In Rebecca Skinner’s two exhibits, at 6 Bridges Gallery and the Brookline Arts Center, striking images depict abandoned mills and factories in total ruin. Decay has thoroughly set in. Elements of nature have begun to re-establish their territory. Her photographs portray spaces once bustling with workers and loaded with products of every description, now standing, after years of neglect, totally dilapidated. Some words come to mind in observing Skinner’s images of these buildings: curiosity, exploration, observation, documentation, reverence. Her extensive and varied works reflect a progression in her sensibilities from the enthusiasm of her first discovery of an abandoned location to the respect she feels when reflecting on the lives lived amid the humming activity of the once-thriving factory. For Skinner, the portrayal of these locations is a summation of their history and their … [Read more...] about ADDING LIFE TO LONG-FORGOTTEN SPACES: SKINNER MAKES DECAY BEAUTIFUL
Issue Articles
IMPACT ON INNOCENCE: THE BLACK & WHITE OF MASS INCARCERATION
Deborah McDuff’s exhibition, “Impact on Innocence: Mass Incarceration,” on show from February 1 through 22 at the Augusta Savage Gallery at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, couldn’t be more timely or urgent. Using charcoal on canvas, McDuff’s larger than life portraits of women, children and men of color who experience the trauma of prison reveal the pain of incarceration experienced not only by those who are imprisoned but by their loved ones, especially children. Theirs are the faces of loss, abandonment and a burdened life that leave their mark on viewers. “Children do not choose their parents,” the California artist said. “Why should they endure a life sentence too?” McDuff, who earned an MFA in Visual Arts from Lesley University College of Art and Design, clearly feels passionately about the travesties of imprisonment, including the use of virtually unpaid labor and the … [Read more...] about IMPACT ON INNOCENCE: THE BLACK & WHITE OF MASS INCARCERATION
ART ESTATES: THE RISING TIDE OF THE WORK LEFT BEHIND
American architect Thom Mayne once said, “The huge problem in our society is the enormous ignorance of the ideas that underlie modern art.” You would think that was bad enough. But, what about unsold art? Art is made. Art is exhibited. Art is sold. And, yes, art accumulates. There is more art made than sold (For this article, art refers specifically to painting). In their lifetime, the excess is stored under artist’s beds, in their closets and their studios. This is problematic enough when the artist is alive. But it reaches an entirely different level when the artist dies and, there are scores of artists, known and unknown, successful and otherwise who have left countless unseen and unsold paintings behind. In the parallel world of wine, there is a virtual place where surplus wine is stored and sold for the purpose of making industrial alcohol. Both good and bad wine ends up here. … [Read more...] about ART ESTATES: THE RISING TIDE OF THE WORK LEFT BEHIND
WORKING CLASS HERO: CROTTY MAKES THE GRITTY MAGNIFICENT
Twenty-five years ago, Vincent Crotty left his native Ireland and emigrated to Dorchester where he discovered a “land of opportunity” and a mentor who recognized his painting talents and counseled, “If you want to be an artist, start working on it now!” He picked up his brushes and has been developing his skills ever since. Eight years ago, he became an American citizen. Recording American cities’ back alleys and working-class life dates back to the early 20th century New York-based “Ashcan School” of Robert Henri and George Luks; Crotty continues this tradition through his own works. He paints outside on location in the mode of plein air painting but his strongest work breaks away from its romantic scenes. He paints Boston’s working-class houses and streets, and the economic struggles and the hard-work ethic of people who live there. Edward Hopper’s lonely-person paintings immediately … [Read more...] about WORKING CLASS HERO: CROTTY MAKES THE GRITTY MAGNIFICENT
CONFIDENCE AT ARTPROV: A SOPHISTICATED PRESENTATION
Marjorie Hellman, Ken Steinkamp and Adam Waimon exhibit in solo situations at ArtProv Gallery through January 19. For collectors and other visitors, this means one artist per room. The arrangement allows for a luxurious feeling of immersion in which to contemplate each artist’s strengths. The solo hanging approach is a subtle evolution for the gallery and expresses confidence in the conceptual integrity of the works of these artists who ArtProv Director Michele Aucoin has represented for three years or more. The gallery has a trio of exhibition rooms. Combined, they offer visitors an opportunity to consider how specific artworks might look in their urban loft, traditional home or office setting. ArtProv’s walls, in some cases, have color — something that is often used as a museum display aid. As a gallery, ArtProv is sophisticated with a high level of presentation expertise and … [Read more...] about CONFIDENCE AT ARTPROV: A SOPHISTICATED PRESENTATION
WORTH THE TRIP NORTH: 4TH ARTS CONNECT HAS A HOMETOWN FEEL
When it’s too cold to ski and you’re so over roasting chestnuts in an open fire, yet yearn for something to do that doesn’t involve staring at a device screen, pack the kids and the dog into the car and head to Saint Johnsbury, Vermont. Yes, it’s 50 miles and an hour from a Starbucks outpost, but the drive along snowy landscapes is meditative and worth every mile traveled when you get to your destination. This part of Vermont is called the Northeast Kingdom, for a reason. Within walking distance on and around Main Street, you will find the Fairbanks Museum and Planetarium, the Athenaeum Library and Gallery and the Catamount Arts Center which is currently showing juried works by 76 regional artists in its Rankin and Fried Family galleries. Up the road is Stephen Huneck’s Dog Mountain Gallery, Studio and Dog Chapel. The Fairbanks family left a legacy in Saint Johnsbury. The family made a … [Read more...] about WORTH THE TRIP NORTH: 4TH ARTS CONNECT HAS A HOMETOWN FEEL