VELATURA: An Exhibition and a New Art Collection
~ This April is going to be a special month. ~
The term velatura reflects my painting process, which consists of the fabrication, subtle layers upon layers of color, of dreamlike, and sometimes playful, realities.
My paintings are trees and nature scenes created as a response to those places that deeply resonate with me.
Although several paintings are copies from life; I adore creating art based from the real world yet vividly transformed by my infatuation for soothing colors like purples, greens, and blues.
I truly enjoy creating paintings that reflect my admiration for nature's creative force. With each brushstroke, I feel a connection with its whimsical energy.
~ This April is going to be a special month. ~
30 acrylic and oil paintings and sketches will be on view for Velatura: Creating Trees and Places with Subtle Layers of Purples, Greens, and Blues from April 1st to May 31st, 2017.
The opening reception will be held
on Tuesday, April 4, 2017
from 5:30pm to 7:30pm
at SUNY Empire State College
6333 Rte 298, 3rd floor
East Syracuse, NY (315-472-570)
Also, a new painting collection will be unveiled at Natur-Tyme, 3160 Erie Blvd. East, in DeWitt, NY, on April 1st! Here is a sneak peek preview:
I hope to see you at the opening reception. Come over and say hi, enjoy the refreshments, and celebrate with me five years of creativity, which is continually encouraged thanks to all of your amazing support.
Maria
Art Events in Central New York
A lot of people residing in Onondaga County think that there is nothing going on or nothing to do here. Yet, if they knew more about CNY Arts, whose mission “is to promote, support, and celebrate arts and culture in Central New York,” they would start believing otherwise. When you visit cnyarts.org, you will be surprised of all the art and entertainment events you can experience in Central New York.
A lot of people residing in Onondaga County think that there is nothing going on or nothing to do here. Yet, if they knew more about CNY Arts, whose mission “is to promote, support, and celebrate arts and culture in Central New York,” they would start believing otherwise. When you visit cnyarts.org, you will be surprised of all the art and entertainment events you can experience in Central New York.
Furthermore, art and cultural organizations, as well as artists, can create a free account which will allow them to share their events, classes and workshops in the CNY Arts Directory. To get listed, register here: http://weare.cnyarts.org/
About CNY Arts
Who We Are
At CNY Arts, we believe that a healthy arts industry is essential to the quality of life and community in Central New York. We strive to connect the general public to the rich array of arts and cultural opportunities in the area. It doesn’t matter where your place is in the arts—artist, audience member, participant, venue, educator or supporter—we want you to create and experience the arts throughout CNY, in every town, city, neighborhood and school.
What We Do
We provide support and assistance to individual artists and arts and cultural organizations through access to grants, capacity-building assistance, education and training, and promotional services. We serve the counties of Cortland, Herkimer, Madison, Oneida, Onondaga and Oswego. Our goal is to enhance a greater appreciation for the arts and cultural vibrancy of the region. (cnyarts)
Thanks to the CNY Arts Individual Artist Commission Grant, I was able to fund a creative and interactive art project in 2014 that concluded in an art exhibition at the Onondaga Free Library titled Trees of Onondaga in 2015.
Also, I used the CNY Arts Directory to easily compile a list of upcoming art exhibitions that I believe are a must see.
If you are an illustrator and/or love illustrations and cartoons, I recommend you go see Edward Koren: The Capricious Line
Edward Koren, Worship 10 a.m., 1991, SUArt Gallery.
Edward Koren: The Capricious Line celebrates the five-decade career of renowned cartoonist and long-standing contributor to The New Yorker, Edward Koren. This exhibition profiles approximately 50 original works on paper, many displayed for the first time.
Edward Koren: The Capricious Line was developed by the Wallach Art Gallery at Columbia University and encompasses an eclectic set of themes Koren tackles with his wry, astute criticism. Curated by Diane Fane and David Rosand and organized for tour by International Arts & Artists, Washington D.C.
Where: SUArt Gallery Shaffer Art Bldg, College Place • Syracuse, NY 13244
When: Friday Oct 28 - Friday Dec 23. Tuesday – Sunday 11:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Thursday until 8:00 p.m. Admission: Free
If you are a fine artist and/or fine art lover, here are three must see exhibitions:
European Masterworks From The Permanent Collection
Wassily Kandinsky, Russian (1866-1944), Improvisation No. 23, 1911. Oil on canvas, 43 ¼ x 43 3/16 in.
Museum Purchase, 56.42, Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute
European Modernism masterpieces are on view in the Museum of Art's permanent collection galleries. Included are artworks by Kandinsky, Mondrian, Picasso, Dali, and many others. In the early 1950s Harris K. Prior, the Museum of Art Director, and Edward Root, Consultant in Art, developed for the Munson-Williams-Proctor Institute Museum of Art a small, distinguished collection of paintings and sculptures that were created by pioneers of major 20th-century artistic movements, such as Cubism, Futurism, and Surrealism.
The Museum was founded as a collection of art from the United States, but Prior and Root believed that assembling a group of modern European art would be beneficial to demonstrate the influence of Wassily Kandinsky, Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí and other Europeans on American artists. Edward Root explained to the Board of Trustees, “This ought to give a kind of context to the collection, since it was in Europe that the rather strange developments of this century were initiated.” Since the Prior and Root era, the Museum collected additional pieces that strengthen European-American connections. Prior, Root and subsequent Museum personnel were extremely judicious in their selections, so that the European Modernism collection represents each artist at the height of his powers. (mwpai)
Where: Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute, 310 Genesee Steet • Utica, NY 13502
When: January 4, 2016 - January 2, 2017. Tuesday – Thursday, 10am. - 5pm. Friday, 10am - 8:00pm . Saturday, 10am - 5pm Sunday, 1pm – 5pm. Admission: Free
Angela Fraleigh: Between Tongue and Teeth
Carried by voices, oil, 23kt gold leaf and galkyd on canvas, 66" x90", 2014. Courtesy of the Artist.
Angela Fraleigh, based in New York City and Allentown, co-opts the techniques, media, and styles of European Old Masters to create monumental paintings of female figures that explore social constructs of gender, power, and identity. Combining abstraction and realism, her visually seductive and complicated paintings reflect on art history, literature, and popular culture. For the Everson, Fraleigh presents new paintings inspired by works in the Everson's collection, women of the Arts and Crafts movement, and important female figures in the history of Central New York.
Where: Everson Museum of Art 401 Harrison St. Syracuse, NY 13202
When: September 24, 2016 – December 31, 2016. Wednesday - 12:00 – 5:00 PM. Thursday - 12:00 – 8:00 PM. Friday - 12:00 – 5:00 PM . Saturday - 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM . Sunday - 12:00 – 5:00 PM.
Admission: Free for members, $15 for non-members
Snowy Splendor: Winter Scenes of Onondaga Count
Since the winter of 2013, Snowy Splendor: Winter Scenes of Onondaga County has featured oil, acrylic, and watercolor paintings, photographs, and pastel drawings of winter scenes of Onondaga County from local artists and photographers. The scenes include downtown Syracuse, parks, rural vistas, and woodland settings. The imagery also is varied; sometimes stark, sometimes colorful, yet all evocative of a season we love and hate.
Where: Onondaga Historical Museum, 321 Montgomery St., Syracuse, NY, 13202
When: November 20, 2016 through Spring 2017. Wednesday to Friday, 10-4, Saturday and Sunday, 11-4. Admission: Free
If you want to shop for local fine art, functional art and jewelry, here are three recommendations for you:
Syracuse Art Mart 2016
Here you will find original art from over 45 local artists featuring paintings, photography, jewelry, textiles, stained glass and more.
Where: 499 Warren St. 499 Warren St, corner of E. Onondaga St • Syracuse, NY 13202
When: November 4, 2016 – December 24, 2016 11am—4pmMonday—Wednesday, 11am—6pm Thursday — Saturday.
Natur-Tyme’s Art Gallery at the Community Corner
Here you will find original art from over 10 local artists featuring paintings, illustrations, drawing, pottery, sculptures, home decor and stationary items.
Where: Natur-Tyme, 3160 Erie Blvd. East, DeWitt, NY 13214 (315) 488-6300
When: Store Hours: Mon-Fri: 9 am to 8 pm, Saturday: 9 am to 6 pm, Sunday: 10 am to 5 pm.
Holiday Show and Sale
Here you will find hand-made works of Alison Fisher, including handbags, jewelry, scarves, mittens and landscape paintings.
Where: Edgewood Gallery, 216 Tecumseh Rd. Syracuse, NY 13224(315) 445-8111
When: November 18, 2016 - December 30, 2016. Tuesday - Friday: 9:30 am - 6 pm , Saturday: 10 am - 2 pm.
The Artist’s Path: What are Other Artists Doing?
My take away from these two contrasting art shows, We Can Be Heroes: Visualizing the Life & Music of David Bowie and Angela Fraleigh: Between Tongue and Teeth, is that, in different ways, personally confirmed how art can be a powerful tool for engagement and made me appreciate the richness of the arts that we have in the New York region. Additionally, they made me question my own path as a professional fine artist.
With a new commitment to engage actively with my art community and to see what other contemporary artists are doing on a local and national level, in this blog post I talk about two art shows that not only have re-affirmed for me that art is a legitimate tool for engagement but, also, made me question my own path as a professional fine artist.
Artist: Penny Santy
The first opening I attended was at The Tech Garden in Syracuse, New York on Thursday September 22 at 5:00 p.m. to see We Can Be Heroes: Visualizing the Life & Music of David Bowie. This show was created by The Tech Garden’s artist-in-residence, Steve Nyland with the premise that he needed to be consoled for the loss of his idol, the music legend, David Bowie. Although Nyland has lost faith in using conventional PR channels, his call for artwork through social media and word-of-mouth received a good response from artists residing in Central New York with the outstanding number of 95 pieces, and with one artwork from England and one from the Philippines. The Tech Garden, which function as an incubator for promising technological enterprises, is a very modern one level building which was originally a garage (thetechgarden).
The Tech Garden’s hallway is long, tall and not too narrow, with an art gallery wall system that allows for easy installation. The opening for We Can Be Heroes was a true success. Many people came by to enjoy the art, the live music playing David Bowie’s hits by Parlor Games, the refreshments, and the social aspect. The amount of artwork depicting David Bowie as an icon was impressive, and it was almost odd to see the few pieces that were purely inspired by his music. When you walk down the hallway of The Tech Garden, no matter if you are a fan or not, you won’t be able to ignore the positive energy, a heartfelt commemoration of David Bowie’s life as an artist who influenced many generations during his five decades of music career (Wikipedia).
The beauty of an open call versus a juried call is that it gives the viewer an art salon style experience and it gives the artists a chance not only to showcase their work but an opportunity to make important connections to foster their art career.
We Can Be Heroes: Visualizing the Life & Music of David Bowie is open until December 2, 2016. Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5.p.m at The Gallery at The Tech Garden located at 235 Harrison St. Syracuse NY.
Through the half drowned stars. Oil, ink and synthetic resin on canvas, 66" x 90", 2015.
The second art opening I visited was at Everson Museum of Art in Syracuse, New York, on Friday, September 23, to see Angela Fraleigh: Between Tongue and Teeth. The museum, which was built by the famous architect I. M. Pei in 1965, is a piece of art of its own right and experiencing it both from the outside and from the inside is always quite impressive to the eye (everson). Angela Fraleigh is a professor at the Moravian College and “currently lives and works in New York, NY and Allentown, PA, and this is her 1st major solo show in a museum (angelafraleigh). Between Tongue and Teeth, is a painting exhibition that include 30 paintings created by the artists in the span of ten years. The art is located in the upper floor of the museum in the Coyne Gallery and the Memorial Gallery. Fraleigh’ paintings are provocative because she re-interprets “women's roles in art history, literature, and contemporary media” (everson).
Angela Fraleigh, Carried by Voices, 2014, oil and 23kt gold leaf and alkyd on canvas.
What makes her pieces stand out is not only the great size, which Fraleigh explains in a video on her website allows her paintings to go from personal to political, but the artist’s mastery of mixing classical figuration with contemporary and modern elements. I think Fraleigh’s creative process expresses her ability to push her limits by alternating from controlled painting techniques to hazardous and experimental ones. Creating a classical painting is time consuming; yet, Fraleigh fearlessly will set her pieces horizontally to add these paint pours giving chance a big role in the final composition. Along with the large scale paintings, the artist created for this exhibition intimate portraits and sculptures depicting women that played an important role with their art or activism in central New York (everson). Director and CEO of the Everson Museum of Art, Elizabeth Dunbar curated this astounding solo exhibition which will run until December 31 of 2016. You can visit the museum located at 401 Harrison Street, Syracuse NY on Sunday, Wednesday, and Friday from noon to 5.00 p.m.; on Thursday from noon to 8.00 p.m.; and on Saturday from 10.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. (everson).
The breezes at dawn have secrets to tell. Oil and silver metal leaf on linen, 90" x 66", 2015.
My take away from these two contrasting shows, We Can Be Heroes: Visualizing the Life & Music of David Bowie and Angela Fraleigh: Between Tongue and Teeth, is that, in different ways, personally confirmed how art can be a powerful tool for engagement and made me appreciate the richness of the arts that we have in the New York region. Additionally, they made me question my own path as a professional fine artist. After the creation of my community-based exhibition Trees of Onondaga, which was funded by the Individual Artist Grant commissioned by CNY Arts, I faced a creative dilemma.
Let me explain: I am an active user of Instagram, a social media platform that uses images and hashtags to connect people with businesses, and I've witnessed this distinctive separation among what I call commercial artists, entrepreneurs who create art to be sold directly to their audience, and the traditional artists, who strictly use the art world channels to achieve recognition and success by showcasing their masterpieces in fancy art galleries and museums. And here I am, stuck in the middle of these two pathways. Dwelling both ways; yet, truly unsure which way to confidently go. Of course, I know there is no real right or wrong answer. and time and more hints from the universe will eventually help me figure out the direction I want to take with my art path.
On my next blog post I will talk about how the branding of artists and art institutions play a crucial role in shaping the art market.
Work Cited
‘About.” Angela Fraleigh. N.p. 2016. Web. 23 Sep. 2016.
“About.” Everson Museum of Art. Everson, 2016. Web. 23 Sep. 2016.
“Current Exhibition.” Everson Museum of Art. Everson, 2016. Web. 23 Sep. 2016.
“David Bowie.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. MediaWiki, 2016. Web. 23 Sep.
2016.
MARIA RIZZO
Trees, Lands & Dreams | Art Blogger #theartistspath | Art Educator | From Italy 🇮🇹🇺🇸 |