Courtesy Photo Doug Stowe 412 Sandrock Road “The evolution of my professional life grew from three threads, carefully woven through years into a consistent body of work,” Stowe says. “The first of these threads was given to me as a young man when an elder craftsman, guiding me through the restoration of an old car, told me that my ‘brains are in my hands.’ I spent the next 25 years as a furniture craftsman exploring that notion, proving it to myself, and arriving at the conclusion that what is true for me is also true for most others as well. I’ve spent the last 15 years helping others to understand the power of the hands to reshape their own lives. “The second thread was the realization that the woods that come from our great forests are too rarely understood in their great beauty and diversity. The fate of our species and planet remain linked to the fate of our forests. One of the most meaningful tasks for any woodworker is to awaken others to the beauty that surrounds us. “The third thread was knowing that we have a responsibility to teach each other what we know. Doing is one thing, sharing it another. Sharing my skills with others accelerates my own learning and furthers the appreciation of nature’s beauty and the craft of woodworking. Plus, it is a joy to do. “These threads are woven into my body of work: boxes, furniture, articles, books, classes for children and adults, and my daily blog, ‘Wisdom of the Hands,’ where I promote the ideals of hands-on learning and stewardship of the forests.”Most people know Jim Nelson as the proprietor of Nelson’s Leather, a Eureka Springs landmark for more than 40 years. But a couple of years ago, two things changed: Nelson’s Leather became just Nelson’s, bringing together at 37 Spring St. all of Nelson’s various business enterprises. At the same, Nelson carved out space for his own studio at his home at 83 Lookout Circle and returned to his roots. He has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Kansas in Lawrence and a master’s degree from Syracuse University in Syracuse, N.Y., both in painting and drawing.
It was at Syracuse that Nelson decided he was probably not going to pursue a career in teaching art, and he and wife Susan, whom he met at KU, became “hippie leather workers.” They opened their first shop in Fayetteville in 1974, then moved to Eureka Springs a few months later — leaving Bruce Walker behind to run the Dickson Street store that he rebranded Flying Possum.
FAQ
Eureka Artist
Studio Tour
WHEN — 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Nov. 1-2
WHERE — Various studios in Eureka Springs
COST — Free
INFO — Email lmansker@cox.net
BONUS — Also participating in the studio tour are Eleanor Lux, 18 White St.; Julie Kahn Valentine, 791/2 Spring St.; Jody Stephenson and Ron Lutz, 335 W. Van Buren St.; Lorna and Craig Trigg Hirsch, 872 Mill Hollow Road; Diana Harvey, 312 Carroll County 309; Denise Ryan, 19 Elk St.; Phyllis Plumley, 164 N. Main St.; and Stephen Feilbach, 44 Kings Highway.
“Occasionally I would revisit the art world, mostly doing realistic paintings of landscapes, portraiture of neighbors, friends, associates,” Nelson says, “then it was back to ‘nose to the grindstone’ on the business.”
It was when Nelson and his wife built a new home that he found a new niche for his artwork. His big walls needed big art, he explains, and he started carving large bass wood abstractions using chainsaws and hand tools. To that, he added the “best artist-grade acrylic [paint] money can buy” in a process he calls “kind of improv.”
“The carving kind of runs its own show and dictates where the paint ought to go,” he says. “It’s all brush painted, not air sprayed. I’ve done several hundred pieces, and I’ve never seen anything quite like them.”
Nelson knows that Eureka Springs is filled with artists creating unique work, and he thinks seeing where they do that adds to the enjoyment of it.
“You get to see their process and hear the music they listen to and see the light they like to work in” on a studio tour, he explains, and that’s why he and Larry Mansker are hosting one from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 1-2. It’s not a new concept, he says, but this particular one hasn’t happened for a couple of years, and they agreed it was time.
“I’ve been making a living at art since I got out of school. I am an artist,” says Mansker, a painter. “I’ve done everything — I’ve done murals, portraits, I used to be in advertising. I’ve sent work all over the world.
“But Eureka Springs is a really creative community.
“I create art to tell a story,” he adds. “In my paintings the elements of design — line, texture, contrast, composition and color — are foremost, but also very important is creating a mood — for me, a happy mood, one that focuses on the brighter aspect of being alive.”
Mansker’s studio is at 711 Mill Hollow Road.
Courtesy Photo Mary Springer 1 Prospect St. Springer is a two- and three-dimensional mixed media artist who uses found and discarded items as her inspiration. “I call what I’m doing now ‘found and profound,'” says Springer, who has been making art in Eureka Springs for more than a quarter of a century. “I can’t do the large metal sculptures anymore, so I use my metal techniques to make little things — wearable art. I love to take broken jewelry and rusty things and give them new life.”
Courtesy Photo It was when Jim Nelson and his wife built a new home that he found a new niche for his artwork. His big walls needed big art, he explains, and he started carving large bass wood abstractions using chainsaws and hand tools. To that, he added the “best artist-grade acrylic [paint] money can buy” in a process he calls “kind of improv.”
Courtesy Photo Steven Beacham 65 Spring St. Spring Street Pottery is one of the oldest continuously operating potteries in Arkansas, Beacham says. “Since 1979, I have thrown and hand-decorated high-fired porcelain. Creating art from a clump of clay is my passion.”
NAN What’s Up on 10/27/2019