"Fetus" (2008), cockleburs (burdock), 19 x 30 x 16 inches. Courtesy of artist Val Lyle, Bristol, Tenn.
BRISTOL, TN - International art critic Edward Rubin (Sculpture Magazine, Art in America, Venice Biannual, etc.) was given 10 pages to review 12 under-represented international artists. Many got half-pages. It was about split between New York City artists (where Rubin is based) and artists from around the world.
Oh - and Val Lyle from Bristol, Tenn. got a full page and special mentions in his introduction.
Outside the region surrounding her hometown of Bristol, Lyle is considered much more than a "regional barn painter," just as Anselm Kiefer is much more than a "landscape painter."
"The nostalgia and long history of painting old barns is a comforting subject to bring into the 21st century. Cockleburs, too," Lyle says with a grin, referring to her "Cocklebur Fetus" sculpture (2008).
"Cocklebur Fetus" depicts a full-term fetus inviting nurturing arms, but its cockleburs forbid touch.
Lyle's "Tea Time for Darfur," also made of cockleburs, suggests relaxed companionability, yet warns of pain. The tea set is now in the permanent collection of the Kamm Teapot Foundation.
