Keith Maclelland Battles Societal Issues “Monster Cowboys” is the intriguing title that artist and teacher Keith MacLelland uses to describe his current body of work, consisting of exuberantly colorful mixed-media collages, figurative yet abstract, all rendering the theme of “Good Battling Evil.” The impetus of these artworks was originally rooted in wrangler-lore of the American southwest but, alas, no sing-along cowboys ride into the sunset. In his “Hero Cowboys” exhibition at Milton Academy’s Nesto Gallery, MacLelland’s iconographic works are provocative and astoundingly deliberative in tackling pivotal, current-day societal issues including the dire consequences of consumer trash and environmental pollution. MacLelland’s eyes lit up when he reflected upon his days growing up as an only child on bucolic Cape Cod, where he immersed himself in endless hours of doodling, mostly … [Read more...] about Hero Cowboys
March/April 2015
Inner Investigation/Universal Truths
Marjorie Kaye: Shape Shifter A quote attributed to Gerard Piel, the publisher who revived Scientific American magazine in the middle of the last century, is a perfect springboard for my impression and, I hope, our discus- sion of Marjorie Kaye’s upcoming exhibition at East Boston’s Atlantic Works Gallery. Piel said, “Energy commutes into matter as naturally as matter commutes into energy.” Indeed it does, and nowhere, for me, was this omnipresent transmutation more in evidence than when I sat sipping tea, surrounded by Kaye’s sculptures, just downstairs from her studio. Three of the eleven or so sculptures slated for her March exhibition at Atlantic Works were, for me, particularly eloquent of this vibrancy. And why? Again, for me, they never seemed to settle down. Take “Hawaii.” A seemingly simple, flat wall sculpture of a couple of dozen amoeba-like shapes, or perhaps … [Read more...] about Inner Investigation/Universal Truths
Quality is Contagious
John Econmaki and Bridge City Tool work “Quality is Contagious” showcases the work of industrial designer, innovator and entrepreneur John Economaki, founder of Bridge City Tools of Portland, Oregon. It establishes that hand tools can and should be beautiful to look at and comfortable (ergonomic) to hold, and is appropriately being displayed at Boston’s North Bennet Street School, highly respected as an arts and crafts instructional epicenter providing training in fine craftsmanship and creative entrepreneurship. The exhibition features a selection of nearly 100 items: exquisitely finished precision tools, wood furniture, design and preparatory sketches and instructional videos showcasing Economaki’s career over a 30-year period. Along with the physical display, there’s a 204-page “coffee table” style catalogue, which is a collaborative project with advertising photographer Joe … [Read more...] about Quality is Contagious
Dark Waters/Grateful Daughters
Matt Brackett's Dichotomy With a poetic and rhythmic title, “Dark Waters/Grateful Daughters” is a wily exhibition that counterpoints two very different groups of paintings, spanning a five-year, highly demanding period in Matt Brackett’s life. “Dark Waters” is a selection from Brackett’s “Dark Animals” series (2009-12), animal-landscape portraits within the realism/naturalism tradition, while “Grateful Daughters” are recent abstracted-tonal, sketch-like unfinished experiments featuring intimate views of flowers in full bloom, originally called “Daughters of Gratitude” (2013-14). The adroit decision to exhibit thesetwo contrasting modes together was made by curator Katherine French, who recently became Catamount Arts’ gallery director after retiring as the executive director of DanforthArt in Framingham, Mass. In this exhibition, Brackett’s brand of animal reality-drama is … [Read more...] about Dark Waters/Grateful Daughters
Organic to Geometric at Endicott
Dawna Bemis Celebrates her Upbringing Dawna Bemis knows she was blessed with a unique childhood. Four generations of her family thrived in one teeming house- hold, and at any given time when she was growing up, she was surrounded by extended family — cousins, great-uncles, great- grandparents — who virtually took over an entire neighborhood in the tiny mid-Maine town of Veazie. “You can’t throw a rock without hitting relatives of mine up there,” quipped the artist, who has since immigrated south to Portland, calling her upbringing a “privilege.” “I recognize how special it was.” And also how rare. Bemis, in her prolific encaustic geometric works, explores the loss of such generational bonds and conduits of knowledge in today’s fractured, solitary, technology-dependent society. To read more, pick up a copy of our latest issue! Click here to find a pick-up location near you … [Read more...] about Organic to Geometric at Endicott
Currents7 at Colby
Elizabeth Atterbury breaks the mold Breaking the mold, metaphorically, is the essence of what Elizabeth Atterbury strives for. An emerging artist who transcends traditional expectations in photography — as well as in her recent inclination to create cut-paper constructions and wooden creations while employing unique raw materials such as cardboard, pumice and sand — she often reverts back to her love of photography by photographing the works she’s created. Her keen sense of form and how it can work hieroglyphically, as language, seems to channel Miró at times. The objects and shapes she depicts sometimes float in space and then integrate with other repetitious objects in others, creating an almost M.C. Escher impression. Atterbury, who lives and works in Portland, Maine and holds an MFA from Massachusetts College of Art and Design, and whose exhibitions have graced the likes of … [Read more...] about Currents7 at Colby