In Flight: Peter Hassen & Dick Morisawa

A two-artist exhibition that ran in The Studio from July 26 to September 14, 2019.

Artists Peter Hassen and Dick Morisawa’s work is very dissimilar in visual appearance, but connected in their explorations of nature and spirit. Hassen’s large, digital prints and video work play with science, nature and spirituality. He manifests a dialogue between these themes, raising existential questions about humans, cultures and existence. Dick Morisawa’s beautiful mixed media paintings use birds as a symbol for both freedom and connection. He incorporates a liberal movement of ink and paint, referencing Japanese calligraphy alongside a few cartoonish strokes.

Dick Akio Morisawa is a third-generation Japanese American artist who was born in Sacramento California in 1947. His interest in art began when he was a very young boy and has continued to be an important part of his life for more than seven decades. He is primarily self-taught although he did spend a few years studying art at Sacramento City College. In the early 70’s he traveled extensively through Europe visiting many museums and seeing lots of art both old and new. He later made several trips to Japan to see more art and his family.

His Japanese heritage can be seen throughout his work both as an artist and also as a woodworker. He has always made a living working on a variety of construction projects. He and his wife are currently living and working in Sonoma, California.

Abstract expressionism has always been Morisawa’s biggest interest and focus although he has also painted in a realistic style. He is inspired by the natural world and all types of art. He strives to create art that is personal and what he feels in the moment. Showing and selling the work has never been his motive–it is the process of making art that he loves.

Peter Hassen is a conceptual artist using sculpture, painting, printmaking, photography, video and landscape intervention. His work focuses on themes of nature, science, and spirituality. Born in Cincinnati, Hassen received his BFA from University of Colorado in Boulder and now lives and works in Sonoma.

In the 80’s and 90’s Hassen started working as a guerrilla public artist in Colorado, Cincinnati, Manhattan, Florida and San Francisco, installing illegal murals and billboards that addressed social issues, such as greed, corruption, and personal responsibility. In 1994 he was commissioned by Perry Farrell to paint a series of large canvases for the Lollapalooza tour that examined similar socio-political issues.

Now working in multiple media, Hassen seeks to open dialogue between these themes, and raise questions about our tribes, societies, and cultures, and their commonalities.

“My work can be found at that point at which spirituality and culture meet. Using cultural icons, language, symbols and historic context, I try to illustrate the influences that varied cultures have had on each other and the evolution of society. I track the arc of these icons through history in order to reinterpret and filter them through a contemporary sensibility.”

“I believe that connections between the past and the present, different tribes and traditions and the functions of spirituality and culture, hold clues to understanding. By providing opportunities for discovery, in nature and the everyday environment, I encourage people to consider their own place in the wider scope of human history.”

More to explore

IRS Guidelines for Gifts from Donor Advised Funds to Support MAGC Events

Thank you for your interest in giving to the Marin Art & Garden Center events from your Donor Advised Fund (DAF) or Family Foundation.

We sincerely appreciate your generosity and support!

To ensure your gift follows the current IRS guidelines for DAF/Family Foundation support of an event, we would like to share the below guidelines with you.

  • Raffle tickets, tickets to galas and other special events, auction items, and benefits conferred in connection with a DAF/foundation grant are not permitted.
    • IRS has specifically ruled that fair market value associated with fundraising events cannot be separated, a practice known as “bifurcation.”
      • For example, with Edible Garden, if the price of the ticket is $200 and the FMV fair market value (non-tax-deductible amount) is designated to be $50, the donor must pay from sources other than her DAF/foundation for the full value of the ticket ($200) and not just for the non-tax-deductible amount ($50).
    • We recommend you confer with your financial advisor to confirm if any of these examples of how donors may still use their DAF to support an event would work for you:
      • A donor could sponsor the event, and not attend, and pay fully out of the DAF/foundation.
      • A donor could sponsor the event using DAF/foundation funds and attend by purchasing an individual ticket through non-DAF/foundation funds.
      • A donor could sponsor the event, join the event as a guest of another donor/table guest, and pay fully out of the DAF/foundation.
      • A donor could sponsor the event and host the afforded number of people at their chosen level as long as they pay for the seats at the lowest ticket price ($200 for Edible Garden) outside of their DAF.
        • As an example, a $1,500 sponsor that covers 2 guests, could pay for their sponsorship with $400 from a different source of funds, and then give an additional gift of $1,100 out of their DAF.

 

Please email Tod Thorpe, Director of Development at tod.thorpe@maringarden.org to discuss your gift to Marin Art and Garden Center