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| 2008 Exhibition Schedule .................................................... Holland Area Arts Council One-man show of 10 large 24x60-inch limited edition prints of "Silent Stairways" digital paintings. June 12-July 31 Artist's reception 6-8pm, June 12 .................................................... Lake Forest Art Fair Lake Forest, Illinois August 31-September 1, 2008 .................................................... St James Art Fair Louisville, Kentucky October 3-5, 2008 |
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Silent Stairways
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 Blue Chairs - Downstairs Digital Painting Available as a limited edition print Click here to learn more |
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| I've been walking the beaches of Western Michigan for over 20 years, admiring the dunes and the sea and sometimes contemplating the long, meandering stairways people build from their homes down to the beach. But its only recently that I've chosen to focus on these unique stairways as a subject for my work. I still don't know exactly what it is that grabs me about these stairways. They seem to hold a secret memory of anticipation, storing every footfall in their wooden steps from every family that ventures down for a day at the beach. It's the nostalgia of carefree summer fun, but also the mystery of strangers never met. And the houses... Who lives there? Where do they come from? Where are they now? Empty houses, most of them. Summer houses, vacant, waiting for the next family. The stairs, silent, brooding, except in summer months when footsteps, young and old echo up and down these old treads. The Stairway pictures are paintings that I created in my Macintosh computer. So, I guess I'm a digital artist... a difficult designation to explain. Using the computer as an art medium is still pretty new in the fine art world. Misconceptions abound about "digital artists." It is true that a computer program is capable of turning a photograph into a what looks like an oil painting at the touch of a button. Indeed, I have a computer program called "Painter" that has a Van Gogh filter, and it actually gives photos the look of Van Gogh's wild brushwork. Its fun, but its not art. My digital paintings are not created by the computer. They are created with the computer as a tool, by me. Each painting takes a month or more to create. For this series, the original images (the printing plates) are digital files residing in my Macintosh computer. Each line and each color are meticulously applied layer by layer with digital pen or mouse much like a traditional printmaker would scratch lines and textures with a stylus on copper for etching plates. But the pictures, not the technique, are the stars of this show. I’ve been working on this series for the last two years in an effort to capture these stairs and their hidden stories. The stairs, I've learned, are one of the most unique features of the West Michigan landscape. It is my hope that some of these pictures will evoke in the viewer the same feelings of nostalgia and mystery that they do in me. John Leben |
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Painted Landscapes
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The work of artist, John Leben, is on exhibit at the following galleries:
Bumbley.com The most complete selection is at this online gallery. Click here to see a variety of John Leben's work. Lake Effect Gallery 29 West Eighth Street - Suite 100 Holland, Michigan 49423 • 616-395-3025 website MaryAl Studio 3488 64th Street • Saugatuck, MI 49453 269-857-3220 website Constance Petter Gallery 161 Blue Stary Hwy • Douglas, MI 49406 269-857-7861 website Les Sirenes Galerie D'Art 338 Main Street • Frankfort, MI 49635 231-352-7640 website Art de Triumph Gallery 2936 N. Clark Street • Chicago, IL 60657 773-832-4038 website Rubinkam Gallery 109 North Barton Street • New Buffalo, MI 49117 • 269-469-1620 website John Leben 6530 Sanctuary Trail PO Box 8 Saugatuck, MI 49453 269-857-4780 |
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| Night Swim Digital Painting Available as a limited edition print Click here to learn more |
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| Fishermen Digital Painting Available as a limited edition print Click here to learn more |
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