In the days before instamatic and digital cameras, realist paintings were timeless documents of life throughout the decades and centuries. Now, as our aging cities and landmarks continue aging and decaying, and major atmospheric storms change our coastlines and landscapes without warning, the eyes of the artists in the “2023 New England Regional Juried Exhibition” at the Guild of Boston Artists serve to give us a detailed look at the effect of those changes as well as current household items, clothing and buildings in our region that may not look the same even 10 years from now. This year’s show, “Bringing together the work of promising students, emerging and early career artists, as well as pieces from established professionals, the show is a celebration of the wealth of skill and breadth of vision in representational art across the region,” mainly features oil paintings and was juried … [Read more...] about A WEALTH OF SKILL AND BREADTH OF VISION: GUILD OF BOSTON ARTISTS EXPLORES 2023 NEW ENGLAND
Issue Articles
EXQUISITELY IMPERFECT CONDUITS: COLODZIN’S EMBODIED COLLAGES AT COPLEY SOCIETY
Modern collage, invented by George Braque, Pablo Picasso and others in the early 20th century, lives on today in the exhibition “Embodied” by Robin Colodzin at the famous Copley Society of Art in Boston. Founded in 1879, the Copley Society has long been the bastion of painting in the romantic realism tradition, and many of its artist-founders are honored as America’s great painters. In an effort to be more contemporary, the Copley selection committee is now including experimental artists who deal in the latest, hottest social problems and that is to be commended. However, deciding which experimental artists will be the next “great artists” is a tricky question and the solo exhibition of Colodzin makes the case that emerging artists can be both brilliant and also falter in their visions. Her artistic conceptual goal, expressed in her press release, is in line with women’s body imagery … [Read more...] about EXQUISITELY IMPERFECT CONDUITS: COLODZIN’S EMBODIED COLLAGES AT COPLEY SOCIETY
HARMONIZING ART AND DATA: MIEBACH & MAHONEY’S UNDERCURRENTS AT FOUNTAIN STREET
Fountain Street Gallery, a contemporary art haven nestled within Boston's SOWA art district, will present a captivating exhibition titled "Undercurrents" this October. This collaboration between Virginia Mahoney and Nathalie Miebach beckons connoisseurs and enthusiasts to embark on an immersive journey into the intricate tapestry of unconventional patterns, both concealed beneath and soaring above the surface of materials. The exhibition urges contemplation upon these meticulously composed layers, inviting introspection and wonder. In a world increasingly influenced by the rise of artificial intelligence and its infusion with empathy and emotional intelligence, artists are given a profound duty: to harmonize data and creative expression. The concept of Data Arts, known as Dataism , marks an evolution in data visualization, bridging the realms of art and science to render even the most … [Read more...] about HARMONIZING ART AND DATA: MIEBACH & MAHONEY’S UNDERCURRENTS AT FOUNTAIN STREET
HELL BENT TO KICK THE EDGES: CHELSEA ELLIS AND TODD WATTS AT MMPA PORTLAND
When I say, “photographic arts,” what or who comes to mind? Annie Leibovitz? Ansel Adams? Alfred Stieglitz? Richard Avedon? Different genres. Different styles. Different expressions. The two artists who are currently exhibiting works at the Maine Museum of Photographic Arts in Portland are creating work that has osmosed into a totally different expression of the genre. They are photographers, no doubt, and both have interest in sculpture. But all assumptions end there. Todd Watts works are represented in major museum collections — including the Art Institute of Chicago, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Fogg Museum and Yale University Art Gallery. In his early days in art school, his interest was sculpture. He didn’t own a camera until after he graduated, and he said that he’s been learning photography ever since. He began making photos — he insists that he doesn’t take photos, he … [Read more...] about HELL BENT TO KICK THE EDGES: CHELSEA ELLIS AND TODD WATTS AT MMPA PORTLAND
A LIFETIME OF WORKS AT THE CLARK: MUNCH’S CONTRAST OF EXUBERANCE AND MELANCHOLY
At the Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, Massachusetts is a comprehensive exhibition that includes Edvard Munch’s earthbound paintings, spanning decades. The paintings are energetic, reading as an exploratory of the artist’s emotional life through his observation of the natural world. This important exhibition was carefully and mindfully curated by Jay A. Clarke from the Art Institute of Chicago; Trine Otte Bak Nielsen, curator from Munchmuseet, and Jill Lloyd, an independent curator, drawing upon knowledge of Munch’s early life of emotional upheaval, loss and confusion. The curators reveal that the immersion of the artist into the natural world magnetized him out of his own whirlpool of an emotional unconsciousness into one of self-realization. The artist was able to step outside the bondage of the miasma of his early life and join his emotional world with the workings of the … [Read more...] about A LIFETIME OF WORKS AT THE CLARK: MUNCH’S CONTRAST OF EXUBERANCE AND MELANCHOLY
CAPSULE PREVIEWS: July/August 2023
When the first Art in the Park took place in 2008 in Elm Park in Worcester, Massachusetts, founder Gloria Hall said, “there [weren’t] any sculpture shows like this in a public park.” Now, in 2023, there are several taking place in New England. It’s a bonanza for visitors to the sites hosting them and the sculptors. “The artists get to meet other artists from elsewhere and learn how to display their works in other locations,” Hall said. “Love in Action: Joy, Community, Creativity, Art in The Park, Worcester's 10th Exhibition” features 28 installations by artists from throughout the region and continues through October 6. Connecticut sculptor David Skora is showing “Bent” and “Whirlwind,” both made of welded steel; he’s also got work on view in Bennington, Vermont and The Mount in Lenox, Massachusetts. For him, the growth in outside shows has resulted in almost his entire inventory being … [Read more...] about CAPSULE PREVIEWS: July/August 2023