WILLIAMSBURG – Longtime friends Kathy Hornsby and Connie Desaulniers will hold an upcoming art show on Saturday, April 9 through Saturday, May 28 at the Stryker Center in downtown Williamsburg. Hornsby will showcase her “Flower Disarrangement” photographic series at the COLORS exhibit, while Desaulniers will display her fanciful paintings designed to provoke viewers’ imaginations.
While the two have participated in group art shows in the past, this is the duo’s first exhibit on their own. Both utilize color saturation in their art forms. Hornsby’s images are carefully organized, spontaneous, and spacious. Connie’s art is energetic, unpredictable, and often complex.
Hornsby and Desaulniers met 25 years ago at the Lord Botetourt Auction, an annual fundraiser hosted by the College of William & Mary that supports Tribe Athletics. Desaulniers’ husband, Marcel, who is the former owner of The Trellis as well as a chef and author, had donated an item to be auctioned off, while Hornsby and her musician husband, Bruce, were there to make a purchase in support of the athletics department. Both artists’ fathers were once professors at W&M. The two instantly hit it off and began creating art together.
“Our creative energy is exponential when the two of us are together,” said Desaulniers. “There’s a lot of synergy there.”
Hornsby attributes Desaulniers with inspiring her to focus on her passion for photography as well as introducing her to painting. Hornsby’s photographs depict florals intentionally abstracted by water and light. She said her technique was born out of a “fun accident” while swimming at her sister’s pool. She began photographing leaves and other debris in the pool and became infatuated with capturing reflections and distortions.
“Sometimes I’m shooting under water with my camera and tripod, sometimes I’m shooting half in and half out of the water with a floating backdrop of fabric for the background. I’m really fascinated with the distortion and pixelization that happens with water,” said Hornsby. “The more I played with it, the more fun it was.”
The artists will have approximately 50 works shown at the exhibit. “Most of Kathy’s photos are really compatible with my paintings, so we want to pair them up when we can throughout the exhibit,” said Desaulniers.
“We’re going to have a lot of fun just laying this show out,” added Hornsby.
The duo will also be selling limited-edition scarves on select days. The scarves depict various works by Hornsby and Desaulniers.
“Connie started doing these scarves of her paintings that are just phenomenal,” said Hornsby. “Of course, I copied her idea with photos of flowers. When you blow them up big enough, some of them are very abstract, almost tie-dyed and psychedelic looking.”
Desaulniers said that in addition to selling their works, they hope to promote the Stryker Center venue so that more people will become familiar with the facility.
“One of our goals is to showcase the Stryker Center and build awareness,” said Desaulniers. “A lot of people don’t know about the community meeting place, so hopefully more artists will be introduced to it.”
The exhibit space offers museum-quality lighting in addition to plenty of natural light. The facility has hosted creative art events since its founding in 2016.
Hornsby and Desaulniers will welcome visitors at the grand opening of COLORS from noon to 5pm on Saturday, April 9. The artists will also be at the exhibit from 10am to 5pm Sunday, April 24, which coincides with the Art on the Square juried art show, and from noon to 5pm Saturday, May 28, which is the exhibit’s last day of operation.
The COLORS exhibition is sponsored by The Optimal Service Group of Wells Fargo Advisors. A percentage of the event’s proceeds will be donated to the Styker Center in support of future art events.
The Stryker Center is located at 412 N. Boundary St. in Williamsburg. Regular hours of operation are from 9am to 5pm Monday through Friday. For more information on COLORS, click here.
