TYPE ART LEAGUE OF RHODE ISLAND: 18TH ANNUAL ELECTED MEMBERS ART EXHIBITION BRISTOL ART MUSEUM 10 WARDWELL STREET BRISTOL, RHODE ISLAND By J. Fatima Martins A landscape of calm, with bursts of intellectualism and touches of emotive storm, is what you’ll find at Bristol Art Museum (BAM) in the 18th Annual Elected Members Art Exhibition organized by the Art League Rhode Island (ALRI). The overall tone of the exhibition is comfort, beauty, and subtle quiet acts of rebellion. There are elegance and charm as well as mystery and engagement. What I liked most about this exhibition is that it pulled me out of my general feeling of cynicism. Art, in a beautiful light-filled gallery space, such as the one offered at BAM, gives us an opportunity for intermission and relief away from the harm we receive daily from the world around us. There are many amusing and skilled … [Read more...] about Expect the Unexpected: Alri Members’ Show
Issue Articles
Framingham’s Renaissance Man: Sorin Bica Dreams Big
TYPE CYNTHIA ATWOOD: ALPHABET OF WEAPONS THOMPSON GALLERY CAMBRIDGE SCHOOL OF WESTON 45 GEORGIAN ROAD WESTON, MASSACHUSETTS By Brian Goslow As visibility for an artwork goes, Sorin Bica’s mural alongside the MBTA Commuter Rail stop at the junction of Routes 126 and 135 in Framingham, Massachusetts is about as good as it gets. The Downtown (or Front Door) Framingham Mural Project artwork was painted over a total of two months, start- ing in August 2015 and seeing completion in the spring of 2016. It’s an enticing spot for your eyes and draws you to the surrounding busi- nesses and architecture. “It’s always bright because of the colors,” Bica said. “There are lights above it, so you can see it at night.” As part of his agreement to paint the mural, Bica agreed to return to restore the work should it be damaged. He’s had no problem with that requirement. … [Read more...] about Framingham’s Renaissance Man: Sorin Bica Dreams Big
Examining Self and Community: Connecting at Art Basel Miami 2017
EVENTS ART BASEL MIAMI 2017 By Nancy Nesvet At Art Basel Miami Beach 2017, artists will lean, if not jump head first, into the narcissistic pool. You cannot blame them, with environmental disasters worldwide fighting for our attention, and calls for sympathy overwhelming. With hurricanes in Texas, Florida, the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, earthquakesin Mexico — all places with a high Latino demographic, like that of the exhibitors and visitors at Art Basel Miami — we are inundated with calls to act and give. But artists must first contemplate the problem, examine their intention and compose their action before making their response. Artists are making work that analyzes their surroundings, mining their psyches and exploring the relationship of self to community. I’m not talking theory here, but suggest that artists are using methods uniquely theirs to self-analyze … [Read more...] about Examining Self and Community: Connecting at Art Basel Miami 2017
One Great Performance Piece: Christensen at Sea
TYPE 30 DAYS AT SEA: NEW WORKS BY TIM CHRISTENSEN CENTER FOR MAINE CRAFT 24 SERVICE PLAZA DRIVE WEST GARDINER, MAINE By Taryn Plumb For 30 days, he was essentially a stow- away on a container ship set on a course thousands of miles across the open sea. The moody ocean vacillated between violence and tranquility; the scenery was at times turbulent, blissful, and teeming with life — but whatever each day brought, the experience was endlessly powerful and life-altering. Maine sgraffito artist Tim Christensen, bound for Sydney, Australia, spent hours above deck studying the changing pat- terns of the water, the sky and the wildlife, then rendering his observations in dozens of sketches and notes, filling a journal to the bindings. His trip is chronicled in the solo exhibit “30 Days at Sea,” now on view at the Center for Maine Craft Gallery in Gardiner. … [Read more...] about One Great Performance Piece: Christensen at Sea
Olson is in Pink: Hot is Cool at Kingston
TYPE ROSE OLSON: BRIGHT, COOL AND HOT KINGSTON GALLERY 450 HARRISON AVENUE #43 BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS NOVEMBER 29 THROUGH DECEMBER 30 By Brian Goslow Just as thousands of artists have used the unique light of Provincetown as their inspiration and muse, so have painters on Massachusetts’ North Shore. Abstract painter Rose Olson, whose collection of “Bright, Cool and Hot” paintings will be featured in Kingston Gallery’s final show of 2017, channels the skies above the water at West Beach in Beverly, Mass. “Living on the sea, the colors you see changing in the morning and night are so extraordi- nary,” Olson said. “It takes your breath away and probably has as much to do with my painting as anything. I used to watch the sun rise on the beach, then go home and try to paint those col- ors. You can’t help but try to replicate that.” Early in her career, Olson … [Read more...] about Olson is in Pink: Hot is Cool at Kingston
When the Spirit Moves: Energy Builds at Marquee in New London
TYPE WIND SPIRIT SPEAKS: NINA CHUNG AND PAT SCHOENFELDER MARQUEE GALLERY 74 STATE STREET NEW LONDON, CONNECTICUT NOVEMBER 17 THROUGH DECEMBER 16 By Tom Soboleski The old maritime port of New London has been transforming over the past decade to embrace the creative talent it is blessed with. With more than a dozen galleries and studios, the energy is building — from community art to various professional niches. One of those, Marquee Gallery, has already hosted more than 40 international artists, as well as numerous regional and local artists, in its brief three-year existence. Marquee’s director, Clint Slowik, said he looks for emerging and mid- career artists who “have the talent but they also have the sincerity and the passion of an artist who I can see developing, who really dives into what their artistic vision is.” That mission will be manifested on … [Read more...] about When the Spirit Moves: Energy Builds at Marquee in New London