Lanning Gallery Celebrates New Year with Sculptor Kim Chavez

Written by Liz Boykin Saturday, 26 December 2009 22:14

SEDONA, AZ -  For its "1^st Friday Gallery Tour" reception on New Year’s Day, 5-8 pm, Sedona’s Lanning Gallery offers a champagne and chocolates reception, welcoming the New Year showcasing a new artist.  Sculptor Kim Chavez creates bronze animals from ten inches to five feet high and, always, her strong fascination and sensitivity to the environment shines through.Chavez began sculpting clay over 25 years ago; about five years ago she found her inspiration shifting to the creation of bronzes. 

Her initial inspiration always begins with the simple shapes in nature and the ways these shapes are mirrored in wildlife.  “My works flow very quickly in the beginning as the ideas are being expressed in the clay.  After those first ideas are expressed in the piece, I [begin] perfecting the details. 

“I work in solitude for hours getting to know every last detail of the piece.  This part of the process is the most time consuming as I experiment with things like feathers and eyes over and over again until they balance perfectly with the ideas in my head and the rest of the sculpture.   Once I think I am happy with the details, I leave the piece in my studio and look at it in different lights and from different angles until I know the sculpture is complete.”  Chavez works closely with the foundry as a mold is created from her clay original.  Each detail must come out clearly; the final patina must reflect her original inspiration.

Chavez’s style is defined by a simplicity of form and stylized lines with fine and often unexpected detail, particularly in the face.  She has created wildlife sculptures of polar bear, brown bear, horses, bison, salmon, eagles and ravens. 

Chavez’s artistic voice is consistent throughout her body of work reflecting her passionate advocacy for conservation of our natural environment.  “I love making a connection between people and nature that makes them reach out and touch the sculpture, smile at the expression or see beauty in something [for the first time].”  Lanning Gallery, Hozho Center, 431 S.R. 179, Sedona, AZ.  928-282-6865 or www.lanninggallery.com.  Open daily: 10-6:00 Mon-Sat, 11-5 Sun.

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