National artist: Graceann Warn to be featured at the River Art Gallery

National artist: Graceann Warn to be featured at River Art Gallery for the “Sotto Voce” Exhibition in Chelsea, Michigan opening on November 13, 2010.

The exhibition will feature art by Graceann Warn, along with fellow artists and special guests Jaye Schlesinger and Mark Chatterley. The River Gallery was founded in 2000 by Patti Schwarz. The Gallery expanded to what it is today from its humble beginnings when originally Shwarz was just looking to have a place to house her husband’s artwork. As things progressed and grew, Shwarz formed a business partnership with entrepreneur and art lover Deborah Greer. Together they oversaw the completion of the major renovation of the historic downtown Chelsea site which is the current home of the River Gallery today.

Featured artist Graceann Warn began her art career after realizing that landscape architecture was not the path for her. After a chance encounter and a rather intense emotional response to viewing a Mark Rothko art exhibit, she realized her true calling and decided to become an artist. She merged beautifully with the Ann Arbor artist’s culture and has been one of the lucky ones to make a living solely off of her art. Her work has been featured nationwide and internationally. Also this coming year Warn will once again be showing her artwork at the critically acclaimed SOFA Chicago art gala and will be taking part in The Artist Project in New York. The Artist Project is an exhibition that offers collectors, curators, dealers and the public direct access to a juried selection of emerging and established talent.

“Sotto Voce” is Italian and translates to “in an undertone.”  Graceann explains, “I decided to call my show at River Gallery Sotto Voce because it describes the intent of the paintings while also speaking to the process I undertake to make the paintings.  “Sotto Voce" implies a hushed tone, a whisper- it is something spoken under the breath. The surfaces of my paintings obscure and hint at underlying messages without giving too much away which allows for a certain amount of interpretation by those viewing them.”

Don’t miss out on “Sotto Voce,” at the River Gallery in Chelsea located at 120 S. Main. The event begins at 5pm and goes till 8pm. For more information on the River Gallery call 734-433-0826 or visit http://www.chelsearivergallery.com/ Graceann is available for interviews. For more information please contact Natalie@dreamtownmedia.com or Melissa@dreamtownmedia.com           

Local artist: Graceann Warn to be featured at Next Step Studios “Spring Happenings” in Ferndale, MI on May 22, 2010

“Spring Happenings” features the preview of a new body of work by Graceann Warn. As a part of the celebration of this exciting new commission, her latest collection of paintings that focus on brilliant pops of color will debut at Next Step Studios.  Graceann’s recently commissioned painting for the Yale-New Haven Hospitals is now on display in their main lobby. Next Step Studios is owned and run by the talented artist Kaiser Suidan. Kaiser’s unique style is inspired by the geometrical forms found in nature. This has caught the eye of exclusive clientele such as Compuware and he has even had an installation featured on the set of the television show Will & Grace.  The “Spring Happenings” event will also feature the official opening of Next Step’s new sculpture garden featuring ceramic artists Mark Chatterly and Susan Beiner’s work. There will be live music and drinks to compliment this fantastic art event.

A little background on Graceann Warn: she grew up in a small town in New Jersey, where the thought of making a living as an artist had never crossed her mind. She had intended on making a career as a Landscape Architect receiving her degree in that field from U of M in Ann Arbor. After a chance encounter and a rather intense emotional response to viewing a Mark Rothko art exhibit she realized her true calling and decided to become an artist. She merged beautifully with the Ann Arbor artist’s culture and has been one of the lucky ones to make a living solely off of her art. Currently her artistic focus has been on using bright colors in her work such as vibrant reds and explosive oranges.

This year Graceann has been extremely busy with shows scheduled all over the country including Lenox, Massachusetts, Wellfleet Massachusetts, Lincoln, Nebraska, and the critically acclaimed SOFA Chicago art gala at Navy Pier.  She will be ending the year with a big solo exhibit starting on November 13^th at the River Gallery in Chelsea, MI. ­­­­ The solo exhibit will remain up until January of 2011.

Don’t miss out on “Spring Happenings,” at Next Step Studios in Ferndale located at 530 Hilton between 8 and 9 mile. The event is Free and begins at 6pm and goes till midnight. For more information on Next Step Studios call 248.414.7050 or visit http://www.nextstepstudio.com. Graceann will be available for interviews or for more information please contact Natalie@dreamtownmedia.com or Melissa@dreamtownmedia.com .