Artist Featured in House & Garden Magazine Explores the Psychology of Happiness In Fort Collins, Colorado Exhibition

Only Contemporary Art and The Architect's Studio in Fort Collins proudly present Mel Ristau: A Psychology of Happiness. November 4 through December 30. It features mobiles, stabiles, prints, collages, light sculpture, and toys -- a kinetic circus of color, shape, line, and symbolism based on a personal psychology of happiness.

Fort Collins, CO (PRWEB) October 13, 2005 -- Only Contemporary Art and The Architect's Studio in Fort Collins proudly present Mel Ristau: A Psychology of Happiness, from November 4 through December 30. The exhibition kicks off with an opening reception Friday, November 4 from 6 to 9 p.m., which coincides with Fort Collins' First Friday Art Walk. It features mobiles, stabiles, prints, collages, light sculpture, and toys by this gentle, soft-spoken artist -- a kinetic circus of color, shape, line, and symbolism based on a personal psychology of happiness.

Ristau's sculptures range from the freestanding to those suspended from ceilings, where they float, drift, swirl, spin, and wiggle. Some are poetic -- muted and introspective. Others are raucous, electric-colored whatchamacallits that tickle the spirits of passers-by. Abstracted forms from nature -- petals, flowers, birds, stars, and leaves -- are the building blocks for the witty and magical work. Outdoor kinetic sculptures utilize energy from the environment to actuate their performance.

Ristau's art can be found in both public spaces and private residences. It appeals to everyone from children to sophisticated art connoisseurs. Pointing to one of his sculptures, a first-grade boy shared, “I’d like to sit right up there and just fly away.” Only those without a sense of humor and delight at life will be left out in the cold. Ristau has said, “I want my artwork to transport viewers to a higher place -- perhaps even a favorite place they experienced as a child.”

A native of Louisiana's Gulf Coast, Ristau tagged along with his mother, a watercolorist, during her outings to the New Orleans French Quarter in the 1950s. He transplanted to Northern Colorado in 2001 carrying a history of impressive accomplishments in communication design, technology, art and education. He recently installed the monumental Air Gardens in two public schools in the Dallas, Texas area. In addition, Ristau's ambitious Red Stones 3 now hangs in the lobby of the Fort Collins Museum of Contemporary Art and his work will be featured as an outstanding gift idea in the December issue of House & Garden magazine.

About the Gallery
OCA -- Only Contemporary Art -- has been located since 1998 in the stunning loft-like offices of The Architect's Studio in the heart of downtown Fort Collins at 151 W. Mountain Avenue, 970-490-6100. Hours are Tuesday through Friday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Saturday by appointment. As prominent architects known for their strong support of the arts, The Architect's Studio takes pride in hosting OCA.

Roz Spencer, OCA gallery director, has led the discovery, presentation and promotion of significant contemporary art in Colorado and the region for the past twenty-eight years. Her awards and honors include the Florida Governor's Award for the Arts ! and the Denver Art Museum's Alliance for Contemporary Art prestigious AFKEY Award. Spencer founded and directed three acclaimed art centers in Fort Collins: Horizon's Gallery, the PowerPlant Visual Art Center, and One West Contemporary Art Center (now developed into the Fort Collins Museum of Contemporary Art).

For more information, contact Roz Spencer at 970-223-3840 or visit the artist's Web site at http://www.melristau.com.

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