September/October 2008 Cover Artist
Cover Artist

by A Love of the Garden Life

Ann Munson, who created "Three Stamped Hens" on the cover of New Connexion, lives on a small farm in the Stafford triangle area in Oregon where she raised two sons and designed for Enthuse Design, a gift business she shared with her husband for 15 years. She produced a wide variety of items for home and garden, including steel garden hose hangers, animal shaped baskets and even a bamboo bicycle. Her love of gardening and animals are apparent in her artwork, which spans many mediums.

Prior to Enthuse she was known locally for her colored pencil drawings, which included the Lake Oswego Art Festival poster, Washington Park Zoo Centennial poster and a widely distributed image of three bunnies titled "Chocolate, Snuzzle and Peanutbutter."

"Three Stamped Hens" is paper collage on canvas and utilizes hand carved stamps, leaf paper, gold leaf and transparent acrylic. The collages are an exploration of pattern, texture and color but continue to feature subject matter from her farm and a love of drawing. Many include combed paste paper that she designs with a friend in her studio.

Munson also does chipped china mosaic, concrete sculpture and propagates plants in her studio/commercial greenhouse. Her interest in concrete includes casting over found objects, leaf forms, creating tiles and using found objects to create textural containers. Her garden is extensive and features a 20-foot concrete "sea monster" that she hopes to complete this fall. She offers two-day concrete and mosaic workshops in the greenhouse during the fall and winter months.

Munson's work can be found this fall at the Local 14 Women's show at the Oregon Forestry Center on Oct. 2-5 and online at www.local14.org. Visit Munson's greenhouse on Oct. 11-12 and Oct. 18-19 as part of Portland Open Studios at www.portlandopenstudios.com. Learn more about Munson at www.annmunson.com.