Season Colors Change At
Les Jolis Trésors

By Julian Bermudez
Gazette Arts Writer

With the passing of St. Valentine’s Day, our city’s residents begin shedding their winter coats for spring’s less cumbersome attire, moving away from pale neutrals towards a more multihued palette.

And, as the romance of February transitions easily into March — with Easter pastels not far away — color becomes the essential fixture in one’s day-to-day existence.

Whether your fix is fashion, furniture, beauty or art (why not all of the above?), there’s no better place than Les Jolis Trésors to saturate one’s pallor with brilliance and fire.

Slipping into spring this Saturday, March 3, Les Jolis Trésors celebrates the opening of its latest exhibit, “Energy,” featuring the radiant paintings of Annie Clavel and sculptures by Karen Swildens.

“(These) new pieces, with stimulating colors and strong brush strokes, emphasize the strength that we find in ourselves to build our lives,” Les Jolis Trésors’ materials say. “Through (Clavel’s) art, we can also sense the forces and powers that are observable in the surrounding world.”

Outbursts of color — akin to solar flares — will energize and delight the senses, filling one’s body with warmth and elation.

If a cooler, sensual effect is desired, than look no further than to Karen Swildens.

“(Her) beautiful and powerfully grounded sculptures carry in their movements and postures the expression of the mightiness and intensity of human and animal life,” Les Jolis Trésors says. “Feel the energy and sense this energy transfer to the viewer.”

On view through April 10, “Energy” is the physical manifestation of its artists, embodying their very essences.

And, should the unseasonably warm weather provide the impetus to tame one’s delicate tresses – or if you’re simply aiming for a new look – once again Les Jolis Trésors can provide the inspiration for reinvention. This time, however, it is Hair and Art, in partnership with Annie Clavel that is offering itself as a temple of musing.

On view through March 31, “Long Beach Shoreline: Watercolors” illustrates a softer, graceful palette of both well-known and overlooked sites along the city’s shoreline areas. Unlike the attention-grabbing colors of “Energy,” these watercolors gently coax you into embracing color, easing you into the new season.

Not as powdery or as candied as pastels, Clavel’s watercolors are soothing and appealing to the eye. Surrounding oneself amidst these paintings will surely incite a transformation befitting a Monarch butterfly.

So, enjoy this season’s assortment of colors as you would any garden — whether it would be the Tuileries of France or the Japanese Garden at California State University, Long Beach, — and take in the full bloom of spring.

Les Jolis Trésors is at 3226 E. Broadway. Gallery hours are 2:30 to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, 3 to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
Visit www.lesjolistresors.com for more information.

Hair and Art is at 5346 E. Second St. Call 434-0048 for more information.