Aces High
ZOA ACE
Finds passion and profit in art

Written by LOUIS FEINSTEIN
Photography by KIT WILLIAMS

Zoa Ace, much to her surprise and delight, earns her living as a working artist. The Berthoud-based painter, who always dabbled in art but never expected to support herself in the field, now displays and sells her whimsical, colorful oils in galleries spanning Los Angeles to New York City and numerous other cities, including Seattle, Chicago, Taos and Palm Beach.

Since moving to Colorado in 1972 with her husband, painter Louis Recchia, all the pieces have fallen into place for Ace. The two met at Western Illinois University, where Ace tried various artistic media, even though she did not major in art. “My husband was an art major who was committed to making a living from his art when we moved here,” she recalls. “Although I’d always been interested in drawing, it wasn’t anything I expected to do to pay the bills.

Louis taught me how to paint, and I was delighted when one of my very first paintings sold at a co-op show in Boulder.” A Denver gallery owner visiting that show was intrigued with her work and set up Ace’s first solo exhibition at the Fifteenth Street Gallery.

Spurred on by her initial success, Ace continued to develop her style and, by 1980, her work was selling well enough to make her think that painting could fulfill both her passion and her payroll. “The public really responded to Louis’s and my paintings and, before we knew it, we were full-time artists,” states the soft-spoken Ace. “It’s been such a blessing to make my living for the past 30 years doing what I love, and having the opportunity to stay home with my son and daughter while they were growing up. It was definitely the best of both worlds.”

Her initial paintings, inspired by the German abstract expressionists, were laden with a bit more angst than her current work. “I think we all mellow out a bit as we get older,” Ace laughs. “Then and now my inspiration was drawn from imagery that appealed to me. I pull together things that normally don’t fall into the same category, and I don’t always have an underlying reason. I’m very visually oriented and think of my paintings as visual poetry.”

Ace’s visual poetry falls into three general categories: still lifes, figuratives and interiors. All her pieces show a flamboyant use of color and line, growing from the artist’s lifelong fascination with circus and carnival themes. The painting Out of Order is a typical example of Ace’s distinctive style. It juxtaposes, among other objects, a woman in a strapless dress holding a fan with an atomic structural drawing, a flying turtle, a mermaid and a lick of flame. Yet there is a flow and structure to the composition, and although a viewer might wonder about the meaning, nothing stands out as being incongruous.

Ace’s quirky side also pops out in a painting titled Role Models, displaying portraits of cartoon ladies Wilma
Flintstone, Olive Oyl, Little Lulu, Marge Simpson, Nancy (of Nancy and Sluggo) and Betty Boop. Even her “Interiors” series, although devoid of people, is anything but staid. Furniture and walls are done up in vibrant tones, and the perspective is slightly flattened, but the rooms are fun and inviting, a hallmark of all of Ace’s pieces.

“I’m always intrigued when people tell me what they see in one of my paintings,” says Ace, “because I never have any preconceived notion about the outcome. In fact, I never plan a piece away from the canvas. I draw my ideas with chalk directly on the canvas and then start painting.”

The artist’s paintings are shown throughout Colorado, including the Zip 37 Gallery where Ace recently wrapped up a one-woman show, the Abend Gallery, the Loveland Art Museum and in the permanent collection of the Denver Art Museum. The Denver Art Museum’s curator of modern and contemporary art, Gwen Chanzit, was an early and enthusiastic supporter of the artist; she introduced Ace to gallery owners in New York and Los Angeles. Ace’s work has an international impact as well; her paintings have been displayed at the United States Embassy in Vienna, and she recently received an e-mail from a teacher in London who is using Ace’s work to teach art.

Ace also attracts buyers from around the world through her Web site, www.recchiaace.homestead.com, which she shares with her husband. E-commerce has greatly expanded her reach, and the site brings the artist numerous commissions. Her burgeoning sales pose no problem for the prolific painter, who seemingly is never short on inspiration. At her recent Zip 37 Gallery show, she told an onlooker that the 12 paintings on display had all been painted in the previous four months.

In addition to collaborating on their Web site, Ace and Recchia enjoy the many benefits of being a two-artist family. Ace works at a studio in her home; Louis rents space nearby. However, Ace notes that they frequently influence each other’s work — one may start using a particular symbol and find it showing up in the other’s painting. The marriage also provides a forum for trustworthy critiquing. “In addition,” adds Ace, “we’re both able to tolerate the messes that we make.” Ace and Recchia apparently passed their gene pool on to their daughter, Mary, who is majoring in painting at CU Boulder. Their son, Gabriel, strayed a bit from the family’s passion and graduated with a major in computer cognitive science.

When asked what it is about her paintings that entices buyers, Ace is uncertain, although she acknowledges that there’s definitely something in them that forges a connection between artist and viewer. “A number of clients have told me that my florals bring them a sense of peace and joy. As for the others, I don’t know exactly, but my style is obviously touching them on some level,” she says.

Does Ace anticipate changing that style any time in the future? With a smile she answers, “All artistic work evolves over time. It’s hard to say if it will change or not. In another 20 years, who knows?”