Tag Archives: Poetry

Unfurling Poetry Book Release !

Marietta Leis | November 15, 2023 - 12:47 pm

Unfurling is the third anthology in a collection of my poetry and art. This new book contains over two years of my selected written works exploring personal history, a troubled cultural present, and vast inner landscapes brought into focus during a global pandemic. The pages of Unfurling pair my prose with glimpses of my minimalist visual artworks, shaping a cerebral and palpably relatable reflection of a creative life unfolding.
“I was not calibrated for the Covid Pandemic in 2020. It did unfurl a childhood time of polio anxiety but I did not learn that navigation, if there was one besides fear and hope. During the ensuing 3 years I’ve experienced isolation and the ‘tip toeing out’ that has evoked both past memories and present reflections in no particular order. These writings are the harvest of a back-of-the-stove soup with things added as conjured revealing my internal landscape.”

“…Thank you for this lovely read and reflection. I love the work and your deep witnessing. The visuals are as nourishing as the writing….” Hakim Bellamy,Inaugural Poet Laureate of Albuquerque, New Mexico (2012-2014)

This latest collection of poems is the result of my time as a 2022 writer in residence at the Fairhope Center for Writing Arts in Fairhope, Alabama. During my month long tenure on the Alabama Gulf coast, I was able to distill down from numerous poems and writings, with the help of the quiet and the water.

The Albuquerque (NM) Museum is exhibiting a wonderful show of Georgia O’Keefe’s and Henry Moore’s art and how the work resonates together. I’m excited to share with you that three of Moore’s sculptures are in the lobby keeping my sculptural painting, The Silent Road, company. This is very cool! My painting, hanging 17’, will be up through December and represents my work as Visiting Artist to the museum.

Tag Archives: Poetry

Writer in Residence

Marietta Leis | February 7, 2023 - 2:11 pm

A month in the charming Fairhope, Alabama as a Writer-in-Residence sponsored by the Fairhope Center for the Writing Arts importantly gave me time to write and also an opportunity to experience the Deep South. I am grateful for both as our ongoing downsizing move to an apartment and office in Santa Fe has stretch us and we needed a break and time to work.

The scenic setting of Fairhope on Mobile Bay hydrated my desert soul and provided many glorious sunsets as well as magnificent cloud formations. The downtown Pier that I frequented on my walks draws people for exercise and fishing. Very serious fishermen staking out their territory for several hours with chairs, radios, food and several fishing poles.

As a tree lover I was treated with glorious Magnolia and abundant Live Oak trees always ready to amaze me with their large branches bowing low over the streets and lawns and the big old gnarled trunks of sculptural beauty.

The Center provided me and my husband with the quaint Wolff Cottage downtown and the library was conveniently right behind the cottage. Books of other authors who had been Residents graced the bookshelves that lined the living room walls. My sweet writing office had abundant natural light and an inviting vibe and my hours spent there writing, editing and formatting my new poetry book-to-be were hours of peace and grace.
Being downtown we could easily walk to meet any of our needs and find lots of local entertainment. Good food was at the restaurants and coffee shops. Oysters and fresh fish were luckily in abundance. I found a used clothing store where I bought a sweater as the temperatures dropped our second week there. The bookstores are a necessity in this literary town and there was one bookstore that satisfied my Xmas gift buying needs!

So let me back up and tell you a little history of this unique town; a group of reformers from the Northeast US established an experimental utopian community in Fairhope in 1894.They hoped that the town had a ‘fair hope’ of succeeding. It was developed as a ‘single tax’ colony that owned the land and homeowners paid an annual tax that provided the public amenities. These ideals attracted artists, writers and intellectuals. Among the unique things about Fairhope is the establishment of the progressive School of Organic Education by the educator, Marietta Johnson that still exists! And, luckily we were there for the weekend of the film festival and were able to indulge in our favorite pastime.
The people who are involved with the Center were all gracious and supportive of my work and respectful of my time but we gladly accepted their invitations to enjoy the art openings and incredible dinner treats. We found the entire town to exude Southern charm with eye contact and friendly greetings as we passed in the streets.Fortunately, I was asked to attend the book club that sponsored my Residency and it was so heartwarming to experience this wonderful group of accomplished and curious women who welcomed my work into their hearts. What I loved was bearing witness to the relationships that these women had woven with one another over the years and over many books and discussions.

I was also asked to do a public event at the library where I was able to talk about my work and read my poetry. What I noted was that I allowed myself to be more spontaneous and vulnerable both talking about my life and work but also in the poetry I had been writing in Fairhope. Maybe it was the accepting and supportive environment, maybe it was my age and maturity but I take pride in knowing that I still had the ability to grow and dare!

So in Fairhope I wrote, edited and laid out a new book of 50+ poems. Now back in New Mexico I will integrate some of my art to play off the words. In time this book will be published and I hope that you will let me know your reflections. Words and art are communication — maybe written or painted in solitude but always meant to be received by the viewer or reader. I look forward to the dialogue.

Tag Archives: Poetry

Changing Venues

Marietta Leis | August 10, 2022 - 2:39 pm

Yes, I am in the process of downsizing and moving and what a move it is. My husband David and I have been talking throughout the pandemic about what energy it takes to maintain our property which is a compound of studio and house in the heart of Albuquerque, New Mexico, US. Even with zero landscape and minimalist sensibility we felt that it took too much time away from our pursuits—my art and David’s community work.

So we have looked about for the ‘next place’ that would require less time and effort—we covered 3 states and came back to our own New Mexico. In 2021 we found that a new apartment was being built in downtown Santa Fe and we decided that would require our downsizing and give us the urban experience we enjoy.

We spent a lot of time looking for my studio and an office rental and finally found accommodations across the street from the apartment. So the transition has begun. After unloading a lot of ‘stuff’ we moved into the apartment July 2, and the studio and offices will follow.

But as my recent newsletter can attest the move, though slowing me down a bit and requiring time, has not diverted my art endeavors. I enjoyed participating in the Portugal group exhibition “earth@Faro” curated by Paulo Duarte Filipe. We spent part of a morning ‘messaging’ one another to get my “Boundless” pieces hung. My regret was not going to Faro as seeing pictures of some of the artists frolicking on the beach made me very envious. It’s always an adventure and a pleasure to exhibit internationally. And there will be more exhibits in Portugal to report.

The group exhibition, “Arctic Summer” at The Curated creative in Albuquerque was beautifully curated by the Director, Brianne Clarkson. The events— an opening, an artist talk and a cocktail/poetry reading (by me) were an exceptional way to celebrate art and community.

My wonderful assistant, Stefan Jennings Batista ‑a talented artist/photographer/educator, is the curator, of my solo exhibition at the Taos Art Museum at Fechin House. He tackled this task with much enthusiasm and we look forward to exhibiting in the Museum’s gallery space located in the former Fechin studio.

For this exhibit Batista selected the theme of WOODmetal because that aligned with Fechin’s own sensibility. and practice while he lived and worked in Taos. The exhibit will show my art made of or influenced by wood and reflected surfaces of metal. It opens September 9 with my reading poetry and will close October 16. Fechin’s house and grounds which have been restored are worth the trip to Taos!
You will hear from me next this winter as a Writing Artist in Residence in Fairhope, Alabama. I’m quite excited, stay tuned…

Tag Archives: Poetry

A NEW YEAR!

Marietta Leis | January 6, 2021 - 12:40 pm

So happy to kick 2020 out of the Door and wish all of you a bright and
optimistic 2021! Michael Warren Contemporary will have a ‘live’ an exhibition of
gallery artists this month and I will be showing several pieces of my new work of 2020,
Eclipse. Following below, find both my artist statement of this work and also my poem. Enjoy!

ECLIPSE (hidden and revealed) a statement

Eclipse is a series of paintings of Flashe© and copper leaf on panel and linen.The series came about from my infatuation with the idea of a black surface that would not reflect at all—an echoless environment.

Black has been a thematic visitor in my work for a while. Mystery, fear, discovery, velvet, night etc…all intrigue me

I pursued this evasive black relentlessly for several weeks. After many trials I arrived at Flashe©, a black that one sinks into and doesn’t return, a black hole.
I then began to think of light trying to creep over the edges – like that of an eclipse when the light of the sun limns from the obscurity of darkness. The play of light and dark, what was dominant and what was subsumed, bifurcated and partial, became the intention of the work.

The paintings speak to the sublime and offer glimpses into the infinite landscapes of the internal and external.

ECLIPSE
a series of paintings of Flashe© and copper leaf

Darkness absorbing light limned with copper
Dark days, dark nights, dark thoughts
with the promise of better times

Black obscuring light-but light sneaking out
Glowing hope and promise
Warming black’s mystery

There is a game of hide and seek
within an ecliptic peek a’ boo
But what is hiding

And as we move into the black
familiarizing ourselves with its velvet purr
It soothes and comforts

Black doesn’t eclipse the light
It accents the light, brightens it
Illuminating the night

Perhaps the light obscures the black
lessening its prominence
equalizing the power held

Partial eclipse hints at attempting balance
Weighing, evaluating, thinking
compromising, negotiating

No loss of significance, power, prominence
Deep thoughts evoke fairness
Black and copper both shining

Tag Archives: Poetry

Chaos Extended

Marietta Leis | October 13, 2020 - 3:08 pm

During this extended time of chaos and pandemic I hope that you are okay. Like many of you I am entering my seventh month of staying-at-home that sometimes glides by with ease and sometimes seems interminable. For me this is a supreme exercise/lesson in yielding—to overlook that the to-do list that doesn’t get completed and to not judge myself or others for how they are coping. This is hard times and I need to remind myself that we need to be gentle with ourselves and others.

My MailChimp newsletters tell you of my goings and comings so I hope you are signed up to receive them. I am so impressed with galleries and museums and their staffs that have opened with protocols— people really need to experience art for inspiration. My art is currently showing at my Denver and California galleries. Also at the newly opened Curated Creative gallery in Albuquerque.

I am also adding some photos of the exhibits that went ‘live’ in July and December in South Korea and Istanbul so you can appreciate the global community keeping art alive!

In the studio I have some newly finished wood sculptures and am painting on round shaped wooden formats. I am also busy framing some of my work on paper and printing books of my series of art. My studio practice set in stone a long time ago gives my days structure and bliss.

My book, The Silent Road, can now be ordered through Blurb. It documents through my words this sculptural painting that was an important part of my 2019. CLICK HERE: THE SILENT ROAD BOOK

I leave you with my recent poem, Communication, that I’ve added to my growing ‘pandemic’ file:

COMMUNICATION

My art isn’t completed without

the viewer participating

where is the dialogue

alone in my studio

Yes, of course I make art

to express my ideas,

concerns and feelings

but not just for me

No, I am saying something

putting it out there

for discussion as I would

speaking over a coffee

Of course, a viewer

might not agree with me

my abstract thoughts

may not suit their sensibility

But a friend would listen

would consider my ideas

and even disagreeing

a dialogue would ensue

Art is communication

it is not complete

without the viewer

participating

So the work feels lonely

abandoned and sad

sitting on studio walls

with no one to speak to
_____________________

– Until next time stay well and see art whenever possible!

Marietta

Tag Archives: Poetry

2020 Update

Marietta Leis | June 10, 2020 - 3:55 pm

Hoping you are all well and safe during these surreal days of the virus pandemic. I haven’t written a NEWS in 2020 for the reasons that we are all living and adjusting to—coronavirus. My schedule was eradicated—exhibits, travel—as was that of so many. But I am fortunate because I always work a great deal alone with my studio steps away from my home. My life has diminished in some regards but has not stopped and I am well. The pandemic world/human conditions does permeate and distract my days with an assortment of sadness, uncertainty and chaos. But there are the small precious positive things that I embrace everyday that nature and human connections provide.

I’ll share a bit the artwork in progress that I’ve been up to. I recently completed a series of copper and matte black paintings titled Eclipse; exploring the boundaries of dark and light.

These recent paintings of black and copper inspired me to extend that theme to a couple of wall reliefs. The wood was burned by the Shou Sugi Ban Japanese method that I like for its extraordinary range of black effects and the symbolism of burning wood.

Also I’ve have finally gotten to the first stages of painting the round shape of our earth’s colors on wooden formats. They will also be painted on the concave side.

My idea for these pieces has been evolving for a long time and this pause has given me the time to focus on them. As the concept evolves I will share more with you.

Poetry has been a mainstay during this period and I now have the budding of a stay-in-place group of work. I will revisit and edit them after our pandemic emergency when I have more insight and distance from the emotional onslaught of the situation.

_______

Familiar

Stay @ home
Work from home
All familiar to me

The silence
The stillness
My life pattern

Write my thoughts
Paint my feelings
My practice

But difficult
when virus
dictates

Not me
_______

If you feel so inclined please let me know how you are doing-I’d love to hear from you.
All my best wishes, for your safety and health,

-Marietta

Tag Archives: Poetry

Poet Miriam Sagan Writes on my work for Harnessing Light Exhibition

Marietta Leis | September 26, 2018 - 12:24 pm

The esteemed Santa Fe poet, Miriam Sagan, saw the Harnessing Light exhibition and wrote this poem about my art that was inspired by the dark light of Iceland. Sagan had been to and referred me to the Gullkistan Artist Residency in Iceland so we had the same experience to relate to—one as a poet and myself a visual artist. Please read her lovely poem HERE.

Tag Archives: Poetry

Looking Back and Forth

Marietta Leis | August 21, 2017 - 2:02 pm

2018: A Preview of Coming Events:
Summer is zipping by lending itself to my reflections of what has happened this year and what we can look forward to in 2018. Please watch for my winter NEWS when I will be announcing more about the exciting exhibitions and events coming up. A sampling includes:

January- Visible Poetry Connecting the World- An international group art exhibit at the Hanam Culture and Art Center in Hanam-si, South Korea. I have been fortunate for several years to participate in many international art organization exhibits that foster global peace and sustainable environments.
January 18-April 29- Museo ItaloAmericano, San Francisco. A return to this wonderful venue and to my Italian roots in a 3-person exhibit. Many of my current works will be exhibited at the wonderful Fort Mason complex.
May 8-June 17- Dairy Arts Center, Boulder is a solo exhibition. The large lobby galleries offer an opportunity to show my larger scale installations in this wonderfully active community gallery.

New Art in the Works: Here is a sneak preview (right) of my new work in progress that pays homage to the world’s trees—those that have been, those that are still with us and those that are hopefully yet to be.

2017: Highlights of Events Past:

Winter Blues and Seasonal Hues, Lincoln Art Center, Fort Collins, CO. Curated, Jeanne Shoaff.

This was a holiday season extravaganza. Three wonderful artists sharing a beautifully-installed exhibit with a community ready to celebrate the joy of Christmas and into the New Year. A wonderful opportunity for the inaugural exhibit of my paintings, Ascensions inspired by Iceland’s Northern Lights.

Pausing: A Book of Reflections in Art and Poetry

What fun this was: the first reading of my book. I didn’t know how it would be received, but my 15-minute allocation spread to 2 hours with poems and discussion. Everyone was eager to talk about about pausing in today’s chaotic environment. It was also nice to have a couple of the original artworks from the book there for people to see in person.
Please visit Amazon.com if you would like to purchase a copy of Pausing.

Lost and Found in Iceland, Michael Warren Contemporary, Denver, CO.
The premiere of my Iceland paintings was perfect in this beautiful gallery where they showed dramatically. The curved birch wood formats painted and burnished with graphite looked just as I remembered Iceland’s landscape. With no trees to obstruct the views the volcanic island shone for miles all the way to the curvature of Earth.

Illuminexus, April Price Projects Gallery, Albuquerque, NM
April Price and I conjured up the idea to invite Santa Fe artists to participate in an exhibit with me in Albuquerque. It worked out beautifully with installations and paintings intertwined in one gallery space and another gallery room showed my Ascension paintings. The coupling was very successful and was attested to by a terrific review: click here to read it!

Landscapes of Life and Death: Photography, 516 Arts, Albuquerque, NM.
516 Arts is the premiere showcase in Albuquerque. Between a museum and gallery, it shows some of the most exciting art globally, so it is a great privilege to exhibit my art there. This exhibit, part of the NM photography month had Mary Anne Redding, a superb curator, selecting my series of 8 photos on glass, Heartspace. These were taken looking out of my cabin window at a storm raging in the Drake passage and a sound piece of that storm accompanies the photos.

Spectrum, bG Gallery, Santa Monica, CA.

Such fun to revisit my old stomping grounds. Having lived in Los Angeles for 20 years, I can appreciate how vast the art scene has become. This invitational group exhibit was in the infamous Bergmont Station group of galleries. The art was hung salon-style in groupings of hues, creating a dynamic spectrum of color. Oh, and being there for July 4^th enabled me to see a local parade and look over the Santa Monica pier at fireworks.

Our Fukushima, Home of Culture, Kavadarci, Republic of Macedonia

Always pleased to exhibit to a new audience and this group show of international artists was certainly that. But more then that it brought attention to the continuing plight of Japan’s suffering Fukushima.

Now I am looking forward to my fall events, which I have posted in my MailChimp. You can sign up for my MailChimp announcements on my Contact page. If you have any questions regarding these upcoming happenings, please don’t hesitate to email me and I will be happy to send you more information. Hoping to see you at one or more of these upcoming events!

Tag Archives: Poetry

PAUSING: A BOOK OF ART AND POETRY

Marietta Leis | February 16, 2017 - 11:31 am

Available at amazon.com

In the cold and rainy month of March 2011, I was an Artist in Residence at the Morris Graves Foundation: The Lake, in Northern California. It is a place of grace, peace and beauty that encouraged me to press my life’s pause button. Living and working in this setting inspired me to think in verse. These poems reflect my state of being or my observations as I passed through my days painting there in tranquility. The simple passing of my days resulted in this work. I hope you sense the simplicity in this volume. —MPL

Pausing is quite remarkable and beautiful. Some poems tug at me as works of art. What is evident in these pages are poems that are fun, moving and insightful. Engaging poems that feel right at home with the quality and brilliance of Marietta’s visual art.
—Dale Biron, author, Why We Do Our Daily Practices

Elegant in its simplicity, Pausing is a collection of art and poetry that responds to experience in a deeply aesthetic way. Leis gives us the peace of how light strikes water, shades of color, the emergence of blue. It is an unusually beautiful book-we are fortunate to share its vision.
—Miriam Sagan, author of Seven Places in America: A Poetic Sojourn

Marietta’s poems are full of quietness, stillness and the calmness of a lake. I love the book’s simplicity of words and art and am especially thankful for the poem Japan’s Havoc. Pausing is a treasure.
—Taro Aizu, author of My Fukushima

READINGS:

Saturday, Feb. 25th from 1-3 pm
Weyrich Gallery
2935-D Louisiana NE
Albuquerque, NM 87110

Stay tuned for more readings!

Tag Archives: Poetry

Poetry Reading at 516 Arts

Marietta Leis | March 20, 2012 - 12:00 pm

I will be reading my poem, Blue, Saturday March 24^th at 516 Arts on Central Ave, ABQ with my reading between 3-3:30. The anthology we are celebrating is from the local poetry group by the same name as the book, Fixed and Free. It is available from Amazon. Many of the terrific local NM poets will be reading from 2-5. Help us celebrate the publication of this incredible book.

Poems flow from my artwork. Text plates of poetry accompanied my Marietta Robusti Tintoretto series, Blue has appeared with my exhibits of Blue paintings and presently 5 text plates are showing with my GREEN exhibition. Which comes first I don’t know. But come they do! I hope you have a chance to experience my poems.