PRESS RELEASE: (Martha's Vineyard) The Louisa Gould Gallery is pleased to announce the upcoming summer show, “ Martha's Vineyard Recreated” with an opening on Saturday, July 30, from 5 to 7pm. This popular exhibit will showcase new works by gallery artists; Peter Batchelder, Nick Paciorek, Kate Huntington and Louisa Gould. Each piece of artwork evokes the essence of the special island we call Martha's Vineyard. These representational works of the island are universal and timeless.

Peter Batchelder has shown at the gallery for four years. His work is highly collectable for both Vineyard and European homes. Louisa Gould says, “Everyone comments on Peter's use of color and light. People are really drawn to the bright colors in virtually all of his works.” Peter states in his own words about the new oil paintings, "The work in this show represents paintings that are reflections of the places I've seen while living on the Vineyard years ago, and in subsequent visits back. When I choose to paint a particular scene, I am not looking to literally recreate that place, but instead a sense of the place. Stripping away details from a scene gives the piece a more universal feel, as if it could be anywhere, but recognizable enough in general location, that it can remind the viewer of a similar location in their past.

“I work in oil, painting on canvas or linen, and make light, texture and the interactions between colors as important as the composition or subject. I incorporate elements of abstraction into the pieces, to push them further away from any literal sense of place, and more towards somewhere where viewers feel they have seen that scene before, or know where that place might be.

“My compositions are often composites of a place that sparked the initial impetus to paint, combined with aspects of another place, most often with much detail about the place left out. The more simplified the scene, the more emphasis on light and color, the more successful the piece is, and the more viewers can connect with it."

Peter trained in studio art under Massachusetts artists Jack Coughlin, Lionel Gongora, Hanlon Davies, and William Patterson at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Peter's primary influences include the work of Edward Hopper, Wolf Kahn, Fairfield Porter, Andrew and James Wyeth, Bo Bartlett, David Hockney, and Richard Diebenkorn.

Kate Huntington is a nationally recognized oil painter and very well known in New England as a figurative painter. Kate has shown with the Louisa Gould Gallery since 2006. Kate also paints commissions of people in addition to wonderful landscapes in her unique textured layers. To remain closer to her work, she begins with a drawing that she then translates to the canvas. Kate has a command of the brush in all ways, particularly in her use of color and light. Kate is able to paint a stellar crisp day and the layers of fog. Her vision of the human form is universal, capturing people in a relaxed and unguarded state. Her images are timeless where children frolic on a beach, men play games on the beach, two women luxuriate in beach chairs, or a group rides horses. Kate immerses the viewer into each world she creates. Kate will paint her signature nudes again this summer as well as evocative sea vistas and landscapes.

She is a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design and runs a popular and longstanding portraiture class in service to her community that provides an affordable option for open life drawing. Her work is shown in and around New England in galleries and museums and featured in several distinguished books. In 2007, about a dozen of Kate's paintings were featured in the Showtime TV drama "Brotherhood." Her paintings and drawings are collected nationally and internationally in private and corporate collections. She is a member of the Copley Society in Boston.

Nick Paciorek travels the globe in search of inspiration for his vibrant paintings that uncover the essence of his chosen locales through his signature use of light and color. A lifelong urbanite, Nick has historically been drawn to large metropolitan areas for the interplay between kinetic figures, imaginative architecture and hard edges. But more recently, he's turned his brush to favorite spots for city dwellers to retreat: soft river banks, majestic peaks, and rocky shorelines.

Most of Nick's Vineyard scenes were painted in the early morning. He likes the time of day for its impact on the light and its play off the landscape. Unlike cities, where the rays are diffused by emissions from street lamps, buildings, and cars, nature lends itself a clean quality that evokes a pure white. That phenomenon (and his collectors) call Nick back to the island repeatedly. Each of his pieces is a celebration of light and color, a vivid interpretation of his subjects. Nick has shown at the Louisa Gould Gallery for four years and is now one of the main stable of artists.  

Nick received his BFA from the Maryland Institute College of Art and attended the Art Institute of Chicago. 

George Brown began drawing at age 5 and progressed to painting by age 12. At 14, he was selling water color bird, wild life, and still life paintings.

George moved to Houston where he was commissioned to paint large-scale murals for the Northwest Harris County Performing Arts League; Goodwin, Dannenbaum, Littman & Wingfield Advertising; T Miles Grey Design; Compaq; Sakowitz; and Brennan’s of Houston.

After graduating from the Art Institute of Houston, George went into commercial art doing illustration, print production, and bill board design work for British Parts International, Compaq, Weatherford, Fogarty Klein Monroe Advertising, and Bates Southwest Advertising.

George has over 45 years of experience painting in oils, acrylics, watercolors, gouache and enamels using wet and dry brush, airbrush, and silk screen techniques. He is pursuing his passion for creating large-scale surrealistic paintings and is currently working on a series of 10 pieces in oil on canvas. The series contain a reoccurring“globe” theme. “Creativity”and “The Glance” are the first two paintings in the series. George now lives on Martha's Vineyard with his wife.

Frauke Klatt Dynamics, easiness and powerful liveliness are the characteristics of Frauke Klatt's artistic works. A visit in her studio in Travemuende immediately gives the visitor a sense of the joy of creativity. The idea is not the representation of beautiful water landscapes, schooners in full detail, traditional sailing ships or big passenger ships. Rather, Frauke emphasizes on canvas her direct impressions of the sailing experience.

Frauke Klatt is a self educated artist. After completing her education in teaching and starting a family, she pursued her desire to paint with a private instructor. It was there that she was introduced to the art of Lyonell Feininger, an influence that found its way into her early work. Eventually she found her own direction and mode of expression. Now, the overwhelming tool is her emphasis on the horizon. Abstraction allows her to transport the viewer to a vision of freedom on the sea.

Please join us for the opening reception of “ Martha's Vineyard Recreated” on Saturday, July 30 from 5 to 7pm. There will be refreshments, light fare, and live music by Michael Hayden. The show will be on exhibit from July 28 through August 23. The Louisa Gould Gallery is located in the heart of the Vineyard Haven Cultural District at 54 Main Street, Vineyard Haven. For further information please visit the website at louisagould.com or call (508) 693.7373. The gallery is open daily from 10:30am to 6pm.