Moab Happenings Archive
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GALLERY HAPPENINGS July 2008

Cat's Lair Collection Shows Unique Art

Cat’s Lair Collection is a Contemporary Art Gallery in Moab, Utah featuring local, regional, and international artists. Here you will find sculptures, beautiful pottery, glass, wood and metal works, most unique photographs and thought-provoking paintings, azurite crystal roses, hand spun wool & silk, light & colour.

Moab is a small town located in the red rock desert of southwestern Utah. It is world-famous for its spectacular natural beauty and is one of the greatest places for hiking, biking, river trips and jeeping adventures. Nevertheless, in this beautiful surrounding there are many talented and devoted artists who live and work here, quietly interpreting the natural beauty around them into stunning works of contemporary art.

So, we are searching for the hidden and known talents in our region and beyond, so you, our visitors, will enjoy the refreshing experience of original art.

This month we would like to talk about three artists we represent in our gallery.

Leona Hawks
After being a Professor at Utah State University, she took early retirement (after 26 years) in order to follow her passion for creating fused glass. She feels fortunate to be educated by some of the best glass artists in the country such as: Phil Teefy, Dan Fenton, and Lisa Volt. She has also taken various classes and workshops. As a result of these opportunities and her desire to explore all aspects of fusing glass, she has developed new techniques and processes that result in unique art pieces. All of the art pieces are made of recycled glass. Some of the techniques and processes used to fuse glass art pieces are: copper Inclusion, mirror Infusion, multi-colors and bubble creations, painting and enameling glass, and sand blasted glass.

“My glass art pieces give me a great deal of intrinsic satisfaction and I enjoy sharing their beauty with others. All of the art pieces are made by me, unique, and one of a kind.”
Leona Hawks work has been in many exhibits in Utah, Colorado, and California.

Cara Koolmees
Cara’s roots in southern California inspire the bold, saturated colors of her watercolor paintings. While evoking the feelings of “nouns” (people, places, things), she does not try to recreate, but to record, the touch of their colors. Each painting begins with yellow-based pigment, and that sunny glow conveys its warmth throughout the entire image.

“I am more interested in happy feelings than in a somber, moody piece... I do not rely on spatial interpretations to define my pictures, but rather use color and line to move the eye around my composition... I would like to invite the viewer to come inside my paintings and take a look around instead of standing outside observing from a distance.”

Olga Martinova
Olga Martinova is a canyon country artist who designs and creates fine art jewelry using many of the metals, semiprecious stones, and minerals found in the desert, including the rare and wonderful Azurite crystals that come from a mine in Lisbon Valley south of the La Sal mountains.

A native of Leningrad, USSR. (now St. Petersburg, Russia once more), a vibrant city with a rich artistic tradition, Olga grew up surrounded by art and artists.

Olga’s jewelry expresses many dazzling and powerful designs, which are inspired by the light and colors of the spectacular, red-rock desert of southeastern Utah. Her beaded chokers and pendants and bracelets are delicate yet substantial; there is a tactile pleasure in the heavy coolness of the stones and beads against ones skin. Olga fashions the materials that have been used by humanity for adornment for thousands of years, into beautiful, wearable art with a 21st century edge. Her strong designs are naturalistic, resembling leaves and vines and desert thunderstorms, but her materials and techniques result in pieces that are sleek and modern. Her new designs are an incorporation of fiber techniques into a metal.

She also spins wool and silk. Often you can see her spinning when you walk into a gallery. She gives demonstrations to customers who have never seen this ancient art practiced in real life.

As long as you are here in the gallery, check out the new and unique jewelry by Olga Martinova. Olga works at her jeweler’s bench and greets her customers, who appreciate the opportunity to meet the artist and watch her work. She makes many custom beaded earrings and necklaces upon request; you can watch her make your piece while you wait.

Of course we have something special for people who love to play and create with fibers - hand-spun wool and silk! We also have a nice selection of stone beads for all the people who like to express their creativity in jewelry making. If you’re passing through Moab, we’d like to invite you to take a few minutes to stop in and enjoy the refreshing experience of original art!

You know your in the right place when you see the big yellow cat above its rocky lair.

Cat’s Lair Collection
59 South Main St.
Moab, UT 84532
(435) 259-2458
www.catslaircollection.com

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