Michael Peven: Good Dog, photographic installation

Joe & Monty Sours: Yorkie, mixed media

Becky Golubski: Jack Russell, pastel

Man’s best friend takes center stage in the new exhibits at Spiva Center for the Arts opening to the public on Saturday, March 10. Good Dog/Bon Chien, a photographic installation by Michael Peven, is featured in Spiva’s Main Gallery. Best of Show in the Regional Gallery will showcase the lifelike soft sculptures of dogs and other critters by the husband-wife team Joe and Monty Sours and dog portraits by pastel artist Becky Golubski.

Twelve years ago, Michael Peven first saw Bandit the Dog pictured on a poster as a stray needing a home. Little did Peven realize that the Australian shepherd/malamute mix would become his “artist’s model” for the photographic installations he has created over the past nine years.

Although Bandit is the star of the Good Dog exhibit, it’s the scale of the images that jars perceptions and elicits “wows” from viewers. The installation consists of mammoth size images of Peven’s dog, planned and generated specifically for the space and architectural elements of Spiva Center for the Arts. The gigantic images are assembled from “tiles”—individual inkjet prints on paper—mounted on walls, suspended from cables, and wrapped around columns. Under certain circumstances, some images are split apart, so that there is only a single point of view where the entire image can be seen.

The initial impact for most viewers will be seeing a dog nose the size of a 6-year old child. Even the artist admits that “…after the wows come the smiles.”

A professor of art at the University of Arkansas–Fayetteville, Peven will give a slide/talk at Spiva on Sunday, April 1, 2 p.m., about the development of his work from traditional black and white documentary photography to the gigantic computer–assisted images. It will feature other installations of Good Dog as well as a selection of his work in photography and artist’s books. Reservations are requested. Call Spiva, 417.623.0183. A $5 contribution is requested at the door.

Best of Show in the Regional Gallery will be populated by a variety of dog breeds by the Sours—golden retriever, poodle, Westie, schnauzer, Shih Tzu, and Yorkie—with a few other critters from their inventory of soft sculptured animals. The husband–wife sculpture team from Golden City, Missouri, is known as “The Bear Lady.” Since 1981 Joe and Monty Sours have been creating and producing one-of-a-kind, soft sculpture teddy bears for an international market of collectors who appreciate the Sours’ unique designs and consummate workmanship.

The Sours created their first dog sculpture in 1995 when their beloved schnauzer died. That created an instant demand for their canine creations. “Since Monty likes the spirited personality of the terrier breeds,” remarked Joe, “we’ve created quite a few since then.” The sculptures are so lifelike that viewers expect them to bark and wag their tails!

The Sours’ work has been featured worldwide in nine books and over 100 magazines and newspaper articles. Along with being featured in museum collections in the United States, Canada, Germany, England, France, Switzerland, and Japan, their work has earned numerous prestigious awards, most recently, the 2006 Industries Choice Award.

Thousands of unique creations by the Sours have gone to eager buyers over the years. Says Monty, “We’re just happy to make others happy.”

Sculptures by the Sours are complemented by work by the pastel artist Becky Golubski. Although the Pierce City resident has depicted horses and cats in brilliant color, dogs are her favorite subjects. “I’ll just be going along and all of a sudden I see the way the light is shining on a dog’s fur...and that’s it! It becomes a composition of light, color, and texture in my mind.”

Becky did her first...and for a while, her last...pastel as a senior in high school. While majoring in art at the Kansas City Art Institute and Avila College, she worked in oils, acrylics, and charcoal drawing, but no pastel work. About 10 years ago, she picked up the medium again and it has become her passion. With over 120 pastel sticks in her art box, “I’m the Drama Queen of Color,” she confesses.
And, when the portrait of her new four-legged friend is completed, she notes, “It’s the gleam in the dog’s eye and the owners recognizing the portrait as their dog that count.”

In conjunction with the Good Dog and Best of Show exhibits, Spiva is sponsoring “Color That Canine,” a drawing class for children on Saturday, March 31, taught by Becky Golubski, featuring therapy dogs from Tri-State Kennel Club as live models. Other special events scheduled at Spiva are “Doggone Right,” an obedience and agility demonstration on Saturday, March 24, and a Humane Society Adoption Day on Saturday, April 14. Please contact Spiva (417.623-0183) for details and registration information.

Good Dog/Bon Chien continues through April 20, and Best of Show closes on Sunday, April 15. The exhibits are sponsored by Pedro and Alice Pantoja and Petfinder.com, an online resource for pet adoption, with additional financial support from Friends of St. Avips and the Missouri Arts Council, a state agency. Advertising support is provided by a grant from the Joplin Convention & Visitors Bureau.

Spiva Center for the Arts is funded through memberships, contributions, and grants. Admission to the Main Gallery is by voluntary contribution. Spiva galleries and gift shop are open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m.–5 p.m., and Sunday, 1–5 p.m. The Center is closed Mondays and major holidays.

Spiva Center for the Arts is located at Third and Wall in downtown Joplin. Free parking on southside of building off Wall. Spiva galleries and gift shop are open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. and Sundays, 1–5 p.m. Admission to the Main Gallery is by voluntary contribution. Suggested donations are $2 for adults, $1 for students. For additional information, please call 417.623.0183.

George A. Spiva Center for the Arts
222 W. 3rd Street
Joplin, Mo 64801
Tel: 417-623-0183
Fax: 417-623-3805
www.spivaarts.org