LEVEE GALLERY: Artist Reception for Tim Hayes, Bill Ayers, and Jeff Brown

Levee Gallery presents the work of Bill Ayers, Jeff Brown, and Tim Hayes from March 14 through April 27. Bill Ayers is a self-taught artist living in Covington, La. He assembles various metal shapes into welded iron sculptures with that range in sizes. Some are small enough to sit on a coffee table while others can stand alone in the garden. Ayer’s sculptures are formally interesting and the titles and ideas behind them are playful. Jeff Brown makes functional pottery and decorative ceramic vessels. His work is fired in two types of atmospheric kilns, using wood and soda ash to give his forms rich, earthy, layered surfaces that evoke growth and decay in nature. Brown is Associate Professor of Art at Nicholls State University in Thibodaux, LA. Tim Hayes’s paintings are mostly large, minimal, deconstructed surfaces with expansive geometric areas encompassed with subtle shifts in varying tones and hues. At close inspection, familiar objects from daily life emerge, such as Hayes' recurring bicycle. Hayes practiced and taught Architecture at LA Tech for 30 years, and his acrylic paintings have been acquired by numerous private collectors throughout the country. “The scarring process of creation or building is a cherished aspect in my work. This act of making is revealed in the marks, gashes, swaths of color and discarded forms that are exposed in multiple iterative layers. The peeled away layers tell an ineffable story that is a natural part of the making process. Through indecision and dissatisfaction, the design is parsed down to the essential. Begin, stop, erase, rethink, redo, remove, question, begin again, alter, erase, remove…always simplifying and honing.” –Tim Hayes There is a common thread amongst each of the artists in this show, simple shapes and forms come together like architectural structures, and marks of the process subtly reveal the artists intentions. What appears understated at first glance on the surface, gives the mind a quiet moment to ponder and reflect upon the greater meaning within the work. About Levee Gallery: Levee Gallery specializes in contemporary artwork created by emerging and established regional artists. The gallery also hosts events with the goal of broadening the understanding and appreciation of visual arts and culture. Kathy Biedenharn, the owner, and Brooke Cassady, curator, aim to connect visual arts to other organizations and within the community. All events are free and open to the pubic unless otherwise stated. The gallery is open Tuesday and Wednesday 11am-5pm, Thursday 11am-5pm, Friday 11am-4pm and Saturday 11am-3pm or by appointment (call 318.537.9006). Located in Murray Place Shopping Center, 1617 North 18th Street, Monroe, LA. More information can be found on Facebook and at leveegallery.com.