After 5: Art Review: Capturing the Wild

The Wild West will inhabit Hawthorn Gallery in downtown Springfield.

The two featured artists, plein-air painter Louise Thies and bronze sculpture artist Don Goin, have distinctive flares for western nature.

However, the artists are on polar opposites when it comes to feelings emitted by their works and the mediums applied. Using singular descriptions, Thies’ paintings are serene, and Goin’s sculptures are rugged.

Both will be featured at Hawthorn Gallery, 214 E. Walnut St., between the Feb. 1 and March 7 First Friday Art Walk events.

Paint on site

Applying the plein air technique, which is painting in open air, Thies reflects on peaceful landscapes.

Her strategy employs setting up shop on a pleasant countryside or at the base of mountains in order to quickly capture the view.

“Once you’ve painted in plein air, it’s addicting,” Thies says. “I get caught up in the moment.”

Her favorite place to paint is Rocky Mountain National Park, where she most recently spent time in August. A couple of the nine pieces at Hawthorn Gallery, including “Below Lyon’s Peak” and “Passage,” were completed at the Rockies.

Plein air painters must work quickly “to capture the light and shadows before the sun changes,” Thies says, which explains the smaller size of pieces.

Keeping the task at one to two hours, Thies says a 14-by-18 inch painting is the largest she creates, and some sunset images are as small as 3-by-5.

“It’s kind of stressful,” Thies adds, noting that she has to contend with weather, bugs and roaming animals. “At the same time, it’s very rewarding.”

Thies, who’s 45 and has been painting since she was a kid, also finds plenty of beautiful patches to illustrate in the Ozarks, especially near her Camdenton residence. “Heaven and Earth” is a spot between Camdenton and Max Creek, and “Mennonite Farm” is in the Mennonite community of Landmine, northeast of Buffalo.

The Hawthorn Gallery showing is Thies’ first time as featured artist in a Springfield gallery.

32 steps

Using solid bronze, Goin captures the raw nature in old western and Native American themes.

Almost in complete contrast to plein air techniques, Goin applies a 32-step process to his bronze sculptures. It starts with a wax mold and ends with sandblasting, welding and grinding using dental tools and soldering irons, Goin says.

“When I do a piece, I see it first in my head,” Goin says. “Sometimes, it’s abstract shapes.”

He takes that vision to build the key blocks of shape and pulls in up to 100 pictures from magazines and Web sites to spell out the details.

The finished products weigh up to 87 pounds, including the walnut and marble bases that Goin assembles.

“I just like wildlife,” says the 65-year-old Goin, who lived in the Washington state mountains for 10 years of his childhood. “I watch a lot of nature shows.”

His affinity for wildlife is evident in a 40-pound bear sculpture and a similar size elk that Hawthorn Gallery has on hand. Goin is unveiling his latest piece, an African Cape buffalo bust titled “The Ambusher,” during the gallery’s Feb. 1 artist’s reception.

Working from his Bruner home in Christian County, Goin also performs a lot of bronze work for Bass Pro Shops. The current order is for 18 elk antler door pulls for a Bass Pro store in Canada. He also creates alligator door pulls for the southeastern stores and shotgun door pulls for the fine gunrooms.

“They keep me pretty busy,” Goin says.

Artists’ Notables

• Don Goin created the bronze casting for the time capsule on display at Wonders of Wildlife museum.

• Louise Thies won the plein air paint-out on Springfield’s Park Central Square hosted by Springfield Regional Arts Council. Thies painted Trolley’s Downtown Bar & Grille.

Event Details

What: Local artists’ plein air paintings and bronze sculptures

Where: Hawthorn Gallery, 214 E. Walnut St.

When: 10 a.m.–6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday; artist’s reception is Feb. 1 during the First Friday Art Walk

Cost: None

More info: (417) 866-6688 or www.myspace.com/hawthorngallery[[In-content Ad]]