2019 VERMONT ARTIST TO WATCH
Hasso Ewing, Calais
Art always tells a story and, from the beginning of time, there have been no greater stories than the ones we tell about each other. Even the simplest rendering of the human figure can convey magnitudes. Hasso Ewing’s more recent sculptures in plaster show figures with small heads and elongated bodies and limbs. They stand on pillars, nearly naked, vulnerable to the viewer’s gaze. “Each figure finds an inner conversation which is manifested in the body gesture, aspect and pose, and it’s that conversation that grabs the artist and the viewer, asking us to stop and look,” writes Ewing. Getting the viewer’s attention completes the artwork. From there, it is up to the viewer to decide what they think and feel.
“Artists to Watch 2019” is a survey of contemporary Vermont artists that appeared as special feature in Vermont Art Guide #9 and in an exhibition at the Vermont Arts Council, January 7-February 28, 2019. ABOUT THE PROJECT | GET THE MAGAZINE
When artist and curator August Burns looks for artwork, she “looks for authenticity and beauty in mastery. By beauty, I do not mean subject matter, but instead the beauty of a work well-conceived and accomplished.” Fellow artist Hasso Ewing rises to this standard. Burns writes, “Her work delights me. I smile when I see it with recognition. She captures character in her sculpture that tells its own story, so I am always happy to see the next piece.”
Ewing wants the viewer to take “a deeper look” and have “an emotional response” to her sculptures. She writes, “The main purpose of my work is to find the human story within the form. A body reveals clues of the past, sits with its emotional history, walks or tilts the head in idiosyncratic ways that appeals to my search for the story beneath. The human form always has more to teach me. Nothing I can imagine holds as much power as working from life and through observation I find more than I could have imagined.”
A body reveals clues of the past, sits with its emotional history, walks or tilts the head in idiosyncratic ways that appeals to my search for the story beneath.
At the 2018 exhibition at the Kent Museum, Ewing’s sculptures used the window ledge as if it were the edge of a swimming pool while others floated in the air as if it were water. “Hasso is one of the most dynamic artists I have met.” said Burns. “She is always trying to move to the next level on her art and creativity.”
This Artist to Watch 2019 is a special feature in Vermont Art Guide #9. Vermont Art Guide is a full color, quarterly, printed magazine about contemporary art in Vermont. Our goal is to connect the entire state’s art community by sharing information about exhibitions and events; present a picture of Vermont art and art in Vermont, to tell our story; and to build an audience for Vermont art inside the state and out. We hope you will join us and SUBSCRIBE TODAY.
About the Artist
Sculptor Hasso Ewing trained as a children’s illustrator and worked professionally for many years in graphic and landscape design. She holds a BFA in illustration from the Rhode Island School of Design with additional studies in landscape design at Radcliffe College. Ewing’s work has been shown in Maine and Vermont, including at Studio Place Arts, the Helen Day Art Center, and the Carving Studio & Sculpture Center. Her “swimmers world” installation was shown as part of “Backstory” at the Kent Museum in Calais, September-October 2018. She is a member of The Front in Montpelier and The Mud Studio in Middlesex and is represented by the Artisans’ Gallery in Waitsfield. Ewing lives and works in Calais. Find out more at www.hassoewing.com.
About the Curator
August Burns
Artist & Independent Curator
“I look for authenticity and beauty in mastery. By beauty I do not mean subject matter, but instead the beauty of a work well conceived and accomplished. I look for the universal. That which speaks to me not only in what it says but the sheer beauty of the work being presented.” August Burns is a painter specializing in figurative art and portraiture. She recently co-curated “Reclamation” at the Helen Day Art Center in Stowe, June 15-September 8, 2018. Learn more at www.augustburns.com.
Images (top to bottom) by Hasso Ewing:
Dancer (detail)
Dancer (detail)
Diving Deep