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12/11/2009

Drawn Together

Lichtenstein Center for the Arts, Pittsfield

Downtown Pittsfield’s community arts center, the Lichtenstein Center for the Arts, hosts Drawn Together, a group show of Berkshire County artists, who have regularly met over the years to critique and mentor each other through their artistic journey. The exhibit will kick off with a free opening reception on Friday, November 13, from 5 to 7pm. Refreshments will be served and attendees will have the opportunity to meet and talk with the exhibiting artists.

The group began when artist Betsy Dovydenas and Paul Graubard were enrolled in classes at IS 183 in Stockbridge and working with a teacher, Cham Hendon, who emphasized the importance of camaraderie with other artists. Dovydenas said, “It wasn’t so much that we critiqued each other, although we did; it’s that we were friends. His gift was respect to us as artists.” The seven featured artists in Drawn Together -- Linda Baker-Cimini, Betsy Dovydenas, Julie Edmonds, Paul Graubard, Barbeio Barros-Gizzi, Susan Hartung, and Grier Horner – embody a wide range of creative approaches, influences, subject matter, medium, techniques, and, not least, vision.

Hartung, who helped organize the show, notes, “We are a community, coming together regularly as a group, meeting in each other’s studios, engaging in ongoing dialogue about a particular work we bring, or broader issues of a working artist. We talk about methods and materials, about artists who particularly interest us. We learn from each other. We try to balance critical suggestions with support and encouragement.”

Baker-Cimini’s pen and ink drawings are cryptic, weird, and funny and serve as an invitation to a world parallel to what we already know. Dovydenas’ work is sensual and mysterious and draws from imagination and intriguing real-life experiences. Edmonds’ dynamic oil paintings reveal the essence of her perspective on life, whether a landscape, a person, or a situation. Graubard’s lively paintings reflect his pleasure in storytelling with whimsical and joyful exuberance. Barros-Gizzi’s textural, meditative, multimedia works are exquisitely executed and evoke a range of cultural traditions. Hartung, coming from an abstract tradition, works with the expressiveness of line, its way of drawing our attention to the patterns of life. Horner brings his interest in history and culture to the canvas in painting series inspired by literary works such as Dresden , The Scarlet Letter, and Joan of Arc that are expansive, exploratory, and bold in images and technique.

Opening Reception: Nov. 13th 5-7pm

Lichtenstein Center for the Arts
28 Renne Ave., Pittsfield, MA 01201
Gallery hours: Wed-Sat, 12 noon-5pm
Free & open to the public
(Closed Dec 23-January 2, 2010)

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