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Artscope Magazine | November/December 2020

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Bryanna F. Drew

Barry Moser, "The Reverie of Alice’s Sister," 1982, engraved color print.

WOOD ENGRAVED ADVENTURES: BARRY MOSER’S ILLUSTRATIONS AT BROMER BOOKS

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

by Bryanna F. Drew

Bromer Booksellers and Gallery is a hidden wonder tucked away on the second floor of an otherwise-unremarkable Boylston Street building. It is a bookstore and gallery specializing in rare, antique and miniature books and prints. The gallery part opened up just last year, and the blend of books and art creates an exciting milieu of creativity. Bromer “strives to complement the art of the book with the book as art.” And their upcoming show, “Barry Moser: The Storied Artist,” certainly encapsulates that theme. Barry Moser is a master illustrator known for his wood engravings. He studied under Leonard Baskin shortly after moving to Massachusetts, and then went on to begin graduate studies in printmaking at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he studied bookmaking, design and illustration with Jack Coughlin and Fred Becker — and almost gave up in his attempt to master wood … [Read more...] about WOOD ENGRAVED ADVENTURES: BARRY MOSER’S ILLUSTRATIONS AT BROMER BOOKS

Jess Hurley Scott, "Barrel," 2017, acrylic on multiple layers of acrylic, 29” x 44” x 2”.

JESS HURLEY SCOTT: HAND-PAINTED TRICKERY IS PICTURE PERFECT

// Current Issue, Issue Articles, March/April 2019

by Bryanna F. Drew

While working for Tommy Hilfiger in New York City, Jess Hurley Scott took her first steps in developing her unique style of painting. Living in Manhattan on the bare minimum her $25,000 salary could afford, Scott managed to scrounge up enough money for a cheap, nude-model night course at The Art Students League. The class wasn’t meant for critique but to simply be an outlet where Scott could paint. Upon her second year of attending this class, the teacher, Hugo Bastidas, approached her and asked, “why are you here?” Scott, taken aback, said, “I’m here to keep my hand in, to keep painting and not lose everything I’d done over the years, and this class forces me to come paint.” “Yeah, but why are you doing this class?” Bastidas asked, “You obviously hate painting nudes. I mean you’re competent at it, but you can tell this is not your passion. What do you paint at home?” Her … [Read more...] about JESS HURLEY SCOTT: HAND-PAINTED TRICKERY IS PICTURE PERFECT

Carole Bolsey, "Hudson River Backwater," 2019, mixed media on canvas, 7' 6" x 26' 10".

Carole Bolsey’s “Hudson River Backwater”

// Artscope Online, News, Visual Arts

by Bryanna F. Drew

Carole Bolsey is known for her large-scale canvases. So, when VisionArt was looking for an artist to take up their monumental 8’ x 27’ task of creating a piece of art large enough to serve as a “window” to the outdoors, Christina Godfrey (director of contemporary and corporate art at Sunne Savage Gallery) knew just the artist for the job. Bolsey’s “Hudson River Backwater” is a piece commissioned for Hudson Yards Grill, an all-American family restaurant opening to the public March 15 in the new Hudson Yards development, the largest development in New York City since Rockefeller Center. The restaurant has no windows, so the painting will be the patron’s view to the outside. The inspiration for the piece was a painting done by Bolsey back in 2015, titled “Lilies and White Canoe.” The piece is a mere 6’ 1” x 5’ 1” compared to the 7’ 6” x 26’ 10” canvas she just completed. The … [Read more...] about Carole Bolsey’s “Hudson River Backwater”

Catherine Carter in her new art studio at Hatch Street Studios in New Bedford.

DRAWING A CROWD: CARTER TURNS HER STUDIO INTO A CLASSROOM

// Current Issue, Issue Articles, January/February 2019

by Bryanna F. Drew

Catherine Carter has always loved teaching. “The act of visual self-expression is the greatest joy I know, and I can never get enough of supporting others who seek that joy for themselves,” said Carter, who recently opened Catherine Carter Art Studio, where she’ll host classes and workshops at Hatch Street Studios in New Bedford, Massachusetts. A teacher of art to all ages for the past two decades, Carter began slowly when starting her own art school. She moved to New Bedford in 2016 and began to teach at some nearby art museums. She also began to write a column for the New Bedford Standard-Times on local small businesses. “I was so impressed by the achievements of the business owners I was interviewing that I felt inspired to open a business of my own.” In the fall of 2018, in the corner of her friend’s studio, Carter held a four-week class in realistic drawing for … [Read more...] about DRAWING A CROWD: CARTER TURNS HER STUDIO INTO A CLASSROOM

TOP ROW LEFT TO RIGHT: Laurie Bonner, "Midnight Mermaid," 2017, digital image capture, 12" x 12"; Deborah Baye, "Night & Day," 2018, mixed media with high resin finish, 24" x 24" x 1.5"; Bror Hultgren, "Runes of Time's Passage 2," 2016, cast paper pulp on handmade paper, 39" x 30" x 2.5"; Diana Barker Price, "Conscious," 2016, digital image capture, 12" x 12". BOTTOM ROW LEFT TO RIGHT: Susan Denniston, "Shroud," 2017, monotypes on both sides of translucent Japanese papers, sewn with black thread, hung with magnets, 50" x 60" x 1"; Stephen Sheffield, "Going Away For A While," 2018, archival print from original collage, 14" x 11" x 1"; Erin Juliana, "Idiopathic," 2018, paper cut or cut paper interwoven, 17" x 21" x 2"; Deb Hall, "Crack in The Ground," 2018, digital and hand printmaking, 15" x 15" x 2".

Works on Paper at the South Shore Art Center

// Artscope Online, Current Exhibits, Exhibits, Visual Arts

by Bryanna F. Drew

The Bancroft Gallery at South Shore Art Center’s current show is “Works on Paper,” juried by Andrew Witkin of Krakow Witkin Gallery. “Works on Paper” has a diverse set of pieces, the only common denominator of them being that they are paper. From hyper realistic watercolor to abstract cut-paper works, the show was dominated by a mix of media. Out of hundreds of artists’ submissions, only 50 works were picked by Witkin for the show, and seven of them given awards. “I was amazed at the breadth of exploration and the depth of involvement,” Witkin’s juror statement expressed. “My decisions are balanced between personal preferences and respect for the specifics of the wonderful diversity of art presented. The works show incredible creativity, dedication and skill.” Witkin asked that the award winners be honored equally; “In this era of intense judgement and separation, I hope this group … [Read more...] about Works on Paper at the South Shore Art Center

Nevet Yitzhak, WarCraft (detail), 2014. Photography by Thomas Seely. Courtesy Yossi Milo Gallery, New York.

Common Threads: Contemporary Fiber Art at the Gardner

// Issue Articles, November/December 2018

by Bryanna F. Drew

The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is known for many things: the beautiful Venetian palazzo-inspired architecture, the unconventional way it displays its pieces of art, the largest and still-unsolved art heist in history, and Isabella Stewart Gardner’s wide taste in art — from Italian renaissance and medieval European to Asian and Islamic art; from paintings and sculptures to rare books and textiles — to name a few. Keeping in tradition with her love of textiles, “Common Threads: Weaving Stories Across Time,” is on view through January 13. The exhibition features work from contemporary artists who are continuing the tradition of conveying stories and histories in their works while pushing the boundaries of textile art and distorting the line around what can be defined as a tapestry. Their works are housed in both the Hostetter Gallery as well as the Tapestry Room. Walking into the … [Read more...] about Common Threads: Contemporary Fiber Art at the Gardner