“You’re a member if you say you are.”
I clearly remember Veryle Lynn Cox saying these words when we first met in the 1990’s, and they still hold true today. According to Veryle Lynn, the original artists’ group started sometime in the 1980’s but did not begin having regular twice monthly meetings until February 1, 1991. The founding members were Richard Burham, Veryle Lynn Cox, Jean Hough, Mary Karr, Ken Loud, Frank Marshall, Joan Norris, Carolyn Powell, and Will Rowsey. They didn’t elect a president or treasurer, or have any formal structure other than getting together to share and create art. That loose structure continues through to today, only now, our group participates in local fundraising efforts and organizes an art show once or twice a year.
My name is Lori Loftus, and since 1996, I have been an active Lake Lure Artist member, hosting meetings as varied as organized field trips to local art galleries and teaching classes on Nature Printing techniques, such as using Gel Plates and Eco Dyeing. I have taught some members the traditional Japanese method of nature printing called Gyotaku that uses fish or other sea creatures as printing plates. Gyotaku is pronounced “ghee-oh-tah-koo” (gyo means fish, and taku means rubbing or impression in Japanese).
In another interactive class, I prompted multiple artists to use a Circle Drawing technique simultaneously on one large sheet of paper. Every 30 seconds each artist shifted to the left, picked up a new painting tool, and continued to draw more circles of various sizes, colors and thicknesses on another portion of the paper. The artists continued to shift around the periphery of the paper every 30 seconds, thereby filling the entire paper and creating a wild and colorful shared piece of art. The paper was then cut into sections for each artist to take home. One member, Julie Maziarka, made a greeting card; others created gift boxes from the colorful paper.
My passion for art began early in life and involved drawing, painting and incorporating nature into my creations. One memory from when I was a 10-year-old is of my grandparents moving to Florida after they retired. I collected colorful fall leaves and pressed/ironed them between pieces of wax paper cut into fun shapes (pumpkin, cat head, leaf, and more). These were mailed from my home in Michigan to Grandma and Grandpa in Florida.
Nature printing became my primary art form in 2006 after attending my first annual international Nature Printing Society (NPS) workshop off the coast of Washington State in the San Juan Islands. I have attended almost every annual workshop since then, serving as the NPS Secretary from 2011 to 2024 and currently serving as NPS President. Our workshop this year will be held at the Wildacres Retreat in Little Switzerland, NC, from September 28 to October 4. Several LLA members are attending, and I will be teaching a printmaking technique called foilography. For more information on nature printing techniques and current and past workshops, visit: https://natureprintingsociety.org/
Creating one-of-a-kind eco-dyed silk scarves is my main form of nature printing art, and they can be viewed at two local galleries:
- Elm & Owl, 20 East Main Street, Saluda, NC 28773, elmandowlgallery.com
- Tryon Painters & Sculpture, 78 North Trade Street, Tryon, NC 28782, tryonpaintersandsculptors.com
For more information about my artwork or NPS please contact me at lori.ann.loftus@gmail.com.
The Lake Lure Artists display their artwork on a rotating basis at the Mountain Branch Library. My own artwork will be on display at the public library in Saluda, NC from August 21 to October 5.
A warm thank you to Debbie Jackson for suggesting our group revive local artist articles in The Breeze. Mary Karr wrote the artist articles for many years until her passing on June 21, 2024.
LLA meetings are held on the second and fourth Thursday of each month at 9:30 a.m. For meeting locations and agendas, please email artistlakelure@gmail.com. Come and enjoy this wonderful group of artists.
