Stools

Item Description

This stool is hand-painted by Catherine Cunningham.  It is made of solid wood and is 17.5x9x24"H.

Item Special Note

Because of Catherine’s love and appreciation for Egyptian art, she chose that theme when she saw the availability of this type of bench.  Catherine’s knowledge and research for this project created a perfect match for the final piece.  She decided to paint the whole surface gold in the tradition of richness of colors along with blues, greens and red with the designs and icons of Egypt, the Scarab with the Akhet, lions’ feet and the Ankh.

The Scarab was a symbol of spontaneous creation associated with the sunrise. 

The Akhet represents the horizon from with the sun emerged and disappeared.  Both the beginning and the end of each day was guarded by Aker, a double lion god.  Thus the feet are carved in the legs.

The Ankh is the symbol of eternal life, or breath of life relating to the breath you will need in the afterlife.

Biography: Born and raised in Northern Indiana, Catherine considers herself a Hoosier at heart. Her background with art education has been quite an exciting journey.  She began her art studies at Purdue University and continued her education at the University of Boulder, Colorado; the University of Maryland, Heidelberg, Germany, where she experienced much of her art history first hand; and finally received her BAE at Herron School of Art (K-12) where she also earned six hours of graduate study in special education.  Catherine has been a member of the Indianapolis community since 1981.  She has taught in township schools, and Saturday School at Herron, has conducted several workshops, and gave private art lessons for more than 25 years. She especially enjoys working with children of all ages, because they are so open and honest about their views and their artwork.  She has judged numerous exhibits in and around Indianapolis, exhibited her own artwork in a variety of art venues, and has been an active member of the art community, belonging to many local arts organizations. 

Catherine specializes in using recycled materials in many of her artworks to help save our environment, diminish landfills and to give those unique items new life.  As a working artist and exhibiting in a variety of mediums and techniques using graphite, clay, oils and acrylics for paintings, printmaking, sculptures, collages and assemblages, these enable Catherine to explore her world and express her ideas in many ways.  Catherine’s works are primarily sculptural, even in 2-dimensional pieces, to create the sense of depth and figurative wholeness.  Often her works are combined images and repeated patterns within the framework concentrating on specific themes using recycled and natural materials.  She becomes a partner with her mediums as they guide her to a finished work. 

Catherine is the Past President of the Herron Alumni Association Board.  She was the Operations Manager for the Hoosier Salon Fine Arts Galleries in Broad Ripple for three years and has worked at Parish Manufacturing in several departments for the last 15 years. 

Materials used: gold paint and permanent marker

There will be an additional fee for shipping. Please contact Katee Franson at KFranson@villages.org for more details.