Canterbury, New Hampshire sculptor Carol Lake has just returned from the annual Animal Art Fair in Paris, a juried international exhibition of animal artists in all mediums, where she was the only American out of the 60 in attendance. Lake’s sculptural practice is rooted in over 45 years of hands-on experience in farming and the equine industry, where she developed an intimate understanding of animal anatomy, movement and spirit. As a farmer, she spent decades reading the subtle language of animals and “assessing health through touch, observing the poetry of posture, and forming deep bonds with creatures in my care,” said Lake. This hard-won anatomical knowledge now flows directly into her sculptural work. “Each sculpture becomes an act of communion — a way to once again feel the weight, warmth, and essence of animals I no longer physically tend,” she explained. “Through clay, I … [Read more...] about CORNERED: CAROL LAKE

Joanne Mattera’s 2001 book, “The Art of Encaustic Painting: Contemporary Expression in the Ancient Medium of Pigmented Wax,” has been a guiding light for encaustic artists since its publication in 2001. She founded the International Encaustic Conference, IN 2007, which will be held for its 17th year from May 31 through June 3 at the Providence Inn and Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill; she’s now its Director Emerita. Built on several years of entries under the same name, Mattera’s latest book, the self-published “Italianità: Contemporary Art Inspired by the Italian Immigrant Experience,” has a complementary exhibition, “A Legacy of Making: 21 Contemporary Italian American Artists,” that is on view through the end of April at John D. Calandra Italian American Institute in Manhattan. Her next solo exhibition, featuring paintings on paper that Mattera produced during the pandemic, … [Read more...] about CORNERED: JOANNE MATTERA