The Main Gallery is proud to exhibit the work by Michael Ruiz and Catherine Merrill. The exhibit, “Clayful Shapes and Bodies of Work” will feature “Sensuous Inspirations Expressing the Beauty and Power of the Human Design” in the form of drawings, watercolors and figurative sculptures, vases and wall pieces created by working from the live model. Over the years the two artist have shared a studio space working from the same models and poses, yet creating very different artworks in both style and vision. The gallery, located at 1018 Main Street in Redwood City, will host a reception with the artists, complete with refreshments and live music, on Saturday March 26th from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. The public can also receive individual guided tours of the exhibition at the gallery from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Friday April 1st, with Catherine Merrill, or Wednesday April 6th with Michael Ruiz.
Michael Ruiz’s art work is influenced by both a background in design and illustration and by his heritage and years of study of the ancient cultures of Latin America. Several of his pieces, but not all, are meant to reflect the religious conflict that still exists for the indigenous peoples of Mexico, Central and South America. For much of his work, Michael favors sculpting in clay, as he feels that it is the perfect medium to capture the beauty and sensuality of the human form. He states “That, because of my fascination with the illusion of depth and volume on the flat surface, it was a natural and easy step for me to include sculpture as another medium to work in. I try to make everything beautiful, even when the message and meaning may not be.”
Michael Ruiz is a graduate of San Francisco State University, majoring in Art and Design with a Minor in History of Latin America. Ruiz has also done graduate work at California College of Arts and Crafts and San Jose State University. After graduation, he moved to New York City where he worked as a graphic artist before returning to San Francisco and landing a teaching job at City College of San Francisco where he worked for over twenty five years teaching Drawing, Watercolor Painting, Design and Pre-Colombian Art History. Michael served for six years as the Chairman of the Art Department, served on the college academic senate and was president of the Latin American Educational Association.
Having lived in Redwood City s a teen-ager, Michael still has fond memories of the city, and is very pleased to be showing some of his work in his old hometown. He now resides in Concord, California.
Catherine Merrill finds inspiration for her art working from the live model in a spirit of creative collaboration. For “Clayful Shapes”, Merrill will be showing two contrasting bodies of art. The first series, Lovers and the Natural World, in brilliant color and sensuous form juxtapose the human body with leaves and flowers. The second series Darkness and Light, is in a black and white palette often highlighted with gold luster, which reflects Merrill’s belief that life is a dance of opposites. Merrill will also exhibit two narrative porcelain tile books created during a residency this summer in Hungary at the International Ceramic Studio which tell a Sad Hungarian Love Story. Catherine’s newest work, created expressly for Clayful Shapes, Angel and Bat Girl Standing on the Memory Tree, is a large scale installation of two life-size winged female torsos on columns carved and painted in the form of ancient trees.
Catherine Merrill’s work explores the Human Figure and has been shown in over one hundred and fifty national and international exhibitions. A graduate of the Kansas City Art Institute, Catherine has presented numerous Figurative Ceramic Workshops at colleges and art centers throughout the United States and abroad. Her work has been featured in leading Ceramic publications. Dedicated to the promotion of Multicultural Ceramics, this award winning artist founded and directed The Art of Fire, an international Cuban American Cultural Exchange Project presenting exhibitions, residencies, workshops and community outreach programs throughout the United States, Cuba, Canada and Argentina.
There will be a closing reception and artist talk, Saturday, April 23rd 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Catherine Merrill and Lorraine Olsen will present a brief lecture at 5:00 p.m. on the theme Inspired by the Muse: the Artist and Model, followed by an interactive discussion with the artist and model. Lorraine Olsen has worked as one of the Bay Area’s premiere artist models for almost 20 years. A versatile actress with extensive theater experience she is the co-founder of Theater Valentine with her husband Val Hendrickson. Lorraine will be performing an excerpt from her upcoming show “Figuratively Speaking” premiering this September at the San Francisco Fringe festival.
