January 10, 2012 - SBDAC News / Ikki and Polly Matsumoto Opening at Art Walk

Fort Myers (January 10, 2012)-- The Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center is proud to present the work of well-known and popular artists Ikki and Polly Matsumoto, along with the Equestrian Art of Sherry Rohl. The show opens for Art Walk on Friday, February 3, at 6 p.m. and continues through February 25. The Davis Art Center is located at 2301 First Street, in the River District, downtown Fort Myers.

Ikki Matsumoto was born in 1935, in Tokyo, Japan, to a well-known cartoonist and children's book illustrator. In 1955 he came to the United States to study at the John Herron School of Art in Indianapolis, Indiana, where his older brother was studying sculpture. Two years later he transferred to the Art Academy of Cincinnati, Ohio, to study under the renowned humorous wildlife artist, Charles Harper. After graduating from art school he married fellow student and fiber artist Polly Adamson.

Over the next 15 years, Ikki worked in the advertising field and also finished several important commissions, including publications for Rand McNally and illustrations for The Joy of Cooking. He and Polly moved to a 50 acre farm in Loveland, Ohio, where at one time the household consisted of "two sons, one daughter, five horses, one donkey, three dogs, a lot of cats, four goats, a dozen or so chickens, a few ducks, one monkey and a skunk." He has never been at a loss for subjects. In the mid 1970's, his love of wildlife illustrations led him to Sanibel Island, where he established a career as a painter and printmaker, and he and Polly opened a gallery. On Sanibel, the native birds became his subjects.

Ikki Matsumoto was one of 50 artists chosen by first lady Nancy Reagan to paint an Easter egg. It is now in the permanent collection of the Smithsonian Museum. The C&S National Bank on Sanibel commissioned 30 original paintings which were put on public display throughout their building. It is the largest corporate collection of his work.

Polly Matsumoto has been weaving since the 1960's, but she has been working with fiber as long as she can remember. She recalls designing and sewing her own clothes as a young teen and making paper dolls before that. She learned to weave when her sister-in-law went to Japan for a few years and asked her to store her loom for her. Polly started working with it and loved it. Now she spins and dyes as well. Polly's works are mixed media pieces which incorporate weavings, paintings, and found objects. They are filled with earthy colors and rich textures.

After a brief move back to Ohio in 2006, the Matsumotos have returned to southwest Florida and are working hard to complete enough pieces for the large space at the Davis Art Center.

Sherry Rohl likes to draw and paint and says that it has been a compulsion since she was four-ish. She also likes horses. She owned a pony and a horse when she was a teenager, and her first drawings were of horses. "Art school, children and life led me to explore other visual modalities," Rohl explains, "but now art school is a dim memory, the kids are grown, and life has led me back to drawing and painting... and the compelling horse."

Sherry studied at the College of Design, Art and Architecture at the University of Cincinnati, Ohio. She has shown her work in galleries throughout Florida, including the Von Liebig Art Center in Naples, the Florida Center for Contemporary Art in Tampa, the Boca Raton Museum of Art, and the Society of Four Arts in Palm Beach.

About the Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center

Founded in 1997 by Jim Griffith as Florida Arts, Inc., a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization, the Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center provides programming to southwest Florida which includes concerts, theatrical performances, art exhibits, dance, independent film, and cotillion. The Art Center regularly recruits award-winning artists who have performed worldwide at such prestigious venues as Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center. Its mission is to nurture innovation and excellence in the visual and performing arts through these events and community outreach programs.

Volunteers are needed for the Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center, to assist in the office and with regularly scheduled seasonal events. Contact Sally Joslyn at 239-333-1933 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it "> This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it for more information.