Page 20 - the NOISE December 2013

20 • DECEMBER 2013 • the NOISE arts & news • thenoise.us
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“Visions of Fine Art.” I talk with Vice President Georgia Michalicek and she tells me more about SAGA.
“The Sedona Area Guild of Artists (SAGA) was the brainchild of Jerry Buley, a retired professor of Communication at ASU and pho- tographer, and Mary Dove, an award-winning painter in Sedona, in 2007,” says Vice President Georgia Michalicek. “They met after Jerry mar- ried long-time Sedona resident, Barbara Vick- ers, a photographer and sculptor, and moved to the area. They spoke about the need for a professional artists’ organization in the Sedona area and each invited several other profession- al artists to join them. The membership con- tinued to ebb and flow as they invited more artists to become Founding Members who were working as professionals in their respec- tive mediums, educating and teaching others either on their own or in galleries, and mentor- ing younger artists along the way.”
Ms. Michalicek tells me a bit more about the President of SAGA. “Mr. Buley continues to be the Founding President of SAGA today, which is a name that means more than what the ac- ronym stands for. Saga means story, and as a Professor of Communication, Mr. Buley be- lieves story telling is of utmost importance to the professional artist. All new members are required to take a workshop on this subject.”
This month I present the stories of two other SAGA artists, Levi Fitch and John M. Soder- berg.
Levi Fitch was born in the Verde Valley and has lived here for 36 years. “I became interest- ed in sculpture as a result of an experiment for a drawing project,” Mr. Fitch tells me. “Shortly after the project, I contacted local world re- nowned sculptor, John Soderberg, and began an apprenticeship. I’ve been sculpting ever since.”
Mr. Fitch tells me a bit about the pieces he hoped would be chosen for the show. “Apollo
Apollo by Levi Fitch is at the SAGA Exhibit thru December 5.
is a life size torso bust of the Greek god bearing the same name. As god of the sun, he brings forth its energy from the center of his right hand. In his left hand is an offering to humani- tyofthisenergy. Chironisahalfman/halfhorse centaur, also from Greek mythology. Since he learned his skills from Apollo, the sun at the base is his foundation. The rest of the design is reflective of his image as the constellation Sag- ittarius. Feminine Presence, a miniature bronze, is symbolic of the power of the feminine in the universe. She floats through a spiral galaxy holding the Earth in her hand.”
John M. Soderberg tells me a bit about himself. “I spent my first five years of my life in Afghanistan, my father had been commis- sioned to build the first engineering school in the country in 1947. We moved to India for six years, and then to Thailand for eight years. I circled the world eight times before graduating high school in Bangkok, and visited more than 80 countries. I painted in oils in Afghanistan at age four, and studied teak-wood carving with the leading master in Thailand, a Buddhist monk, at age 12. I have lived and worked in Arizona since 1973.”
“I fell in love with sculpture at age five when my mother held me up in Pietro en Vincoli, Rome, so that I could touch the foot of Moses by Michaelangelo,” Mr. Soderberg tells me. “My creative process is to sculpt a basic idea in clay, then tear it apart and redo it until it works. In one of my better faces, I redid the left eyebrow 60 times until I got it right. Humanity, in all its forms, failures and triumphs, inspires me. I would describe my art as a synergistic blend of classical figurative sculpture with impression- istic and contemporary themes and approach.”
I ask about his piece in the show, “I will dis- play a life-sized head/torso of a biker holding an orphaned little girl. Both are portraits — one of the founder of Rancho Feliz Charitable Group, the other of a little girl who was found