PRESS
RELEASE
(MARTHA'S
VINEYARD) Louisa Gould Gallery is excited to announce a new show,
“
Summer
Stories: A Dialog with Color and Light
”
featuring new works by gallery artists, Peter Batchelder, Fran
Dropkin, Suzanne Hill and Nick Paciorek. The show opens on Thursday
July 16 with an artist reception on Saturday, July 18 from 5 to 7PM.
Please join us to view the exhibit, meet the artists, listen to live
music by Micheal Haydn and enjoy light fare and refreshments.
Peter
Batchelder
uses
the structure of a building to tell his summertime story. Peter is a
former Martha's Vineyard resident and has always been interested in
light in environments. His childhood interests in architecture and
archaeology have led him to consider the context of time-worn
structures within the New England/Vineyard landscapes. Peter says, “I
am fascinated on many levels when coming across a barn or seaside
cottage. From an artist's perspective I am interested in the nature
of the architecture, how it sits within its landscape, color and
light.”
“
I'm
curious about the story of a building-who built it and why; the many
people who have lived or worked in the building; how the landscape
many have changed around the structure over the course of years.
This interest in the story behind a place finds its way into my work.
In some of my work I feel that the outcome is that the architecture
serves as the sentry for the landscape and in other cases the exact
opposite. While working on a piece, I'll take out things that were
there, and add things that weren't. May hope is that a viewer will
connect with a n image and create their own story. When I begin a
painting, usually working out the composition in charcoal, I simplify
everything...the landscape, the structure...and work the composition
out a s a whole, always looking to introduce some element of
abstraction into the work.”
Peter
trained in studio art at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst
(BFA 1987) under artists Jack Coughlin, Lionel Gongora, John Grillo,
and Hanlon Davies as well as Robert Cardinal at the Truro Center for
the Arts. Peter has had a successful graphic design career.
Fran
Dropkin
Fran's
new larger oil painting tell a story of one of the quintessential
places of summer, the beach. She captures the complete feeling of
being on a beach, the light, sound, interaction with those around.
Each canvas provides a narrative.
Fran
says, “As a figurative painter, I am always searching for a way to
capture the light & air. Whether the subject is flowers or the
beach I am really after the same thing. I experiment with color,
shapes & values. Every summer I sit on Philbin Beach &
absorb everything around me; the people, the sea, the sky, the air &
the light. I think about what colors to use to best represent those
beautiful shadows. I let it all sink in & then I go back to my
studio in NY where all the beach paintings are done from memory &
imagination. I paint about half the time with the canvas upside
down. I use a very large mirror set up beside my palette table. I can
see the reflection of the painting. When seeing the painting in
reverse it abstracts the image, this allows me to get a fresh
perspective of the work in progress. On a good day I get lost in my
work. the whole day goes by & I have no idea of time or what I
did until the next morning when I walk back into my studio.”
Fran
has been working as a painter for over thirty years. She received her
BFA and MFA from Boston University where she studied with Philip
Guston and James Weeks. After graduate school she taught art at both
the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the 92
nd
Street Y in Manhattan for over twenty years.
Her
work have been exhibited nationally and internationally in numerous
one-women and group shows. Her paintings are in private and corporate
collections all over the world. Dropkin's paintings are particularly
noted for their interplay of light and rich color. She is inspired by
memory, imagination, and nature. She is best known for her figurative
beach landscapes and flower paintings. She spends her summers on
Martha's Vineyard and lives in New York City.
Suzanne
Hill
Each
of Suzanne Hill's pieces bring you into another realm. Every single
pot is different and are not only exceptionally created, but the
colors combined with the form are everychanging. Suzanne has chosen
bright blues, white, and black and orange for this show.
Suzanne
Hill has been working in clay for over 45 years. After receiving her
Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Rhode Island School of Design, she
went on to study with some of the most renowned ceramic artists in
the country at Alfred College of Ceramics, earning of Master of Fine
Arts in Ceramic Art. Since then, she has taught ceramic art in
colleges, schools and camps, worked as an independent potter in New
York City, and as an artist in residence at the Corcoran School in
Washington, DC. She lived overseas for over ten years; in Peru,
Mexico, and Bangladesh; where she had the opportunity to study the
traditional crafts of those countries and to work with indigenous
potters. She enjoys working with all the possibilities clay has to
offer, and works in a range of both functional and decorative
ceramics. She shows in galleries all over the US, including Martha’s
Vineyard, MA, Jackson Hole, WY, Monhegan, ME, Sedona AZ, Salt Lake
City, UT, and Providence, RI. Suzanne has a studio at the Emerson
Umbrella, in Concord, Massachusetts where she works and teaches.
“I
see myself as both an artist and a craftsperson. What separates fine
craft from an ordinary object is that it goes beyond pure function
and becomes a thing of beauty as well. Even my decorative work is
based on functional shapes. As a potter, I am always working with the
relationship of form to decoration. There are so many variables when
glazing a piece that one must learn to set up the conditions and then
to work with the glazing and firing process. It is a combination of
some control as well as being guided by the process. As in nature, no
two pieces are exactly the same. There is room for infinite variety.
In my recent work I have been exploring the relationship between
classical shapes and forms found in nature. In the most recent
series, the pieces are inspired by my trips to the landscapes of
coastal New England and the American west and the relationship of the
landscape to the sweep of the sky. The colors of the landscape and
the rock formations combine with the classical vessel shapes to
create unique works of art. The driftwood handles on some of the
pieces are inspired by the scrub trees found in the windswept and
beautiful landscape.”
Nick
Paciorek
Nick
Paciorek’s oil paintings uncover the essence of his chosen locales
through his signature use of light and color. For his Vineyard
series, Nick reveals the slower pace of island life. His works
capture leisurely daysailers and dinghies at Vineyard Haven Harbor,
beach-goers unwinding at Gay Head and pleasing marsh scenes, all
displayed in vibrant hues from the pure early morning light and warm
afternoon sun.
BFA
from the Maryland Institute College of Art – 1985, where he was
also a teaching assistant and he also attended the Art Institute of
Chicago and the American Academy of Art.
Nick
is a renowned artist whose work is seen from coast to coast.
...impacted by the impressionists ability to control the world on
canvas simply through color choice, with Matisse being an early
influence. As a artist, Paciorek aligns himself with a new generation
of Fauvists. He uses broad strokes of brilliant color for their
emotional impact. Each of his pieces is a celebration of light and
color, a vivid interpretation of his subjects. For him, choosing the
exact combination of hues for each painting is foremost. Originally
from Chicago, he lives in Providence, RI.
His
earlier works from the summer reflect scenes from the Head of the
Charles crew races and sailing scenes of Boston harbor.
The
show will be on view through August 5.
We
look forward to seeing you on Saturday, July 18, from 5-7pm for the
opening of “
Summer
Stories: A Dialog with Color and Light
”
and throughout the show. Louisa Gould Gallery is located at 54 Main
Street in the historic cultural district of downtown Vineyard Haven
on the island of Martha's Vineyard. Please call (508) 693.7373 for
further information or visit the website at
www.louisagould.com
to view the the online show and obtain directions.