AZULE BOARD Summer 2010
Camille.H.Shafer moved with her husband Dave Shafer to Bluff, next to Hot springs NC in 1972. Born in France she studied at the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris, taught arts in Quebec and was an occupational therapist at Toledo Hospital. She considers Madison County her adoptive Appalachian country and culture. She is a builder and a visual artist with a portfolio of extraordinary quilts. She cares and strives for inclusion (disability, class, race, gender, age, religion). Board member since 1994
Selinde Lanier earned her M.F.A. in Fibers from Savannah College of Art and Design, exploring the structural and fiber content possibilities of getting light through woven fabric. She worked professionally for the furniture industry as a textile designer until 2004 and has recently set up a studio in the Marshall High Studios building, in Marshall, NC. Currently, she is developing a line of hand-woven Appalachian-styled coverlets, using yarn dyed exclusively with natural plant dyes native to the region. For images and more information visit http://www.selindelanier.blogspot.com/ Board member since 2009
Lynda Wheelock has lived and worked in Spring Creek NC for over 28 years. She retired in 2006 from Headstart, after teaching for 21 years. She now pursues full time her old passion for drawing and painting. As a friend of Camille Shafer and the wife of Doug Wheelock, the steadiest carpenter and builder of Azule, she has watched the progress of the site for over two decades. Board member since 2007
Bunny Halton-Subkis has been the Director of UNC Asheville Office of Cultural & Special Events and a program chair in UNC Asheville Academic Affairs for 11 years. Prior to this position she was Assistant Director of the performing Art Series at UNC and she has worked in marketing and advertising for the retail music business as well as being a performer in Western North Carolina. She has a BA in Theatre and Mass Communications from the University of South Florida. She serves as western region Member-at-Large for the NC Presenters Consortium, and on the Advisory Boards of Black Mountain College Museum + Art Center and the Performance Center of Asheville. Board member since 1994
Gwylene Gallimard and Jean-Marie Mauclet's collaborative experiences include two French cafes (one is now 26 year old in Charleston SC), art installations about health insurance, the fast food phenomenon, religious beliefs. They have been the lead artists of multi year programs like "My Journey Yours" with Refugee Family Services, and "The Future is on the Table". Their last installation deals with Olympia, cotton mills and villages in Columbia, SC. Awards in the States include grants from the NEA, the SC Arts Commission, Spoleto Festival USA and Alternate ROOTS. Mauclet is also a contemporary furniture maker. He holds a BA in Political Science and an MFA from SUNY. He also studied at the Cooper Union in NY. Gallimard holds a MFA in Media Arts from Concordia U. (Montreal) and one from ENSAD (Paris, France). They have lived in Charleston since 1984.
Peggy Gardner is currently the office manager for the Preservation Society of Asheville and Buncombe County. A native of Asheville, her interest is in photographic and local history. Over the past ten years, she has worked with archival collections at Pack Memorial Library, the Prints and Photographs Division of the Library of Congress, the Swannanoa Valley Museum, and the SC Library. Before that she provided photographic, design and publishing services for non-profit organizations, educational and historical institutions. Peggy considers her life enriched by her many French friends, and this led to her connection with Azule. They have been an antidote to the trauma she suffered in the eleventh grade, when she had to sing La Marseillaise solo in front of her French class in order to receive a passing grade. Board member since 1994
Olivier Rollin was born in France where he studied industrial design and worked there several years as a designer. In the US since 1980, he has been a self employed designer working on projects including: industrial design, lamp and furniture making, remodeling of buildings and technical illustrations.
Board member since 1994
Harold Finley was a farmer and is now a landscaper, grading contractor and community developer. He has been a life long resident of Bluff community. Married in 1974 with Sadie Thomas, he has three children and one grand child. He has worked with Camille and Dave Shafer on the grounds of Azule for twenty five years. His work is his hobby. Board member since 1994
Eleanor Brownfield - I am a native Atlantan reared in Alabama, educated in Tennessee and Pennsylvania. On my 9th birthday, Miss Rosa changed our world and because I knew she was right, I have been an activist ever since. Along the way, I have been devoted to many forms of art, exercising my passion for theater, dance and music, chiefly as a stage manager, performer, writer and critic (notably with the Sisters of No Mercy, Company Kaye Dance/Mime, the DeLuxe Vaudeville Orchestra and Beacon Dance). Since 1982, I have explored the intersections of art and activism as a member of Alternate ROOTS. From childhood paper dolls and hand-sewn clothes to professional work as a theatrical costumer, I have always been fascinated with design and fiber arts. I have been an organic gardener since the early seventies and kept cats all along. Connection with the natural world is the anchor of my life. Board member since 2010
Betsy Reiser moved to the Western North Carolina Mountains with her artist husband, young son, and two dogs in the mid-70's from Miami, Florida. They lived in the country pursuing their interests in gardening, art, music, health and natural foods. Remodeling a building in downtown Asheville for a natural foods café led to other real estate projects, and eventually Betsy found herself an executive as the owner and broker-in-charge of a small real estate company. As a self-proclaimed "house voyeur", it turns out that this was a pretty good career path. Betsy believes that Camille Shafer's incredible creation in Spring Creek, which now houses AZULE, is one of the most interesting, inspiring, and organic structures she has seen in her long career of house viewing. Board member since 1994
Cecilia Rawlins was born in Rocky Mount, NC, attended high school in West Virginia and returned to North Carolina for college, graduate school, work and family. As an elementary principal in the Wake County Public School System in Raleigh, Cecilia had the opportunity for much community involvement. This included membership on various nonprofit boards: The Visual Art Exchange, Arts Together, Montessori of Raleigh, NC Natural Science Museum, Opera Company of North Carolina, SAFEChild, United Arts Council, Wake County P.T.A. Council and NC State Friends of the College. She has served on an educational advisory committee to the North Carolina State Museum of Art. Cecilia is the mother of Ashley Lindsey, a dancer with The Jose Limon Dance Company in New York. Cecilia is a proud resident of Hot Springs. Board member since 2009
Dave Penrose came to North Carolina from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. He has lived in North Carolina for over 30 years and has made innumerable contributions to the state in the areas of biology and stream restoration. Those contributions were recognized upon his retirement in 2008 when Governor Mike Easley bestowed upon him The Order of the Longleaf Pine, the highest honor to be given to a private citizen in the state of North Carolina. He continues to contribute to the field of science by making presentations around the country, serving as a consultant in the area of stream restoration and keeping a close eye on his beloved streams by fly-fishing whenever and wherever possible. Dave is the father of Kristen Macon, an Adoption Specialist with The Wake County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. As a life long arts enthusiast and collector of local art, and new resident of Madison County, Dave is proud to serve the community through his affiliation with Azule. Board member since 2009
Laird Lanier is a 1987 graduate of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts and holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering from NC State University. Laird is an artist and engineer who builds mobiles inspired by the work of Alexander Calder and provides production engineering services to the Gulf of Mexico shipbuilding industry. "The tools I use as an engineer have grown directly from my sculpture explorations. When we pick up a 50 ton barge section I use the same tools to find the gravity center and angle of rotation that I do to build a mobile. I first unrolled plates to build big art...this gave me the confidence to unroll plates for ship construction. My creativity is, in no small way, a result of visiting with Dave and Camille as a child and being exposed to creativity as a way of life vs. a singular activity. I draw on that creativity every day whether I am laying out bilge plates or balancing sculptures.
Board member since 2010
Christopher Jayne is a landscape architect and botanist. He has been raised in Sandy Mush, Madison County, where his parents have a very special Herb Nursery. Board member since 2009
Lorrie Jayne is an instructor at Warren Wilson College where she teaches language and cultural understanding in the Departments of undergraduate Writing and Modern Languages. From the time that she was a child growing up on the US Mexico Border, Lorrie has been interested in the space that occurs between cultures and has adhered to the idea that we come together in our similarities but know one another through our differences. Lorrie earned her Masters Degree in Teaching at The School for International Training in Brattleboro,Vermont. She is currently conducting her Doctoral research in the estuary region of Brazilian Amazonia where she is gathering the memoirs of traditional plant healers. Lorrie lives with her husband, Christopher, and daughters, Miriam and Lillian in Swannanao, NC.
The statement of purpose of AZULE is:
"TO PROVIDE AN ENVIRONMENT WHERE ARTISTS AND COMMUNITY MEET, WORK AND LEARN TOGETHER THROUGH THE ARTS IN THEIR MANY FORMS".
BEGINNING
David and Camille Shafer moved to Hot Springs, N.C. in 1972. Camille was an artist from France, and Dave a photographer from the midlands of the US. They connected with their neighbors immediately in the community of Bluff, in Madison County and made local friends such as Doctor Kimberley, from whom they had bought the property and Harold Finley who now serves on the Azule Board of Directors.
Camille and Dave’s house became a center of activities and their community grew. They organized art and music events, such as quilt shows and regular jam sessions as well as photographic projects such as "Portraits of America", a photographic portrayal of members of the community, which, incidentally, was taken up again by Azule in 2006.
THE STRUCTURE
At the same time, Camille was busy planning and creating the amazing architecture you can see now. Dave and Camille’s house is unique. Through Camille Shafer’s sole design and organization, what began as the tiny Kimberly's cabin, has been sculpted into a work of art. The construction itself has always been offered to local carpenters. Camille was very clear about that: all of her creative activities must originate locally.
THE VISION
The roots of the new community were the local artists, artisans, farmers, carpenters, who helped with the construction of the house. As a group, they wanted to open a space for the arts in BluffSome left, some stayed, some came back
But after twenty five years or so, they got together and organized for a non-profit 501C3 Corporation. As of 2007 Azule has a home. Azule received and accepted the donation of Camille and Dave's house, where it's activities now develop.
We see AZULE, THE PLACE - the architecture designed by Camille Shafer and built in the middle of 35 acres of hilly Appalachia - as the container for AZULE, THE INCUBATOR, the engine within the place, the generator of AZULE's VISION - guidelines, principles, directions, potentials - as well as of AZULE's PROJECTS IN THE ARTS and ITS COMMUNITIES.
Within this small corner of the world, the BOARD OF AZULE constantly makes sure of the interaction between vision and projects, to promote a multidirectional flow of creativity.
AZULE, THE PLACE thrives to offer its many features for the development of art projects. OUTDOORS: gardening, landscaping, water features design, installations, sculpture symposia, gatherings - INDOORS: presentation of two and three-dimensional works, photography, fiber arts, music, poetry, storytelling -AND the use of existing architectural conditions for murals, decorative arts, creative furniture, glassworks-AZULE, THE INCUBATOR proposes spaces for studios, retreats and residencies (for individuals or small groups), conferences, parties (big or small). We are developing an art and design library and an archive repository accessible for research.
Visitors, artists, residents, come to AZULE for retreat, research, exposure, criticism, challenge, improvement. Their work radiate outside the AZULE perimeter, completing the incubation process, from conception to hatching. This AZULE PROCESS is accessible to whoever is attentive and passionate about community building around the arts, half a mile away or a world away.
AZULE is a LOCAL INCUBATOR: it invites Madison County artists and residents to bring their private and public culture, for all concerned to inhale and exhale. It promotes locally anchored art as the rich topsoil of Appalachian culture. AZULE is a local-global incubator when it claims to be content-rich, relevant to the present, exemplary, diverse yet sober and responsible, all qualities and attitudes needed for packing meaning into community-oriented works of art. AZULE is also global when it opens its doors to worldwide artists.
AZULE is a CULTURAL ECOLOGY BUILDER, where the arts are the tool of choice. They provide us a renewable energy to question, doubt, research, endlessly seek faraway shores. AZULE is open to everybody's history, everybody's geography, social justice, peace making and all: everybody's abilities and challenges.
AZULE IS WELCOMING.
The Azule Palace:
The passion and art of Camille Shaffer.
By Tebbé Davis
Situated on a rustic knoll just beyond the Pisgah Forest along the Appalachian Trail sits an oddly majestic home, with a story of love and triumph within its walls and timbers. This home is the artwork of a very special ilk; that of Camille Shaffer, a petite and elfin French woman, who along with her late husband Dave bought the original cabin from a local physician almost thirty years ago. It has changed and grown quite a bit since then, but there still remains a rusted old Packard that once belonged to that doctor propped up on a ramp, right there in the front yard, as if ready for flight.
"We never could get that old car to start" Camille says, "It's like how we just couldn't leave once we found this house". The young couple were a pair of starry eyed vagabonds surviving on their music and art, traveling wanderlust across the country living out of a van when they arrived here in 1972. They made the down payment for a small cabin and its 35 acres with the proceeds from the sale of Dave's home in Michigan and began to eke out a living from the land by raising sheep, chickens and cows. Then they tried growing tobacco and selling homemade crafts, but nothing took hold. They had arrived here as young hippies looking for a simple way and a self-sustainable life as weavers and artists, but it was so hard back in the 70's they went without many essential items, until Dave got a job with the Post Office.
Life had never come easy for Camille. She was born in the middle of the Second World War in Paris during the German occupation. Her life took a tragic turn at the age of two when she lost her right hand and forearm to a booby-trapped toy left behind by the Nazi troops.
A few fortunate events, coupled with Dave's new employment lead Camille to follow her heart and to build the home of her dreams around the existing cabin. The year was 1980 and Camille put her attention and indomitable creative spirit into the house. She began to work on the home as if a blank canvas; with an eye for the artistic and audacious. With only one arm she has been inspired by her endearing love for her mate to create one of the most unique and unforgettable homes in Western North Carolina.
Dave was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 1988 and became bed ridden a few years later. The work was placed on hold for a time while Camille and Dave dealt with the illness. They moved his bed into the main living area so he could be with Camille as she worked on craft projects and other endeavors. But, when Dave needed a bathroom nearby Camille went about designing and constructing a bathroom with all the necessary plumbing fixtures and necessities. When she noticed that he could not see the stars and the heavens from his bed she cut a hole in the ceiling and built a skylight out of a donated sliding glass door.
Dave passed away a few years later; which rekindled Camille's energy and fortitude to continue the artwork. "He is still overseeing the work" she tells me as she points to a massive boulder which covers his remains just down the hill from the house.
Always the artist, Camille's use of thematic shapes and colors is evident everywhere you look, but most prevalent is the extensive use of deep rich blues as a motif or accent. She carefully sketches out the plans; inspired by dream-like visions, to guide her and direct various craftsmen from the neighborhood. The construction of a second wing, which nearly doubled the size of the house, includes an indoor pool (yet to be completed), a great room, endless mosaic work representing all the colors of the Chakra and a massive kitchen. The massive home now includes a second floor, extra bathrooms, large porches and a second building in the back; dubbed the Ping Pong Palace in honor of Dave's favorite sport. The Ping Pong Palace includes two workshops, three-car garage space and a full apartment for Camille to reside in once she "retires".. A basement was even dug out by Camille herself from beneath the house to accommodate a gallery space, which she had envisioned. This labor of love took her 7 years to complete.
Camille could never conceive of one building project without an idea of what would happen next, beyond the new wall or window; and there was always another wall or window. "My home is a Cottage industry", she says when explaining the construction process, "the most important thing for me is to provide the employment for the Creek Community and the craftsmen who live here with me". "This home belongs to the whole community". She explains, "Generations have worked here, we are creating a place for artisans to create and display their work". She goes on to state buoyantly; "Dave and I never had children, this home is our baby... it is my passion...it is my Art!"
