NEWS

The Heart Is A Garden

Exhibition at the Clymer Museum in Ellensburg, Washington

At Archer Gallery at Clark College in Vancouver, WA
April 4th – May 31st, 2025

Opening Reception: April 4th, 2025, 5 – 7:30 pm
Artist Talk: April 5th, 11 am

About the Exhibition:

My work explores themes of awakening to the presence of the divine and reenchantment in everyday life, and investigating the role of daily spiritual practice in well being. The oil paintings reveal inner worlds as verdant spaces in which the garden becomes a metaphor for a flourishing internal world, where one may discover the buoyancy and resilience that arises through connecting with what has sacred meaning. Themes found in the literary genre of Magic Realism also fuel my investigation in the studio. Magic Realism, which blends the magical with rational elements to create a broader understanding of reality and what’s possible beyond the physical world, serves as a vehicle to cultivate a sense of upliftment and hope in the midst of challenging times.

It has been well documented that we live in an era of an unprecedented mental health crisis among people of all ages. Public health advisories have been issued regarding the current epidemic of the diseases of despair, such as addiction, depression, and suicide. My research on the topic of what supports mental and emotional health led me to the work of clinical psychologist Dr. Lisa Miller, who has been investigating the role of spirituality in psychology through the lens of science for over thirty years. Using MRI scans in her recent studies, Miller discovered that individuals with consistent spiritual practices as part of their life have brains that are structurally more resilient to the development of depression. Being spiritually engaged, her studies have found, cultivates well being and thus protects one against the diseases of despair. My own experience with such practices has corroborated these findings.

Location:

Clymer Museum
416 N. Pearl Street
Ellensburg, WA 98926
509-962-6416

Clymer Museum Hours:
Wednesday thru Friday 11:00 – 4:00
Saturday 12:00 – 2:00

clymermuseum.org

Nature Patterns

Two Person Exhibition Featuring the work of Tamara English and Kim Cridler

At Archer Gallery at Clark College in Vancouver, WA
January 6 – March 24, 2025

Opening Reception: Thursday, January 16, 2025, 11am- 3pm
Artist Talk: Thursday, January 30th, 10-11am
Zoom link: https://clark-edu.zoom.us/j/89227798779
Closing Reception: Saturday, March 22nd, 12 – 2pm

About the Exhibition:
Archer Gallery is excited to present Nature Patterns, by Tamara English and Kim Cridler. The work in this exhibit highlights the symbolic, spiritual, and psychological power of nature. The forms used in these oil paintings and metal sculptures speak to, and are inspired by, nature’s awe-inspiring beauty. In a time when climate change is at the forefront of public and political discourse, this exhibit presents an alternative, parallel relationship with the Environment and how we navigate internally in the midst of challenging times. Cridler’s work highlights the importance of materials, and how the ideal of beauty in nature and craft are important. English’s oil paintings reveal inner worlds as verdant spaces in which the garden becomes a metaphor for a flourishing internal world, where one may discover the buoyancy and resilience that is cultivated when one is spiritually engaged. While Tamara English and Kim Cridler live hundreds of miles apart and each have unique art practices, both artists utilize the visual vocabulary of the natural world with reverence to point to the potential for change as a central part of the human experience.

Location:
Archer Gallery, Clark College
1933 Fort Vancouver Way
Vancouver, WA 98663
info@archergallery.space
(360) 992 2246

Archer Gallery Hours: Monday- Saturday 11am-5 pm

The gallery will be closed Jan 20th and Feb 17th.
For details and event info, please visit www.archergallery.space

Exhibition at Caplan Art Designs in Portland in June

Exhibition at Caplan Art Designs in Portland in June

June 6th – July 15, 2024

First Thursday Opening Reception: 6-8 pm, June 6th, 2024 – Caplan Art Designs, Portland, OR

My recent work explores awakening to the divine presence in life, the buoyancy and resilience that arises through connecting with what has sacred meaning, and the role of daily spiritual practice in mental and emotional well being. The oil paintings reveal inner worlds as vibrant landscapes, exploring how our inner realms are like gardens that can be rejuvenated and enriched when we are spiritually engaged. My recent paintings align with the literary genre of Magical Realism, blending the magical with rational elements to create an atmosphere that serves as a vehicle to cultivate a sense of wonder and upliftment.

Artists have long been considered to be chroniclers making work that reflects what is happening in our world, revealing the problems of our time. Yet these days, what many people are seeking is solace and hope in the midst of a litany of challenges. Each painting is like a portal inviting contemplation; a world to enter into to find support, to find connection with the numinous.

Location:
Caplan Art Designs
1323 NW 16th Avenue #1001
NOTE: ENTRANCE to the gallery is on NW Pettygrove between 16th & 17th Avenues

Spirit Embodied: Tamara English’s Verdancy Within

Essay by art critic Richard Speer

The imagery in Tamara English’s new series, Verdancy Within, is lushly botanical: blanketflower and ninebark, jasmine and mock orange, calla lily and sage twisting, branching, reaching, subtly stylized from northern Indian and Middle Eastern tiles and textiles or wholly abstracted from the artist’s fertile imagination. The soil from which the vegetation springs appears to be visible too, and beneath it, rendered in outline as though transparent, the vines and leaves soon to sprout; but appearances alone rarely tell the full story, and English sees far more than what the eye can physically apprehend. Beyond the literal, she sees the potential energy held in store by the vegetation in the paintings’ lower quadrant, which to her represents “the imaginal, idea, or intention, rooted in the Divine Mother, rising from the Ground of Being through the causal and subtle fields.” It is a vision of heightened awareness verging into magical realism, suggesting a wondrous presence in the process of unfolding.

Wilds Within

Two Person Exhibition Featuring The Work Of Tamara English And Kendra Larson

At the Art Gallery at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, OR

September 25 – October 25, 2023

Monday – Friday, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m

More info here

About the exhibition:

Wilds Within is an exhibition of landscapes about the experience of inner life, the interior of our beings, by Tamara English and Kendra Larson. Themes explored in these paintings include the nourishing aspects of Beauty and Awe, healing qualities of plants, and spirituality. English’s oil paintings reveal the buoyancy and vibrancy found in connecting with what has sacred meaning, and exploring how our inner worlds are like gardens or forests that may be tended to and savored when one is spiritually engaged. Larson’s acrylic paintings take a psychological approach, depicting landscapes rich with a history of folklore with a focus on making visible the fleeting qualities that add to our understanding of Place. The bodies of work of both artists delve into motifs found in the literary genre of Magical Realism. Magical Realism is defined as “what happens when a highly detailed, realistic setting is invaded by something too strange to believe”. This strangeness, in turn, invites the viewer to expand their own perception of reality beyond rational thinking and open to wonder, beauty, and awe. Magical Realist writers like Jorge Luis Borges and Gabriel García Márquez, as early as 1925, saw how wonder and awe could give depth and insight into our everyday lives. Recent scientific studies such as those highlighted in the NY Times, US Today, and Psychology Today, show that experiencing awe improves physical and mental health. “The experience of awe is the feeling of being in the presence of something vast that exceeds our current understanding of the world. The research reveals that experiencing awe can reduce stress, quiet the inner critic, and inspire us to act more altruistically toward the people around us.” The paintings in Wilds Within celebrate how the experience of the natural world can evoke awe, connect us with the divine presence, and discover the wonder to be found in everyday life.

Exhibition at Caplan Art Designs in Portland in June

June 1st – June 30th, 2023

First Thursday Opening Reception: 6-8 pm, June 1st, 2023

Caplan Art Designs, Portland, OR

We live in a time of an unprecedented mental health crisis among people of all ages. Rates of depression tripled amount US adults during the first year of the pandemic. In 2021, US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy issued a public health advisory regarding the current epidemic of the diseases of despair, such as addiction, depression and suicide, and mental fragility in society particularly among young adults.

Clinical psychologist Dr. Lisa Miller began investigating the role of spirituality in psychology through the lens of science in the 90’s. Her studies have revealed that personal spirituality may cultivate well being. Miller describes what she calls the awakened brain inherent in us, how we each have a natural capacity to perceive a greater reality and consciously connect with the life force the surrounds and imbues us. Using MRI scans in her recent studies, Miller discovered that individuals at high risk for depressive illness who prioritize their spiritual lives have a thicker cortex in certain parts one their brains, making them more resilient to depression. Being spiritually aware, her studies have found, robustly protects one against the diseases of despair.

This new body of work, titled Verdancy Within, reveals the inner worlds as vibrant healthy landscapes, exploring how the inner realms are like gardens that may be cultivated when one is spiritually engaged.

Caplan Art Designs is located at 1323 NW 16th Avenue #1001
NOTE: ENTRANCE to the gallery is on NW Pettygrove between 16th & 17th Avenues

The Great Uplift: Tamara English

November 2nd – December 26th, 2021

First Thursday Opening Reception: 6-8 pm, November 4th, 2021

Caplan Art Designs, Portland, OR

The oil paintings that comprise this body of work, titled The Great Uplift, explore moving through our inner landscapes with the buoyancy found in connecting with the presence of the sacred. These artworks offer an invitation to choose upliftment, compassion and generosity in these unusual times we are living in. Each work becomes a portal to cultivate individual and collective well being.

Caplan Art Designs is located at 1323 NW 16th Avenue #1001

NOTE: ENTRANCE to the gallery is on NW Pettygrove between 16th & 17th Avenues

Hyperallergic Series A View From The Easel

During the current COVID-19 pandemic, Hyperallergic has been asking artists to share their experiences of their studios during times of quarantine, in their ongoing series “A View From The Easel,” which features artists’ studios all over the world.

Click here to see the post featuring my studio

About Hyperallergic:

Hyperallergic is a leading voice in contemporary perspectives on art, culture, and more. The online publication was founded by the husband-and-husband team, Veken Gueyikian and Hrag Vartanian, in 2009 as a forum for playful, serious, and radical perspectives on art in society. With over one million visitors monthly, Hyperallergic combines round-the-clock art world news coverage with insightful commentary. Hyperallergic is headquartered in Brooklyn, New York.

Treat Gallery – All of The Lights

Online Group Exhibition February 10 – March 31

Light, literally or metaphorically can stir conversation on direction, intensity, color, contrast, and hardness. There are seven basic properties of light: reflection, refraction, diffraction, interference, polarization, dispersion and scattering. Properties of visible light are intensity, propagation direction, and frequency. Light can be conceptual: have you seen a light at the end of a dark tunnel?

treat gallery is committed to helping businesses and individuals throughout the boroughs of New York City. For this exhibition, we will donate 25% of all sales to New York City based nonprofit Candlelighters NYC.

UNLIMITED 2020 Alumni Salon Show

October 2020

With works by more than 80 alumni artists from across the decades and mediums, you are invited to UNLIMITED 2020, the 4th annual PNCA alumni salon show, opening online, in the PNCA virtual gallery, Thursday, October 1st – 31st, 2020.

VIEW Exhibition

Unlimited Artist Panel Discussions

Please join us for a series of Fridays in October at noon for Unlimited Artist Discussions where participating artists will be sharing stories of their journeys, inspirations and challenges.

Dates for Unlimited Artist Panels and Discussion: Noon on Fridays through October.

Friday, October 16, 12:00-1:00pm (PST) on zoom:

Lisa, Brinkman, 1993 BFA Painting; Anne Haley, 2010 General Fine Arts; Travis Wills, 2013; Emma flick, 2019 MFA Print Media; Tamara English, 2004 Painting

Image:

You Were Born With Goodness And Trust, 2020

Oil on canvas

40 x 60 inches/ 101.6 x 152.4 cm

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