2011 September » Artkestry

Image City: Rochester Moments by Sheridan Vincent

Art Venue, Exhibition Critique Comments Off

Sep 232011

Runs until October 2, 2011

Sheridan Vincent

What a stunning exhibit! One might think that there are limits to photography and its motifs, but Image City’s September show proves very much otherwise. As long as there is light, there will always be myriad of innovative approaches for photographers to interpret our reality.

Jim Dusen

It’s challenging to describe the show in a snapshot; there is so much to see. The artist who dominates the current exhibit is Sheridan Vincent, whose work occupies most of the wall space in the main gallery. Jim Dusen’s images, a guest photographer, reside in the East Gallery – a smaller space adjoining the main room. And, the gallery’s “center field” is furnished with floor fixtures that display a wide variety of work created by Image City’s partners.

Sheridan Vincent

Although I have known Sheridan Vincent for quite some time, his superior sense of composition and innovative approach to showcasing his photographs always leave me flabbergasted. He is one of a few artists who consistently photographs Rochester (among other motifs), capturing the town’s cultural sophistication and seasonal beauty, and the city’s historic skyline transformations. His photography is creative, inspiring, as well as documenting his unique perspective. Vincent’s latest high-tech substrate – a thin aluminum sheet with a clear coat on the image – make his pieces appear luminescent; each photo’s radiant surface “finds” glimpses of light even in the darker spaces, reflecting the light brilliantly.

Stanislaw Goc

Also, Stanislaw Goc’s fine work caught my eye. His pieces, “printed” on a large aluminum plate, are reminiscent of the Bauhaus era, where different realities and dimensions are confined to the boundaries of one image. Goc’s reverie-like prints are sophisticated and energize the space that they occupy.

The Image City’s curatorial arrangements are abundant with dramatically diverse portfolios – kudos to the gallery for managing such a variety. So, I’d suggest that you visit the gallery during off-traffic-hours, which allows one to truly view the pieces.

Enjoy!

Yours truly,
Aida

Figures abound, but only until September 16

Exhibition Critique Comments Off

Sep 132011

By CHRISTINA LAUREL
Written for Artkestry

Although there is no way for the eye to take in the full offerings of the New York Figure Study Guild’s (NYFSG) 2011 Annual Exhibit, there is an imbued flavor. According to Guild member Rob Curry, many of the artists are former students of Steve Carpenter, in whose gallery in the Neighborhood of the Arts the group convenes and exhibits. Hurry, though, if you are to catch the 84 works before the official end of the show – Friday, September 16. As artists claim their pieces, the visual palette will change although many artworks will unofficially continue to be on display.

While the exhibit’s descriptor – “…original works…expressing the beauty and magnificence of the human form. Established and emerging artists alike will astound you with their insight, talent and extraordinary vision,” did not totally measure up to such grandiosity, it is an exhibit worthy of viewing and one of which the 3 year-old Guild can be proud. Oils, acrylic, watercolor, pastel, charcoal, graphite, and digital media are represented, with the scales tipping to the oils. And the oils themselves are executed in styles that range from the fresh impressionistic alla prima, such as Kathleen Bolin’s Dialogue, to Todd Ryan’s thick impasto in BodyScape IX. Jono Peterson’s mixed media Nikki adds an element of mystery to the model; Richard Harvey pushes the edge of the envelope with his fired and glazed red clay portrait Stoneface.

Males and predominantly females are represented as both human sculpture and as personalities. Particularly interesting is the treatment by different artists of the same model, such as the portly Harold with his wisened eyes, full scruffy beard and backwards baseball cap. Jodi King captures the model in her charcoal Harold-A Study; Barbara Doyle interprets Harold in oil as an American Worker; while Rona Poss also casts Harold in oil, but this time as The Poet. Unfortunately I missed the September 11 drawing expo where Alan Brewen, Jan Davidson, Larry DeKock, Anne Jurgens, Axel Kaires, and Pat Lesniak focused on the same model for a 3-hour period, producing discrete stylistic works that further the point that we all see and experience life differently.

Steve Carpenter has been focused on the human body for decades, with a recognizable style that he surprisingly keeps fresh. In Study #1 the viewer moves from a facial portrait to layering of recumbent body poses, and a splash of color that deviates from his previous palette. Speaking of palette, a trio of portraits share such a similarity in warm hues and play on light that I thought they shared the same authorship. It turns out that the artists, talented 15 year-old Julia Maddalina and her mother Laurie Maddalina, do indeed influence one another. Julia’s Self Portrait is reinforced by Laurie’s portrait Julia, and vice versa. Bin Zhang’s subjects are contemporary but his treatment is classically refined, as in The Red Shawl. Suzi Zefting-Kuhn’s Derek and Kevin Feary’s Unexpected Journey both capture their respective models’ personalities and literal life energy.

Several works either credit or mimic the style of a late master, or are reminiscent of internationally-known contemporaries: Kim Braun’s Untitled is a large canvas where the landscape of the body melds into the landscape of the background in a Richard Diebenkorn way; David Huebsch’s nude in Behind the Curtain sprawls in a Henri Rousseau-esque pose; and James Rodgers’ Bad Day on Wall Street brings Alex Katz to mind.

There is an intimate quality to the majority of pieces, and a human scale that does not affront our own sensibilities or those of the model. There is variety and there is talent. What we lack is time, so do hasten to see the NYFSG exhibit before its too-short run is over. Steve Carpenter Gallery & Art Center is located at 176 Anderson Ave., Rochester, NY 14607; studio phone 585-758-1410. Gallery hours: 1-4pm.

For more info: www.nyfigurestudyguild.com.

Figures abound, but only until September 16

This gallery contains 3 photos