FEATURED EXHIBITION STITCH: SYNTAX/ACTION/REACTION NEW ART CENTER 61 WASHINGTON PARK NEWTON, MASSACHUSETTS THROUGH MARCH 24 by Brian Goslow It’s only appropriate that the New Art Center — an institution that matches exhibitions with classroom instruction — is hosting “STITCH: Syntax/Action/Reaction,” an exhibition that will be a work-in-progress and offer a series of related public programs and events during its five-week run. The show, co-curated by Jessica Burko and Samantha Fields as part of New Art Center’s (NAC) ongoing Curatorial Opportunity Program, features artists that “create work that exemplifies the powerful language of technique and materials used to convey emotion, story, memory and meaning to guide our imaginations in new directions.” And yes, to borrow from Dr. Seuss, “Oh the places you’ll go …” with each of the works featured in “STITCH.” The … [Read more...] about STITCH AT NEW ART: CREATING CONVERSATION
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CORNERED: ROSEMARY LEBEAU
CORNERED: ROSEMARY LEBEAU by Brian Goslow Central Massachusetts-based Rosemary LeBeau works in several magical mediums — wall assemblages, objets d’art, vue d’optique, hand-made books, rust works — each of which brings her viewers to several sensory states, including the reawakening of memories and senses of favorite objects from years ago (for instance, the animals in her composition that hark back to Christmas displays of our youth) and pieced together objects to which she gives recognizable features that cause our natural imagination to attribute them human-like characteristics that would look great in a front yard or home den. Then there are her larger pieces — reminiscent of 19th century offices and grocery stores, normally seen recreated as part of a museum’s depiction of life in centuries past — which leave viewers in awe. Artscope managing editor Brian Goslow … [Read more...] about CORNERED: ROSEMARY LEBEAU
HOWARD BARNES: LIVIN’ THE DREAM
12 FOR OUR 12TH HOWARD BARNES MILLER WHITE FINE ARTS 708 ROUTE 134 SOUTH DENNIS, MA FOR MORE INFORMATION: ARTBYBARNES.COM by Anne Daley In a small Kansas town in 1950, a seven-year-old boy hides behind the family garage, playing in the dirt. But he’s not creating fortresses for imaginary armies, nor sculpting imagined terrain on a distant planet; he’s learning to paint. With dust and soil as his medium, twigs and leaves as his tools and his own skin as his canvas, he inhabits his own atelier. Howard Barnes is not in Kansas anymore, but through his paintings he has created his own Land of Oz, replete with Yellow Brick Roads and Emerald Cities. At the age of 74, Barnes is savoring the fruits of his labors, having continued to paint during his years spent art directing at major high-tech corporations and providing medical illustrations for education and courtroom … [Read more...] about HOWARD BARNES: LIVIN’ THE DREAM
BECHDEL AT UVM: WISDOM AND WHIMSEY
FEATURED ARTIST SELF-CONFESSED! THE INAPPROPRIATELY INTIMATE COMICS OF ALISON BECHDEL FLEMING MUSEUM OF ART UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT 61 COLCHESTER AVENUE BURLINGTON, VERMONT THROUGH MAY 20 by Elayne Clift She’s a black belt in karate, a recipient of a MacArthur Foundation Genius Award, an award-winning cartoonist and writer, Vermont’s Cartoonist Laureate, and what one critic called an “intellectual populist.” She is also an astute observer of the human condition who reveals an abundance of emotional intelligence, both personal and political, in her work. To top it off, she has a great sense of humor. All that makes her exhibition, “Self-Confessed! The Inappropriately Intimate Comics of Alison Bechdel,” on view at Burlington’s Fleming Museum, a must-see before it closes on May 20. Bechdel, who grew up in a family of literature, art, culture and secrets — her … [Read more...] about BECHDEL AT UVM: WISDOM AND WHIMSEY
JENNIFER VINEGAR AVERY: A PRETTY PARADOX
12 FOR OUR 12TH JENNIFER VINEGAR AVERY FOR MORE INFORMATION: JENNIFERLAVERY.COM by J. Fatima Martins Jennifer Vinegar Avery is an intellectually formidable artist; the joie de vivre and zaniness seen in her art is not contrived entertainment. The name itself, Vinegar, is not a moniker — it’s real, and is a push-back against the “sugar and spice and everything nice” cliché applied to girls. “Clap your hands and say, Jennifer,” she wrote, “clap your hands and say Vinegar, it’s the same thing! A pretty paradox. Avery means wisdom of the elves and it lends itself to emphasis and intensity.” At the time of this writing, Vinegar was living her usual duality, perfectly blended: joy (luxury) and sorrow (imperfection). She was invited to install and perform the theatrical piece “Pupa, Poubelles et Les Bêtes/The Beast Boutique” at the Maison Hermes Le Forum art space in … [Read more...] about JENNIFER VINEGAR AVERY: A PRETTY PARADOX
LÉGER AT LANOUE: LAYERS OF BEAUTY
FEATURED GALLERY KARINE LÉGER LANOUE GALLERY 450 HARRISON AVE #31 BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS MARCH 2 THROUGH APRIL 6 by Lisa Mikulski The Lanoue Gallery, Boston, presents “New Works by Karine Léger” — a show that will certainly fortify the minds and spirits of gallery goers. Canadian artist Karine Léger’s large-scale abstracts represent her expression of Quebec winter spaces and Icelandic landscapes. Simple and sparse in both palette and form, Léger’s shapes float across the canvas as if supported by some ethereal means. Each element is fiercely independent and yet these elements come together gracefully to meet, to overlap, or to perhaps pass one another in a journey that continues off the canvas. The work leaves me feeling introspective and imaginative. Part of the beauty here is the layering Léger employs, producing soft and separate textures that allow each … [Read more...] about LÉGER AT LANOUE: LAYERS OF BEAUTY