2023 PNCA Artist Bios
Created by Argyle Winery to support the talents of student artists, the Art of Sparkling program is a unique collaboration with the Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA). Each year, three PNCA student artists are selected to receive the Argyle scholarship. The students then immerse themselves in the Argyle story by visiting the vineyards, winery and Tasting House. This experience serves as inspiration for their artwork. The three pieces of art are then turned into labels for the Art of Sparkling 3-bottle set.
Emily Thomas
Artist Bio
Emily Thomas is an illustrator and designer currently in her final year at PNCA in Portland, Oregon. Emily’s work focuses primarily on the natural world and botanical themes, relating much of her work to environmentalism and climate change. She has grown up in the Pacific Northwest and this landscape continues to be an endless source of inspiration for her work. Through an “eco-surreal” style, Emily employs narratives of ecology to connect with humans and create a bridge between the natural and unnatural world. She is passionate about bringing humans back to nature, as well as creating beautiful, long lasting designs that focus on sustainability.
Artwork
“Think Big, Start Small, Scale Rapidly”
Based on the idea of a zoomed-in look at the ecology at Argyle’s vineyards, this piece aims to communicate the importance of different species working together to create the delicious grapes for Argyle wines. Each plant and insect play a key role in the vineyards’ ecosystem, and this piece is an appreciation of all of those small but important elements that add up to something great
Ellyse Egan
Artist Bio
Ellyse Egan is an abstract artist working primarily with paint and photography. She currently lives in Portland, Oregon and is studying painting at the Pacific Northwest College of Art. Her art is inspired by influential environments and memories. With the goal to translate indescribable feelings through her art, she creates work with an expressive quality that speaks to the powerful aspects of nature and the spaces we find ourselves inhabiting.
Artwork
“Beyond Branches” was created with a Kodak Eastman Tourist film camera created in the 1940s. Ellyse captured black and white vine-like imagery, mirroring the landscape of the vineyard. During her visit to Argyle, she was inspired by the altered landscape of the vineyard, covered in snow. The cold temperatures and new environment inspired the use of paint atop a photograph. With movement and texture, Ellyse was able to capture the feelings this land brought her along with the spontaneous energy of the changing weather.
Grace Feucht
Artist Bio:
Grace Feucht is an interdisciplinary artist working out of Vancouver, Washington while she pursues her Bachelor’s Degree in general fine arts at Pacific Northwest College of Art in Portland, Oregon. Growing up in the Pacific Northwest, her work explores themes of nature and nostalgia through a variety of mediums. She tends to work with paper and specializes in papercuts and printmaking. Her work has been exhibited in the Archer Gallery and published in Phoenix Magazine. She has participated in and curated exhibitions at Pacific Northwest College of Art.
Statement:
Inspired by traveling through the rolling hills of the Willamette Valley, this piece emphasizes the importance of place in the process of making Argyle’s sparkling wine. Mount Hood defines the skyline as you look up from the flourishing vines in the vineyard. Since the 1970s, a community of winemakers have come together to farm the fertile lands of the valley. The temperate climate produces flavors similar to those of the vineyards in France. The range of elevations produces a variety of grapes for sparkling wines, Pinot Noirs, Chardonnays and Rieslings. Drawing inspiration from the mix of traditional and modern farming techniques being used by Argyle today, this piece was made by cutting and layering paper starting with the black outline.
