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There is a triple treat being served up at the Carbondale Council on Arts and Humanities Gallery on Main Street during July.
Not only is CCAH featuring three different artists this month, but the exhibit features three different mediums of expression as well.
Alicia Matesanz De Las Heras is showcasing sculpture, while husband-wife team Joel and Lili Belmont are displaying their collaborative photography and painting in an exhibit of nudes, titled “Confines and Liberations.”
The Belmonts’ show features all collaborative pieces that they have coined “oilgraphs.” First, they archivally seal a panel, then seal a black and white photograph over the top. Lili completes the image by painting over the top with oil paint.
“My goal is to make people think,” Joel said. “Lili’s is to bless people with art.”
The Belmonts met at Principia College in Illinois. Joel is from Monterrey, Calif., and Lili is from Germany. While both originally went to school to study something other than what they ended up doing, they both found their niche as a result.
Joel began with a major in mass communications with a photography emphasis. He wanted to do film, but found the appeal of working for himself and owning his own equipment better served through photography. Additionally, he enjoys the challenge of distilling his work down to one single frame.
Lili set out to be an architect before switching to a studio art major. She found that being an architect was too rigid. Now she works mostly with watercolors and acrylics, painting landscapes and abstracts, in addition to the oil painting she does with Joel’s photographs.
“She does really wild stuff with washes,” Joel said. “She is really bold in her choices and does things I’d never think of doing.”
While watercolor is Lili’s primary medium, Joel explained that her work is anything but static.
“She’s always adapting her style. She’s never stuck in one thing,” he said.
The Belmonts included a lot of content and heavier pieces to fit the theme of “Confines and Liberations.”
“We wanted to do a bolder show,” Joel said “… Something that would make people think, challenge them to think, but not in a bad way.”
When it comes to titling the pieces, Joel often has something in mind when he first begins. But it is the final finished image that tells him what the title is. He looks at what the piece is really about and picks a name that captures the essence of what is coming across through the image.
Joel explained, “It’s a perpetual challenge, trying to capture a spiritual quality with a material medium.”
Joel is especially pleased to present one of his works — a large format photo. For the first time in eight years, he said he has achieved exactly what he really wants to get out to the public.
“The smaller pieces are just a thing on the wall,” he said. “The big images are like looking through a window at an experience. They are actually larger than life.”
While Joel’s nude models come from all over, he prefers working with average people.
“I like to find beauty in more unique places,” he said. “I focus on looking away from idealizing the body to more spiritual ideas, to truth and love.”
The Belmonts are seasoned veterans when it comes to showing their work, and have sold a number of their works. Lili has shown her paintings at the Aspen Chapel and the Aspen Art Museum. Both have displayed work at the Glenwood Mercantile and the Saturday market in Aspen. Be sure to keep an eye out at Mountain Fair later this month for the Belmonts’ booth.
“We’re always pushing the edge of what we can do creatively,” Joel said. “It keeps the work fresh. We’re both always evolving.”
Matesanz De Las Heras was out of the country and unavailable for an interview for this story. Her paintings and sculptures are an “exploration and a reflection of different cultures,” according to CCAH. She utilizes both collected and found objects in her work, and relies on mixed media to help her experiment.
Matesanz De Las Heras explained in a news release, “Working with found objects provides a layer of history and meaning forever connected to the work.” She also uses clay and bronze to create figurative abstractions.
Visit the CCAH Gallery at 645 Main St. To see more work by the Belmonts, visit their websites at www.joelbelmont.com and www.lilibelmont.com.
Not only is CCAH featuring three different artists this month, but the exhibit features three different mediums of expression as well.
Alicia Matesanz De Las Heras is showcasing sculpture, while husband-wife team Joel and Lili Belmont are displaying their collaborative photography and painting in an exhibit of nudes, titled “Confines and Liberations.”
The Belmonts’ show features all collaborative pieces that they have coined “oilgraphs.” First, they archivally seal a panel, then seal a black and white photograph over the top. Lili completes the image by painting over the top with oil paint.
“My goal is to make people think,” Joel said. “Lili’s is to bless people with art.”
The Belmonts met at Principia College in Illinois. Joel is from Monterrey, Calif., and Lili is from Germany. While both originally went to school to study something other than what they ended up doing, they both found their niche as a result.
Joel began with a major in mass communications with a photography emphasis. He wanted to do film, but found the appeal of working for himself and owning his own equipment better served through photography. Additionally, he enjoys the challenge of distilling his work down to one single frame.
Lili set out to be an architect before switching to a studio art major. She found that being an architect was too rigid. Now she works mostly with watercolors and acrylics, painting landscapes and abstracts, in addition to the oil painting she does with Joel’s photographs.
“She does really wild stuff with washes,” Joel said. “She is really bold in her choices and does things I’d never think of doing.”
While watercolor is Lili’s primary medium, Joel explained that her work is anything but static.
“She’s always adapting her style. She’s never stuck in one thing,” he said.
The Belmonts included a lot of content and heavier pieces to fit the theme of “Confines and Liberations.”
“We wanted to do a bolder show,” Joel said “… Something that would make people think, challenge them to think, but not in a bad way.”
When it comes to titling the pieces, Joel often has something in mind when he first begins. But it is the final finished image that tells him what the title is. He looks at what the piece is really about and picks a name that captures the essence of what is coming across through the image.
Joel explained, “It’s a perpetual challenge, trying to capture a spiritual quality with a material medium.”
Joel is especially pleased to present one of his works — a large format photo. For the first time in eight years, he said he has achieved exactly what he really wants to get out to the public.
“The smaller pieces are just a thing on the wall,” he said. “The big images are like looking through a window at an experience. They are actually larger than life.”
While Joel’s nude models come from all over, he prefers working with average people.
“I like to find beauty in more unique places,” he said. “I focus on looking away from idealizing the body to more spiritual ideas, to truth and love.”
The Belmonts are seasoned veterans when it comes to showing their work, and have sold a number of their works. Lili has shown her paintings at the Aspen Chapel and the Aspen Art Museum. Both have displayed work at the Glenwood Mercantile and the Saturday market in Aspen. Be sure to keep an eye out at Mountain Fair later this month for the Belmonts’ booth.
“We’re always pushing the edge of what we can do creatively,” Joel said. “It keeps the work fresh. We’re both always evolving.”
Matesanz De Las Heras was out of the country and unavailable for an interview for this story. Her paintings and sculptures are an “exploration and a reflection of different cultures,” according to CCAH. She utilizes both collected and found objects in her work, and relies on mixed media to help her experiment.
Matesanz De Las Heras explained in a news release, “Working with found objects provides a layer of history and meaning forever connected to the work.” She also uses clay and bronze to create figurative abstractions.
Visit the CCAH Gallery at 645 Main St. To see more work by the Belmonts, visit their websites at www.joelbelmont.com and www.lilibelmont.com.
