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January 03, 2006 THE COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA ASKS DONNA PARSONS TO DISPLAY HER MOSAIC ART IN THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY BUILDING DURING THE 2006 SESSION. 
Donna
Parsons was invited by the Senate of the State of Virginia to exhibit her mosaic
art in the General Assembly Building during the upcoming session January 11,
2006 through March 16, 2006. Ms. Parsons is grateful for the recognition and
is looking forward to displaying her work in the General Assembly Building. January
03, 2006 Paradise City
Arts Festivals, ranked #2 in the United States according to American
Style Magazine readers’ poll, has extended an invitation to Donna
Parsons to exhibit at their Valley Forge, PA and Northampton, MA festivals in
the spring of 2006. Ms. Parsons is looking forward to showing her mosaic art
in these new markets.
MS.
PARSONS' WORK, THE
PASSAGE, HAS BEEN SELECTED TO BE IN THE 2006 SOCIETY OF AMERICAN MOSAIC
ARTISTS ANNUAL EXHIBITION IN CHICAGO, IL MARCH 3-31, 2006 Donna
Parsons has been selected to be included in the exhibition "Beneath The
Surface", the 2006 SAMA (Society of American Mosaic Artists) Member's Juried
Exhibition. She was selected from a total of 341 works of art from 163 artists
in 5 countries. The jury selected 66 pieces for inclusion in the exhibition
at High Risk Gallery, Chicago, IL.
August
4, 2005 Mosaic
artist Ms. Donna Parsons was informed last month (July 2005) that her Mosaic
the "Magician" was chosen by Sugarloaf Craft Festivals to be the graphic
image on their show shopping bags for the 2005-06 season of craft festivals.
Sugarloaf reported that they produce 600,000 of these shopping bags to use/hand
out at all shows. The Sugarloaf marketing committee chose her mosaic after a
review of all the exhibiting artists submitted slides of work. Ms. Parsons expresses
her gratitude to everyone at Sugarloaf for this privilege knowing the high quality
of artistic work showing at Sugarloaf Festivals. In addition Sugarloaf also
chose the same "Magician" for the specific promotion of their Fall
Timonium Craft Festival in Maryland. All postcard invitations as well as promotional
posters placed around town used Ms. Parsons mosaic mask as its centerpiece.
March
24, 2005 By
Kelli Craig - The Central Virgina Gazette Mosaic
art can sometimes be overlooked in a society that is filled with sketches, paintings
and the technology of digital art. But Donna Parsons of Maidens is an artist
that cannot be overlooked. Her self-designed studio, Maiden Studio, is filled
with a variety of her brightly colored mosaic art. Parsons
has been intrigued by art since she won her first art contest in sixth grade
with an outlandish poster. She dabbled in designing clothing and wall hangings
before focusing ultimately on mosaic art three years ago. Mosaics are the art
form that captured her attention and her heart, she said. “I
smashed a plate to try it and decided that was it,” Parsons said. “I
love the texture and how it catches the light.” She
decided a year ago to put all her efforts into mosaics and started entering
art shows last September. Since then Parsons has exhibited her work in Maryland,
New York and New Jersey. But in the upcoming weeks she will be introducing her
works closer to home. The Donna Parsons Project will be previewed on Friday,
April 1 with the opening reception a week later on April 8 at the Artemis Gallery
in Richmond. This will be her first one-woman show. She is more excited than
nervous about the opening, she said. Parsons
spent her first 18 years in Richmond and decided to come back to Goochland County,
where her mother lives, just six years ago. She
studied art design for only a year at Virginia Commonwealth University before
she decided to spend her time traveling. She has traveled and lived all over
the world from Bali, to the Virgin Islands, to New Zealand, to New Mexico. After
years of travel, she went back to school and received her degree in Cultural
Anthropology from Eckerd College in Florida. Art
has always been a passion of Parsons that she has pursued on her own. Her other
passion in life is culture. “I really loved cultural anthropology and
Bali had the biggest cultural influence for me,” she explained. “I’ve
always studied art on my own, it’s a life long passion I’ve always
done.” Her
mosaics are filled with elements of the different cultures that she has come
in contact with. Her travels and the people she has met have inspired many of
her mosaic pieces. She also finds her muse in nature and spiritual elements.
Hundreds
of pieces of glass, plates, ceramics, tiles, and even jewelry surround her studio.
The back corner is filled with her Aunt Hazel’s old jewelry that has somehow
found its way into her mosaics. She said she enjoys begin able to recycle other
people’s trash. “I
love taking what other people have discarded and using it,” she explained.
She
and her husband William Parsons designed and built Maidens Studio a mere 50
feet from her home. She wanted her own studio all her life and said it is the
perfect place where she can work. “I was breaking glass all over the house
and knew I needed my own area,” she commented. Depending
on the size and complexity of the piece, her pieces may take Parsons up to six
months to complete. The pieces are all original designs and no two mosaics are
the same. She also designs pieces by contracting ideas with other people on
designs they want produced. Parsons’
work is displayed through her website at www.maidenstudio.com. There are also
prints and cards available of her mosaics. Parsons motto on her art is as follows, “mosaics provide the palette to resurrect in beauty, and objects discarded by others, and challenges the artist to elevate this ancient craft to a contemporary art form.”
Crafts at "I had seen other historic Hudson River properties be sold off or turned down, and I didn't want to see a beautiful property like Jarit and Sobel had recently began their own company, Artrider Productions, which produces craft shows featuring artists who create exceptional contemporary crafts. In 1985, Crafts at Today, This year the craft show will be held from Friday, May 20 through Sunday, May 22, opening at 10 a.m. each morning. It will feature 325 of the country's most talented crafts artists from 30 states with their one-of-a-kind work (jewelry, ceramics, hand-blown glass, fiber, wearable art, wood, leather and more). There will be continuous live music and children's activities such as puppet shows, storytelling and face painting. Hand crafted gourmet foods will be available. General admission is $9, seniors $8, children 6-16 $4 and children under 6 are free.
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