CardioOceanic, mixed media on board
Stover-Sickmen presents Artist's Talk Monday
BY C.S. GILBERT
KONK LIFE STAFF WRITER
Climaxing her successful Lemonade Stand Gallery debut show with Virginian Leah Peeks, local Erin Stover-Sickmen will present an Artist's Talk at 6:30 p.m., Monday, May 5. The talk continues the series launched by local artist/designer Debra Yates during her recent much-lauded video-enhanced exhibit. Refreshments will be served.
Both Peeks and Stover-Sickmen's debuts of their art in Key West were in the Lemonade Stand Gallery's 2013 Juried Small Works Exhibit. “Not only did each of their small works sell to collectors, but they were offered their own show at the Lemonade Stand,” said gallery owner and portrait artist Letty Nowak.
Most participants and fans of the Key West art scene know Stover-Sickmen as artistic director of The Studios of Key West, where she helps plan and manage a wide variety of exhibitions, workshops, and performances at the Studios and in most instances is the public face welcoming audience to the venue. "It's also great to introduce Erin as an artist to the Key West community," says Nowak. "The strength in her photography and paintings is amazing. Also, the more I have gotten to know Erin, the more I have learned about her extensive art background and seen her exquisite eye when it comes to art."
The artist/administrator's bio reveals that she is a Midwestern native, growing up around St. Louis and Chicago, earned her BFA from Illinois State University and her MFA at Virginia's James Madison University.
Afterwards “she remained in Virginia working with arts organizations and non-profits, including an opera company, a city museum and as the Exhibition Designer for a children’s museum. She also helped build a well-regarded annual film festival, taught studio art at Randolph College and James Madison University and served for seven years as the exhibition and program manager at a live/work artspace that became the cornerstone of a major downtown revitalization project.”
Stover-Sickmen has also been an avid volunteer, working with National Park Service Search and Rescue teams, The Humane Society, and the American Cancer Society. She received the Mayor’s Award of Excellence in 2010 for her community involvement. Most recently, “she’s been getting her sea legs under her,” volunteering with the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.
She “is happy as a clam, living in Key West with her wife, daughter, oversized cat and undersized dog. She relocated to the island in 2012” to accept her position at TSKW. “Two years into it, she’s certain she’s found her home — fed by the open and enthusiastic community, the wealth of arts opportunities, and the endless sun and salt.”
A Q&A will follow the short talk about the current exhibit. “If you didn't get a chance to come to the opening, this is a great chance to see this lovely show,” invites Nowak. The Lemonade Stand Gallery is located at 318 Petronia St.
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