Abstract Art

The Adventures of Hanging Art

I have no idea why I scheduled three exhibits this summer--two of them the same month, except that summer is a good time to have an art show in Ithaca. We get lots of tourists, who are attracted by our lakes and gorges as well as the wine trails. 

The first challenge in hanging a show is deciding where each piece will go.  Luckily, I had chosen sizes and colors that mostly worked in the space.  I always bring extra, but there were only two that we couldn't find a place for this time.

We had to wait until the previous artist took down her work, and I had misunderstood the time we would meet.  But by getting there an hour early, we got all my paintings inside the building before the heavy rains descended. 

We were supposed to hang the paintings from hooks with wire, but it would have been tough to do that with my larger paintings.  Fortunately, we were given permission to put hangar nails in the walls.  My daughter volunteered to stand on a stepstool to do the measuring and nail placement. 

The largest space at the Americana Winery and Cafe was the tasting room--but it was not that well lit on the cloudy day we were having.  Fortunately, my 48" x 48" colorful abstract paintings don't depend on a lot of light to stand out.  The snapshots I took of the exhibit did not come out great because of glare from a window, but this will give you an idea of the space.

 

The second room we hung the art was the cafe, which had a lot more light.  All the spaces there were small, but I brought along enough 16" x 20" and 20" x 20" paintings to fit them. 

The exhibit will be up for the month of July and ended up including sixteen paintings. 

 

 

 

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Hanging Americana Winery & Cafe Exhibit Today

I'll be hanging an exhibit of new as well as older paintings at the Americana Winery and Cafe today.  The cafe has smaller spaces for hanging, so I'll be showing paintings that are 16" x 20" and 20" x 20" in that space.  Here are a couple:

  Modern Art Fifteen, 16" x 20" acrylic on canvas.

  Modern Art Thirty-Seven, 20" x 20" acrylic on canvas.

I'm also hanging some much larger pieces in the winery tasting room, where the ceilings are high and there is plenty of wall space.  Several of these paintings have deep reds, which look better in real life than they show in a photograph:

  The Knife Cuts, The Petal Falls, 48" x 48" acrylic on canvas.

  Cliff Dwelling Two, 48" x 48" acrylic on canvas.

My daughter will be helping with the hanging, so it should go smoothly.  I'm bringing my tool box, measuring tape, and lots of extras that might be needed, just in case.

Next time I'll post photos of the exhibit hanging.

 

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Preparing for an Exhibition

I'll be exhibiting my abstract paintings at the Americana Vinyard, Winery and Cafe in July, which means I have to get organized for it now.  The tasting room has high ceilings and enough wall space for some large canvases, so I'll need to pick ones that work well together.

In the cafe, I'll need very small paintings, so I'm glad I've been working on that size lately.  I could bring some of my drawings if they were framed, but they're not. 

Every now and then I think I'd like to have a show of my drawings, but the knowledge that I'd need to get them framed keeps me from following through.  Some day.

  Modern Drawing Eleven, 12" x 9" acid free inks on archival paper.

I always bring more paintings than I will actually need--a much better plan than not bringing enough or having the wrong size or colors.  Sometimes you don't know which paintings will look good together until you hang them.

After I select the paintings, I have to prepare the labels, a price list, and find a bio of myself to put up.  I guess it's been a while since I've done this, because I feel very lazy about it.  Plus, hanging at a winery is a do-it-yourself endeavor, unlike a gallery where the gallery staff handles it. 

Now that I'm done writing about it, I'd better go and DO IT!

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Having More Fun in the Studio

First Friday Gallery Night in Ithaca, NY

It was perfect weather for First Friday Gallery Night in Ithaca last week.  The daytime rain had given up, and temperatures were mild.  My friend Linda and I wandered from one gallery to the next, enjoying the work of many young artists we hadn't seen before.

Greg Tomezsko's striking oils had enough abstraction in them to excite me.  You'll find realistic portraits and impressionistic nature scenes in his portfolio as well.  His work was at the Community Center of Music and Arts, where he is currently a teacher. 

Michael Sampson was exhibiting abstract paintings with thick lush layers of paint at Contemporary Trends.  The photos on his website don't do justice to his visually engaging originals. 

Allison Shull was showing a number of colorful, abstract expressionist paintings at Contemporary Trends.  Her work was also available there in digital archival prints. 

Ithaca's co-op gallery, The State of the Art Gallery, had an exciting two-person show.  Rachel Gorman and Scout Dunbar were exhibiting works on paper that complemented each other well.  You can find more of Scout Dunbar's work at the Ink Shop in Ithaca. 

Rachel Gorman is a recent graduate of Alfred Unviersity's School of Art and Design.  She exhibited exquisite abstract works of folded paper. 

Helena Cooper, an artist I've written about before, was showing some of her fabulously energetic and colorful pieces at Contemporary Trends.  She also has work at Agava Restaurant and has exhibited widely in upstate New York as well as Brazil. 

  DEPTHS IN BLUE, 48" x 36" oil on canvas by Helena Cooper.

 

 

 

Art Studio Video from Greater Ithaca Art Trail

While I was talking to visitors in my studio at the Greater Ithaca Art Trail open studio weekends earlier in October, my assistant filmed some videos.  My assistant is my thirteen-year-old granddaughter Rachel, and she is still learning how to take videos. 

Worried about how people would react to being in the video, Rachel moved the camera too quickly, so some of the final video is a bit shaky.  The next weekend she took a video of my talk to a class from Wells College, whose teacher brought them as a class assignment. 

Here's what we learned from this project:  take lots of video and lots of still photos.  It's always better to have more to choose from so you can pick the best.  I think next year we'll make a fabulous video, but in the meantime, here's the one I edited from this year:

 

New Exhibit: Explorations in Color and Form

The Kitchen Theatre here in Ithaca has been a wonderful host for exhibits of my paintings.  Their beautiful lobby space with high ceilings is the perfect backdrop for my colorful abstract art.  This week Artistic Director Rachel Lampert chose 11 new paintings to be hung and ready by September's First Friday gallery night.  They are picking them up today.

Their previous show of my paintings featured canvases in bold, bright reds.  This time, they chose a more subtle assortment, including some with yellow, orange, and brown. 

  Constructing A Self, 48" x 48" acrylic on canvas.

  Fertile Seed, 44" x 44" acrylic on canvas.

Both Rachel and the Kitchen's Managing Director, Steve Nunley, are experts at hanging the art to show it off to its best advantage.  That is a talent in itself.  If you're in town, come for a wine tasting, a great play, and my new exhibit.

Visit Five Artists in Ellis Hollow, Ithaca, this Saturday

Twelve art trail artists from our region are opening their studios this Saturday, July 7, from 10 to 2.  It is possible to see all 12 in 4 hours, but if you'd like to focus on one geographical location, you will find five of us in the Ellis Hollow area of East Hill:  Nari Mistry, Stan Bowman, Mary Ann Bowman, Sylvia Taylor, and me.  All of us will have our studios ready to show you our art and to talk to you about how we make it. 

Getting my studio ready for regular art trail weekends (October 6, 7 and 13, 14) usually takes me about two weeks prep time, but I can't afford that for one Saturday.  What that means is that you'll find my studio in a state closer to the way it is when I'm actually working--in a bit of dissaray. 

Fortunately I had visitors to my studio a couple weeks ago, so that got me started on the clean-up.  This week has been hectic as I'm just back from vacation, and hung seventeen paintings in a two-person show at our famous vegetarian restaurant, Moosewood, this week.   Stop by there, too, if you're in town.

  Two of my abstract paintings at Moosewood this month.

 

Art Trail Exhibit Opens at CAPS Gallery

The Art Trail Members Exhibit opens at the CAPS Gallery in Ithaca, NY this week.  Come to a reception from 5 to 8 Friday night, July 6. The 29 artists who will be exhibiting represent a wide varity of work, including paintings, prints, photographs, sculpture, fiber art, ceramics, and mosaics. The exhibit will run until July 31st.  This is an opportunity to get a preview of the art available on the Greater Ithaca Art Trail this year.

Twelve of the Art Trail artists will have open studios this Saturday, July 7, from 10 to 2. Visitors will get a chance to see where the art is made and to talk to the artists about their process and intention.  Here is a sampling of their work:

  GLASSWARE by Doug Baird

  BIG ROUND CHICK by Mary Ann Bowman

  FORETHOUGHT by Stan Bowman

  YOSEMITE SUNSET by Nari Mistry

    ABSTRACT ART 43 by Lynne Taetzsch

 

 

 

Hanging New Art Exhibit at Moosewood Restaurant

I came back from a vacation in the Hudson Valley on Saturday and hung seventeen abstract paintings in a new exhibit at the famous vegetarian restaurant, Moosewood, on Sunday.  Luckily my daughter helped, and she's the one who climbed up and down the ladder.

I brought twenty paintings because it's always good to have extra to choose from.  Each of the spaces available was slightly different--some paintings needed to work together--and some needed to fit into the background environment.  I usually do not exhibit in restuarants because I feel people come to eat, not to look at art, but Moosewood gets a lot of tourists in the summer and the restaurant provides an environtment which shows off the paintings well. 

My exhibit is a joint one with folk artist Mary Michael Shelley, whose work I love. Check out her art blog, where she describes her process of woodcarving and painting.

Here's a photo from Moosewood with one of my paintings fitting into a background of plants:

  Abstract Art 36, 30" x 24" acrylic on canvas, hanging in Moosewood Restaurant.

Here's another one looking down from the entry stairs:

  Cliff Dwelling One, 48" x 48" acrylic on canvas, hanging at Moosewood Restaurant.

The exhibit will be up for the month of July, so come to see the show, eat one of Moosewood's famous vegetarian meals, or pick up one of their cookbooks to make your own.