Collegiate Times

A miniature brown bear and cub sit on a pedestal in the center of Blacksburg artist Christine Kosiba’s studio, startlingly lifelike despite their rough fur and inert features.

Wandering through Kosiba’s studio feels like passing through a storybook where the animals fix you with their intense gaze, and the nature-inspired pieces draw you into their mythical world.

A cluster of black ravens hunker, balanced on various shaped and colored pedestals, glaring intently in different directions, beaks open in soundless screams. Bright blue turquoise stones clutched between their straining jaws create a stunning contrast to the dark, glazed clay.

Kosiba is an artist inspired by the diversity and beauty of the natural world. She sees the subtle beauty in nature, such as the shadows cast on a forest floor and uses her art as a medium to reflect these wonders back to the world around her.

Her process is organic, and her pieces evolve naturally to convey her gratitude for the marvels of the world around. Along with ten other artists, she opened her studio to the public this past Saturday and Sunday as a part of Art Tour Ten, an annual fall tour of the studios of New River Valley artists.

For the fifth year, the tour fanned across Blacksburg, Radford, Riner and Floyd and offered visitors a brief glance into the inspiration that lies behind some of southwest Virginia’s most popular artists. The array of work was diverse, including ceramics, photography, oil paintings, book making, wood, clay, stone and instillation sculpture.

Seeing the artists’ work displayed in the space where they were produced created an experience that would have been impossible to achieve in a more traditional gallery setting.

Visitors were able to view the range of tools the artists used, and ask questions about materials, ideas and the inspiration for the work. By displaying the art in the artists’ studios, visitors were able to not only see the work, but also experience the creative process that led to its formation.

Originally named Art Tour Ten for the 10 members of the tour, the meaning of the name has changed over the years as membership has increased, and the name now means the art is a “10.”

Studio tours have been growing in popularity in the New River Valley area, and the high quality of the work in this one truly reflects the new meaning of its name.

A version of this article appeared in the Oct 5 issue of the Collegiate Times.