BROOKVILLE
About the Brookville Art Installation and Artists
Darren Kall (b. 1959) American, LINE PATTERN PAINTING – BROOKVILLE, OHIO, 2016, Acrylic on canvas, Collection of the Dayton Metro Library, 2016.11
Kall works conceptually and is interested in creating site-specific art. Line pattern paintings follow a format in which Kall chooses different strategies of overlapping lines, color mixing and spatial relationships. Seeking to forge a deeper connection between library patrons and this artwork, Kall painted on-site, while the library was open, so patrons could see the work in progress as well as interact with him.
About the Artist
DARREN KALL | Dayton artist Darren Kall was classically trained in fine art, earning a degree in Studio Art from Rutgers. He studied painting, drawing, art history, printmaking, photography, and specialized in large-scale outdoor sculpture. His art is informed by having lived in New Jersey, New Hampshire, North Carolina, and Washington State before settling in Ohio. Follow him at dakall.blogspot.com .
Suzanne Ley (b.1954) American, DO YOU SEE WHAT I SEE?, 2016, Acrylic on canvas, Collection of the Dayton Metro Library, 2016.12
Ley frequently employs different styles and dramatically different sizes in her expressively realistic work. Inspired by the effortless beauty and simplicity found in nature, each work reflects its own distinctive sense of reality. In this painting, Ley’s unique point of view encourages the viewer to explore the hidden world that lies beneath the surface of even the simplest subjects.
About the Artist
SUZANNE LEY was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota and studied painting and drawing at Arizona State University where she received a Bachelor of Fine Arts. Ley has won numerous local and regional awards and is represented in public and private collections. She lives and works from her studio in Springboro, Ohio. For more information visit www.suzanneleyart.com.
James Michael Kahle (b. 1954) American, OBLIO ONGOING, 2016, Glass, ceramic, stainless steel, Collection of the Dayton Metro Library, 2016.13
For this multi piece installation, Kahle along with a team of glass blowers including Abiona Pleasant, Kirstie Chakeres, Steve Lamb and Matt Walland created the 30 glass vessels that are assembled here along with one ceramic vessel by Dale Boydston. Each artist, while drawing inspiration from the Ritual Bottle, was free to reimagine color and texture using a variety of surface treatments and finishes. These vessels are installed at an angle to simulate the pouring motion and intended function of the Ritual Bottle.
About the Artist
JAMES MICHAEL KAHLE | Dayton artist James Michael Kahle’s love of glass began at an early age but it wasn’t until he was in his mid-30s that he enrolled in a glassblowing class and after one session knew he had found his true calling. Today Kahle is best-known for creating large open vessels using vibrant colors in unique shapes. His works have been shown in solo exhibits in over 100 galleries in the United States and around the world. To learn more please visit: www.glassbyjm.com.
Ron Rollins (b.1960) American, AND THEN THE ROCKETS TRACED THE EDGES OF THE NIGHT, 2016, Acrylic on canvas, Collection of the Dayton Metro Library, 2016.14
Rollins paints in a gestural manner, modeled after the Abstract Expressionist artists of the mid-20th century who he studies and admires. Rollins thinks through and plans a painting before starting it, considering color, shape, composition, movement and line, and then paints very quickly. He works flat, using acrylic on canvas and moving the paint with brushes, masonry trowels, sharp sticks and flat edges.
About the Artist
RON ROLLINS is an artist, writer, poet and journalist from Kettering, Ohio. He has exhibited at galleries and businesses in the Dayton area and elsewhere in Ohio. He and his wife, Amy, have two grown children and two grandsons. For more information visit www.rollinsart.org .
The Stories Behind the Brookville Art Inspiration
From the Collection of the Dayton Art Institute
Gaston La Touche (1854 - 1913) French, Dinner At the Casino, C. 1906, Oil on canvas, 39 x 37 5/8 inches, The Dayton Art Institute, Gift of Mrs. Robert Schermer, 1975.33
A fresh burst of fireworks and the glittering effects of those that disappear in the night upstage the formally dressed dinner guests who enjoy an elegant evening portrayed in Dinner at the Casino. The gold and pink light illuminates the revelers who seem to forget that the light momentarily reveals their actiona amid the darkness. La Touche captured the constant movement in the scene by employing the loose brushwork and atmospheric qualities associated with French Impressionism, a movement whose origins precede this painting by three decades.
Chinese Tang dynasty (618 - 907 CE) Ritual Bottle, early 8th century, Silver with gold inlay, 7 1/2 x 3 x 3 inches, The Dayton Art Institute, Gift of Mrs. Harrie G Carnell, 1935.23
Only four vases of this type are known outside of China. This gold and silver baoping or ritual bottle was made in Tang dynasty China when the Silk Road was an ancient superhighway for trade and ideas between China and Europe. The baoping was a symbol of the Buddhist deity Guanyin, who used it to pour the water of immortality over the corpse of a faithful deceased person, as it was believed that it could restore the faithful to life.
How did these pieces inspired our artists?
“Dinner at the Casino has long been one of my favorite pieces at The Dayton Art Institute. In addition to its lively depiction of joyful party people, I respond to the airborne burst in the background. It perfectly captures the beauty and wonder we see in fireworks, which I love.” Ron Rollins, artist
“The loose brushwork and atmospheric treatment of Dinner at the Casino and the highly patterned Ritual Bottle, appealed to me as mood-makers. The painting that I’ve created for this meeting room of the Brookville Library is meant to be highly patterned, expressive, and loose to create a mood for the patrons.” Darren Kall, artist
“The baoping offered the perfect opportunity to reinterpret this vessel in glass and to embellish the surface with the colors and textures unique to the medium. Suspending the vessels overhead offers the viewer a new perspective.” James Michael Kahle, artist
"I was inspired by the animal and vine imagery on the Ritual Bottle as well as the explanation of the alternate story in the description. The concept that what the viewer sees at first glance may not be the whole story was intriguing. In this painting, the viewer sees a field of flowers, trees, and grasses from the point of view of one of the animals hidden inside the darker areas of the painting. A closer look reveals something else in the image and invites the viewer in. The second story is a world populated by animals, birds, and insects, which we intellectually know is there, but only see when we look more carefully." Suzanne Ley, artist
Thank you to our partner,
the Dayton Art Institute, opens a new window.
Photos of ReImagining Works pieces taken by Andy Snow.
