ARTIST PROFILE DAVID LEE BLACK by Brian Goslow Photographer David Lee Black’s resume is one of a well-lived and experienced life: he earned a BS in music education at the University of Missouri in 1983 and was a Tullaloughaun Residency Fellowship Recipient in County Clare, Ireland in 2012 and 2014; professional career highlights include serving as associate artistic director for Orchestrations Conceptual Art, Inc. since 1985; as a juvenile parole officer for the Massachusetts Department of Youth Services from 1987-2014; as an expressive art therapist with New England Expressive Arts Therapy; as a visual artist with Rhode Island’s legendary Big Nazo puppet troupe and as artist-in-residence at David A. Lang Studios in Natick, Massachusetts. It was Lang who urged Black to contact me in early November to help publicize “Passage,” his then-upcoming exhibition at the Jewish … [Read more...] about A PORTRAIT OF THE ARTIST: DAVID LEE BLACK
Issue Articles
GREAT MINDS THINK ALIKE: ARTS RESEARCH COLLABORATIVE
COMMUNITY ARTS RESEARCH COLLABORATIVE 82 PRESCOTT STREET LOWELL, MASSACHUSETTS THROUGH FEBRUARY: SELECTED WORKS OF JESSICA TAWCZYNSKI FROM HER RECENT ARTIST’S RESIDENCY IN AKUREYRI, ICELAND by Flavia Cigliano Founded in 2009, the Arts Research Collaborative (ARC) in Lowell, Massachusetts quickly established itself as a cultural presence in the heart of the city, committed to working with the arts communities of both Lowell and the University of Massachusetts Lowell (UML). The concept for a professional workspace and gallery came from three colleagues in the Art and Design Department: Jim Jeffers, Denise Manseau and Stephen Mishol, who explained, “We wanted to create a hybrid space where our students could have more direct interaction with professional artists.” Both Manseau and Mishol were quick to acknowledge the critical role Jim Jeffers played in developing … [Read more...] about GREAT MINDS THINK ALIKE: ARTS RESEARCH COLLABORATIVE
SCIENTIFICALLY MOVING: HIGLEY DRAWS US IN
REVIEW KATE HIGLEY: PAINTING BENEATH THE SURFACE GATEWAY GALLERY GREAT BAY COMMUNITY COLLEGE 320 CORPORATE DRIVE PORTSMOUTH, NEW HAMPSHIRE THROUGH MARCH 2 by Linda Chestney Living life on the edge artistically — that’s how I describe Kate Higley. She pushes past fear, embraces change and lives life large. She has the unusual ability to enliven the right brain and left brain simultaneously. Higley — whose experience is diverse — loves art and loves biology. But for practical reasons early on in her life, she chose to study nursing. She immersed herself in biology, anatomy and physiology, ultimately working alongside surgeons where she was spellbound by the intricacies and colors of the human body. She was mesmerized with blood traveling through vessels, which caused organs and structures to pulse in extraordinary color. Absorbingly fascinating. Over her career, … [Read more...] about SCIENTIFICALLY MOVING: HIGLEY DRAWS US IN
ON THE EDGE: STORROW’S EVOLUTION OF STYLE
REVIEW NANCY STORROW: EDGELAND NEXT STAGE GALLERY 15 KIMBALL HILL PUTNEY, VERMONT THROUGH FEBRUARY 13 by Marguerite Serkin Nancy Storrow does not take her artistic vision for granted. She finds her inspiration in the hills and natural landscape of Southern Vermont, where she has made her home for over 50 years. In Storrow’s current exhibition, “Edgeland,” on view at the Next Stage Gallery in Putney, Vermont through February 13, the artist has offered an opportunity for a rare retrospective of her work, conveying a subtle evolution of her stylistic approach over the years. “For the past 10 or so years, I’ve worked with pastel and graphite,” Storrow shared during a recent interview. “I shifted from watercolor and woodcut prints, then to oil and oil paint sticks, and then to pastel and graphite. I have always preserved WHITE as space or air,” Storrow added, “but … [Read more...] about ON THE EDGE: STORROW’S EVOLUTION OF STYLE
WHY KNOT?: NEW BEDFORD’S FIT TO BE TIED
THOU SHALT KNOT: CLIFFORD W. ASHLEY NEW BEDFORD WHALING MUSEUM 18 JOHNNY CAKE HILL NEW BEDFORD, MASSACHUSETTS THROUGH JUNE 2018 by Don Wilkinson In the 19th century, during a time of unprecedented opportunity and prosperity created by whaling and related endeavors — such as whale oil refinement — the City of New Bedford flourished. At one time, it was among the richest cities in the world. And with the wealth that the Yankee gentry had acquired, something else grew: a desire for the finer things in life, including architectural masterpieces of Victorian architecture, superbly crafted furniture, musical instruments and fine art. The 1800s saw the cultural ascension of a number of significant painters born in New Bedford and the surrounding towns of Acushnet and Fairhaven, including Albert Pinkham Ryder, William Bradford, Clement Nye Smith and Albert Bierstadt (born in … [Read more...] about WHY KNOT?: NEW BEDFORD’S FIT TO BE TIED
CUTTING-EDGE ART: SILVERMAN AT CONCORD
ARTIST SPOTLIGHT SEMBLANCES OF PLACE CONCORD CENTER FOR THE VISUAL ARTS 37 LEXINGTON ROAD CONCORD, MASSACHUSETTS JANUARY 11 THROUGH FEBRUARY 10 by Lisa Mikulski A closer look at Betsy Silverman’s work reveals more than what you think you see. This Massachusetts artist creates highly detailed and beautifully vibrant scenes of Boston using only carefully selected and assembled pieces of paper cut from recycled magazines. Not a single brush stroke of paint, nor a hand-drawn line from a pen, exists here. The selections of paper Silverman uses to build these cityscapes are based not only upon elements of color, hue, texture and quality, but also for the individual text and content which allow her to create a multilayered visual story. It is an exercise in delight for one’s eye to explore her work and discover what lays in wait there — the red seating from Fenway becomes … [Read more...] about CUTTING-EDGE ART: SILVERMAN AT CONCORD