Bette Ann Libby
In 1970, my artistic life started as a graphic designer. In 1972, I moved to American Samoa as their first high school art teacher and began making pottery. After moving back to the continental US, I spent 35 years as a studio potter, beginning with a small retail business and exhibiting in a multitude of craft fairs. During these years, painting was my portable art medium while traveling. My functional work moved on to ceramic sculpture in 1986. Many of these works revolved around strong women, home and narratives. When I transitioned to ceramic shard mosaics, I continued to create my own “mythology”. Some of the stories are personal, while others are universal. I love using a variety of textures, patterns, movement and color. I maintain a balance between studio and public art. I am passionate about bringing artists together and having art bring the community together. Ceramic shard mosaics make what was once broken into a new whole. My community mosaic murals have been permanently installed in schools, libraries, hospitals and synagogues and are created with varying sizes of groups, with up to 750 individuals working on a single project.
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MORE ABOUT THIS ARTIST
Artist Medium: Acrylic; Assemblage; Ceramics; Found Materials; Mixed Media; Paint; Recycled; Watercolor
Statement of Work
Artist Statement:
Since 2011, Bette Ann has created fifteen community mosaic projects in schools, libraries, hospitals and synagogues with people of all ages within the communities participating.
Within abstract, representational and narrative mosaics, irony, humor, and metaphor are often used to create the unexpected. The work Incorporates hand made ceramic shards, found objects and handblown glass, as well as textures and patterns. Rhythm and grace are found through unusual and playful uses of mosaic shards while often meanings are intentionally elusive or ambiguous. Libby’s work evokes memories of the familiar, which lead to improbable realms of the mind.
Passionate about connecting community and art, Bette Ann founded Studios Without Walls, 1999-present, the free exhibition of site specific sculpture at Riverway Park, Brookline, MA. For the past 3 years she has organized the Banners on Bridge Street, painted by numerous local artists, which hang from the end of June through early October in Waitsfield, VT.
She maintains studios in Brookline, MA, Waitsfield, VT and Palm Desert, CA.
Gallery Representation
Gallery Representation (max 500 words):
Art Council, Palm Desert, CA Lotus Too Gallery and Garden Center, Palm Desert, CA Kolbo, Brookline, MA ART, etc., Randolph, VT ArtHound Gallery, Essex, VT Artisan’s Gallery, Waitsfield, VT
Contact information
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