Paper Garden – Lisbeth Cort

OPENING MARCH 3, 5-7PM
ARTIST TALK MARCH 9 AT 3PM
EXHIBITION CONTINUES THROUGH APRIL 27, 2023
VIEW ONLINE GALLERY

Historic Santa Fe Foundation (HSFF) is pleased to present an exhibition of Lisbeth Cort’s collages celebrating the historic garden at El Zaguán. The exhibition will open at El Zaguán, 545 Canyon Road, Suite 2, Santa Fe, NM on Friday, March 3, 2023 from 5-7pm. Contact Hanna Churchwell at hanna@historicsantafe.org or call 505.983.2567 for more information.

Lisbeth Cort will also give an artist talk on the exhibition on Thursday, March 9 at 3pm in El Zaguán. HSFF’s Deputy Director Melanie McWhorter will moderate the talk. Free and open to the public. Advance registration encouraged but not required. Please contact Hanna Churchwell at hanna@historicsantafe.org to register.

ABOUT THE SHOW
Paper Garden: Celebrating the Historic Garden at El Zaguán
Behind a long white picket fence along Canyon Road lies one of Santa Fe’s most historic gardens. El Zaguán’s garden dates to the 1890s when planting began next to the sprawling 1850s adobe.  Over the decades, the garden’s distinctive diagonal paths were laid out and planting expanded to include the signature plants we see today, such as its unusual horse chestnut tree, an old species of iris from a New Mexican iris ranch, yellow Sevilla roses, peonies, golden columbine, delphinium and many more– all of which provided rich subject matter for this show. While primarily a painter, Lisbeth Cort chose the challenge of collage as her medium for the works in this exhibition. “Actually, painting these florals would have been a lot easier,” she said, “but I wanted to really explore the curves of the petals, bends in the leaves, and color variations in these flowers through collage. Actually, I consider my collage work painting with scissors.” Each piece in the show began by hand-painting collage papers, cutting them freehand, and precisely assembling them to accentuate the textures and patterns of El Zaguán’s joyful flowers.  The show will include some surprises such as a few of her three-dimensional sculptural works of collaged floral art. In the end, Lisbeth says this show is a visual thank you note to the Historic Santa Fe Foundation for its long-term stewardship and conservation of El Zaguán and its garden, and to the Santa Fe Master Gardeners volunteers who keep the garden alive and well. It’s also a perfect antidote to spring fever this time of year!
 
ARTIST BIO
After a 35-year career managing and staffing nonprofit historic preservation and arts organizations across the country, Lisbeth Cort began her art journey in 2010. Based on the principles of the international Urban Sketchers movement, she started by sketching on-site around town using ink and ending with casual watercolor washes.  Soon she was filling travel sketchbooks– her frequent international trips enhanced by capturing travel memories and keen observations with ink and paint. Through private study and numerous art courses she developed her craft, moving first to fine art watercolor painting and expanding to use acrylics, wax pastels, gouache, traditional pastels, and collage.  Her art is distinguished by a lively mix of patterns, saturated colors, and rich details.  Lisbeth’s award-winning work is internationally collected on three continents. Her paintings have been featured in juried exhibitions, solo shows, and galleries in New Mexico and Washington State. More than a dozen museum shops– including the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, Museum of International Folk Art, and New Mexico History Museum shops– along with distinctive retail boutiques throughout New Mexico and in Texas, carry a selection of her art, stationary, and artisan goods. Lisbeth works out of her hilltop studio just minutes from the historic Santa Fe Plaza. Learn more about Lisbeth and her work at www.lisbethcort.com