Lot # : 23 - Butterfly

Transformation - Flight of The Phoenix by Nancy Neale, John Martin & Eric McCue Large Butterfly - 45” H, 62” Wingspan 2017 - A year of change. What better way to illustrate change and the excitement of a new journey, rebirth, emerging from the old stronger and with more passion, living life as if brand new… than to create a Phoenix coming from the butterfly. In Greek mythology, the Phoenix rises from the ashes and is reborn as a beautiful bird of fire and color that lives anew until the cycle repeats itself and the bird is reborn again to live another long and beautiful life - over and over for eternity. It was my (Nancy Neale) dream as an artist to depict this, but knew this was not a project I could complete alone. I immediately looked to another artist (John Martin) with a mathematical and welding background and asked if there was an interest to create this project; yes was the answer, so then we were two. We went to visit another amazing artist and sculptor friend (Eric McCue) just to take a studio tour and while mentioning the project and our lack of having everything we needed, he jumped on board and then we were three! Stronger together! 2017 for all three of us represents change and renewal in different and exciting ways and this sculpture and the painting thereof is a physical representation of the fire and beauty that change and transformation bring. The three of us hope this piece brings you as much pleasure as it did for us to create it for you and we hope it brings unending passion and renewal to your life's journey. Why FLIGHT? “Each of us has been transformed in life by our love of art. Someone, somewhere along the line, art teachers or mentors, told us that we could do and be anything… by pursuing our love of art in its many forms. By participating in FLIGHT, we are helping to make those dreams possible for kids in our community by supporting Art in Schools along with the Rotary Club of Colorado Springs.” Nancy Neale Nancy Neale has always considered herself an artist. From her earliest memory she loved creating and dreaming up ways to be expressive. Her forte is realism and her medium; watercolor. From the time she first experimented in watercolor it changed everything she knew as an artist. It captivated and entranced like no other. As early as grade school she won many national art competitions, including two Scholastic gold keys for artistic excellence. She has won numerous awards both nationally and internationally and her works reside in private collections throughout the country. She worked for some of the largest names in art and entertainment in Los Angeles as a teenager and painted watercolor backgrounds as well as was a graphic artist and illustrator. Her journey brought her back to Colorado and in recent years she has delved back into watercolor. If an artist’s chosen medium can define them, she believes that watercolor is her true heart. While it is her desire to continue to prove that there is excitement that comes from the pursuit of creating photorealistic pieces with a touch of painterly graphic hard edges, these days she also enjoys going where the paint takes her and breaking the rules that have been established in the world of artistic expression. Branching into acrylics as another form of Watermedia, she has created an entire body of work where the paint itself directs what the subject and painting would ultimately become. She enjoys coaching others to find their inner artist through this exercise and learning to paint as their own true selves, which many have found imminently rewarding. She hopes she can inspire you with art… She is a Signature member and President of the Pikes Peak Watercolor Society, Signature member of the Philadelphia Watercolor Society and a juried member of Watercolor West. John Martin John Martin is originally from Missouri, and came to Colorado in 2013, where he immediately fell in love with the beauty of his surroundings. His background and degrees in mathematics and secondary education bring an element of precision, order and mathematical concept. His fascination with mathematics naturally transcends into his love of design, form and geometry. It is through these inspirations that his paintings and sculpture take shape. He has always had an appreciation of math and art and is inspired by the fact that math is in nature, music, color, form and shape and literally everything; everything is mathematical… He is an Associate member and Treasurer of the Pikes Peak Watercolor Society. Eric McCue Eric McCue was born in Portsmouth, Virginia in 1980. He was raised from the age of two in Washington, Pennsylvania. until moving to Colorado Springs, in August of 2005. Eric is the son of Kevin McCue, the owner of McCue Painting, and Marsha McCue, professional artist; and is the third of five children, with three brothers, Kenny, Kameron, and Ian, and a sister, Sybil. He has an Associates of Applied Science in Welding from Pikes Peak Community College, which he completed in December, 2013. He also attended Edinboro University of Pennsylvania in 2000, where he double majored in Art Education and Psychology. He enjoys mountain biking, snowboarding, skateboarding, and hiking. Eric currently is employed at Vestas Towers in Pueblo, where he welds wind towers. Eric is certified in all forms of welding, but prefers MIG and TIG welding for his sculptural designs. He enjoys balancing both organic and geometric forms in large-scale sculptures. He likes for his sculptures to serve a practical function. Eric began his art career with sculptures but decided to start painting after he was inspired during a painting class at Edinboro. He has worked in both oil and acrylics, favoring the latter. He mostly works in abstract painting, but occasionally paints in realism, surrealism and impressionism. He uses a very simple palate of colors, letting the pigments blend on the canvas. Applying multiple layers of texture, which could include anything from sand to pumice or iron oxide, helps him achieve the textured effects that he desires. He prefers to work on larger canvases above 24 inches by 36 inches. Eric has had several solo shows in the Colorado Springs area. His first solo show was held at Coffee Exchange (formally Coffee Warehouse) in downtown Colorado Springs during August 2006. Others were held at Artist’s Lair and The Gallery at Art Hardware. He has also shown in several group shows at Artist’s Lair, Edifice Gallery, and The Gallery at Art Hardware. His work is in several personal collections. Eric has also shown in group shows in and around the Pittsburgh area before he moved Colorado.