TWM: How and when did you start making art, and why do you continue to do so? Why is making art important to you?

Sarah Murrin: My parents are collectors so I grew up with paintings and various ethnographic collections in the house. There were also hundreds of books about every kind of art you can imagine: from Arctic art to South American feather work to American Impressionists; Northwest coast carvings to Calder to Warhol. Our family vacations always included museum visits and auction houses. My senior thesis at UT Austin Plan II was on the the phenomena of art collecting. I interviewed many collectors around Texas, including Alfred Glassell about his African Gold Collection now at MFA Houston, and Perry Bass about the Sid Richardson collection. So I guess it’s not surprising that I went into the art business after graduate school at SMU (MBA/MA in Art Management). I went to work for a gallery in NYC and in 1996 formed an art consulting company in Texas that specializes in placing fine art for private collectors and corporations. It wasn’t until my family and I moved to the ranch a few years ago that I started to create my own art. There was more time to reflect while being surrounded by nature. All the ideas had been percolating over my lifetime, and I think the exposure to such variety inspired me to create. Instagram was also a new inspiration because it was fascinating to see what other artists from all over the world were making. I started with collage, mainly from art auction catalogs, and that slowly morphed into drawing and painting. My favorite medium is gouache, and I love to experiment with the paint, putting it the sun or mixing materials. My friend Amanda Allison, who taught art at TCU, says to always ask “what if” when you’re experimenting with different mediums and techniques. I think that is where the true creativity comes from, when you don’t try to stay in the lines so to speak.

Cheryl Hodge: Good question! I’m not sure exactly when I started making art, but Mrs. Harrison’s 5^th grade art class comes to mind. Making art is always gratifying even when what’s in your head is not coming out of your hand.

TWM: Who or what are some of your influences and has that changed as you’ve evolved artistically?

Sarah Murrin: The vibrant colors of illuminated manuscripts, various designs in textiles from around the world, graphic design, Japanese woodblock priming, the work of Arthur Wesley Dow, Bonnard, William Morris and his English workshop—all of these are things that influence me when I draw and paint.

Cheryl Hodge: I’m influenced by everything… the color of asphalt, the plastic containers my contacts come in, the packaging that comes with online orders, and most especially Tide bottles that have been run through an extruder – it all has the potential to become art. It’s so cool.

TWM: What should we expect to see from you in the upcoming fall gallery night group show with the Fort Worth Women’s Art Circle, and is there a piece you’re most excited about or proud of? Tell us about it.

Sarah Murrin: I’ll include some of new pieces that are very loose and watery, for lack of a better term, and some small pieces that are more dense and very layered. And some large scale collage.

Cheryl Hodge: Hmm, I suppose I really like my recycled plastics. Remember that scene from The Graduate? “Plastics!”

TWM: Fort Worth has a rich history of supporting the arts and a strong presence in the global art world. Can you talk to us a little bit about what it’s like to be a local artist here?

Sarah Murrin: When I visit various cities for my art consulting business, people always know Fort Worth for the our connection to the West and the Stockyards and for our premier, first class Art Museums. It’s so unique to live in a city that prioritizes and makes accessible to the public art from all over the world and that stays current with artist from across the globe.

Cheryl Hodge: I’m actually better at buying art than I am at selling art. There are some fantastic artists in Fort Worth – Otis Jones to name one. I wish I had one of his pieces, he’s so dang talented.

TWM: Tell us a little bit about your inclusion in the Fort Worth Women’s Art Circle; what that means to you as a woman and as an artist.

Sarah Murrin: My husband’s aunt, Lia Cuilty, was part of the original Fort Worth Circle, so I had always heard about those artists and the show that the Harry Ransom Center at UT Austin and the Modern put on about their work. What I love most about our group is the way we encourage and support each other’s successes, the mentality that all boats rise when we work together. From our first impromptu lunch at the Modern, we each knew we were better together. It’s all been a very natural progression. We feel simpatico — we are moms, painters, and we are thankful to God that we found each other.

Cheryl Hodge: It has been my good fortune to be included in this exceptional group of talented women – thank you Ginger Walker, love my new buddies. I guess my favorite thing about being included in the Fort Worth Women’s Art Circle is that I get to sit back and absorb all of this marvelous creativity.

We cannot wait for Saturday, September 7, for Reflections! And we want to thank Waterside, Wild Acre Brewing Co, Orange Twist, and Clear Eye + Optical for hosting Reflections with us. To RSVP, click here.

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The self-proclaimed Gateway to the West, Fort Worth has long embraced its Cowtown persona with cattle drives, rodeos, and Molly the longhorn as city mascot. At the same time, Fort Worth is home to three world-class art museums and has long been a city that is deeply mindful of the arts, blessed with generous and forward-thinking patrons and civic leaders. From the Amon Carter, the Modern, and the Kimbell to a myriad of galleries and art venues, as well as the very active Fort Worth Art Dealers Association (FWADA), Fort Worth’s art scene is both well-established and vibrantly of-the-minute.   

The city’s art scene was dominated in the 1940s and 1950s by a group of extremely talented painters. Called the Fort Worth Circle, this progressive art colony was comprised of native Texans, most of them under the age of 30. Unusually for the time, the membership of the Circle was evenly divided between the sexes, and these men and women embraced modern ideas and modern themes in their art that had been hitherto unseen in Texas regional art. Their popularity expanded beyond North Texas as members of the Circle moved from Fort Worth.  

Now, there is a new circle of artists in Fort Worth. The Fort Worth Women’s Art Circle is a collective of seven founding women. These diverse artists have come together to support and propel each other’s journeys, both in art and in life. Founding members Ginger Walker, Cheryl Tekstar, Allison Castillo, Joey Lancaster, Amy Young, Sarah Gentry, and Sarah Murrin are connected through common friends, motherhood, faith, and a love of painting. 

photo credit: Shannon Lange Photography

Their name is a nod to the original circle, to the artists who help cast Fort Worth as a globally recognized center for the arts, as well as an acknowledgement of their commitment to continuing the tradition of expanding Fort Worth’s artistic reputation. They are by no means exclusive, however, and remain open to expanding their membership as talented, like-minded women emerge.  

At certain times in life, one comes across people who can lay aside their differences and come together in an environment of love, support, and enthusiasm to become a family. The women of the Fort Worth Women’s Art Circle are a family. They are sisters. And their sisterhood is beginning to show some incredible results.  

With a stated goal of staging two group shows a year to raise money for a different charity for each show, the Fort Worth Women’s Art Circle’s first show during FWADA’s 2019 Spring Gallery Night was a great success, raising funds for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Their second show will be held Saturday, September 7th, during FWADA’s 2019 Fall Gallery Night 2019. They will be joined this time by Walker and Tekstar’s partner in Galleywinter Gallery, Pat Green. Madeworthy and Tanglewood Moms are proud to partner with the Fort Worth Women’s Art Circle and Galleywinter Gallery to bring you this exciting show in the community room at Waterside, located at 3720 Convair Drive, Fort Worth, 76109. 

R.S.V.P here: https://www.facebook.com/events/933183573686634/

Sponsored by Waterside, Wild Acre Brewing Co, Orange Twist, and Clear Eye + Optical

The post Full Circle first appeared on Tanglewood Moms.

“Our name, Fort Worth Women’s Art Circle, is partly due to our common bonds and as a nod to the Fort Worth Circle,” Murrin told me.

The Amon Carter Museum of American Art provided this description of the original Fort Worth Circle, which was active in the 1940s and 1950s. “The origin of the Fort Worth Circle can be defined as a nucleus of four locals in their mid-20s who met as art students at the Fort Worth School of Fine Arts: Lia Cuilty, Veronica Helfensteller, Marjorie Johnson, and Bror Utter. Drawn together by a shared interest in art, dance, music, theater, and myth, the artists of the Fort Worth Circle sought new avenues of artistic expression to counter the prevailing preference for regionalism and other more conservative artistic styles.”

Murrin has a direct connection to Lia Cuilty, one of the Circle’s founding members. Cuilty was the aunt of Murrin’s husband, Philip. “We don’t pretend to be on par with those greats, but we do want to emulate them by striving to support the arts” and each other.

The seven current members thought up the idea of collaborating last fall. The septet of painters decided to do a group show while chatting over lunch at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth. Galleywinter Art Gallery, co-founded by Walker, was a natural venue for the group’s debut. Thousands of group texts later, the show’s theme and layout were decided on.

Spring opened two weeks ago to a packed house. The show raised funds for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. One of the group’s members has a relative with the genetic disease.

Walker said the plan is to do two shows a year with each event raising funds for a different charity. Beyond shows, the revamped circle will provide educational opportunities for its members throughout the year. “A glassblowing class is one idea,” Walker said. “Anything to get the creativity flowing and to get us out of our comfort zones.”

Murrin added that she is open to expanding the group. “There’s no need to try to be exclusive,” she said. This group is “about saying ‘yes’ and seeing what comes.”

Save time this Saturday to view the first show by Fort Worth Women’s Art Circle 5-8pm as part of Spring Gallery Night.

Murrin summed up the group’s aim through a quote by art critic David Hickey

Fort Worth Women’s Art Circle’s goal is to be an “indigenous Texas group who is consciously cosmopolitan and irrefutably modern so that we may represent the fruit of a special time in the culture of the Western United States.”

Edward Brown is a writing tutor and piano teacher. He is also an award-winning writer for the Fort Worth Weekly and volunteers for numerous Fort Worth nonprofits.

The post A Circle of Friends and Artists first appeared on Tanglewood Moms.