Alicia Forestall-Boehm

In today's world of COVID-19, experiencing life virtually is our new normal. From classes to work to cultural events we are living our lives while sheltering in place. Temporary closings, limited openings and social distancing, have forced artists, art galleries, art museums, and art organizations to think outside the box to find new ways to present art exhibitions. With that in mind, I decided to create an online virtual art gallery that can host an exhibition that is engagin g and informative. One that is visually appealing as well as interactive.  A virtual art exhibition th at can be used by a single artist to present a solo show or a gallery or art group to pr esent a group or member show. I am pleased to present the virtual art exhibition #FusedAtHome , a collection of artworks by the artist members of FUSEDChicago. I designed and produced this interactive art exhibition. It uses an appealing art gallery background. The viewer can travel between the many gallery rooms to vi...

Not unlike many artists, I have had some challenges in the studio during this pandemic. While immersing myself in the creative process of art-making is calming and rejuvenating, it can be a difficult place to get to amidst all of the stress and anxiety of today's world. I have been taking online workshops and reading, reading, reading! My morning routine includes reading everything, well almost everything, in my many inboxes. This includes the New York Times and Washington Post, our local Chicago Tribune, and of course, many online art news subscriptions. A recent New York Times article " Faith Ringgold Will Keep Fighting Back " is worth recommending. In it, artist, author, and activist Faith Ringgold talks about how the pandemic, and the death of her husband, have blocked her creatively but the recent protests, spurred on by the murder of George Floyd, have inspired her to return to her studio. Sometimes we need to wait for inspiration, keeping our eyes and ears op...

My blog posts are anything but frequent!  In fact my entire art-making has taken a back seat to, well, the rest of my life!  The irony of this slip in my online presence is that between my work for the clients of my own company, Chicago Social Media Marketers, and my relatively new position as the Marketing Manager for Northshore Concert Band in Evanston, Illinois, I have been focusing on the promotion of everyone and everything BUT myself and my own art work! Well, I am here to say that I am back...for now!  I will move forward with the best of intentions to post in a more regular fashion!  But, as any resolution, this goal may not be met and my conviction to consistently post to this blog may be short-lived.  Only time will tell!! Exciting News! Two publication announcements! Surface Design Journal The Tactile World Winter 2015-2016 Towards the end of 2015, I was contacted by Miles Conrad , director of the Conrad Wilde Gallery in Tucson, Ariz...

I am so very happy to announce that I have a number of exciting opportunities to show my art in 2016! February 26 - March 31, 2016 4th Annual Art Competition Bridgeport Art Center Chicago, Illinois Persistence of Vision April 2- May 21, 2016 11th Annual Encaustic Invitational: Length x Width x Depth Conrad Wilde Gallery Tucson, Arizona The Power of Place May 1- June 31, 2016 The Dot Show Chicago Arts District showPODS 1822-43 S. Halsted Street Chicago, Illinois Detail, Flow October 10-November 20, 2016 Solo Space and Surface:  Sculpture and Paintings by Alicia Forestall-Boehm Western Illinois University Art Gallery Macomb, Illinois    Spaces We Inhabit, Art Space Vincennes

Setting up an art exhibition quite often begins by choosing a theme.  A theme can serve to tie all of the included works together.  It usually explores a particular concept or idea.     I am a member of the artists group FUSEDChicago.  For our first group show of the year, Textual Encounters at ARC Gallery in Chicago, we exhibited works that are inspired by the written word.  My textural reference was a quote from the artist Jasper Johns:  “One likes to think that one anticipates changes in the spaces we inhabit, and our ideas about space.” For this exhibit I wanted to include some of the columns from my sculpture "Spaces We Inhabit".  These 15 feet high sculptures were designed to be hung from the ceiling, enabling visitors to walk among them but I was unable to do so in this space.  So I adapted and installed 7 of the columns with this wall hanger.     "Spaces We Inhabit", ARC Gallery I have been in ar...

I often begin a new work from a sketched design.  The lower design in this image from my sketch book was the inspiration for a new sculpture.   Beginning with a circular wire support, I created a 3 dimensional version of this sketched image.  The problem was that, to me, the actual sculpture didn't please me as much as the sketched image.  So it sat in the back of my studio waiting for a creative revelation.  Then one day, as I studied this piece, I envisioned it "exploding" open, so I took an  knife to it and, leaving the circular wire armature intact, turned the single form into one that had five connecting sections.  This  alteration added interest and movement.  Hmmm, this certainly was a dramatic departure from the original sketch but it was a move in the right direction. Knowing that this piece was not finished, I returned it to it's spot in the back of my studio.  I lived with this new form, manipul...