"Untitled" is the title of a new exhibition at the Northeast Kingdom Artisans Guild. Untitled? Titled? The contradiction speaks to the wit and whimsy of the artist, Donna Jean Safford. The exhibition opens on October 1 and continues through November 15, with a reception on Saturday, October 15, from 3 - 5 pm.

Safford describes the exhibition as "an eclectic selection of new works in oils, mixed media, and collage. Throughout, homage is paid to the ever present black birds in our lives, the raven and the crow."

She continues, "Most of my recent work deals with appropriation. I borrow freely from the annals of art history, portraying some iconic and lesser known figures and placing them into contemporary environments and fashion. Some of these juxtapositions end up humourous. Generally I am seeking an element of surprise or delayed recognition, an ah ha!, an old friend in a crowd, as it were. In the painting's imagery and as an agent of change, the raven acts as my accomplice and my alter ego. About influences, one artist said, 'We all stand on the shoulders of someone who came before. No one falls out of the sky.

I work predominantly in oils, however the most recent work incorporates collage as an underlayer. The mechanical nature of printed papers and photography adds an element of surface design to interact with the handmade quality of brushstrokes and paint. I like the new dimension that texture and pattern from found materials adds to my paintings. It is not a new technique. Picasso and Braque explored it and Rauschenberg made it his own. Experimentation and discovery are the fuel of my artistic life."

Safford has studios in Derby Line and East Charleston, Vermont. She exhibits widely in the northeast and has work in many private collections throughout the country. She shows in various Vermont galleries, including the Northeast Kingdom Artisans Guild in St. Johnsbury. She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Hartford.