Spotlight show with Iori Uchihata and Lanie Shimer from April 6-April 19, 2013
There will be a two week spotlight show with the art of Iori Uchihata and Lanie Shimer from April 6-April 19, 2013 in the Yaquina Art Association Gallery. The Gallery is open from 11-4 pm daily and is at 789 NW Beach Drive (Nye Beach Turnaround) in Newport, Oregon.
Iori Uchihata will be showing acrylic and watercolor art with an Asian influence. She loves making Origami and dolls made of “washi” (Japanese paper). When asked, Iori Uchihata says that she is inspired by the designs and intricacies of the fabrics used for Japanese Kimono and Obi. Iori is self taught with a great interest in designs and colors. She is a member of the Yaquina Art Association and her work can be seen at http://weebly.briory.com.
The term “Edokko” means a person whose family line has lived at least three generations in Tokyo. That describes Iori. While her children were small and still growing up back in Tokyo, she worked as a typist and DTP operator. As a working mother of 3, she had little time for art. It wasn’t until coming to Newport about 10 years ago that she has had time, as she says, “to devote to doing what I was born to do. My art is not only for the beauty of the art itself, but it is also a way of introducing my culture to the rest of the world.” She loves the rain and the storms on the Oregon Coast in the winter as well as the other seasons here. She says she is thankful for the moderate temperature as “Tokyo keeps on getting hotter and hotter every summer, and nowadays the temperature can even reach 40 degrees C (100F).
Lanie Shimer works with brass and copper and will be showing a variety of unique art pieces utilizing these materials as well as driftwood. She was hurt back in 2000 and while she was on workmans comp she became interested in doing this kind of art. She didn’t have a torch when she began so she started off making trees. As she got more creative she began soddering other pieces onto her art. She realized she could add a lot to her art if she had a torch and when she recieved one she studied on the internet how to use it and taught herself how to do that. She had taken a class ten years earlier on using the torch but basically had to reteach herself everything. She likes one of a kind art work and every piece is its own creation. She loves collecting driftwood and finding a place for it amongst her artwork.
Lanie sells at Saturday Markets in Newport. She applied for a permit from the city, got her license and insurance to sell her artwork at Nye Beach on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and holidays.
"Maiko" by Iori Uchihata
