Holiday Baked Goods and Gift Sale!!!

Stop by Rivertown Coffee Co. this Saturday (Dec 12th from 9am till 3pm) to pick up some yummy baked goods and perhaps a gift or two for your friends and family! All proceeds will go toward The Art Hive (an up and coming artist co-op in Florence, Al) Now that we have a building, we just need funding to fix it up, please stop by and support local Arts!


Also, while you're visiting Rivertown Coffee, Check out the new art on the walls. They are works from the late Byron Wilkes, a well known and loved artist from the Shoals. We are honored to have some of his work on the walls at Rivertown.

Everyone's invited...

Directions to the Railroad Bridge: 

From Florence, head south on Court St.and cross the bridge.  Then take a left on 16th St. (across from the Mcdonalds). Then turn left onto Ashe Blvd.

Artist of the Month (October): Megan Pinch

Introducing October's local artist of the month, Megan Pinch, along with images from one of her photography collections...

Tell us a little about yourself.
My name is Megan Pinch. I am an artist and educator currently living in Florence, Alabama. I'm originally from Rochester, NY. I attended College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA, where I double majored in Russian and Studio Arts. I fell in love with photography while taking classes from Robert ParkeHarrison. I attended graduate school at Rochester Institute of Technology for one year, then SUNY Brockport's Visual Studies Workshop, where I received my Master of Fine Arts degree. I have taught at The University of North Alabama, Texas Tech University, and College of the Holy Cross. Over the past ten years, my images have been featured in more than 50 publications and juried gallery exhibitions. I have received national recognition for my art, winning several awards and grants, including a fellowship in photography at Women's Studio Workshop.

What materials do you commonly use in your art?
My materials have changed over the years with technology changes, and I have found a good balance between darkroom and digital photography. I shoot black and white film with my Hasselblad, process it in my kitchen, scan it into Photoshop, and sometimes add color or make small changes. I still love the darkroom and prefer printing b/w on fiber paper, but for color I like using textured paper on a large format Epson printer with archival inks. I also sometimes still shoot with a Holga plastic camera and use my scanner as a camera. Recently I've been experimenting with video and stop motion animation as well.

Describe your artistic style and/or approach.
Artist's Statement for this body of work:
My images are narratives about relationships. These narratives are quiet and simple stories, oftentimes lonely and melancholy. In these pieces, I attempt to harness the contrast of the whimsical and the grim of the fairytale we call "love." Vintage wedding dresses fascinate me; and through the lens I imagine the stories of the women who wore them. Sometimes there is an enchanting story; sometimes not. I often use the disquiet of abandoned
spaces and barren landscapes to elicit the mood in my images.

What influences your art?
My art is influenced by many things- people in my life, what's going on around me, art, music. Sometimes I don't realize I've been influenced by something until someone else sees it in my work. Often I find myself drawn to objects, especially from nature, and sometimes the object alone inspires the piece.

What do you want the viewer to take away from your art?
I want the viewer to see a story in my pieces. It doesn't need to be the same narrative I see, but something they piece together. Everyone brings something different to the work, and sometimes two viewers can have very different interpretations of a piece. This always intrigues me.

What do you do when you're not making art?
When I'm not making art, I am doing a lot of other things that make me a better artist, such as applying for exhibitions and grants, doing research, scanning, organizing, and archiving my negatives, working on my website, learning new techniques and software, cleaning up files in Photoshop... basically a lot of time sitting at the computer. Away from the computer, you will find me happily cooking, traveling, and spending time with my husband Dan, our dog, and two cats.

How can someone contact you if they are interested in purchasing your art?
More of my images from different bodies of work can be seen on my website at www.meganpinch.com. Most of my images are available for purchase in small editions, and if you are interested you can contact me by email at megan@meganpinch.com or become a fan of mine on Facebook.

Call for Artists...

The Art Hive is hosting a benefit art show/concert out on the Old Railroad Bridge on Sunday, November 1st, and we're looking for artists who want to participate! Click on the flyer to read more details on how to get involved...

Join Our Mailing List!

Keep up with Art Hive's news and events by joining our mailing list! All you need to do is write us an e-mail (subject: Mailing List) listing:

> Your name

> E-mail address

> Mailing address

Send your e-mail to thearthive.al@gmail.com

Artist of the Month (September): Browan Lollar

September's artist of the month 

is Browan Lollar.  Stop by Rivertown Coffee Co. and take 

a look at the work he has on display.

(Photo by Allison V. Smith)

Tell us a little about yourself.

My name is Browan Lollar. Im 26 years of age. I live in hotels all over the place but I keep my stuff in a storage unit in Florence, Alabama. I was born November 19th, 1982 at a hospital in Knoxville Tennessee. I lived in Atlanta for a little while in the 90's. The things I love include music, art of all kinds, movies of all kinds, books of all kinds, and ghost hunters. I'd consider myself a nerd.

What materials do you commonly use in your art?

Lately I've been using India Ink almost exclusively but I like using other things in conjunction with it. I'll use color pencils, Acrylic and oil paint, charcoal and regular pencils. I also love working with collage.

Describe your artistic style and/or approach.

I guess the approach I take depends on what material Im working with and what my ultimate goal for the piece is. India Ink is very forgiving in all the ways you wouldn't expect it to be. If you put it on a gessoed board you can scratch or sand it back down to the gesso. So working with the ink is completely different than working with color pencil. No matter what Im working with I usually start by staring into the empty canvas for at least an hour.

What influences your art?

I'm lucky enough to travel a lot. That has a huge impact on what I put down. I also seem to draw a lot of influence from books and history. Some of my favorite artists include: Byron Wilkes, Daniel Martian Diaz, Salvador Dali, Travis Louie, Michael Page, Kris Lewis, Dada, and Wes Freed.

What do you want the viewer to take away from your art?

I'm not really sure. Lately my paintings are more like rorschach tests than ever. Everybody see something different, including me. It would be a huge honor if someone told me that one of my paintings triggered a repressed memory.

What do you do when you're not making art?

I tour full time in a band called Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit. I play guitar and sing. 

I drive. A lot.

How can someone contact you if they are interested in purchasing your art?

There are several ways to get in touch with me:

Through my website: www.browanlollar.com

or myspace: www.myspace.com/browanlollarart

or email me: Browanlollar@gmail.com

and while you're at it: www.jasonisbell.com

Artist of the Month (August): Olivia Sherif

This is the first post for our new "Artist of the Month" series! Each month, get to know a local artist by reading our interview with him or her. We'll also include images of each artist's work. Here's August's artist of the month, Olivia Sherif.

Olivia Sherif is an artist living in Florence, Alabama. Check out a series of her drawings on display at Rivertown Coffee Company up until August 31st.


Tell us a little about yourself (name, affiliations, etc.).
Well, my name is Olivia. Affiliations? I suppose they can be, working at Rivertown, a University of North Alabama alumni, and creator of Alabamaolives (handmade goods side project). And of course, I am affiliated with all artists in the Shoals area in some strange way or another (because we're all in this together).



What materials do you commonly use in your art?
Most of my works are drawn, using charcoal, and also incorporating yarn, and fabric of sorts. I also paint, using acrylic, but I would love to learn more about oil paints.

Describe your artistic style and/or approach.
I love finding people in their natural element, doing something that you would find them doing on an everyday basis. I also take pictures as a starting point, then work from that. So therefore, it's starts as a moment and gets translated into hours of labor and the outcome is timeless. I also shop at local thrift stores for fabric, which also inspires me in so many ways.



What influences your art?
I LOVE love love Chuck Close, he's one of my absolute favorite fine artists of our day - the scale he works in, his subject matter, and everything. Besides an actual person, I think just everyday life influences me. All my work has to do with my life, and what is around me all the time. I don't seek it out, it just happens. I just do with feels right, and inspiration usually comes by surprise.

What do you want the viewer to take away from your art?
I want them to get a feeling for each person that I draw, I want them to come away feeling like they know each subject a little bit. I also want people to be inspired to create themselves and know that they can create something that reflects who they are and what they love. I love people and fabrics, so my work reflects that.



What do you do when you're not making art?
Well, when I'm not making art, I'm either making coffee or crocheting or sewing. Basically, everything I do is with my hands. It's pretty much the only thing I'm good at, so I run with it. I also like to take long walks along the beach.

How can someone contact you if they are interested in purchasing art from you?
They can either visit me at Rivertown, or e-mail me at alabamaolives@gmail.com

Listen up

WBTG is going to be interviewing the Art Hive during one of the radio station's programs called "Community Viewpoints." We'd love for you to listen to what we have to say!

Trunk Show

It was hot (very hot), but definitely worth our while. For those of you who didn’t know, the Art Hive was up at Rivertown Coffee Co. selling merchandise at the Trunk Show on Saturday. A variety of local artists came out to sell their things. Thanks to all who came out! And for those of you who didn’t make it to the Trunk Show, make up for it by visiting our table on Friday, August 7th in front of Rivertown.