Whimsical Art Trail

Saturday, February 18–Sunday, May 20  

Take a walk on the whimsical side when the Whimsical Art Trail returns with pea-sized puppets and soft sculptures, amazing glass flowers, imaginative play scenes, and vividly colored African animals by these contemporary artists:

Nancy Gong (www.nancygong.com), a notable Rochester glass works artist, says her creations are inspired by the temperament of her Asian background. As she describes it, her curving, graceful steel and glass flowers fuse “line, color, texture, balance, and the silent beauty of glass and metal.”

Ingrid Hess (www.Ingrid-hess.com), an illustrator and designer, uses flattened, simplified shapes to create bright and happy monkeys, hippos, zebras, and other African animals. She says that the simplicity of her work comes from her Amish/Mennonite roots and the bright colors and patterns are inspired by art from Costa Rico, her childhood home.            

David Carlson (www.jdavidcarlson.com), a Southern California native, has watched the famous orange grove landscapes killed off and replaced with suburban neighborhoods. These themes fuel the creativity of his ongoing body of work called “Play-Scapes,” imaginative scenes created from old toys, small motors and gears, wood, wire, clay, and objects headed for the trash.          

Amy Brand, the artist behind Sweet Pea Felts (www.flickr.com/photos/sweetpeafelts), creates one-of-a-kind art toys using earth-friendly wool. Brand brings her puppets and soft sculptures to life through needle and wet felting and says she strives to create playful toys that provide a connection to the natural world. 

Meet the artists Saturday, February 18, from 1 to 4 p.m. Learn about the creative process, see raw materials of their craft, and purchase art.