Husband, wife collaborate on work taken from life

Manitou Springs artist Tina Riesterer is best known for her paintings of nude figures on pottery thrown by her husband, Ken Riesterer.

“I love your elbows.”

Tina Riesterer has painted this message inside a vase, making it a rather unconventional gift of adoration.

On the exterior, a man and a woman, enfolded in an arabesque embrace, seem to have risen from a dozen brush strokes.

“I like painting figures the most,” says Riesterer, who is compact and spritely like a wood nymph — all earth colors, from her spiky brown hair to her corduroy pants.

For the past 15 years, she and her husband, Ken Riesterer, have collaborated on ceramics — with Ken throwing the pots and Tina adorning them with her brushy, dancing figures.

VENUE: Last month, the gallery the Riesterers co-own with eight other artists moved from Ruxton Avenue to the main strip — exchanging the name Filthy Wilma’s for the more respectable Green Horse Gallery.

It’s at 729 Manitou Ave.

BACKGROUND: After graduating from the American Academy of Art in Chicago, the Riesterers got married and set off on a road trip in “We were painters looking for a place to paint,” says Tina Riesterer. “We went to New Mexico and Mexico.

“But we liked the more lush color here and the stacked-up houses in Manitou. And we felt a real welcome in the community. In 1984, people were like, ‘Oh, you’re artists. We love artists!’”

TAKE ON THE SCENE: “Manitou has spiffed up a bit, but you still feel that love for artists,” she says. “Maybe we’re not as known for art here as a place like Santa Fe, but there really is a wonderful art community.”

GREATEST REWARDS: She points out that Manitou’s zaniness — its fruitcake tosses and coffin races — reflects the town’s creative spirit.

“There are just wonderful people here, so many artistic people,” she says. “We always send people to other galleries. Everyone does that.”

GREATEST CHALLENGES: Few visitors come to the area expressly to buy art, she says, and it can be a challenge to sell work to vacationing families: “Some people are offended by the figures. They come in and are like, ‘That person doesn’t have their clothes on!’”

WHY DO IT HERE: Overall, the Riesterers say their pottery sells well within the Manitou market, enabling them to continue painting large, churning canvases — Tina Riesterer’s first love.

“Ken and I both like to paint from life,” she says. “And it’s wonderful here. We have a lot of sunshine. There are endless places to paint.”

TYPICAL DAY: The day before, she had produced 17 new pieces, working from 7 a.m. to 11 at night. “I just took a break for dinner,” she says.

“I wanted to get enough done so I could go riding tomorrow with my daughter.”