Exhibiting at Epic Emporium now through January 3, 2012:


A Quiet Fire 

A collection of charcoal drawings by Danielle Walsh, containing softly sexy female portraits rendered in an impressionist style.  All pieces were completed from the sitting of live models - captured with gestural pencil strokes, their personalities coming through in the tilt of their head, curve of shoulder, and smoky gaze. 

 

Artist Statement

The use of charcoal to depict the human form subtly invokes thoughts of fire, from the charcoal itself, which is formed from the heating of trees, to the flammable paper it’s placed upon, to the human figure, which takes on a quietly seductive quality, bringing to mind the fire of human desires.

Creativity, often described as a “spark”, is both psychological and physical process, with many factors affecting the outcome.  Upon discovering I would be moving to my current larger studio space, located in the middle of a diverse and supportive artists’ community, I was inspired to write the following poem. 

Four Fifty-One

Each night I arrive home and fold myself up to enter

storing my dreams on a shelf with dim lighting

I have been a potato-eater these long years

surrounded by charcoal thoughts on rough paper

always cold around the edges

Soon I will unfold and lay myself out

on the wooden floors where the light will blow across me

I will be infused with color and sound and purpose

Each night I will become more alive

my core will ignite, burning onto the paper

 

Artist Bio

Danielle Walsh has an Associate’s Degree from GRCC, where she studied studio art and art history.  The artists who influenced her drawing include Edgar Degas, Dominique Ingres, and Egon Schiele.  She has exhibited in GRCC Collins Art Gallery, Hollowell Art, Wealthy Theatre, Bear Manor Properties, and West Michigan Center for Arts and Technology.

Danielle’s live/work space, figurista, is located on the Avenue for the Arts in the Heartside neighborhood of Grand Rapids.  Once a month, fellow artists come together to sketch from a model during the drawing sessions she organizes and holds in the space.