Chicago, IL

Saturday, August 01, 2009

Anne Nordhaus-Bike, Artist-in-Residence for Curves of Brookfield, IL, for 2009, is displaying her watercolor painting Deer's Head, Side View and her oil painting August Bouquet at that Curves location in August.

As artist-in-residence, Nordhaus-Bike premiers paintings in small monthly shows that open on the first weekday of each month, with paintings chosen to reflect themes associated with the month in which they appear.

Curves of Brookfield is located at 3734 Grand Blvd., Brookfield, IL 60513, (708) 485-1616, curvesofbrookfield@sbcglobal.net. Although Curves of Brookfield is a women's gym, men and children as well as women are welcome at any time to view Nordhaus-Bike's artwork during Curves hours of operation: Monday through Thursday, 5:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 3:15 to 7:15 p.m.; Friday, 5:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.; and Saturday, 8 to 11 a.m.

"I'm thrilled to have chosen Anne as our artist-in-residence," said Curves of Brookfield owner Jennifer Vydra. "Her art makes our atmosphere even more pleasant during workouts and helps attract the public to our retail business area in Brookfield."

"Curves is a wonderful place to work out and a great Brookfield business, so it gives me great pleasure to show my art there," Nordhaus-Bike said. "I believe in bringing art to where people are, making it part of their everyday lives, so Curves offers a perfect venue that is highly accessible to the public."

Nordhaus-Bike discussed Deer's Head

"This watercolor depicts a small deer's skull that came into my possession during a 'white elephant' Christmas gift exchange," she said. "Fine, flowing lines of black ink applied with a pen sharply highlight details throughout the skull. A rich orange wash across the background warms up the entire painting while complementing the skull's earthy tones of yellow ochre, raw and burnt sienna, and raw and burnt umber. This painting's subject matter and colors evoke summer's heat and the desert's harsh, bone-bleaching sun.

Concerning August Bouquet, Nordhaus-Bike said, "This still life uses heavy impasto for the blossoms to evoke their strong textures, and smooth surfaces for the background and for the cloth arranged beneath the vase contrast with the flowers' thick paint. Deep green leaves at the base of the arrangement and the green bottoms and white tops of Queen Anne's lace contribute cool tones to offset the warmth coming from the mostly ochre background and the black-eyed Susans' cheery orange-yellow petals."

Nordhaus-Bike, who lives and works in the Clearing/Garfield Ridge community on the Southwest Side of Chicago, also displays the works in her monthly Curves shows on her web site. The "Top News" section at the top of her home page has details and a link to the Gallery, where viewers will find the August paintings.

Her original oils and watercolors are available for purchase; posters and greeting cards featuring her art also are available. Go to www.anbcommunications.com, e-mail info@anbcommunications.com, or call (773) 229-0024.

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Anne Nordhaus-Bike

President

ANB Communications

Chicago, IL

773-229-0024