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Artscope Magazine | July/August 2021

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abstract expressionism

Joanne Holtje, "Odysseus Slaughters the Suitors," oil on panel, 30” x 40”.

MARKS OF EMOTION: ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM IN MAYNARD

// Current Issue, Issue Articles, May/June 2019

by Flavia Cigliano

Spring has brought a visually compelling exhibit to ArtSpace Maynard. “Mark of Emotion,” curated by Sallie Strand, presents the stylistically diverse paintings of three accomplished abstract artists, Joanne Holtje, Jane Cohen and Strand. Having met several years ago in an abstract painting class, Holtje, Cohen and Strand have maintained a professional relationship based on their common vision of abstraction, each whom are engaged in a distinct approach. In her curator’s statement, Strand has likened the artists’ work to Abstract Expressionism — emphasis on process, interior reflection and energetic spontaneity. Significantly in their respective artist’s statements, each artist cites the relevance of intuition as a guide in the exploration her work. As curator, Strand chose the theme “mark of emotion” since she sees abstract art, both creating it and viewing it, as all about … [Read more...] about MARKS OF EMOTION: ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM IN MAYNARD

Ellen Grobman, Last Minute, 2017, oil on wood.

CORNERED: ELLEN GROBMAN AT HAMPDEN GALLERY, UMASS AMHERST

// Artscope Online, Cornered, Exhibits, Interview, Visual Arts

by Brian Goslow

Amherst, MA - For Amherst, Massachusetts-based painter Ellen Grobman, painting sounds like an exhausting and exhilarating process in which she starts with an idea, aims to pull it in a new direction and then sees what’s left when she tries to leave as little of the original thought as possible by the time she’s finish. Her website describes her work as being powered by, “This drive to bring something into being, disrupt it, and then flirt with its destruction — the boundary of something existing and then not.” Depending on the piece, there are touches of 19th century furniture wallpaper patterns, abstract expressionism, fauvism, symbolism and whatever connections each swash of paint ignites in her mind. These explorations continue in her current exhibition, “There, Not There,” on view through March 31 at Hampden Gallery in the Southwest Residential Area at the University of … [Read more...] about CORNERED: ELLEN GROBMAN AT HAMPDEN GALLERY, UMASS AMHERST

LEFT: Evidently, acrylic on Yupo, 40” x 26”. RIGHT: Implicit, acrylic on Yupo, 40” x 26”.

LIMITLESS MOTHERWELL: AMP’D UP VIBE IN PROVINCETOWN

// Issue Articles, July/August 2018

by Suzanne Volmer

AMP Gallery, or Art Market Provincetown, describes itself as a “live exhibition space” specializing in “cutting edge art.” It rotates art every two or three weeks during the summer months to accommodate an array of mediums that includes drawing, painting, photography, sculpture, installation, new forms, writing, music and film. AMP Gallery’s platform focuses on art discourse empowering the discovery process and providing the opportunity for artists to share their creative energy with audiences. The acronym AMP suggests the electricity of the moment and the energy Debbie Nadolney infuses into the space. Artist Jeannie Motherwell approached Nadolney about showing at AMP because she liked its vibe. Nadolney says that her space is similar in character to Sun Gallery — which operated in Provincetown from 1955 to 1959 — in its ability to tap into a sense of joie de vivre, idealism and … [Read more...] about LIMITLESS MOTHERWELL: AMP’D UP VIBE IN PROVINCETOWN

Blue Atmosphere II; 1963; acrylic on canvas; 72” x 69 1/2”; Smith College of Art, Northampton, Massachusetts; Gift of Sarah (Griswold, Class of 1954) and Richard Leahy.

FRANKENTHALER AT PAAM: AN ODE TO PROVINCETOWN SUMMERS

// Issue Articles, July/August 2018

by Laura Shabott

Helen Frankenthaler (1928-2011) is the subject of one of the most important exhibitions to come to the Provincetown Art Association and Museum (PAAM) in its 104-year-old history. “Abstract Climates: Helen Frankenthaler in Provincetown,” opening July 6 and on view through September 2, weaves together the fabric of what makes the very tip of Cape Cod a remarkable arts colony: working artists, families (original or logical) and the light. The show begins with works dating from the time when Frankenthaler studied briefly with Hans Hofmann in Provincetown in 1950, and unfolds with expansive works created from 1960 through 1969, when she summered there with artist Robert Motherwell, her husband from 1958 to 1971. The exhibition is co-curated by Lise Motherwell — a daughter of Robert Motherwell, stepdaughter of Frankenthaler, and PAAM board president — and Elizabeth Smith, founding executive … [Read more...] about FRANKENTHALER AT PAAM: AN ODE TO PROVINCETOWN SUMMERS