In the Gallery -- December

ARCHITECTURAL COLORED PENCIL DRAWINGS
by Tony Jeurissen

Tony Jeurissen was born in German occupied Holland (Netherlands) in 1943. His father was a civilian casualty of the pre D-Day bombings of Europe by the Allies. His Dad survived, but was an invalid the rest of his life.

During the Market Garden operation, the house Tony was born in was shelled and gutted and his parents lost everything. They lived only a few blocks from the bridge too far in Arnheim. After World War II most European people survived with help from the Government, Churches and Family. Tony's Dad also received $2.00 per week restitution from the Marshall Plan.

In 1956 Tony's parents immigrated to the United States to provide a better future for their family as Europe's future was bleak in those days. After a short stay in New York City, the family moved to Urbana, Illinois where Tony received his education. His first job was as a commercial artist for a sporting goods company. At that job he found he wasn't meant to be chained to a drawing table eight hours a day. He enjoyed and much preferred freelance designing. In 1967, Tony and his family moved to Crawfordsville where he got a job at Donnelly's in the pressroom. He retired from that position in 2005. He considers his artwork his retirement hobby. It challenges him to enjoy both the labor and the results of that labor.

When Tony was eight, he found he was good at both art and soccer. He played competitive soccer until he was 58 years old and is still drawing! His advice to people, including retirees, is to stay active at whatever you are good at. Tony's artwork is reflective of his character: he is a realist, a preservationist, a traditionalist, innovator and adventurer. His medium is colored pencil. His technique involves layering, straight line drawing, rubbing, smudging, erasing, soaping and taping. His tools include: soap, tape, paper towels, Kleenex and a T-square. His studio is his kitchen table. His subject matter is mostly local scenes, things he sees every day. His titles are dedications to meaningful people in his life plus a short description of his subject.

POTTERY PLUS
by Belinda Kiger

Belinda Kiger was first introduced to pottery through classes taught by Audrey Rossmann at the Morton Community Center in West Lafayette, Indiana. She has taken classes at the center for about fifteen years. She considers her pottery a professional hobby and good therapy. Belinda and several of her pottery friends have come together and formed the Wabash Valley Potters. They have participated in pottery art shows together at the Tippecanoe Art Federation for the past five years. Several years ago she built her own raku kiln and has developed a love for this technique of firing. She works with raku, stoneware and terra cotta clay most of the time. She does raku, horsehair, smoked and functional style pottery. Many times she incorporates the landscape, nature and the environment into her pottery. To take raw clay from the earth and turn it into a beautiful and interesting piece of art is inspirational for her. Belinda graduated from Crawfordsville High School and has a BS degree in landscape architecture from Purdue University. Professionally, she works as a park planner, city urban forester, naturalist and environmentalist and is the Community Parks & Urban Forestry Manager for Lafayette's Parks & Recreation Department in the City of Lafayette. She has a married daughter and a three year old grandson who live in Chicago.