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Gualala Arts
Promoting public interest and participation in the arts since 1961.
Archive of past events: 2004 through 2014
The July 2013 exhibit at the Dolphin Gallery features the photography of Scott Chieffo and the woven baskets of Geoffrey Bolt. The opening night reception is on Saturday, July 6 from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. and the show runs through Wednesday, July 31. Geoffrey Bolt
His evolution as an artist began when he retired from an Internal Medicine practice and his wife encouraged him to find a hobby. She gifted him some lessons with famous Sebastopol wood turner Chuck McLaughlin. Bolt was surprised to discover not only did he enjoy the creative process, but also that his products had aesthetic appeal. Encouraged by his wife, a ceramicist, he participated in a number of Open Studio events. About four years ago Bolt discovered a new expression for his creative interests. He had taken a class in pine needle basket making at Gualala Arts Center from Gerda Randolph, who heads the Basket Maker group at the Arts Center. He quickly grasped some of the concepts involved and was able to produce elegant baskets. Bolt enjoyed incorporating a variety of materials such as waxed linen tread and beads into his weaving. He then realized that turned pieces of wood could form an interesting base on which he could construct pine needle baskets. This hybrid process has led to the imaginative creations featured in his previous Dolphin show in January 2010 and in the current exhibit. For Bolt, the discovery of a latent talent, one he had not associated with a successful medical practice, has opened new avenues of expression and provided personal enrichment. He continues to experiment and to improve his ability, always striving to find a physical product that will match his artistic vision. Scott Chieffo
"Photography is the ultimate means of getting in touch with myself and the world around me. Through the camera's viewfinder, I am able to see the beauty of the natural world with a unique intimacy. My main photographic goal is to be able to communicate this unique viewpoint to others, such that they are able to look upon my images, and develop a new and stronger appreciation for life's details. I believe that a fine art photographic image is most powerful if it can be viewed with increasing pleasure over and over again for many years, rather than simply have a strong initial impact." "When I go into the field, I rarely carry any strongly preconceived ideas about subject matter for my images. I study the light as it falls upon the landscape, and look for ways in which it may bring out the hidden beauty around me. When things are going well, I literally enter a meditative state of mind, which allows me to create images that communicate the subtle emotions aroused by the scene surrounding me." Scott was born and raised in Southern California, and has lived most of his adult life in various Northern California locations. His degree in Environmental Biology sparked a strong interest in the natural world that has continually grown throughout his life. He received his first 35mm SLR camera as a college graduation gift more than twenty years ago and has been seriously photographing the natural world ever since. For the past several years, Scott has shown his fine art photography prints at art festivals, galleries and exhibits along the west coast. His work is represented in private collections throughout the United States and beyond.
The Dolphin Gallery is located at
39225 Highway One in downtown Gualala, CA |
Geoffrey Bolt's artistic journey has gradually evolved to the stage represented by this show, in which his distinctive creations focus on basket weaving and incorporate his earlier interest in wood turning. The result is a distinct style of basket that functions as decorative artwork not found elsewhere.
In the nine years that he has been living on the Mendocino Coast, Scott Chieffo has developed an intimate photographic relationship with its unique landscape. His images capture the subtle beauty of the coast with a highly unique, "painterly" style.
