Jazz saxophonist Steve Lacy asserts that “it is in collaboration that the nature of art is revealed.”

Eight local artists, representing seven distinct genres, have found a collaborative means of revealing their art. The artists will feature their work at the first annual Artisan Fine Art Craft Show. They are:        

Joan Ruzitsky (Jewelry and Wearables)
Eve Botelho (Embroidered fiber)
Charles Willard (Wooden lathework)
Chi Soo  (Leather purses)
Lou Ryen (Fine art photography)
Jennifer Buckley (Functional and decorative pottery)
Cheryl and Don Olney (Contemporary wooden folk art figures)

The photograph accompanying this article is designed to merely whet your appetite. You can see the full artistic smorgasbord  at the artists' First Annual Exhibition and Sale. Meet these creative area residents, learn about their work, find your own inspiration by learning about theirs, and engage them in conversation about how and why they do what they do.

They'll be at the Old Pickle Factory, One Grove Street in Pittsford (Suite 217)  in just a few days:  

Friday October 26,  6 - 9 p.m.

Saturday October 27,  10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Sunday October 28,  10 a.m. to 5p.m.

There is no admission fee. And, if you come on the opening night, you’ll find both artistic and culinary temptations. You’ll be verbally tempted as well—your own artistic tendencies may be sparked, for example, by these words from Joan Ruzitsky, who specializes in jewelry and wearables.

“I have always had a passion for color,” she notes, “and get my inspiration from nature and the world around me. I have taken many workshops in color, design, and dying—be it weaving, painting on silk, dying or turning a collection of beads into a vibrant flowing necklace.”

Ruzitsky describes her work as "diverse, yet unified.” In so doing, she parallels Andy Warhol’s assertion that “the most exciting attractions are between two opposites that never met.”

Over 400 years ago, British essayist Joseph Addison pointed out that colors speak all languages. This assertion is paralleled as well in the work of Cheryl and Don Olney, who live in Rochester's dynamic South Wedge neighborhood. 

Their brightly colored, figurative, spirited, and joyful pieces reflect their sources of inspiration: diversity, inclusiveness, family, friends, and neighbors.