Villa Flora Artist in Residency Program

SESSION 2008:

PARTICIPANTS:

Tjaša Iris (Slovenia), Diek Grobler (South Africa), Mary Melilli (U.S.A.)

on this photo in Piran at the opening of the Ex-Tempore exhibition

studio at Villa Flora

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PARTICIPANTS:

MARY MELILLI, U.S.A.

Mary Melilli

Mission statement: My work has been described as Controlled Expressionism. The ‘expressionist’ aspect perhaps refers to instances where the brush strokes are blatant and fervent. Geometric forms give way to dissolved edges. Wild, confident lines and large areas of paint end up defining the main compositional structure. On the other hand, ‘control’ can be seen in areas of the paintings where layers of colors and textures add a subtle atmospheric quality. Artistic control can also be seen in the carefully proportioned shapes and the placement of small, quirky forms that sit boldly or nestle snugly. The juxtaposition of such dissimilar painting techniques sets up a visual conflict. Parts of the paintings seem incongruous with other parts. Stable hills, for example, are rendered unbalanced by fresh paint streaks as vibrant as the sea. Disproportionate trees and houses appear to lack roots and foundations. Despite the unsteadiness, the use of bright colors and the obvious presence of the paint medium itself ground the composition. My inspiration comes from the outdoors. I seek opportunities to look at, photograph, or draw landscapes. When in the studio, I make paintings that begin as free-hand interpretations of my photographs or drawings. Once begun, the paintings evolve into fantastical landscapes that have a life of their own.

Mary Melilli earned her B.A. Studio Art degree from Wellesley College in 1981 and her M.F.A. Graphic Design degree from Yale University in 1983. She has taught in Maine, Ohio, Indiana, and Australia. Mary is currently an Associate Professor at Salem State College in Massachusetts. She has exhibited professionally since 2003 and has worked as a graphic designer since 1983. She is involved with the American Institute of Graphic Arts, serving as an advisor for Salem State’s student group. In 2008, Mary was accepted into the Villa Flora Artist-in-Residence program in Branik, Slovenia, where she worked alongside two other international artists while creating a body of work that is currently driving her new direction and style.

Mary Melilli
Cell: 978 376 5133?
Email: mm@marymelilli.com, www.MaryMelilli.com

PAINTINGS:

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mountain river ................................................................................................house with chimney

please click here to see more and bigger paintings of Mary Melilli more...

TESTIMONIAL + LINK WITH PHOTOS

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Castle Rihemberk by Mary Melilli

letter & link with photos from Mary Melilli

Folks

Greetings. Below is a link to photos from my recent trip to Slovenia where I participated in the Villa Flora Artist-in-Residence program.

The rural Slovenian countryside is beautiful with warm weather and fresh fruit falling from the trees. Many families make their own wine and cheese. The hills and valleys are dotted with medieval mediterranean villages and organic farms. There were shooting stars almost every night and occasional rain showers with thunder and lightening. Tractor and foot paths make walking off the paved roads a peaceful and inspiring experience. For thrill seekers, the main roads offer narrow passages and hairpin turns. The Adriatic Sea is calm and great for swimming. Regional museums, galleries, and performing arts centers are situated in historic districts and cultural hubs.

The theme at this year's artists colony, coordinated by native, Tjasa Iris, was: Three Artists from Three Continents. Diek Grobler, the third artist, is South African. Using different mediums and approaches, we each created a body of work in an ideal studio environment with focussed energies and ample opportunities to interact with the Slovenian locals, press, and arts organizations.

http://picasaweb.google.com/marymelilli

Mary Melilli, U.S.A.

DIEK GROBLER, South Africa

Diek Grobler

Mission statement: If forced to classify my work into an -ism, the term Magic Realism gets closest to what I attempt to achieve. My work is inspired by common occurrences which seems insignificant in terms of global social or political issues, but when scrutinized, contains the essentials of human drama. I place these everyday ideas in new and unusual contexts, thus heightening its impact due to the 'strangeness' of the resulting images. A recurring theme in my work is the relation between spirituality and reality. This I address by using biblical narratives depicted within a contemporary context. Humor and irony is important in my work because of its communicative power, but especially because humor requires the subversion of the usual meaning of something. In order for something to be funny or ironical, its context or outcome should be other than what could normally be expected. This is also the aim of my work.

Diek Grobler obtained his BA Fine Arts degree from the University of Pretoria in 1987 and his Masters Degree in Fine Arts from the University of the Witwatersrand in 1996. He has exhibited professionally since 1988 and his work is included in several major public and corporate collections. Grobler is involved in avant garde theatre, and has his own performance company, Fopspeen Live Art. He is also involved in public art projects, and organised the mural project, the Artwall Metrorail Art Gallery, which recently received two BASA awards. He has illustrated fifteen children’s books for various publishers and also works in animation.

Contact Diek Grobler
Tel: +27 12 343 8690 / Cel: 082 3747115
P.O.Box 36598, Menlo Park, 0102, South Africa
Email: diek@fopspeen.co.za, www.art.co.za/diekgrobler/default.htm

PAINTINGS:

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Pigeons (woman with pigeons that Diek saw at the Ljubljana train station)

please click here to see more and bigger paintings of Diek Grobler more...

TESTIMONIAL

At Villa Flora, time stood still.

I arrived on the train from Ljubljana. It was not a very practical arrangement, as Ljubljana is not the nearest airport to Branik, but the name of the city sounds like a song, so I had to see it.
I did not call to arrange for my hour of arrival. I left the city too early, and the telephone did not take coins. I am from Africa. Some of our public phones still take coins.
On the train I thought I would call from Branik station, when I arrive. Or take a taxi to Villa Flora.
Branik station has neither telephone nor Taxi. It is merely a building besides the railroad line. So there was nothing to do but to lug my luggage downhill in the direction of the row of houses down the valley, which I assumed to be the town.
As I turned the first corner, I saw it – the castle from the website, Castle Rihemberk, perched on the hill. Villa Flora must be close, I thought, as one could see it from the balcony, according to the website. So downhill I sauntered with my luggage squeaking on its little wheels behind me. Past orchards with apples and vegetable gardens with fat red tomatoes and Jerusalem artichokes. This is a place, I thought, where people still get their hands dirty. They sow and they reap. A Real place.
My fortnight at Villa Flora was real. I cleaned out the studio, moved furniture, got my hands dirty. There are spiders in the shed and mosquitoes in the garden. You buy cheese from a farmer three villages away, wine from the neighbor, your prosciutto just down the road and you go hunting for vegetables in the garden. I ate and ate sun- warmed figs right from the tree. Sweet as paradise
I climbed a mountain and sang “The hills are alive” on top.
Branik is that kind of place.

Diek Grobler, South Africa

TJAŠA IRIS, Slovenia

Tjaša Iris

Mission statement: "I view my work as a continuation of the concerns of expressionism. Colour is the main concern in my paintings, exploring the emotional and expressive qualities. My colours are used freely and vibrantly. The paintings vibrate with the contrasts of warm and cold, light and dark, bright and dull.
I am an avid traveller, and I capture the essence of the places I visit in vibrant abstracted pictures. Gardens with lush vegetation and ornaments, busy landscapes with swirling clouds, a coloured square of Burano island; Through my use of colour and shape I captivate the viewer with my joyful celebration of life through my art."

Tjaša Iris is an European painter - always in movement. Slovenian born and Italian by adoption. Living at Villa Flora, Branik in the Wine Country of Slovenia (Central Europe), Venice( Italy) and Paris (France). She earned her M.F.A. in Painting from Academie Minerva in Groningen, The Netherlands in 1995. She is a member of Slovenian Artist Association since 1996. She had many exhibitions in different countries as Italy, The Netherlands, Slovenia, USA, South Africa and France. Her works are in many private and public collections around the world.

Tjaša Iris

Branik 176, Villa Flora, Branik

Email: Tjasa_Iris@yahoo.com, www.TjasaIris.com

PAINTINGS:

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Tjaša is working on commissions: logo & wine lables proposals for Fattoria San Donato, a winery in Tuscany

please click here to see more and bigger paintings of Tjaša Iris more...

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Final exhibition

Final exhibition

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From the Press:

TV Program by Primorka TV, august 30.

Villa Flora Artist in Residency Program in Slovenia. pt.1/3

Villa Flora Artist in Residency Program in Branik pt.2/3

Villa Flora Artist in Residency Program Slovenia. pt. 3/3

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MANY THANKS to our

SPONSORS - PARTNERS:

To Branik restaurants for their excellent dinners that they prepaired for us. To wineries for their excellent wines offered to us. And to many others that gave us courrage and support and made our days nicer and more beautiful...

- Gostilna - Restaurant Furlan, Branik 79/a
telefon: 05 305 76 06
http://www.sloveniaholidays.com/GOSTILNA-FURLAN/index.html

za krasne večerje / MANY THANKS for their wonderful dinners:

and MANY THANKS for prosciutto and home baked bread for our exhibition opening:

- Turistična Kmetija - Tourist Farm "Pri Mlinu", Branik 206
telefon: 05 305 73 56

za krasne večerje / MANY THANKS for their wonderful dinners:

the restaurant owners: Marko in Ines Furlan

- Vino - Winery Stegovec, Sveti Martin, Vipavska dolina
Brje 121, tel. 053057700
www.slovino.com/stegovec

MANY THANKS for their wonderful wine:

the winery owner Peter Stegovec

- ResArtis.org, Nizozemska – The Netherlands
worldwide network of artist in residence programs

MANY THANKS for their wonderful support

- Gruppo Santa Margherita, Fossalta di Portogruaro (Venezia), Italija
great wines for great encounters. www.santamargherita.com MANY THANKS for a collection of 24 of their wonderful wine glasses

- Enoteca Fuori Piazza, Greve in Chianti, Toskana, Italija
Via I Maggio, 2 Tel.055.8546313 MANY THANKS for their wonderful support

- Villa Flora in Svet d.o.o., Slovenija www.zlatadolina.si

- Villa Flora Sobe z zajtrkom, Slovenija
www.villaflora.si

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the poster:

LIKOVNA KOLONIJA VILLA FLORA
Branik - Rihemberk

ARTISTS' COLONY BRANIK - RIHEMBERK
Villa Flora Artist in Residency Program

25. avgust – 8. september 2008

“trije umetniki iz treh kontinentov
–
three artists from three continents”

Diek Grobler, Republika Južna Afrika – South Africa
Mary Melilli, ZDA – U.S.A.
Tjaša Iris, Slovenija – Slovenia

web: http://www.zlatadolina.si/artist-in-residency

odprt atelje – opened studio:
nedelja / Sunday 31. avgust, 13.00 – 16.00

koncna razstava – final exhibition :
petek - Friday 5. september 16.00 – 19.00
sobota – Saturday 6. september 9.00 – 12.00 / 13.00 – 18.00

otvoritev/koktejl – vernissage/cocktail :
petek - Friday 5. september 16.00 – 19.00

sponzorji – partnerji: / sponsors – partners:

ResArtis.org, Nizozemska – The Netherlands
worldwide network of artist in residence programs

Villa Flora in Svet d.o.o., Slovenija www.zlatadolina.si

Villa Flora Sobe z zajtrkom, Slovenija
www.villaflora.si

Gruppo Santa Margherita, Fossalta di Portogruaro (Venezia), Italija
great wines for great encounters. www.santamargherita.com

Enoteca Fuori Piazza, Greve in Chianti, Toskana, Italija
Via I Maggio, 2 Tel.055.8546313

Gostilna Furlan, Branik 79/a
telefon: 05 305 76 06
http://www.sloveniaholidays.com/GOSTILNA-FURLAN/index.html

Turistična Kmetija "Pri Mlinu", Branik 206
telefon: 05 305 73 56

Vino Stegovec, Sveti Martin, Vipavska dolina
Brje 121, tel. 053057700
www.slovino.com/stegovec

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