Small Solos – 3 artists

April 4 – May 26, 2018

During the month of April, the Back Gallery of the Firehouse Gallery will feature three WAC artists – one veteran member and two new members: Jay West, Susun Gallery and Joshua Gerbert.

Award-winning multi-media Big Island artist J. Jay West blends her passion for recycling with the creation of one of a kind art. Her work stands out amongst the many talented Hawaii artists due to her innovative use of found materials and continuous trials utilizing both traditional and experimental techniques. Working out of her Kamuela studio, she creates fine art and functional craft from primarily paper and glass while experimenting in photography.

“I am a combined media abstract artist that utilizes recycled materials in most of my work.  I prefer to use recycled glass, paper, wood and metals out of respect for our finite environment. In the process of transforming mundane objects into things of beauty and meaning I’m captivated by the thrill and subtle twists of vision I am granted. I’m like an explorer on a path never before traveled where every new vista fills me with joy.”

West holds a BFA in Design with concentration in structural fiber, aka weaving, from the University of Kansas. She went on to pursue a career in graphic arts which included owning a commercial printing company in Waimea. She has been involved with the Waimea Arts Council since she moved here 30 years ago.

Susun Gallery is an acrylic painter, teacher, hula dancer, snorkeler, nature lover and lover of all things Hawaiian. She opened Susun Gallery Artschool in Santa Cruz, CA in 1987, after a career as a sign painter in the San Jose area, and as a fine art consultant in Carmel.  The school is home to hundreds of talented art students, all learning to draw, paint and sculpt their world, their way.

She now lives in Waimea and is learning and painting fine art again, as well as sharing her art knowledge with the Kona and Kohala communities She is the directing art teacher at Kahakai Elementary School in Kona, and orchestrates painting class events for corporations, schools and private groups.

Artschool on the Beach is her new studio, and a fun way for locals and visitors to explore painting with great results in a short time. “Experience paradise while creating a personal masterpiece in Hawaii. Come join me and let me introduce you to new art attitudes and altitudes. Explore every grain of sand, fill your paint cup from a waterfall, rub red dirt and black sand into your painting, and take divine notes from nature. Get your feet wet, feel the aloha flow through your brush, and paint rainbows from life. Make a lasting memory for yourself, and the ones you love.”

Art has always been a part of Dr. Joshua Gerbert’s life—from pen- and-ink drawings as a teenager in Texas, to medical illustrations over his 50 year academic and medical career. During his medical career he did not find time to paint; however he continued his love for art by doing medical illustrations for journal articles and textbooks.

Upon retiring to Hawaii from San Francisco in 2012, his wife, Barbara, encouraged him to resume his painting as a hobby and to take a few painting classes. She also purchased a large wooden easel for him to use. He then experimented with various media, including watercolors, oils, acrylics, and pastels and decided that acrylics were his preference.

Surrounded by the beauty of the Big Island he enjoys painting landscapes, seascapes, undersea views, and, more recently, golf holes on the Big Island.