Named after one of his college courses, “Patrick McCay: Explore, Exploit, Express: A Thematic Retrospective,” on view at the Whistler House Museum of Art in Lowell, Massachusetts through August 3, also features the work of three of McCay’s past students: David Drinon, Suzanne Hodge and Lucas Grondin. He’s currently a professor at the Institute of Art and Design at New England College of Henniker, New Hampshire. While the exhibition looks at the Irish-born, Scottish-American artist’s work of over 30 years, the show is intended to look at his various styles of paintings during that period as opposed to his tenure as an artist. Displayed in the museum’s Parker Gallery (which also includes an ongoing display of works by Lowell Art Association artists), the show is hung in a way that flows perfectly through those styles, with, the show’s press material suggests, a tip of the hat … [Read more...] about CLEAR ABSTRACTION: PATRICK MCCAY’S MODERN LESSONS AT THE WHISTLER
Artscope Issues
AN ALTERNATIVE CELEBRATION: RHODE ISLAND’S HERA GALLERY TURNS 50
The Hera Educational Foundation and Gallery in Wakefield, Rhode Island, is celebrating 50 years of providing an alternate exhibition space, initially for women, now for all artists at all stages of their careers. “Past and Present” opened on June 22 with a parade and reception. The call went out to their 175 current or past members, and 34 works were submitted. They create a dazzling wide-ranging display of media by artists with deep commitment to their artist voices. Hera’s founding context in 1974 was that art studio classes, galleries and museums were all run by men, where maybe one or two women would be added to a class or gallery roster. Women with deep commitment to their art practices and advanced art degrees rarely had gallery options. It is noteworthy that after a long inception of women imagining, founding and running Hera through volunteering and donations, the … [Read more...] about AN ALTERNATIVE CELEBRATION: RHODE ISLAND’S HERA GALLERY TURNS 50
NEW ENGLAND NOW AT THE SHELBURNE
“New England Now: Strange States” is the third exhibition in a series centered on our region as seen, interpreted, remembered and reimagined in the works of 12 artists, whether they be generations-local or new to this place we call home. Carolyn Bauer, who has curated all three shows, reminds us that the 2018 show elaborated on the way we define our land, and the 2021 show focused on the people that signify the character of the New Englander. This show delves deeper into identities — real, imagined, free or constrained, solidified or fluid, assertive or unsure, but always unique. The Diana and John Colgate Gallery space is transformed into a striking deep-grey expanse that recedes visually and brings to the forefront the works on display. The introductory text for “Strange States” suggests to the visitor that New England has historic literary traditions and figures that … [Read more...] about NEW ENGLAND NOW AT THE SHELBURNE
CAPSULE PREVIEWS: May/June 2024
Addressing and exploring pressing issues, including climate change, social justice issues and personal freedoms through multiple art genres, the second “WOW (Wisdom of Women)” exhibition takes place from May 4 through June 23 at Workshop13 at the Artworks Gallery, 69 Main St. (Route 9), Ware, Massachusetts. “Art is most meaningful when it provokes thoughts that lead to change,” said curator Terry Rooney. More info on related events, including a rare performance by groundbreaking female rockers Fanny on May 11, at workshop13.org. Featuring paintings on panel and vintage seashells, “Alexis Trice: Distancing Horizons,” which opens May 10 and continues through June 6 at gary marotta fine art gallery, 162 commercial street, Provincetown, Massachusetts, explores “the whole of life’s emotions and traumas through animal life and their environments” through New York-based Trice’s “synergistic … [Read more...] about CAPSULE PREVIEWS: May/June 2024
AN ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCY ADVENTURE: ARTSCOPE’S MICHELMAN AND VOLMER AT CHANORTH
ELIZABETH MICHELMAN: WHERE TO BEGIN It seems a good omen that the director of the ChaNorth International residency program, Hungarian sculptor Brigitta Váradi, has offered me the studio she’d once occupied in the old Dutch Colonial “Farmhouse.” Through the south window of the former parlor, the February sun arcs over a leafless hogbacked mountain. To the north, a sweep of high-tension electrical wires crosshatches the rolling rows of stubble in the ice-bound pasture. I’d visited this Hudson Valley residency once before, as a guest critic. Now I was returning to rescue my own art. After the challenges of a recent move from Boston to Portland, Maine, I needed a respite. For many months, the routines mooring my inner and outer worlds had been disrupted. ChaNorth offered four weeks simply to make art in the company of artists. I invited along sculptor Suzanne Volmer, my Artscope … [Read more...] about AN ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCY ADVENTURE: ARTSCOPE’S MICHELMAN AND VOLMER AT CHANORTH
A UNIQUE EXPERIENCE: MASSACHUSETTS OPEN STUDIOS ENCOURAGE BROWSING, BUYING
Massachusetts offers dozens of Open Studios weekend events across the Commonwealth, throughout the year. The majority take place in the spring, summer and fall, and most take place annually, though a few take place twice a year, for example, in Dorchester and Somerville. A handful take place monthly, including in SOWA in Boston’s South End and at Western Avenue Studios in Lowell. Open Studios can range from as few as 10 artists in one location to over 300 artists across one city or even a region like the South Coast (covering Dartmouth and Westport, Massachusetts as well as Tiverton and Little Compton, Rhode Island), Cape Ann or the Berkshires. Some incorporate shuttle bus services between artist studio locations, others are walkable across the board. Some Open Studios events include food trucks like a festival, others include live music and family activities. Some feature hands-on … [Read more...] about A UNIQUE EXPERIENCE: MASSACHUSETTS OPEN STUDIOS ENCOURAGE BROWSING, BUYING