Kanab Arts Board Third Quarter Exhibition Opening
– By Ria Mendoza Hoyt –
Kanab and neighboring communities are in for a treat! This quarter, the Kanab Arts Board Third Quarter Exhibition features Melissa Bowersock, writer and photographer, and the local art group “The Creative Crones.” The exhibition will officially open with a reception on July 18, 5:30-6:30 PM, at the Kane County Hospital Lobby.
At the Kanab City Library, Melissa Bowersock, writer, and photographer, strives to capture the beauty and grandeur of the natural world. Melissa has lived in four Western states and has photographed many of the nation’s most iconic landscapes as well as their smallest, highly ephemeral moments, which, more often than not, simply disappear unnoticed. She finds joy in recording beauty in all its guises, from the low angle of a single cactus flower to the wide expanse of the Grand Canyon.
At the Kane County Hospital Lobby, we have The Creative Crones, a local group of women who banded together with one encompassing denominator: their love of art. The group chose “crone” as part of their name to symbolize women who have entered a stage in life where they have wisdom, freedom, and personal power. The group is composed of a dozen women who meet every week to work on different art projects as they seek community, spiritual significance, and expression through their collective artistic experience.
First among The Creative Crones is Karen Arndt, whose passion lies with gourd art. The natural forms of gourds inspire her to explore new techniques and designs. She has been a resident of Kanab for the last 24 years and previously worked at the Best Friends Animal Sanctuary, where her love for giving back blossomed. She believes that art and service go hand in hand, and since her life in Kanab has been a canvas, she continues to paint with gratitude, creativity, and purpose.
Originating from Santa Rosa, California, Bobbi Chaney has made Kanab her home for the last 20 years. She has a degree in art therapy and uses it as a means to achieve self-awareness and personal growth both for herself and her clients as a Marriage and Family Therapist. Even though Bobbi has never considered herself a “real artist,” the time she spends with the Creative Crones has made her realize that being an artist is not solely about innate talent but also about taking the time to let the creative muse work through her.
Debra Csenge moved from Topsham, Maine, to Kanab in 2009. She has a bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts from the University of Southern Maine in Portland-Gorham and has shown her paintings both in Maine and Utah. For two years prior to the pandemic, Debra worked as a director for a local community gallery and also as an assistant librarian at the Kanab City Library. Now, she enjoys “en plein air” landscape paintings and making block prints. She and her husband, Rich, are currently building a new studio and gallery at their home in Kanab.
Gail Everhart was raised on a farm in Indiana by her Depression-era-raised parents with the idea that art was a frivolous use of time and energy. It was later in life, while struggling with grief and loss when her therapist recommended trying an artistic outlet. Gail signed up for a craft project at her local library and came home very pleased with her effort. Her mother, wanting to frame her work, sealed the deal. Gail went for a second class and soon realized that she had fallen in love with art, specifically gourd art. In the midst of her grief, Gail found a deep sense of peace in growing and harvesting gourds, turning them into works of art, and finally, giving them away to people she loves. Gail has since ventured into other arts and crafts and loves being a part of the Creative Crones who continue to encourage her to try new things and be proud of herself.
Sue Fox comes from a long line of women who couldn’t simply sit still and do nothing. Their “spare” moments were always spent sewing. Growing up in this industrious environment, she learned to love her mother’s sewing machine really early and was already making tailored clothes when she was only in high school. Now that she’s retired and lives in Kanab, Sue has many “spare” moments, and like the women in her family, she made sure her hands were always busy – busy sewing, painting, making stained glass, knitting, and more!
Marcia Martin’s love of art started in grade school and culminated in doing large-scale textile commissions in California for 15 years. As a retiree, she enjoys small-scale art and the camaraderie of their art group.
Armed with a Brownie camera, Cathy McKenzie started taking photographs as a young girl. She grew up loving photography, especially landscapes. At 22, she moved from Miami to Colorado, then to California, and finally to the Pacific Northwest, the area which she never imagined ever leaving. However, fate had other plans. She went on a nine-month long camping trip, which became an annual event for the next three years. She camped in Eastern California and the Four Corners and fell in love with the desert! She took a lot of photographs and eventually found her new home here in Kanab, where the landscapes continue to inspire and instill awe in her.
Deborah Swanson and her husband, Nick, moved to Kanab in 2010 after living in the San Francisco Bay Area. They were lured here by the sheer beauty of the area, Best Friends, and the fact that Deborah’s sister also moved to Kanab. Deborah is a retired college professor, a mom to 23 rescued cats, and an avid collector of vintage, mostly African beads. She used to turn these beads into necklaces but it soon became apparent that she was not using them in her new life in Kanab. She met members of The Creative Crones who welcomed her into the group and encouraged her to explore other artistic endeavors.
The last exhibiting member of The Creative Crones is Cindy Von Halle. For Cindy, making art is an extension of her love of nature. She up-cycles materials, plays with composition, and draws inspiration from all the beautiful places she’s called home. When she resided in Joshua Tree, California, she was a part of a vibrant art community including a group of tile mosaic artists. Here in Kanab, as a member of the Creative Crones, she was drawn into the art of decorating gourds. Cindy is mainly drawn to collages and mixed media art forms like mosaics and gourd art, which gives her the opportunity to play with texture and shapes. She sometimes adds personal memorabilia to complete the artwork.
The Creative Crones and Melissa Bowersock’s artworks will be exhibited at the Kane County Hospital Lobby and Kanab City Library, respectively, until the end of September. We invite everybody to come and support our local artists by attending the opening reception hosted by the Kane County Hospital. Refreshments will be served. If you are a local artist interested in exhibiting with us, please send us an email at KanaArts@gmail.com.
