Uncovering the Mystery by Kristin Wissler From a young age, Farzaneh and Bahareh Safarani, better known as the Safarani Sisters, were enamored with the arts. Growing up in Iran, the twin sisters spent all their free time drawing and painting. While they took swimming, volleyball and gymnastics lessons, the real fun for them was coming home afterwards and drawing. By age five, they knew they wanted to be artists, and at age 13 they met and began learning from Iranian artist Farimah Farhatnia. They went on to study art at Tehran University, majoring in painting, but also taking classes in music, theatre, dance, poetry and other art forms. They went on to Northeastern University to pursue their MFAs in studio art, a joint program between Northeastern and the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, both in Boston. In May of this year, I covered the Safarani Sisters’ MFA Thesis … [Read more...] about Safarani Sisters at Adelson
Visual Arts
Reindorf at Galatea
Man Vs. Nature by Joshua Ascherman Lisa Reindorf is no stranger to political art; she’s received acclaim for a series of gesturally painted panels depicting the expansion of Syrian refugee camps as seen from the air. This October, in a show at Galatea Fine Art in Boston’s SoWa District called “Building Into Water,” the artist tackles another vital political issue: the environment. The great tension in Reindorf’s paintings is between human and nature; it’s a dichotomy that isn’t novel but into which she breathes new life. For her, the natural systems that have been disturbed by the expansion of man-made infrastructure are not passive — rather, they apply their own counter-pressure to human society in response to disturbances. Reindorf’s work aims to represent this tug-of-war. This is indeed true in the case of the paintings that will show in “Building into Water.” They … [Read more...] about Reindorf at Galatea
Michals and Avery at Bennington
Making Their Own Rules by Marguerite Serkin DUANE MICHALS Duane Michals has never played by the rules. Almost exclusively self-taught, his storied approach to photog-raphy has grown out of years, now decades, of hard work and experience. On view at the Bennington Museum, “Duane Michals: Photographs from the Floating World” represents the photographer’s more recent work, from 2005 to the present. “A great wave of melancholy swept over Tanya” portrays a young woman in traditional Japanese garb, appearing in sharp deꔀnition against the softer focus of the trees and brook behind her. By contrast, in “Vincent Van Gogh,” sun똀owers dominate, with an almost incidental ꔀgure carrying a ladder, making his way among the blooms. This balance and counterbalance between human form and natural surroundings invite the viewer to look more closely, drawn in by the artist’s riveting … [Read more...] about Michals and Avery at Bennington
In Close Proximity
New Work by Joan Green and Bobby Brown at the Multicultural Arts Center by James Foritano Recent art by life partners and fellow travelers Joan Green and Bobby Brown is now showing at Cambridge’s Multi-Cultural Arts Center, 41 Second St., East Cambridge, located just off Cambridge Street and a few steps from the Lechmere T station. The show continues through Wednesday, September 7. Joan and Bobby have been visiting the south coast of Jamaica together since 1984, bringing their impressions of its landscape and peoples back to their Cambridge studios where they freely, vigorously and playfully blend those impressions with their individual skills, temperaments and pursuits. Green has drawn and colored since she could first hold a crayon as a child, and has also long shared her skills as a teacher and practitioner of dance with audiences and students of all ages. Life-long … [Read more...] about In Close Proximity
Art That Can Talk: Julia Csekö at Piano Craft Gallery
By Joshua Ascherman This month at Piano Craft Gallery in Boston, you might hear the walls trying to speak to you — or so artist Julia Csekö hopes. Csekö, whose show “Straight from the Heart — the Rant Series” is on view through August 27, has created a body of work which literally speaks for itself. “Straight from the Heart” is focused primarily on three large triptychs hung in succession; the canvases in each of these triptychs all measure up to an even 50 by 50 inches, and all are populated by Csekö’s carefully painted distinctive white lettering. Together, the canvases — nine in total — spell out Csekö’s philosophy about painting, material and the role of art in day-to-day life, always addressing their viewers directly. “Why insist on such unstable lifestyle?” one painting inquires, to be answered in an adjacent painting with the confession, “I have to be honest with you. I … [Read more...] about Art That Can Talk: Julia Csekö at Piano Craft Gallery
Vermont’s Capitol District
by Meghan Richter Montpelier, Vermont, is unlike the capital of any other state. The buildings and population are spread out, and the classic brownstone look is offset by their newly born public art initiative. The town is quite walkable, and contains preserved historical buildings. The businesses are all local, and during my visit, I did not see a fast food chain or national bank. To the people of Montpelier, it is important that aesthetics and community building are incorporated into the growth of the town. Each of the state buildings on Main Street have begun displaying art. Their newly installed track-lighting has successfully converted these under-used spaces into full galleries. Within the Pavilion Building is the Governor’s Gallery, In the public lobby of the Supreme Court building is the “Vermont Supreme Court Gallery” that hosts mostly Vermont artists selected by … [Read more...] about Vermont’s Capitol District