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Wild Beast of the Wetlands |
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by
Jamey Landry
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When a woman
assures you it is okay to describe her as the “Wild Beast of the Wetlands,”
it certainly is an attention-getter. In my experience, to call any woman
a wild beast is to be rewarded with a good hard slap across the face. Even
though our interview was over the telephone, I half expected a hand to somehow
reach through the line and whack me. I needn’t have worried, however.
For this issue’s cover artist, Rhea Gary, “Wild Beast of the
Wetlands” is a moniker she cherishes–and rightly so, for it
succinctly describes both her style and her self-proclaimed mission.
For nearly 15 years, Rhea has been enamored by the vanishing beauty that is the wetlands of Louisiana. Sadly, by some estimates 30 to 35 square miles of these wetlands disappear each year due to coastal erosion. After a boat trip with her son through the wetlands, Rhea not only felt compelled to paint them, but to save them, as well. “I found that people who had lived in Louisiana all their lives had no idea how serious the problem (of coastal erosion) was,” Rhea told me. Even worse, she was distressed to learn people had no idea of how fragile the wetlands are and what was being done to preserve them. Since that first trip, Rhea has successfully married her passion for painting with her passion for preserving Louisiana’s wetlands. She tries to convey her feelings and impression of the wetlands subjects through each painting. Typically, Rhea will work through a combination of sketches or small paintings done plein aire or, more often, through photographs. She will frequently capture a particular element that strikes her fancy, and then combine it with other photographed elements to create her paintings. “I never really paint from photographs,” Rhea was quick to point out. “If I see a tree line or something I’m really excited about, I’ll take some pictures of it. I then may actually take that picture of the tree line, and then a foreground from another picture, and when I get through, I’ve really made my own composition. I use those photographs to jog my memory for the composition, but then I’ll put them away and paint from memory so that what I get is an emotional response to the time I was there.” Rhea confesses that categorizing her own work, particularly the wetlands subjects, is not an easy task. She explained: “I always have trouble pinpointing what style I would call my painting, because it isn’t totally like the expressionist painters. But often the expressionists were giving you an emotional response to what they were seeing, which is what I try to do.” In Rhea’s case, that emotional response is color–bold, bright color, particularly reds and yellows. Her use of color has been likened to the fauve painters of the late 1890s. According to the Web Museum of Paris, Henri Matisse originated fauvism in France. It grew out of the impressionist movement and moved beyond it by using pure, brilliant colors that were applied straight from the paint containers in an aggressive and direct manner. At the first formal showing of fauvist paintings in Paris in 1905, a shocked critic described these painters as “Les Fauves” (wild beasts) because of the violence of their works as compared to the more subtle impressionist works they followed. The name stuck and was seized upon by the painters. To Rhea, it is a badge of honor. When the author of another article about her dubbed her “The Wild Beast of the Wetlands,” she gleefully appreciated the title. Secretly, I wondered if that guy got slapped when he said it, but Rhea went on: “I like to live around a lot of colors and I just see things in a different way, probably the same way the fauvists saw themselves.” Rhea’s way of seeing things is catching on in an important way. One of the many admirers and collectors of her art is DeLaine Emmert, wife of LSU chancellor Mark Emmert. Mrs. Emmert is a strong supporter of wetlands research and preservation efforts. This past year, she introduced Rhea to noted nature photographer C.C. Lockwood, who has published many collections of his wildlife photographs. Rhea and Lockwood quickly discovered that they shared the same enthusiasm about the beauty of the wetlands and the efforts to preserve them - and recognized an opportunity to bring more awareness of the wetlands to non-scientists. They are currently working together on a coffee-table book about the wetlands that will feature Rhea’s paintings and Lockwood’s photographs; it is due out in fall 2004. Rhea says that the feedback to the idea of the book has been favorable. Both wetlands researchers and environmentalists are excited by the project because they recognize the potential of the book to reach an entirely new audience. “Everything I could get my hands on about the wetlands was geared more to people who are environmentalists or very interested in the environment. The message of how we are losing the wetlands did not seem to be getting out to the average person,” Rhea said. She views her book with Lockwood almost as a crusade for the wetlands. “We’ll be able to reach different people than the scientists normally would, people who are interested in art and photography and who can appreciate that beauty is worth saving.” By converting art patrons into wetlands patrons, Rhea and Lockwood hope to promote an increased awareness that will fund more research. One of those funding efforts is a limited edition, two-plate preview of the book that will feature one wetlands subject by Rhea and one by Lockwood. Proceeds from the signed editions will go directly to a scholarship fund at LSU devoted to wetlands research. A traveling exhibition and video training materials on wetlands education based on the book are also planned. It is an ambitious project that is well on its way to being successful, driven by the art, energy and enthusiasm of the true “Wild Beast of the Wetlands,” Rhea Gary. We wish her well on her mission. Rhea’s work is currently on display at several galleries across the United States, including Brunner Gallery in Covington, and can be viewed at www.rheagary.com. She encourages comments about her work. Contact her at rhea@rheagary.com.
Copyright 2003-2006, M&L Publishing, all rights reserved. |
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