light at the Wittliff Gallery runs until February 4, 2011. Thank you for the photos Andrea.

“That might be the best art wall I’ve ever seen!”

Monday, May 03, 2010 , posted by Laura Roberts | (40) Comments

I ran in to Stephen Clark at the Lance Letscher opening and he said the hottest thing at AIPAD, The Association of International Art Dealers, in New York were Kate Breakey’s photograms. They were hung salon style and stopped people in their tracks. The Photograms were also presented salon style at the Stephen L. Clark Gallery in Austin last summer. Steve told his assistant Amber “that might be the best art wall I’ve ever seen” and encouraged her to sign the wall.

Shortly after Steve’s accolades to Amber, a collector couple from Houston with a large photography and painting collection walked in to the gallery and the woman turned to her husband and said “Honey – that may be the best art wall I’ve ever seen.”

Photograms were invented in the 1700s. No camera is involved in the process. The object is laid upon a photosensitive material (silver gelatin in this case). The light source (enlarger) is turned on and the image is rendered on the paper. All of the animals and plants Kate uses are found objects.

According to Time Magazine, Anne Tucker is the foremost curator in the world. She is the curator of Photography at the Houston Museum of Fine Arts. Steve and Anne were discussing Houston’s Foto Fest at AIPAD in New York. Steve asked why no one has emerged from Foto Fest since Keith Carter? Ann pointed to the wall of media invented in the 1700s and said “Nobody is this fresh”.

The Coyote is an edition of 3. The others are editions of 10. Even though they are editions, each is unique. All of the smaller pieces are presented in vintage frames.

Kate Beakey has a new book titled Painted Light that will be out in October. In 2012, an entire Photogram book will be published.

The studio hanging of the Photograms are still available for viewing.  The gallery is located at the corner of 6th and Baylor, hours are Tues –Saturday 10-4 and by appointment.