Two Jasper Events for Artista Vista - Friday April 19th - Big Tiny Gallery at Richland Library & Group Show with Archie, Archie, Krajewski, Tolen & Carpenter at Coal Powered Filmworks

Front Stoop by Kevin Archie

In addition to the closing reception for A Big Tiny Gallery, our collaborative exhibition with Richland Library, Friday night, April19 from 6:30 – 8:30 at the Main branch on Assembly Street, Jasper has another visual arts treat to contribute to this weekend’s Artista Vista celebration.

We’re delighted to welcome artists Laurel Steckel Archie, Kevin Archie, Michael Krajewski, Keith Tolen, and Kimber Carpenter for a group show at Coal Powered Filmworks, 1217 Lincoln Street (across from Blue Marlin) from 6 – 9 pm.

The Bath by Laurel Archie — This piece and more of Archie’s work is currently on display at Motor Supply Company Bistro on Gervais Street.

Corona by Michael Krajewski

Wild West by Keith Tolen

The Surprise by Kimber Carpenter

Please join us to check out these lovely artists’ work, grab a copy of Jasper Magazine, have a little nibble, and visit with us for a while. We’re happy to see you all, and we want to issue a special welcome to other artists from all disciplines to chat with each other as well as patrons and fill us in on what’s coming up in the arts for you. We’ll have a dry erase board set up for you to add any upcoming events you may have going on.

Please also visit our neighbors at Mike Brown Contemporary Gallery, Soulhaus Art next door!

Featured Artist at Jasper's Sidewalk Gallery at the Meridian Building - Gretchen Evans Parker

Gretchen Evans Parker

Gretchen Evans Parker, CPSA/CPX - OTRL/ret., Is a retired pediatric/hippotherapist (horse) occupational therapist. She has embarked on a second career in fine art since retiring. The avant garde medium of colored pencil allows her to achieve great detail and realism in her paintings. In her wildest dreams, Gretchen could never imagine how well-received her art would be nor where it would take her.  

Her commissioned portraits hang in homes around the Midlands and North America. Her work has won many awards and honors including signature status in the Colored Pencil Society of America. She is also a juried member of the International Guild of Realism. Gretchen has written extensively on colored pencil artwork.

Her work has been featured in several publications locally, nationally, and internationally. In the evening, to relax from a day at the easel, Gretchen creates baskets from pine needles and found objects. They can take weeks/months to complete. Many become gifts or commissions.

- Kimber Carpenter

Jasper's Sidewalk Gallery at the Meridian Building Featured Artist - Debi Kelley

The Jasper Project welcomes four new artists to our 24/7 gallery space in the large streetside windows of the Meridian Building along Washington and Sumter Streets in downtown Columbia. Our board of directors member and Sidewalk Gallery curator, Kimber Carpenter, shares the goods on a new artist each week. This week we’re featuring the artist, Debi Kelley!

Debi enjoys painting classic cars/trucks, wildlife and the colorful landscapes of the South. She is currently an Associate Member of the Pastel Society of America and a Master Pastelist with the Southeastern Pastel Society.  She is also a member of the Pastel Society of SC and the Crooked Creek Art League.  She has received awards in international, regional and local shows, including the Pastel Society of SC, Southeastern Pastel Society, Union County Arts Council, Fairfield County Arts Council, Spartanburg Art Museum, SC State Fair and Crooked Creek Art League.  Her work has also been exhibited at ArtFields.
"My goal as an artist is to draw the viewer in to the painting for a closer look by using liberal touches of color, unusual angles, and detailed drawing to capture movement and life.  I want my audience to create their own story while traveling through the painting."

Jasper's Sidewalk Gallery at the Meridian Building Featured Artist -- REGINA LANGSTON

Regina Langston

Gina’s paintings embody the goddess mystique, celebrating the curves and edges of the feminine form using intense colors and vividly bold compositions. While she often varies her subject matter, her work largely focuses on the female figure as well as on the myriad faces of the nonbinary human spirit.

At first glance, it is easy to see the influences of Picasso and Klimt in Gina’s paintings. However, she has a wide portfolio of inspiration, including the whimsical post-war modernist work of a lesser-known painter, the late Friedensreich Hundertwasser of Austria, whose wildly colorful work was punctuated with organic shapes and spirals.

Gina returned to the Palmetto State with her family in 2018 and currently resides in The Avenues of Cayce. Her work has been exhibited at numerous SC venues, including 701 Whaley, Tapp’s Arts Center, University of South Carolina at Beaufort, and – most         recently – as part of Jasper Magazine’s “Tiny Gallery” series. She was featured in The Limelight, A Compendium of Contemporary Columbia Artists, Volume II, published by Muddy Ford Press in 2015. She has a studio in downtown Columbia, where she creates her own works and accepts commissions

Jasper's Sidewalk Gallery at The Meridian Building Featured Artist - CAROLINE CLARK

Caroline Clark

My functional ceramic sculptures highlight a sense of joy and wonder in everyday items. I explore my own variations of the hidden symbiotic systems of coral reefs and mycelium networks: systems that seem simple and beautiful at first, but upon closer examination are wildly complicated and predicated on mutual care. These systems in which every part depends on the others, and in which every part is vital and precious, draw a parallel to our human communities and support systems and invite examination of our own interconnectedness, growth, and movement.

I believe in magic. Not the potions and poof! kind, not the creation of another more beautiful and mysterious world, but the deep and unshakable knowledge that this, our world, is more extraordinary, strange, and awe-inspiring than any I could imagine. My work highlights that magic, refines and amplifies it, revealing a secret world nestled into the fabric of our own.

Jasper's Sidewalk Gallery at The Meridian Building Featured Artist - BOHUMILA AUGUSTINOVA

Bohumila Augustinova

Augustinova spent her childhood in Czechoslavakia, now known as the Czech Republic.  She recalls that her younger years were spent always making something and that she could “never keep her hands still.”

My mom and dad were very supportive, so even as a small child they taught me how to knit, crochet, sew, cook and use power tools.”  Augustinova remembers, “My mom and I used to make all the costumes for me and my brothers, and I was making my own clothes by the time I was 9.”

Augustinova used to experience and passion to pursue fashion design, which she received a degree in, but soon after, she desired a fresh artistic venture and has since worked with primarily wire art and pottery, being self-taught in both.

Augustinova notes that beyond being inspired to make art, the process of making is inspiring and therapeutic all on its own.  She insists that the mutable clay sliding under her hands and the constant hum of the wheel moving is meditative, and she often throws with her eyes closed.

“What I hope is that people will see my pottery as usable art.  Almost all of my pottery is fully glazed and food safe.  I love seeing flower arrangements in my vases, and I love people drinking out of my cups.”  Augustinova effuses.  “One of my favorite pottery moments was when a friend told me that he was visiting a friend and his tea was served in one of my mugs.”

Jasper's Sidewalk Gallery at The Meridian Building Featured Artist - ANNA HERRERA

I am a local artists originally from Charlotte NC, but I have lived in Columbia for 15 years. I work with acrylic paint mostly, sketch, and use charcoal in my free time. I enjoy the downtown area, going to art events and markets that support locals. I hope to one day have my own show at my mother’s restaurant, Sound Bites Eatery, which is located on Sumter street that regularly hosts art shows and events.

I take art lessons when I can at Painting with a Twist gallery located in the Harbison area, which I’ve been going to for years. I hope to learn more about painting and how to apply different techniques and materials to my work. Expanding my knowledge can benefit my work and allow me to further my potential as an artist as well as become better recognized for more future showing opportunities.

Visit Sound Bites Eatery on Sumter Street for Delicious Food, Welcoming Vibes, and this month, Art from the Jasper Project's Board of Directors Visual Artists!

One of the great joys of working with the Jasper Project is becoming warm friends with members of our hard-working board of directors as well as the owner/operators of the institutions that work with us and the venues that host us. A perfect example would be the good people at Sound Bites Eatery who welcomed Jasper as soon as their doors were opened and invited us to make use of their walls to hang art by local artists. This month we are combining our appreciation for both by featuring the art of Jasper Project Board Artists, Emily Moffitt, Laura Garner Hine, Keith Tolen, and Kimber Carpenter in the Jasper Gallery Space at Sound Bites Eatery.

Curated by a committee chaired by Christina Xan who serves as the Jasper Project’s gallery manager, Jasper hangs local art throughout the city at Motor Supply Bistro, Koger Center for the Arts, Harbison Theatre, the Meridian Sidewalk Gallery Space as well as Sound Bites Eatery. But we’re always looking for new permanent or temporary spaces to feature the work of Columbia-based artists.

While we enjoy celebrating new shows with receptions, one of the advantages of showing art in these public spaces is that the art is available for purchase any time day or night by accessing a QR code attached to every piece of art. So if you’re still looking for the perfect gift for someone you love, consider giving art by visiting one of the Jasper Gallery spaces easily accessible in the greater Columbia area!

Jasper presents Line-Up for First Thursday Featured Artists at Sound Bites Eatery

It almost feels like we’re back to normal.

But really, what is normal? Will we ever be normal again? Were we ever normal to start with?

You can help answer these questions and more by joining Jasper as we bring back one of our favorite pre-pandemic events - gathering with the Jasper tribe (that’s YOU!) to welcome art from a featured artist to our walls. But now, given that the Jasper Project no longer has walls on Main Street we’ll be gathering for First Thursdays Slightly Off Main at Sound Bites Eatery at 1425 Sumter Street, one block off Main Street between the Taylor and Hampton Street blocks.

After an exciting launch of our new series in April with featured artist Michael Shepard, we’re thrilled to announce our line-up for the season below:

May 5 – Alex Ruskell

June 2 – Kimber Carpenter

July 7 – Ginny Merett

August 4 – Marius Valdes

September 1 – Quincy Pugh

We’ll start at 6 pm and the artists will be in the house to chat with you about their art and maybe grab a photo with you when you pick out a treasure to take home.

Terri Mac and Mai Turner will have the kitchen open so plan on grabbing a delicious dinner or glass of vino or beer to enjoy while you check out new art and either catch up with friends or meet some new ones.

In the meantime, stop by Sound Bites Eatery by the end of April for some yummy food and the art of Michael Shepard!

RETRO SPACE FUTURISM AND IRMO'S KIMBER CARPENTER

Her Adventure

Jasper: When did you first begin to pursue visual art? Where and when did you train,
or are you self-taught? 

Kimber: About 10 years ago. Then I was re-inspired when my mom discovered her talent and love of art in her retirement. I have been engaged heavily in art for the past 3 years. I am a self-taught artist and am always absorbing new ways to create.

Jasper: What mediums in visual arts do you typically use and why? 

Kimber: I use acrylics on canvas, mostly. I love to also combine brush painting with mixed media materials to create interesting abstract pieces. I love the vibrance that acrylics offer, especially the heavy bodied acrylics. I will also use alcohol markers to enhance or create shadows and highlights throughout the paintings.

The Damsel

Jasper: Where do you work now and where do you show your work? 

Kimber: I am a graphic artist by trade and have a freelance business, Grassroot Graphics. I am a member of the Cayce Arts Guild and am a Cottontown Art Crawl artist. My work has been featured at the Cottontown Art Crawl, Melrose Art in the Yard, Noma Warehouse, SCA Autumn Faire, SCA Mad Hatters Art Faire, Rob Shaw Gallery, Land Bank Lofts, Still Hopes Episcopal Retirement Home, 14 Carrot Foods, Musicians Supply, The Coop in Winnsboro, Nicky's Pizzeria in Lexington, State & Frink, Aloft Downtown Columbia, the Irmo Chamber of Commerce and Carolina Imports.

Jasper: Who have been your greatest influences as an artist? 

Kimber: I really enjoy Matt Dixon, who has created a robot character that he puts in various environments and stories. I love his style and how his work comes alive with a simple robot trying to find his way through life. I also LOVE Alexander Jansson, who is a digital mixed media illustrator, photographer, and animator. I could stare at his works for hours.

Pod Travel

Jasper: What do you feel makes your art unique? 

Kimber: I feel like my art stands out the most when I am creating my space-futurism series. This series uses colorful backgrounds from my days as an acrylic fluid artist. I love to create new scenes, using vintage imagery from sci-fi posters, graphic novels, coloring books, etc. I love the nostalgia these pieces offer and the unique colorful backgrounds that are one of a kind and have an out-of-this-world vibe.

Jasper: Who is your favorite SC-based visual artist and why? 

Kimber: Ginny Merett. Her style is incredibly unique and extremely recognizable. Every piece tells a story and I love seeing something different every time I look at her work. I keep a tiny gallery piece on my desk titled "Radical Woman" and it inspires me daily.

Space Prisoner

Jasper: What are you working on now, will we get to see it, and if so, where, and when? 

Kimber: I am currently working on more space futurism, specifically a series of paintings of ray guns to compliment my mixed media space pieces. I currently have my space futurism pieces exclusively at NoMa Warehouse and hope to have new work available there soon. I would also like to do a showcase in the future, so I will see about doing that soon.

Ray Gun 2

Ray Gun 1