Collaboration of Vaughan & Dufour

Life can take unexpected turns, both devastating and glorious. In the case of Rachel Dufour, a great deal was added to my art life when she walked into my world at a challenging time with health issues in 2014. Since then, this warm and hard-working person has become a productive assistant to the building of my work, and, ultimately, a fine assemblage artist. For more than 10 years we have been working together on art. Our work visually harmonizes so well together that I am, time and again, thrilled to hang a show with Rachel Dufour.

Examples of Vaughan-Dufour Duo Pieces

When these two artists team up and have shows together, a new body of work generally emerges from each artist, while a few, special pieces are created as a duo combination. Magic happens when a mix of painting by Vaughan and built-out sections by Dufour become a “Vaughan–Dufour.” These two women joke that when you say that combo in a playful German accent, it sounds like the word “von-der-ful.” Both artists agree that the experience of working together on art is, in fact, wonderful.

PAINTED BY VAUGHAN | CONSTRUCTED BY DUFOUR

Pacific Gesture | SOLD

63 x 29”
acrylic on wood with antique temple figure and wood parts

Mary Vaughan painting with
vintage construction by Rachel DuFour
2500.

This beautifully-crafted, meditation piece was created by Mary Vaughan and Rachel Dufour together as a duo piece. The ocean painting by Vaughan sets a calming stage for a pacified temple buddha alongside old wood parts that Dufour has framed as a serene panorama. When looking up the term “peace,” the word “pacify” or “pacific” came up, then, the phrase “Pacific Gesture” was used to describe tranquility. It seemed the perfect title for those of us living near this amazing ocean and the calm it can bring.

estuary | SOLD

19 x 55”
Collection of Sutter Health
Santa Rosa, CA

This landscape depicts the quiet marshes of Maine. The rich cool tones of this painting called for this vintage plinth and long blue panel to be added. This unique attachment gives the image a feeling of nostalgia. The simple cut corner angles are also important to the overall composition.

rhapsody in blue | SOLD

47.5 x 22.5”
Collection of Jennifer & Greg Tate
Santa Rosa, CA

This painting of the rocky shorelines of Maine is based on soothing light and air. Collecting, then deconstructing an old 1930’s baby blue crib for its worn wood, a unique frame element came to fruition. The beauty of this combination was not only right in terms of a feeling of time gone by, but when lit properly, the shadows of line on this piece add an aesthetic related to MIssion-style architecture.

eden saw play | SOLD

33 x 101”
Collection of Danyelle Burns
Hastings, NE

This large diptych ( two-part painting ) acts like a garden panorama of fertile earth gone wild. Two small birds are subtle additions on each side of the piece, looking at one another from afar. The title comes from the hymn, Morning has Broken, with intention to represent what God provides in terms of infinite beauty. The framework is made up of many old architectural parts, hand-crafted piece by piece until it was complete and whole. Old French quarter marbles roll along an added shelf at its base; another metaphor to how quickly life rolls by.

VAUGHAN–DUFOUR CREATE TOGETHER

scruff | SOLD

26.5 x 7”
Collection of Florie & Orion Tiscornia
Santa Rosa, CA

Here is a delightful example of how a “Vaughan–DuFour” piece can happen. When a humorous ostrich painting came about within a series of bird heads Vaughan was doing, a little grey door that had been collected, matched the neutral palette. Talking it over, it became important for the door to open. DuFour then built-out a construction that would work with the grey door and the painting. Vaughan then painted an ostrich egg inside, making this a surprise gift for the active viewer.

flurry | SOLD

11 x 14”
acrylic on wood with vintage bird
600.

These two pieces of smaller “Vaughan–DuFour” combination are one-part painting and one-part assemblage. DuFour takes old, wooden garden parrots and constructs them on a perch within hand-made boxes then attaches them to the painting. Carrom rings add a playful bit of color alongside each bird, matching the paint palette. In this work, abstract land paintings by Vaughan are enhanced with vintage accompaniment by DuFour.