Colin Poole - Paintings and Sculptures
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Picture
Artists Colin and Kristine Poole, photo by Greg Preston
Artist Statement

I could begin with influences—how the sculptor Una Hanbury, my grandmother, mentor, and hero—seeded lessons in my childhood that continue to blossom.  Or I could write of the old icon painter who invited me to create in his studio and gave me his love for tradition, mythology, and the Greek isles.  But I’d rather you see it in the strengths of my landscapes and the hues of my forms.

I could write of the intensity of my days—how I cherish nearly every moment, sketching the mood and scene on tattered scraps of paper, café napkins, or in the back of my mind to be later manifested in oil or bronze.

I could describe my craving to wander and my desire to play.  But hopefully you feel this in the twists of my Tuscan dirt roads, or in the shadows of the bordering cypress trees.

I would love to create a map for you—directions to show the routes of my mind—how thoughts move from female form to Mediterranean landscape to a beautifully pocked and scarred quince.  But I am no cartographer and would much rather paint than play with a compass.

I could tell you of my travels—trips that have little to do with pretention and everything to do with the search.  I could write of how I have missed planes and rescheduled itineraries so that I might stay in a land just a bit longer, knowing that the scene I seek is too near for me to depart.  And then words would tumble over themselves in my excitement to tell you what I dreamed and found and painted.

But in truth I wish you to experience my work unencumbered by my words.  What I have created I place before you.


Picture
Resume

Selected Museum Exhibitions                                                                                                                                                

2018   San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts, San Angelo, TX
2018   Mazza Museum of International Art, Findlay, OH
2017   Mazza Museum of International Art, Findlay, OH
2016   Albany Museum of Art, Albany, GA
2016   Cape Cod Museum of Art, Dennis, MA
2016   Museum of American Illustration, NY, NY
2015   Appleton Museum of Art, Ocala, FL
2015   Las Cruces Museum of Art, Las Cruces, NM
2014   La Grange Art Museum, La Grange, GA
2011   Melchers Museum, Fredericksburg, VA
2010   Appleton Museum of Art, Ocala, FL
2010   Museum of Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX
2010   Woodson Art Museum, Wausau, WI
2009   Norton Art Foundation, Shreveport, LA
2009   Owensboro Museum of Fine Art, Owensboro, KY
2009   Stark Gallery, Texas A&M, College Station, TX
2008   The Springfield Museums, Springfield, MA
2008   Wichita Art Museum, Wichita, KS
1994   Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
1994   The Museum of American Illustration, NY, NY
1991   The Charles Sumner Museum, Washington, D.C.
1991   The Museum of American Illustration, NY, NY
 
Selected Juried Exhibitions                                                                                                                                                    
2018   Art Elevated, New York City, NY
2018   CAST: Art and Objects. Wayne Art Center, Wayne, PA
2018   International Guild of Realism Salon Exhibition, Sugarman - Peterson Gallery, Santa Fe, NM
2018   22nd National Ceramic Competition. San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts.San Angelo, TX
2018   IX:11. Imagine This. A Celebration of Imaginative Realism, Goggleworks, Reading, PA
2017   International Guild of Realism Salon Exhibition, The Marshall Gallery, Scottsdale, AZ
2017   IX:10. Imagine This. A Celebration of Imaginative Realism, Goggleworks, Reading, PA
2017   Scarab Club Silver Medal Exhibition. Scarab Club, Detroit, MI
2017   Spectrum Fantastic Art Live. Kansas City Convention Center, Kansas City, MO
2016   IX:9. Imagine This. A Celebration of Imaginative Realism, Goggleworks, Reading, PA
2016   National Sculpture Society’s 2016 83rd Annual Awards Exhibition, Pawleys Island, SC
2016   Nude Nite Tampa, Tampa, FL
2016   Refined IX. SFA Art Galleries, Nacogdoches, TX
2016   SFA Art Galleries, Nacogdoches, TX
2015   Art Scene Today, online
2015   Art Renewal Center, Port Reading, NJ
2015   Infected By Art volume 3, Chardon, OH
2015   Krab Jab, Seattle, WA
2015   Nude Nite Tampa, Tampa, FL
2015   Spectrum Fantastic Art, San Jose, CA,
2014   Arts Center Gallery, Astoria, OR (Purchase Award)
2014   Art House, Covington, LA, (Honorable Mention)
2014   Art Renewal Center, Port Reading, NJ
2014   Blue line Arts center, Roseville, CA
2014   East End Arts, Riverhead NY
2014   The Grunwald Gallery of Art, Kinsey Institute, Bloomington, IN
2014   National Oil & Acrylic Painters’ Society, Bolivar, MO
2014   North River Arts Society, Marshfield Hills, MA
2014   Nude Night Orlando, Orlando, FL
2014   Nude Night Tampa, Tampa, FL
2014   Orange County Center for Contemporary Art, Santa Ana, CA
2014   Peoria Art Guild, Peoria, IL
2014   River Arts on Water Gallery, Prairie du Sac, WI
2014   Robert Lang Studio, Charleston, SC
2014   Spectrum Fantastic Art, San Jose, CA (Silver award in the Dimensional Category)
2014   Tubac Center for the Arts, Tubac AZ
2014   Verum Ultimum Gallery, Portland OR
2013   Crooked Tree Arts Center, Petoskey, MI - OPA
2013   Fuller Arts Center, Los Alamos, NM (Best of Show award)
2013   Kinsey Institute, Bloomington, IN
2013   Las Laguna Gallery, Laguna Beach, CA
2013   Tempe Center for the Arts, Tempe, AZ – IGOR
2012   Center for Contemporary Arts, Santa Fe, NM
2009   Sage Creek Gallery, Santa Fe, NM - OPA
2008   Devin Galleries, Coeur d’Alene, ID – OPA
2008   Scottsdale Fine Art, Scottsdale, AZ - IGOR
2002   Clark House Gallery, Bangor, ME
2002   The Art Place, Palm Springs, CA
1997   The S.I. of Los Angeles, CA
1995   The Collectors Art Gallery, Washington, D.C.
1994   The Collectors Art Gallery, Washington, D.C.
1994   Murray Feldman Gallery, Hollywood, CA
1994   Ogilvy and Mather Exhibition, NY, NY
1994   The S.I. of Los Angeles, CA
1993   Perry House Galleries, Washington, D.C.
1993   The Arts Club of Washington, D.C.
1992   The Century Association Exhibition, NY, NY
1991   Art Gallery of Ontario, Canada
 
Selected Featured Artist & Group Exhibitions                                                                                                                      
2016                  MEI Gallery, Canyon Road, Santa Fe, NM
2015                  Krab Jab Gallery, Seattle, WA
2015                  R.W. Norton Art Gallery, Shreveport, LA
2014                    Evoke Contemporary, Santa Fe, NM
2014                    River Sea Gallery, Astoria, OR
2013 – 2014      Grunwald Gallery of Art, Bloomington, IN
2012                    Center for Contemporary Art, Santa Fe NM
2012                    Evoke Contemporary, Santa Fe, NM
2012                    GVG Contemporary, Santa Fe, NM
2010 – 2012      Ann Korologos Gallery, Basalt, CO
2008 – 2011      Gallery B, Lexington, KY
2007 – 2011      Kneeland Gallery, Ketchum, ID
2007 – 2011      Zantman Art Galleries, Carmel and Palm Desert, CA
2008 – 2010      Howard/Mandville Gallery, Kirkland, WA
2010                  Skotia Gallery, Santa Fe, NM
2007 – 2009      Bucks County Gallery of Fine Art, New Hope, PA
2007 – 2009      Chasen Galleries, Charlotte, NC and Richmond, VA
2008 – 2009      Hallmark Fine Art Gallery, La Jolla, CA
2007 – 2009      IAG Galleries, Naples, FL
2008 – 2009      Manitou Galleries, Santa Fe, NM
2007 – 2008      Ed Chasen Fine Art, Washington, DC
2007 - 2008      Gasov and Gurule Fine Arts, Scottsdale, AZ
2001 - 2008      Shidoni Gallery. Santa Fe, NM
2005 – 2007      Kornye Gallery West, Fort Worth, TX
2007                    Serendipity Fine Arts, Palm Beach, FL
2004 – 2006      Canyon Road Fine Arts, Santa Fe, NM
2003 – 2005      Carol Henderson Gallery, Fort Worth, TX
2002 – 2005      Gallery One, Mentor, OH
2002 – 2005      Peg Alston Fine Arts, NY, NY
2004 – 2005      Willow Gallery, Scottsdale, AZ
2003 – 2004      Hanson Gallery, Ritz Carlton, San Francisco, CA
2002 – 2004      Principle Gallery, Alexandria, VA
1999 – 2002      Century Gallery, Alexandria, VA
1985 – 1986      Shidoni Gallery, Santa Fe, NM
 
Recent Recognitions and Awards                                                                                                                                          
2018   Beautiful Bizarre Art Prize. Finalist. Australia
2018   Chesley Award. Three-Dimensional Art: Nominee. Harrisburg, PA
2018   Juror for Infected by Art, Volume 6. Hermes Press
2017   Bronze Award. Mixed Media Category. Infected by Art, Volume 5. Hermes Press
2017   Juror for The Spectrum Muse Rising Star Award. SFAL, Kansas City, MO
2016   First Place. Refined IX. SFA Galleries, Nacogdoches, TX
2016   Finalist Spectrum 23: The Best in Contemporary Fantasy Art. Flesk Publications
2016   Juror for The Spectrum Muse Rising Star Award. SFAL, New York, NY
2015   Juror for The Spectrum Muse Rising Star Award. SFAL, Kansas City, MO
2015   Purchase Award. From the Ground Up. Las Cruces Museum of Art, Las Cruces, NM
2014   Purchase Award. Arts Center Gallery, Astoria, OR - Au Naturel: the Nude in the 21st Century
2014   Silver Award: Dimensional Division. Spectrum 21: The Best in Contemporary Fantasy Art. Flesk Publications
2013   Best of Show: We Who Are Clay, Fuller Arts Center, Los Alamos, NM
 
Recent Publications and Reviews                                                                                                                                          
2018   Bravo, Hugo. Vision Illustrated. November, 2018
2017   McLaughlin, Katy. The Iconoclastic Homes of Top Artists. Wall Street Journal, May 5, 2017
2017   Townsend, Jan and Zettle-Sterling, Renee. CAST. Atglen, PA: Schiffer Publishing
2017   Townsend, Jen. CAST Contributors Featured in The Wall Street Journal.  CastArtandObjects.com. May 2017
2017   Todd Spoor and Bill Cox. Infected by Art, Volume 5. Neshannock, PA: Hermes Press
2017   Spectrum 24: The Best in Contemporary Fantastic Art. San Jose, CA: Flesk Publications
2016   Todd Spoor and Bill Cox. Infected by Art, Volume 4. Neshannock, PA: Hermes Press
2015   2014/2015 ARC Salon Catalogue. Port Reading, NJ: Art Renewal Center, December
2015   Spectrum 22: The Best in Contemporary Fantastic Art. San Jose, CA: Flesk Publications
2016   Todd Spoor and Bill Cox. Infected by Art, Volume 3. Neshannock, PA: Hermes Press
2015   Lofaro, Jerry. “Spectrum Fantastic Art Live 4.” Airbrush Action Magazine. July
2015   Fleskes, John. “The Spectrum Muse.” Fleskpublications.com/blog. May
2015   Fleskes, John. “Announcing the Spectrum Rising Star Award.” FleskPublications.com/blog. April
2014   2013/2014 ARC Salon Catalogue. Port Reading, NJ: Art Renewal Center
2014   Spectrum 21: The Best in Contemporary Fantastic Art. San Jose, CA: Flesk Publications
2014   Bruckner, Tim. “The Sculptor’s Secret World, Part 7.” MuddyColors.blogspot.com. August
2014   Whitney-Ward, Cynthia. “Romancing the Clay.” ChasingSantaFe.blogspot.com. February
 
Recent Lectures and Presentations                                                                                                                                           
2018   Artist Demonstration: National Sculptors Society, Plein Air Magazine’s PACE18, Santa Fe, NM
2017   Lecture: “Plays Well With Others-The Art of Collaborative Art.” Goggleworks Center for the Arts, Reading, PA
2017   Panelist: “Sculptor Round Table.” Goggleworks Center for the Arts, Reading, PA
2017   Lecture: “An Unfinished Conversation.” Albuquerque Museum of Art, Albuquerque, NM
2017   Lecture: “Intertwined: The Art of Collaboration.” Spectrum Fantastic Art Live, Kansas City, KS
2015   Panelist: “From the Ground Up.” Las Cruces Museum of Art, Las Cruces, NM
2015   Workshop: Technique, Anatomy, Content: Sculpture as Vehicle. Santa Fe, NM
2015   Panelist: Flesk Publications, Spectrum 22 and Beyond, San Francisco, CA
 
Additionally I have lectured on my art at the Smithsonian Institution, Western New Mexico University, Virginia Commonwealth University and the Kildonan School
 
Selected Collections                                                                                                                                                               
Lourdes Cathedral – France, National Geographic Society, Saatchi and Saatchi, U.S. Mint
My artwork is represented in over 350 private collections, including those of actors Tim Allen and John Travolta
 
Recent Public and Private Commissions                                                                                                                                                                        
2018   “Zemp’s Legacy,” Monumental Bronze Public Art Commission. Carnegie Library, Howell, MI
2018   “Excellence in Graphic Literature,” Bronze sculpture. Denver Comic Con/Pop Culture Classroom, Denver, CO
2017   “Rising Star,” Bronze sculpture. San Jose, CA. Flesk Publications
2016   “Lifetime Conservationist Achievement Bronzes,” NM Department of Game and Fish, Santa Fe, NM
2016   “Rising Star,” Bronze sculpture. San Jose, CA. Flesk Publications
2016   “Spectrum Muse,” Bronze sculptures. San Jose, CA. Flesk Publications
2016   “Lifetime Conservationist Achievement Bronzes,” NM Department of Game and Fish, Santa Fe, NM
2015   “Rising Star,” Bronze sculpture. San Jose, CA. Flesk Publications
2015   “Spectrum Muse,” Bronze sculptures. San Jose, CA. Flesk Publications
 
Selected Collections
Lourdes Cathedral – France, National Geographic Society, Saatchi and Saatchi, U.S. Mint
My artwork is represented in over 350 private collections, including those of actors Tim Allen and John Travolta
 
Selected Corporate Commissions
AT&T
Campbell-Taggert
Coca-Cola
Colony Glass
Daimler-Benz
DuPont
ESRI
Exxon
Freightliner
General Mills
Grainger Corporation
Hilton
International Paper
J. Walter Thompson
Lexus
Mill Pond Press
Mitsubishi International Corp.
National Audubon Society
The Nature Conservancy
New Mexico Game and Fish Dept.
Orion Satellites
PBS
Sony
Standard Pacific
Sun Microsystems
Tensar
U.S. Postal Service
Visa
William Morris Agency

Education
Bachelor of Arts, studio art with concentration in sculpture, Connecticut College
Art instructor, Junior and Senior years
 
Apprenticeships
Una Hanbury: Bronze Sculpture
David Smalley: Metal Sculpture
Lou Stovall: Silk Screen
 
Previous Lectures and Presentations
Kildonan School
Smithsonian Institution
Virginia Commonwealth University
Western New Mexico University
Las Cruces Museum of Art

Colin and Kristine Poole  -  Collaborative Work

Upon first encountering the collaborative creations of Colin and Kristine Poole, one almost believes that they’ve stepped into a reality where such creatures might actually exist. Colin and Kristine’s newest series, “Chimera”, debuted at GVG Gallery on Canyon Road and is currently being shown in their private exhibition space on the north ridge of Santa Fe. Their life-sized ceramic sculptures seamlessly blend human and animal forms into surprisingly believable creatures. Each figure is based on a particular world myth but also tells its own story through the viewer’s imagination. Their sensitive sculptural approach to the figure combined with an innate awareness of animal attitude enables them to illuminate the relationship between human and animal expression, spirit and emotions.

Colin has had an enduring love and fascination for mythology since early childhood, having been introduced to the Greek mythological pantheon as a child while learning from and working in the studio of his mentor, Christosomos Chakos – one of the living masters of Greek Icon Painting at the time. Colin shared his love of mythological stories with Kristine and together, they have broadened their influences to include myths from cultures around the globe. They use the retelling of world myths as inspiration for viewers to revisit the wonder and fascination of storytelling and to emphasize the unity of our cultural roots – how people have, since ancient history, told stories of human and animal attributes combining with magical results.

They are often asked to describe their unique working methodology. Colin says, “It really is a complete collaboration from the beginning all the way through the process. There isn’t any part that we don’t both have our hands in, both literally and figuratively.” They begin by selecting the pose together and contemplating which myth they’d like to work with. Kristine then starts the process of sculpting the human portion of the figure. Once the figure is mostly complete, they discuss the feeling and energy it has and what animal would best embody similar emotions to complete the gesture of the body and Colin sculpts the creature’s head. Once head and body have been joined, Colin adds the surface texture to unite the two parts completely. Kristine adds, “Part of what is unique about how we work is that we both bring specialized backgrounds to the table – my extensive background in ceramic sculpture and anatomical study is the perfect complement to Colin’s 25 years of experience as a professional painter and sculptor. His work has been exhibited in museums and galleries throughout the United States and Europe and his corporate client list reads as a “who’s who” of Fortune 500 companies.”

Colin and Kristine both came to Santa Fe at approximately the same time almost 20 years ago but their paths did not cross until 2008 when he asked her to dance a Tango. They were married in Greece the following summer and began combining their artistic talents the same year.

Picture
Spectrum Fantastic Art 2014 Silver Award winners - photo by David Bober