Art Talk

September will be here before we know it, and as many of you know that is the month in which Water Valley hosts many visitors to its annual Studio Crawl. The crawl is a chance for Valley artists to open up their homes and studios to art lovers around the North Mississippi area. It is a popular event, and many artists look forward to creating new work for it. One of the artists whose work will be featured at Bozarts during the crawl and for a few weeks after is Nicole Gladden.               
Gladden is an alliance member and has been since the cooperatives’ inception. Her work is well known in the area, and she will be presenting her mixed media paintings along with alliance members, Jeff Long and Hanne Gaycken. Their show Made in Mississippi: Canvas, Clay and Wood will include new work.          According to Gladden, her paintings are starting to move from “illustrative to abstract.” Having always enjoyed her work in the past, I was thrilled to see pictures of some of her newest creations. The bright color fields and delightful imagery make me smile. Gladden has a way of capturing simple moments and brings life and brightness to each piece she creates. Though her style is transitioning, the work remains strong, and the images still delight. Plan to come to the opening reception to see what she has been up to which will be at Bozarts on the night of the Studio Crawl, Saturday, Sept. 20.