INFINITE POSSIBILITIES. The Pablo Center will host 'Both Sides Now,' a visual art exhibit, in June. The show features local artists Jamie Bowers (art pictured at right) and Kay-Brathol-Hostvet's (art pictured at left). (Submitted photos)

Who doesn't love the vast canvas of a blue sky filled with billowing clouds? It captures our imagination and beckons us back to languid childhood days lying on green grass searching for puffy animal silhouettes as they glide across the sky. The phrase "the sky is the limit" reminds us that there are no boundaries to what we can achieve, and artistic people live that every day through determination and experimentation of various art mediums.

Two such artists are Jamie Bowers and Kay Brathol-Hostvet, and together they are putting on a show at the Pablo Center at the Confluence to explore a selection of their art's infinite possibilities.

"Clearly, if you look through the years at my work, there were cycles of colors and textures," Jamie clarified, "but I like to change it up in a playful way."

Kay added, "The song 'Both Sides Now' is a symbolic for human emotions, and we're attempting a similar thing – the playful aspect, the dark story aspect; it's all here."

"Both Sides Now" by Joni Mitchell

I've looked at clouds from both sides now
From up and down, and still somehow
It's cloud illusions I recall
I really don't know clouds at all ...
I've looked at life from both sides now
From win and lose and still somehow
It's life's illusions I recall
I really don't know life at all

“Both Sides Now” is a two-person art show exploring themes of clouds and other atmospheric conditions from the opposing styles of realism and abstraction through symbolism and metaphor. Besides two-dimensional works, Jamie and Kay's show includes unique sculptural pieces, including one collaborative piece further tying into the theme. Sound effects from nature (wind, rain, thunder) as well as several musical renditions of Joni Mitchell’s “Both Sides Now” will add to the immersive experience.

Jamie is an abstract painter experimenting with various combinations of paint, plaster, ash, and polyurethane to create texture and vivid color. His work is often large in scale and can incorporate multi-panel combinations for corporate, commercial, and home settings. He accepts commissions to create one-of-a-kind pieces to compliment his customer’s existing décor. Jamie has been exhibited in shows and galleries throughout Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. Find more about his art on his website www.bowersart.carbonmade.com.

Two of Jamie Bowers' pieces, pictured.

Kay has earned the distinction as a Signature Member of the Pastel Society of America. Her work using pastels to create emotive landscapes comes from a desire to follow nature’s changing light, shadow, weather, and seasons as it becomes a metaphor for human moods and emotions. Her work celebrates the land with a modern aesthetic, sometimes called Contemporary Regionalism. Her drawings, pastels, and acrylic paintings are in corporate and private collections in the USA and Europe and have been showcased in prestigious publications.She is represented locally by Riverwood Gallery along with galleries in Stoughton, Amery, and Fish Creek, Wisconsin. Kay shares her knowledge through various art workshops and classes. Learn more on her website: www.kaybratholhostvet.com.

Three of Kay Brathol-Hostvet's pieces, pictured.

“Both Sides Now” will be showing at the Pablo Center's James W. Hansen Gallery through July 27. An Artists Reception and Artist Talk event – free to attend – is scheduled for Friday, June 13, from 5-7pm. 

“Behind the Easel” is a periodic column by Patricia Hawkenson, a visual artist and one of the proprietors of Decadent Gifts & Gallery in Eau Claire.