Caribbean provides inspiration, setting for local artist

Lee Vanderwalker-Kroll's latest exhibit, on display through May 8, 1999 at the Sharon Simms Studio Gallery in Wyandotte, Michigan includes more than 20 paintings, the majority of which have been hand-painted on silk.

By Rhonda Bates-Rudd / The Detroit News

Photo Credit: Dan Mears / The Detroit News

Artist Lee Vanderwalker-Kroll's work gives people a taste of the islands.

Vanderwalker-Kroll, a former Wayne State University graphic arts manager for Medical Communication, is finishing the art work and layout for the university's student handbook but is making a big splash with her original creations.

The artist recently was recruited to paint six yards of raw silk fabrics for Detroit's By Sharrone Boutique. Boutique owner Mitchell, a native of Trinidad, was recruited to design dresses for a best selling African-American author Iyanla, who recently visited Detroit.

"She has the type of talent I like to use in my summer lines and so I'm really excited about her work and we are on a number of projects," Mitchell said.

Vanderwalker-Kroll's latest exhibit, on display through May 8 at the Sharon Simms Studio in Wyandotte, includes more than 20 water color paintings, the majority of which have been hand-painted on silk via a method called the "serti-technique".

The exhibit puts patrons up close and personal with the flora and fauna associated with Caribbean life. Her paintings are unusual she said in that the silk allows her art work to take on a three-dimensional quality.

Vanderwalker-Kroll learned serti in the mid-1980s while and working in Bamberg, Germany, as a civilian public affairs representative for the U.S. Army.

Dabbling in art since she was a girl, it wasn't until she began working in Wayne State University's marketing communications department a few years ago that she realized her artistic potential.

"I have to credit friends and colleagues such as Jeanie Simmons for encouraging me to go into business for myself,"

Vanderwalker-Kroll said. "I also have to give credit to my high school art teacher, Gail Churchill-TerMeer, who was an enthusiastic art teacher and I was the kid whose light bulb went on while she was teaching."

Vanderwalker-Kroll, the proprietor of X-Height Studio Inc., a downriver electronic service-bureau and imaging-center, said the Caribbean is the place where she frequently vacations and it is the place where the inspiration for her art. Simmons, who worked with Vanderwalker-Kroll at Wayne, encouraged the artist.

"She would come up with a lot of ideas and I encouraged her not to sit on that talent and move beyond working at the university," Simmons said. She is very artistic ... I realized she was using talent according to God's Will on her life."

Excerpt from Detroit News June 18, 1999 Features Section

Days after staging a runway show at the Ghanaian embassy in Washington, D.C., Sharrone Mitchell of Detroit’s By Sharrone boutique almost ran away with the "Salute to 100 Men" with an all-white collection of wearable African art featuring hand-painted Adinkra symbols by local silk painter Lee Vanderwalker-Kroll.

Photo Credit: Bill Anderson

Pictured above: Kota-mask from Gabon, Africa hand-painted on Habotai Silk by artist Lee Kroll is appliquéd on the back of wool coat designed by Sharrone. Hand-painted silk and kuba cloth accents on lapel and cuffs.

Excerpt from Metro Times November 11, 1999

By design, By Sharonne. A world of sensual fabrics and flowing elegance in this Detroit designer's work.

........I am not just selling clothes - I sell works of art," she explained. And works of art they are. Her fall-winter line includes jackets and full-length wool coats with elaborate hand-painted silk designs by Wyandotte-based artist Lee Kroll, ranging in price from $600-$2,000. But, before sticker shock sets in, By Sharonne offers other modestly priced items, including one-of-a-kind hats, jewelry and home accessories.

Sharonne boasts that her designs and fabrics are not what people normally see and the craftsmanship, care and design are what her customers have come to rely on and expect. "My customers are independent women, not afraid to walk into a room and make a statement. They have done the mall thing and are looking for unique, quality pieces. You don't need my clothes, but you want to have them," she smiled. Sharonne admits that her designs are not for everyone and she won't sell an item to a customer if it doesn't suit her.

Photos by Ron Griffin

Reprint of article from

The News Herald, a Heritage Newspaper

October 12, 2000

Arts & Entertainment Section

“Ages of the Moon”

exhibition of hand-painted silk

Caribbean Colors invites you into the seldom seen world of the artists studio. Lee Vanderwalker-Kroll, principal artist for Caribbean Colors Gallery, invites you into her private domain for a one-day sneak preview of hand-painted silk original art titled “Ages of the Moon.” This original art is scheduled for exhibition in Belize, Central America, January 2001. Her studio has no address, but access is through the back entrance of the C.C. Neal Gallery, on First Street, between Elm & Maple in downtown Wyandotte, next to Blue Moon Computers. Caribbean Colors Gallery is located in the Wyandottte Art Lofts located at 2966 Biddle, Suite 101, above the Sharon Sims Studio Gallery in downtown Wyandotte. Artists Studio is open to the public: October 20, November 17, and December 15, 2000 6-10 p.m.

“Ages of the Moon” exhibition of hand painted silk original art is based on Mayan heiroglyphics, myths and legends of the Moon Godess. Kroll brings an anthology of ancient mysteries, imaginary places and treasured legends combining myths and modernity with shimmering vibing color.

Directions: 1-75 to Eureka Rd. exit, go east on Eureka to Wyandotte, turn left on Biddle and left on Elm, turn right on first. Parking on the street and in a public lot on Elm & First Street. For more information, call Caribbean Colors at (734)285-6544 or email caribbeancolors1@hotmail.com.

Wyandotte is host to many art gallery openings and exhibits during the evening of 3rd Friday. Other galleries include, Sharon Sims Studio Gallery, Biddle Gallery, C.C. Neal Gallery, River’s Edge Gallery and Thomas Kincaide Gallery.

Contact us at: caribbeancolors1@hotmail.com