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Artscope Magazine | January/February 2021

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drawing

DORGAN’S SMOKY SURFACES: PORTRAIT DRAWINGS DRAW VIEWERS CLOSER

// Current Issue, Issue Articles, January/February 2020, Uncategorized

by James Foritano

I pretended to hand over the clipboard and pen I was using to take down the rumination of my interviewee, on two of his upcoming drawing exhibitions (the first of which was displayed at Newton Free Library in December). “Here,” I said to Eugene Dorgan, a full professor at Lesley University. “Why don’t you just write the article?” The joke was that in our culture, the visually minded, so the stereotype goes, prefer to grunt rather than answer with sentence and paragraph when asked to comment on their talent. But, as I listened to my questions being answered with comments that asked more questions, and read Professor Dorgan’s answers to the emailed follow-up questions which answered fully and yet on careful reading, posed still more questions, I began to think that the joke, if taken too seriously, is on us. Visual culture, certainly can’t be reduced to words, just as words lose … [Read more...] about DORGAN’S SMOKY SURFACES: PORTRAIT DRAWINGS DRAW VIEWERS CLOSER

MIDCOAST MAINE: LOCAL COLOR AND FOODS AWAIT FALL ADVENTURERS

// Artscope Online, Current Exhibits, Current Issue, Exhibits, Featured, September/October 2019, Visual Arts

by Leah Hamilton French

I like to joke that I found freedom in Maine. And in a way, it’s true. Recently, I traveled up the coast to the small town of Freedom for a much-needed weekend away. While there, I was delighted to find not just the peaceful, bucolic scenery I had been craving but also a region bursting with local flavor — from lobster shacks, farm-to-table restaurants and an Amish charcuterie to open studios, galleries and off the beaten path museums. Though summer is nearly over, the foliage will soon be blazing, and there is plenty of time to visit Midcoast Maine before winter. Local Color Gallery and Local Foods // Belfast, ME Belfast, at the mouth of the Passagassawakeag River, has a bustling arts scene for such a small city. Many artists live and work in the region, displaying their work in Belfast’s many galleries, and the city hosts a monthly Fourth Friday Art Walk. Finch Gallery, Belfast … [Read more...] about MIDCOAST MAINE: LOCAL COLOR AND FOODS AWAIT FALL ADVENTURERS

Ethan Murrow, “Hauling,” 2019, view of exhibit with kinetic scroll sculpture and wall drawing, at Currier Museum, Manchester, New Hampshire.

WEIGHT OF THE WALLS: ETHAN MURROW’S “HAULING” AT THE CURRIER

// Artscope Online, Exhibits, News, Visual Arts

by Olivia MacDonald 

With approximately 900 fine-tipped Sharpie pens, Ethan Murrow blends storytelling with history, community and labor on the white walls of the Currier Museum in Manchester, New Hampshire. In his new exhibition, “Hauling,” globular collages of hundreds of tools including a saw, wooden wheel, speedometer, nail, net and modern high-tech machinery, tower over visitors. Alongside them, drawn people hold ropes and play a kind of tug-of-war with the mechanic entities, while some carry the weight of them in their hands or on their shoulders. The diagonal tugging of ropes creates movement across the walls, where visitors stand in the center of a laborious scene. The exhibit draws upon the industrial history of Manchester, which during the mid-19th century, held the largest cotton mill worldwide. Today, old mill buildings house restaurants, shops and art galleries. Murrow combines the tools that … [Read more...] about WEIGHT OF THE WALLS: ETHAN MURROW’S “HAULING” AT THE CURRIER

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

Garage, 2016, mixed media on paper, 9” x 12”.

Ellie Brown: Holding on to a Dear Life

// Issue Articles, November/December 2018

by Meredith Cutler

Alzheimer’s. A word that conjures up images of fear, isolation, confusion, and loss. In the United States today, 5.7 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s. By 2050, this number is projected to rise to nearly 14 million. Terminal illness is a painful topic — but this one strikes home for me. My father was recently, finally diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, after years of ambiguous labels assigned to his memory loss and declining capacity to care for himself. I sat down with photographer and mixed media artist Ellie Brown to talk about Alzheimer’s, fathers and daughters, and art as a means of documenting, unpacking and transforming this disease. Brown’s upcoming show “Sundown,” at AS220 in Providence, encompasses all of these things. Brown’s own father, a tall, friendly and robust guy known for his love of music and acting, was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s in 2015 … [Read more...] about Ellie Brown: Holding on to a Dear Life

HEIDI GEIST: BREWING UP OPPORTUNITY

// 12th Anniversary, Current Issue, Issue Articles, March/April 2018

12 FOR OUR 12TH HEIDI GEIST FOR MORE INFORMATION: DIEGEISTART.COM by Eric Taubert Her name is Heidi Geist and she’s a self-confessed “Art Punk in the Craft Beer Sphere.” To her legions of adoring fans, she’s more familiarly known as ‘The Geist.’ Her paintings are colorful and loose, like a psychedelic liquid light show from a 1960s-era rock concert. They hint at the fluidity of consciousness, especially as it drifts towards the state of sleep, often with a glimmer of hope or wonder, and sometimes with a bold feminine edge. Alternately, her pen-and-ink drawings dazzle with their dizzying level of intricate detail. Sometimes the two styles merge into a tattoo geometry that evokes dark wonder and tickles the mind with the complexity and depth of its illusory patterns. Perhaps you’ve seen her distinctive work gracing the sides of your favorite 16-ounce can of Bissell … [Read more...] about HEIDI GEIST: BREWING UP OPPORTUNITY