Show Preview | Tracy and Sushe Felix

Manitou Springs, CO
Tracy Miller Gallery, October 18-November 23

Sushe Felix, Magic Garden, acrylic, 18 x 24.

This story was featured in the October 2014 issue of Southwest Art magazine. Get the Southwest Art October 2014 print issue or digital download now–then subscribe to Southwest Art and never miss another story!

It’s no surprise that Tracy and  Sushe Felix’s latest show at Tracy Miller Gallery is titled Common Ground. The husband and wife have been married for 30 years, are both Colorado natives, and share a love of modernist artwork from the 1930s and ’40s, which can be seen in their contemporary landscapes. Their show runs from Saturday, October 18, to November 23, with an opening reception on October 18 from 5 to 8 p.m., and includes nearly 15 works from each artist, many of the Pikes Peak and Manitou Springs regions. “I think that they are two of the best contemporary painters out here in Colorado in terms of modernist landscapes,” says Tracy Miller, artist and gallery owner. “I like to call them the first couple of Colorado modernism.”

Tracy Felix, Alpine Lake, oil, 30 x 25.

Influenced by the Hudson River School artists and the American Regional artists, Tracy Felix’s stylized oil landscapes  combine elements of embellishment with his unique interpretation of Colorado geography. “I greatly exaggerate the color and over-emphasize cloud shapes and rock formations,” he says. “I always thought it was interesting how the Hudson River School artists’ landscapes looked just several ticks beyond reality—that’s how I think of my own work.” Sushe’s works are equally as dynamic as her husband’s, but her acrylic landscapes take on a more abstract feel, stemming from her love of the Regionalist and Transcendentalist movements of the 1930s. “I really want my work to have a lot of movement and to be joyous,” Sushe says. “I love it when people tell me that my work is beautiful and it made them feel good. To me that’s fabulous.”

Since the couple has lived in the Denver area for the last 10 years, the show is a sort of homecoming. “I thought it would be exciting to bring them back to Colorado Springs for a very special  show,” Miller says. “Not only for the people who already know who they are and are previous collectors of their work, but to introduce them to new collectors as well.” —Joe Kovack

contact information
719.650.0827
www.tracymillergallery.com

Featured in the October 2014 issue of Southwest Art magazine–click below to purchase:
Southwest Art October 2014 print issue or digital download Or subscribe to Southwest Art and never miss a story!