The Orange County Open Studio Tour

The 7th Annual Orange County Open Studio Tour started this weekend. The Tour occurs on two consecutive weekends: November 3-4 and November 10-11, from 10 am - 5 pm. There are 47 artists who have opened their studios this year. We visited some of the artists the first weekend and this is what we found...

We ventured west out of Carrboro on Highway 54, with Virginia Bullman's as our first destination. Virginia is well known in Carrboro for creating "Louise" who sits in the yard of Frank Cole's on West Weaver St. She was purchased after folks in town voted her the winner of the "Art on Weaver" installation. Bullman's latest creation in Carrboro is Norma Rae, who sits outside Townsend & Bertram at Carr Mill Mall.

Work of Virginia Bullman

$Work of \$ Work of Virginia Bullman

Click here for more pictures of Virginia Bullman's work.

Exhibiting with Virginia is Riley Foster, whose work can be seen on Saturday mornings at the Farmers' Market in Carrboro. Riley fashions objects from metal, including a sun that can be seen on the CBS Morning Show. Foster also happens to be the son-in-law of Virginia.

Work of Riley Foster

Our next stop was The Catbriar. Hazel Cheek, who is a native of Belfast, Northern Ireland, uses materials she finds on her farm to make baskets, wreaths, and other decorative items.

Work of Hazel Cheek

Just up the road is Gordon Jameson. Gordon is a great painter, and also creates body shapes from twigs covered with paper he makes himself. He also designed an interesting multimedia electronic entity with numerous school portraits and other items from the good ol' days.

Gordon Jameson in his studio

Sara Wilkins and her father Guy were at our next stop. This father/daughter team creates expressionistic and abstract paintings that range from bold to muted colors. We found something for everyone in their selection of incredibly beautiful and inexpensive prints.

Work of Guy Wilkins

Downstairs at the Wilkin's house is Donna Croughen. Donna's vibrant painting ranges from abstract to futuristic and can be found on canvas, lamps, and flowers pots. She also offers other decorative accents such as pillows and glassware. When we entered her place, I almost asked her if her Mom was home, that's how young she looks. One of our favorite things is the t-shirt with a picture of "dog."

Work of Donna Croughen

Next, we headed back into Carrboro to Tracy Wall's "Lourve Shack Gallery" at the end of The Hollow. Tracy's work spans numerous mediums and is completely amazing. He does it all, from paintings to drawings to sculpture, with a few other zany creations thrown into the mix. His work is some of the most impressive we've seen for its originality and creativity.

Tracy Wall and his art

Click here for more pictures of Tracy Wall's work.

Exhibiting a few pieces here is Doug Stuber. His studio in Hillsborough is open for the tour as well.

Work of Doug Stuber

The paintings and collages of Steven Silverleaf were our next stop. Also back off the road, his entrance was a bit difficult to find with all of the construction going on along Hillsborough Rd.

Work of Steven Silverleaf

Brian Plaster has his studio on Brewer Lane, across from the Tai Kwon Do Studio. Brian welds steel into everything from clocks to bed frames to bike racks.

Work of Brian Plaster

Our last stop in Carrboro was a mother/daughter exhibit of Annalise and Elizabeth Straw. Annalise creates beaded jewelry, bags, and scupture. Elizabeth works in stained glass making panels, ornaments, and even carosel animals.

Annalise Straw at work