DAN WELDEN

“A Welden print is unmistakable. His masterful use of color and abstract forms create a compelling presence in a room.”
— Coco Myers

“My work deals with ‘landscape’. It stems from the vision of a country hillside where animals walk or meander. The trodden pathways become obvious to the keen observer, whereas the grasses appear different under raking light. There is no regularity nor formality in these pathways, but the compositional patterns deal with a playful element that provide my foundation for color.

While creating these works, I sometimes put myself in the animals’ mindset, without concerns of anything else. I do not think, but simply allow my passion to experiment with brush, pencil or ink in full participation of “being” in the present.” — DW

Dan Welden was born in the Bronx and received his BA and MA at Adelphi University. His art education and training came from the Akademie der Bildenden Kunst in Munich, Germany. Welden is a master printmaker and the originator of a technique called Solarplate. He has been making prints and works on paper for over fifty years and has collaborated with many artists, including Robert Dash, Willem and Elaine de Kooning, Jimmy Ernst, Dan Flavin, William King, David Salle, and Eric Fischl, among many others. He has has led printmaking workshops around the world and has taught at several colleges in the New York area. He is a past president of the Society of American Graphic Artists and current director of Hampton Editions, Ltd. in Sag Harbor, Long Island, where he maintains a studio.

Dan Welden is the original pioneer of alternative health and safety oriented movement of printmaking and co-author of the book "Printmaking in the Sun.” He has collaborated with artists including Willem de Kooning, Kiki Smith, David Salle, Eric Fischl, Lynda Benglis, Jack Youngerman, Roy Nicholson, Kurt Vonnegut and Dan Flavin among many others.

His artistic span of over fifty years has brought him to international residencies, where he conducted lectures and workshops in 53 countries. With 92 solo exhibitions, including his paramount show at the Cape Cod Museum of Art, they have brought him a “Lifetime Achievement Award’ from A/E foundation in NY. He was also honored with "Professor Emeritus" at the Escuela de Belles Artes in Cuzco, Peru. Most recently, he is featured in the soon to be released, one hour documentary film “Lasting Impressions”.

Welden's work has been shown in over eighty international solo exhibitions in museums and galleries and over 700 group exhibitions in the U.S., Europe, China, Japan, Switzerland, Australia, New Zealand and Peru. Welden’s work is also in many public and private collections throughout the country including the Amity Art Foundation, Darien, CT; Baltimore Museum of Art, MD; Portland Museum of Art, OR; and Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, among many others.

Welden by Jaime Lopez

Welden by Jaime Lopez

ARTIST’S CAROUSEL

rotating exhibit of current & recently sold work

DAN WELDEN speaks to folioeast’s COCO MYERS

CM/ WHAT MEDIUMS ARE YOU CURRENTLY WORKING IN??

DW/ Two dimensional works on paper. Also mixed media on canvas. I use pencils, ink, acrylics.

CM/ WHAT IS YOUR CREATIVE PROCESS?

DW/ My creative process revolves around experimentation, as opposed to concept. Materials, whatever they be, will dictate the formation of the composition. Usually, the work is bold at first and then refined and delicate towards its completion. Based primarily on nature and landscape, process can intervene.

CM/ WHAT BROUGHT YOU TO THE EAST END?

DW/ Not one thing, but many things and many people. There was a huge void in printmaking, and the numbers of artists that called my name lured me towards the East End.

CM/ WHEN DO YOU FEEL MOST CREATIVE? IS THERE A SEASON YOU PREFER?

DW/ Winter is my favorite time because there are less people. There is no special creative time. Creativity is always within me.

CM/ YOU KNEW AND WORKED WITH MANY OF THE ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISTS OUT HERE. DO YOU FEEL A CONNECTION TO THIS PERIOD?

DW/ Absolutely yes.

CM/ WHICH ARTISTS’ WORK DO YOU LIVE WITH?

DW/ The East End artists that I have in my home are Willem and Elaine de Kooning, Eric Fischl, Dan Flavin, Jack Youngerman, Lynda Benglis, Kiki Smith, Roy Nicholson, Jimmy Ernst, David Salle, James Brooks, Esteban Vicente, Robert Gwathmey, Robert Dash, Kurt Vonnegut, and Bill King.

CM/ DO YOU HAVE OTHER PASSIONS?

DW/ My artwork is actually the second passion in my life, music being the first. Both are great vehicles for connecting to people.

ARTIST’S CAROUSEL

RUTH WETZEL

“Wetzel’s photographs heighten the beauty and power of nature; they reflect the world—but also her imagination.”
— Coco Myers

“My photographs explore water as it exists in nature, moving, and carving spaces and blurring spatial perception. Water is something that holds and supports like a solid but moves at the same time. In stillness, water’s surface can reveal so much of below and above.

I photograph this exploration in swamps, creeks, beaches, and swimming pools. In deconstructing expected landscape configurations, I find abstraction blooms between light, reflection, and receding surfaces. In water spaces, my formal interests combine with mystery, nuance, and spirituality. The viewer is engaged through questioning what they are looking at, and how to decode the scene. Each picture invites narrative interpretation and unfolds slowly.” — RW

Ruth Wetzel was born in Atlanta, GA and grew up in Katonah, NY. She has a M.F.A. from Maryland Institute, College of Art, and a B.S. in Design from Buffalo State College.

She has spent over 25 years interpreting the landscape through drawing, painting and most recently photography and has received fellowships from Virginia Center for Creative Arts, Women’s Studio Workshop and New York State Council on the Arts.

Wetzel has exhibited in many galleries and public institutions, most recently at Cross Contemporary Gallery, Saugerties, NY and Davis-Orton Gallery, Hudson, NY, Ashawagh Hall and folioeast, East Hampton, NY and the Arsenal Gallery in Central Park, New York, NY. Her work has been collected nationally and internationally. Ruth divides her time between the Hudson Valley, Manhattan, and East Hampton.

Ruth Wetzel by Jaime Lopez

Ruth Wetzel by Jaime Lopez

ARTIST’S CAROUSEL

rotating exhibit of current & recently sold work

RUTH WETZEL speaks to folioeast’s COCO MYERS

CM/ CAN YOU DESCRIBE YOUR CREATIVE PROCESS?

RW/ I travel around to various water bodies and note the light, tides, contours of the land, and repeatedly visit to capture an image. Depending on the location and season, I follow patterns of pollen drop, duckweed, cottonwood, ice, seagrass, froth, and how tides carve the bottom surface of sand. Wind, reflections from above, and the movement of the water all affect how the surface will of the water appears.

CM/ WHAT BROUGHT YOU TO THE EAST END?

RW/ My mother bought a house in the Springs in 2000. Since then both my sisters have moved here. The East End has so many watery nooks and beautiful light—the open possibilities of land, water, and sky are endless.

CM/ DO YOU HAVE ANY FAVORITE SPOTS OUT HERE?

RW/ The many coves of Gardiner's Bay, Shadmoor State Park, Napeague Beach, Ashawagh Hall, and the East Hampton library.

CM/ DO YOU FEEL A CONNECTION TO THE EAST END’S ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONIST HISTORY?

RW/ I draw inspiration from Pollock's house every time I drive by it. I also cherish the thought of him trading paintings for credit at The General Store in Springs.

CM/ IF YOU COULD CHOOSE A WORK OF ART, WHAT WOULD IT BE?

RW/ I would like a Willem de Kooning.

PORTFOLIO OVERVIEW

AMY WICKERSHAM

“You can sense the intuitive creative process in Wickersham’s mixed media works—beautiful and often tactile compositions of color and line.”
— Coco Myers

“My work is process-driven, exploring a variety of materials to create color, form, and textures. I work with a number of mediums such as paint, plaster, metal mesh, silk, collage, and styrofoam, developing layered surfaces. Working within a specific format, I use these elements with an interplay of structure and spontaneous gesture.

I’m inspired by things like trash on the street, peeling paint on a wall, pieces of wire, accidental markings and more. The random array of debris I see is waiting to be salvaged and used as images in my paintings, sculptures and drawings. With one mark informing the next, they become something new and yet allow for the original content to endure.” — AW

Amy Wickersham was born in Chicago. She got her BFA from Denver University and studied painting and drawing at the Spannocchia Foundation in Italy. She moved to New York City in 1990, then full time to Sag Harbor in 2010.

Wickersham has had solo shows at: Clic Gallery, East Hampton, NY; Fox and Fowle Gallery, New York, NY; and Dorry Gates Gallery, Kansas City, MO. Group exhibitions include: The Watermill Art Center (with folioeast), Watermill, NY; Guild Hall, East Hampton, NY; Historical Society, Rye NY; The Nelson Art Gallery, Kansas City, MO; Washington Square Park Gallery, NYC; Nix Gallery, NYC; Kenise Barnes Gallery, Larchmont, NY; and The Spannocchia Foundation, Rosia, Italy. Her work was recently awarded “Best Mixed Media” by Guild Hall in East Hampton, NY.

Wickersham in her studio by Jamie Lopez

Wickersham in her studio by Jamie Lopez

ARTIST’S CAROUSEL

rotating exhibit of current & recently sold work

AMY WICKERSHAM speaks to folioeast’s COCO MYERS

CM/ WHICH MATERIALS DO YOU USE THE MOST?

AW/ I primarily use acrylic paint with dyed silk. I love the way these materials create translucent layers where color and light emerge from under the surface. When I want to develop more layered surfaces, I combine various mediums including paint, dye, plaster, metal mesh and silk.

CM/ CAN YOU BRIEFLY DESCRIBE YOUR CREATIVE PROCESS?

AW/ I use a variety of materials to create color, form and texture. While I begin with a structured format, my work evolves through spontaneous gestures and intuition.

CM/ WHAT IS IT ABOUT THE EAST END THAT DREW YOU HERE? WHAT INSPIRES YOU?

AW/ I started coming out here with my family for summers twenty years ago. I was drawn to the beauty of the ever-changing light bouncing between the ocean and sky. We moved full time to Sag Harbor in 2013. I run every morning in all kinds of weather, giving me time to see, hear and feel the beauty out here. This observation of nature is a constant source of inspiration.

CM/ WHAT SEASON IS MOST INSPIRING TO YOU?

AW/ I love every season here. I find the most productive and creative time is winter, when I tend to hibernate, spending more time inside and quiet, away from the distractions of summer activities and visitors.

CM/ WHERE DO YOU DO MOST OF YOUR WORK?

AW/ My studio is in my backyard, just a few steps away from our house, so it’s very accessible at all times. In the summer I can work with open doors or even outside—where I don’t have to worry about getting too messy.

CM/ DO YOU FEEL CONNECTED TO THE HISTORY OF THE ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISTS ON THE EAST END?

AW/ I often think of the great painters that have preceded us out here. Thinking about how they enjoyed the beauty of this area in the same way that I enjoy it now, with an appreciation of the light, water and sky, brings them to life for me.

CM/ ARE THERE ANY PARTICULAR ARTWORKS YOU WOULD LOVE TO HAVE?

AW/ There are so many wonderful artists out here, both present and past. Of course I would love to own a de Kooning, Pollock, or Krasner, but there are lots of artists I’ve met—many through folioeast—whose work I admire.

PORTFOLIO OVERVIEW

GUS YERO

“Gus Yero’s abstracts are full of character and color: imaginative compositions that capture the eye.
”
— Coco Myers

“When I paint, my focus is primarily color. The application of one color leads to another. A language is formed, and shapes are created out of this process.” — GY

Gus Yero was born in New York, N.Y and studied painting at The Art Students League with Larry Poons, William Scharf and Joanna Pousette-Dart.  His work has been exhibited in numerous shows, including at Arlene Bujese, Ashawagh Hall, and folioeast, East Hampton, NY;  Sara Nightingale Gallery, Bridgehampton, NY; Queens College and the New York Arts Club, New York, NY.  He currently lives and works in New York city and East Hampton.

Gus Yero by Jaime Lopez

Gus Yero by Jaime Lopez

ARTIST'S CAROUSEL

rotating exhibit of current & recently sold work

GUS YERO speaks to folioeast’s COCO MYERS

CM/WHAT MATERIALS DO YOU USE?  WHAT APPEALS TO YOU ABOUT THOSE MATERIALS?

GS/I like the versatility of acrylic paints. I can achieve endless amounts of effects and techniques.

 CM/ IS THERE AN ASPECT OF YOUR CREATIVE PROCESS THAT YOU FEEL IS PARTICULARLY UNIQUE TO YOU/YOUR ART?   THE PALETTE OR THE SHAPES OR FORMS YOU ARE DRAWN TO? 

GY/My palette is my focus. Color is my vocabulary. 

CM/WHAT IS IT ABOUT ABSTRACTION THAT APPEALS TO YOU?   

GY/When I paint I’m not confined by subject matter. I’m honest to the medium. I see paint as just paint. Something to be manipulated to create flat sculptures.

CM/WHERE AND WHEN DO YOU DO YOUR MOST OF YOUR WORK? 

GY/I paint in my studio in East Hampton. I’m always creatively inspired by the things I see and experience every day. Sometimes it will be a certain color or visual, which I’ll make a mental note of to use later in a painting.

CM/WHAT BROUGHT YOU TO THE EAST END? AND WHEN?  

GY/I came out to the east end 32 years ago. I was drawn to the beauty of nature.

CM/DOES THIS AREA INFLUENCE YOUR WORK? HOW SO?

GY/The variety of landscapes most definitely inspires me. I can spend hours looking out the window into the woods, but then I would get no painting done. 

CM/DO YOU FEEL INSPIRED BY THE HISTORY OF ART ON THE EAST END?  

GY/Jackson Pollock is a great influence. His courage, originality, color, and textures define what painting means to me. 

CM/DO YOU OWN WORK BY EAST END ARTISTS? ARE THERE ANY ARTISTS YOU WOULD LOVE TO OWN?

GS/I currently own work by, Mary Heilmann, Vija Clemins, Stanley Whitney and Mark Perry.

PORTFOLIO OVERVIEW

ALMOND ZIGMUND

“Color, pattern and shape make Zigmund’s works stand out in a room. They have sculptural and graphic impact.”
— Coco Myers

“Combining geometry, vivid color, and intricate patterns, my drawings, sculptures, and installations often suggest walls, barricades, enclosures, and other aspects of the built environment. The work is architectonic in nature and tends to engage the eye and body at once.

When working on paper, or directly on the surfaces of existing architectural spaces, I frequently plot precise perspective points to demarcate volumes or plunge viewers into illusory realms.

I cull patterns from a number of architectural sources, both domestic and commercial and grant color a physical presence through the use of bold hues, granular flocking, and adhesive vinyl cutouts. Pattern often transcends its conventional role as embellishment and claims the ability to define forms and clarify spaces.“ — AZ

Almond Zigmund was raised in Brooklyn and received a BFA from Parsons School of Design, in both New York and Paris. She also earned an MFA from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, where she studied art theory and criticism with MacArthur Award-winning critic Dave Hickey.

Zigmund’s work has been exhibited internationally for the past decade and a half. Solo exhibits and installations include: the Parrish Art Museum and the Watermill Center, Watermill, NY; The Drawing Room, East Hampton, NY; Salomon Contemporary Collective Design Fair, New York, NY; Tall Wall Gallery, Los Angeles, CA; Ibel Gallery, Columbus, OH; Dust Gallery, Las Vegas, NV; among others.

She currently divides her time between Brooklyn and East Hampton, NY.

Almond Zigmund by Jaime Lopez

Almond Zigmund by Jaime Lopez

ARTIST’S CAROUSEL

rotating exhibit of current & recently sold work

ALMOND ZIGMUND speaks to folioeast’s COCO MYERS

CM/ HOW DO YOU START THINKING ABOUT A PIECE? DO YOU BEGIN WITH THE IDEA OF A SHAPE OR A PATTERN?

AZ/ A piece for me takes shape as a thought or vision of a thing that I want to see. The vision might be a fully formed idea (material, color, form) or it may be one of those with the other pieces having to be filled in. The work comes to fruition through the making and the doing.

CM/ HOW DO YOU KNOW WHEN A PIECE IS DONE?

AZ/ At some point the original idea is overtaken by the fact of the thing itself and that’s what I start reacting to to get the piece to the point where I can call it finished.

CM/ HOW DO YOU ACTUALLY MAKE THE SCULPTURAL WORK? IS IT ALWAYS OUT OF FOAM?

AZ/ Much of the sculpture I make is out of wood. I collect material that is readily available to me, scraps from the dumpsters that the ubiquitous development that surrounds us in this part of the world affords me. The foam pieces came out of this practice, as did the cardboard.

CM/ ANYTHING TO ADD ABOUT YOUR CREATIVE PROCESS?

AZ/ I think the idea of creativity is a mythology—making art is hard work and mostly about just showing up and working and doing it again the next day.

CM/ DO YOU OWN WORK BY ANY EAST END ARTISTS?

AZ/ Yes. Bastienne Schmidt, Philippe Cheng, Bob Wilson, Saskia Friedrich, Sabra Moon Eliot.

PORTFOLIO PREVIEW