Rose Covert

**Board Member**
Website: etsy.com/gatesofmystery/
Columbia Basinn Basketry Guild: www.basketryguild.org/rose-covert
Instagram: @gatesofmystery
Rose manages Frogwood’s Instagram and Facebook pages.
I am a multimedia artist who has switched mediums a few times in my career. I began as a 2-D artist using mostly oil paints to create large canvas works which featured primarily humans, anatomy and animals. Painting with lots of color and imaginal backgrounds, I still work with pen and ink to create illustrative pieces mixing poetry and forms. I spent a number of years as a self-taught ceramicist, hand building and sculpting creatures, beings and vessels. And now I work primarily with natural materials, using basketry techniques to create sculptural forms. I hand-process my materials and have experience with a wide range of weaving techniques. I am a member and organizer with the Columbia Basin Basketry Guild and have learned and developed my skill primarily through their teaching as well as my own innovations. I am teacher who works with toddlers, teens and adults and a gallery artist. I work in multiple mediums and love what happens in collaboration.

Leslie Crist

**Board Secretary**
Website: pnwsculptors.org
Instagram: @leslie_crist_art
An early love affair with art swept Leslie away as a child. Having the great good fortune to be buffeted by ever-changing classes in pottery, wood carving, painting, music and drama, she devoured them all.
Thirty years in the business world provided an intense distraction, but also deep insights into human behavior, effective communication, change management and the power of technology. Leslie’s work ranged widely - from writing, producing and directing educational videos to measuring communication effectiveness at a large bank, to helping run a global software company focused on market research.
Now retired, Leslie creates mixed media art that explores the relationship between human development and the natural world.
“I’ve been lucky to work with amazing, creative people, across cultures and business types. Shifting to a life of making art has been fantastic, but it can be lonely. Frogwood serves a critical role for artists, and I’m delighted to be part of it.”

Michael de Forest

**Board Member**
Website: www.michaeldeforeststudio.com
Instagram: @deforest503
Michael de Forest, fine furniture maker and wood artist, began working with wood in the1970s. He co-owned Oregon Fine Joinery from 1977-1992, where he designed and made fine furniture. He then brought his skills to the Oregon College of Art and Craft where he was a core instructor in wood from 1993-2018. OCAC's mentor-based learning community fostered self-reliant, entrepreneurial, globally conscious, critical and innovative makers. He was also the wood instructor at Catlin Gabel School from 1996-2013. In 2009, he traveled to Ghana and studied the art of design coffin making.
Over the years, Michael has evolved from creating balanced, high-end furniture to a much quirkier style. The pieces he now prefers to create have uneven outlines and are painted and carved with symbolic figures.
By using incised line carving, layered colors, and texture both from hand tools on the wood and brush strokes from applying Milk Paint, Michael is able to achieve a colorful, painterly quality that adds depth and dimensionality to his surfaces.
Michael received his MFA in visual studies from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, and a BA in Sociology from Lewis and Clark College in 1972.

Mike Free

**Board Member**
Sculptor, Object Maker
503.705.9804
Website: www.mikeroycefree.com
Instagram: @mikefree20
Born in Morehead City, North Carolina, Mike spent much of his early years out-of-doors in coastal North Carolina and Hawaii before moving to Portland, Oregon, where he currently lives. He enrolled in art classes, primarily drawing and printmaking, during his seven years in college obtaining Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in geology. Mike’s work carried him to remote locations in Alaska, British Columbia and the western US and has always been fascinated with the natural world.
While working as a geologist, he attended metalsmithing classes at the Oregon School of Arts and Crafts, where he started making jewelry. His membership with the Creative Metal Arts Guild connected him with fellow crafts people that met annually to collaborate making multifaceted 2D and 3D art pieces. Mike has attended various collaborations over the last ten years, including ones in Canada and New Zealand and is currently a board member of the Frogwood Artists’ Collaborative, a 501(c)(3) organization.
Mike’s current work relies on his metalsmithing skills and his love of rocks and the out-of-doors. His kinetic sculptures consist of moving metal components mounted on stone bases.
Mike primarily works with hammered brass and copper disks mounted inside brass, bronze, and stainless-steel rings. Because of the spinning nature of the disks, Mike’s current inspirations include our solar system and animal imagery.

Julie Johnson

**Board Member**
Columbia Basin Basketry Guild: www.basketryguild.org/julie-johnson
IAPMA - International Association of Hand Papermakers Paper Artists: www.iapma.info
Instagram: @florafiberdye
Julie manages the Frogwood website.
Julie is a full time plant-based fiber artist who has created work with basketry, hand papermaking, book arts, dye, textiles and plant medicine for over 30 years. Harvesting and processing all her own materials, she enjoys experimenting and documenting her experiences with the natural world.
Her BS in Forestry provides a strong scientific basis for determining the properties and uses of each plant she encounters, while also forming a strong ethical framework and sustainable approach to harvesting. Often working at the intersection of art and science, she enjoys sharing her discoveries with others through arts education.
Julie is a strong collaborator who enjoys exploring new materials. Her method of inquiry is thoughtful and open. For eight years, she co-owned and ran a fiber arts gallery with six other artists. This experience provided a solid foundation for collaboration and working with others. A Frogwood participant since 2015, Julie became a board member in 2022.
She is an active member of the Columbia Basin Basketry Guild (CBBG) and the International Association of Hand Papermakers and Paper Artists (IAPMA). Her work has been featured in many galleries, publications, and fine art portfolios. Her photography, art and writing have also been featured in many scientific and art journals.
Her work with invasive plants led her to write an article on the use of invasive plants by artists for the Summer 2010 issue of Hand Papermking: www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb5394221.pdf

Owen Lowe

**Board Treasurer**
Instagram: @dadatschool
My interest in woodturning and creating three-dimensional forms began in 1998 when I left behind my fourteen years as a commercial photographer and become a stay-at-home dad for newborn daughter, Amy. During her baby years, I took up turning as a creative outlet and to while away the nap times of her babyhood. With crib monitor close at hand, I spent many, many hours turning wood on the lathe. These early years gave me the gift of time to develop my hand & eye skills for turned form.
When Amy began attending elementary school, I did too. A couple years of classroom volunteering led to becoming an Instructional Assistant working with kindergarteners to 5th graders to help develop and strengthen their literacy and mathematics skills. Calling it work when I so enjoy the children is a contrast of concepts. I continue to turn every chance I get - after school, snow days, and holiday breaks.
Sensitivity to composition, shape, and balance has been the underpinning of both my photography and woodworking. An integral part of this sensitivity is incorporating contrasts into the work. Many pieces have multiple contrasting elements: tonality; lines of form; and choice of materials. The contrast though, must be in balance - yin and yang, if you will. Should one element overpower the others, all subtlety and cohesiveness of the piece’s voice is lost. By integrating contrast into a piece, I strive to generate a bit of tension in the work but convey overall balance and peace.

Laura Vincent

Board Member

LAURA VINCENT DESIGN & GALLERY
824 NW Davis Street
Portland, OR 97209
Email: lauravincentdesign@gmail.com
Phone: 503 267 9225
Website: lvdesignandgallery.com
Instagram: @lvdesignandgallery

Established in 2018, LAURA VINCENT DESIGN & GALLERY defines its artistic program through the work of represented contemporary artists with soulful and discerning voices. Exhibition based, the gallery hosts shows of regional, national and international artwork. Thoughtfully intertwining the worlds of design and fine art, the design studio and gallery strives to present a welcoming, intellectually and aesthetically inspiring gallery experience.