In the Limelight: Jennifer Green Fais

Just a reminder that there is only one week left to see our latest exhibit, In the Limelight, here at the West End Gallery.  This wonderful show, a gathering of new work from ten of our talented artists, ends next Friday, April 26, so if you haven’t had a chance to take it in your time is running out.  Today, we’re highlighting the work of Jennifer Green Fais, who has graced us for many years now with her work, for which she is well known for her watercolor scenes of nature and the architecture of this area.  Stop in and see her beautiful work.  Below is her statement for the exhibit:

Making art is an expression of love. I have loved nature since my parents chose “Green” as my middle name. Rivers, wetlands, meadows – they all stir my heart. Painting them is one way for me to connect to the natural world, so, it should be no surprise that I have painted many landscapes, waterscapes and bridge scenes. Paddling is also a passion and I am currently undertaking a project to paint a watercolor of each of the sixteen boat launch sites in Chemung and Steuben Counties. Several are included here. 

I have a variety of subject matter for my watercolors, acrylics and drawings. Recent subjects include marsh birds – especially the Great Blue Heron. Using a loose wash-and-splatter approach, I paint watercolor and acrylics on a gessoed collage of papers which often results in exciting, unexpected edges and colors. 

My work tends to be representational and I also enjoy painting the constructed landscape – close-ups of churches, the Rockwell Museum, area schools, the “Little Joe” tower, Centerway Bridge, the clock tower, and other structures in and around Corning, where I have lived for thirty-plus years. I also paint house portraits delighting in the architectural detail that endears the home to its owner as well. 

My work has been shown in numerous juried shows, most recently the Schweinfurth Art Center’s “Made in NY 2013” which opens March 30. I show my work exclusively at West End Gallery.

In the Limelight: Aleta Wynn Yarrow

There is a little less than two weeks remaining in the current show, In the Limelight, which ends April 26.  Today, this blog  showcases the work of  Aleta Wynn Yarrow, a multi-talented artist who has been with the West End Gallery since their days in their second floor gallery further down Market Street here in Corning.  I wanted to say a few words about Aleta before I let her words speak for her.

I first saw Aleta’s work before I started showing at the West End and was instantly attracted to the world she presented.  Simple and beautiful, it was unique and individual, possessing a voice that was unlike anything around it.  Seeing it was an important step in my own growth, as an artist and as a person.  As an artist, there was much to admire and emulate in her work.  It has always been genuine and  brilliant through the years with an unusual consistency in its quality.  There are no thrown off pieces from Aleta.  Every piece is treated as the gem it is.  Every piece is all Aleta, part and parcel of her spirit and being.

As a result, Aleta is considered an artist’s artist, a label that most artists aspire to but seldom attain.  I am truly proud and honored to show my work alongside those of Aleta.  I have a large Aleta piece in my studio in a spot where I see it almost all day and am constantly inspired by it.  Thanks, Aleta.

Now, I’ll let Aleta’s own words describe her current work.  Stop in and take a long look at her work at the West End.  You’ll be better off for the experience.——-GC Myers

My paintings are landscapes as metaphors for the inner life. I have long been drawn to natural elements of transition: autumn, spring, and evening. In human emotional life, transitions are points of greatest vulnerability, but also bring a potential for transformation. 

Within the landscape, the sky is an element of swift transition, even within seconds. Clouds have an ephemeral quality, yet yield tremendous power. To meet the sky one is forced to look up. There is something deeply hopeful in that act. 

Night represents mystery, enchantment, intuition, and intimacy. Night gives us an alternative reality, one that relies on our own powers of memory, insight and imagination. 

My work exists in the shadowland between technique and vision; emotion and intellect; the physical realm and the spiritual one. My inspirations are as often auditory, tactile, or introspective as they are visual.

Three West End Artists Honored!

Jennifer Fais- Embrace

We are really proud to announce that three of the artists here at the West End Gallery have been selected to show work at the Made In NY 2013 exhibit at the Schweinfurth  Art Center in Auburn, NY.   The works and artists chosen were: A watercolor painting, Embrace, by Jennifer Fais ; an oil painting, Wind Power, from David Higgins; and  a gouache painting, Pages, from Chris Baker.

Made in NY is an annual juried exhibit that features New York State artists.  The exhibition runs from March 30 – May 12.  The Made in NY 2013 jurors were Erika Fowler-Decatur, Gallery Director at the Dowd Gallery, SUNY Cortland and Jerome Witkin, Professor in the Department of Art, Syracuse University. Jurors reviewed 556 entries by 288 artists, of which 61 were selected for the exhibition.

David Higgins- Wind Power

The Schweinfurth Art Center is located at 205 Genesee St., Auburn, NY.  Gallery hours are Tuesday- Saturday, 10 am – 5 pm and Sunday, 1 – 5 pm. Closed Mondays, major holidays, and between exhibitions. Call or check the website for schedule. Suggested admission is $6. Exhibiting artists, members & children 12 and under are free.

We hope you can make it to Auburn to see these great pieces but if not, come into  the West End to see more wonderful paintings from this talented trio!

Chris Baker- Pages

 

Gallery Talk Update

We are sorry to report that Treacy Ziegler and James Ramsdell will not be able to make it to the scheduled Gallery Talk tomorrow, Saturday, March 30.  But that only means that you will be able to get even more upclose and personal with Michael Barr,  Aleta Yarrow and Anne Bialke as they make their presentations.  The Gallery Talk begins at 1 PM right here in the West End Gallery on Corning’s historic Market Street.  We hope you’ll make this event part of your Saturday afternoon!

Gallery Talk Saturday/ Gallery Talk

If you’ve loved the group of new work in our new show, In the Limelight, here at the West End Gallery, then you won’t want to miss the Gallery Talk that will be taking place here Saturday.  It features five of the artists– Treacy Ziegler, Aleta Yarrow, James Ramsdell, Anne Bialke and Michael Barr– from this stellar show who will share some insights into their work as well as field questions.  It’s an exciting and diverse group  so this should be a great opportunity for fans of any of these artists to learn a bit more about the work they love.  The talk starts at 1 PM here at the gallery and we’re planning on it running until around 2:30.  Hope to see you here!

James Ramsdell is one of the artists that you can meet and hear Saturday.  Here are a few words  that he shared about the story behind one of the  paintings in this exhibit:

One of the things that has inspired me in my paintings has been human and animal behavior. I love catching those moments of doing what comes naturally with total disregard of what’s going on around you. The subject matter for my painting “Where Did It Go”, which is currently included in the West End Galley show, “In the Limelight” is such a painting.

Every Labor Day in my home town a line is strung down the center of main street; a ball is hung on it, fire department hoses are brought out, and teams go at it to see who will be the champion. Needless to say water is running in the street! So I’m standing there watching the show and I look across the street and here are these three boys playing in the water. They could care less about hose fights; they were far more interested in where the water was going. The boy on the left, the leader, was really into it-finding anything he could and putting it in the water to watch it go down the drain. His brother (the boy in the middle) was getting as close to the action as he could. The third boy on the right was also interested in this enterprise, but being older, wasn’t sure if it was a good idea. It reminded me of when I was their age going to a basketball game with my father and my friend. We slipped under the bleachers, and played until it was time to go home. I think my father said something like, “That’s the last time I take you two to a basketball game!” We had so much fun! 

I took a bunch of reference photos, did some pencil sketches, and finally an oil sketch for the oil painting. In the oil sketch I included some of the people who were standing around, but I decided for the final painting not to include them; they were superfluous! They didn’t matter, as far as the boys were concerned, who were in their own little world. 

“Where Did It Go”- I selected this as the title for it’s double meaning. One, the boys are playing in the water and watching their “water boats” sail down the drain, and two, the unbridled curiosity of youth. We lose that along the way to becoming adults. Such a shame, it was so much fun!

 

In the Limelight/ Opens Friday!

This Friday, we are proud to open our new show, In the Limelight, with an opening reception that runs from 5-7:30 PM here at the West End Gallery.  There will be refreshments and music will be provided by the AMA Flute Trio.   As always, everyone is welcome.  So put it on your to-do list and we’ll see you at the West End on Friday.  It’s a show and an opening that won’t disappoint!

In the Limelight features new work from a select group of ten of our wonderfully talented gallery artists.  This is a great looking show that gives each of these artists a  little more room to show a larger body of their work to the viewing public.  We think you will gain a greater appreciation for their talents when you see the full range of their talents as they show them in this exhibit.

In the Limelight features the works of:

         Michael Barr                                   Jeff Perrault

         Bruce Baxter                                  James Ramsdell

      Anne L. Bialke                                  Judy Sopran0

            David Buck                                   Aleta Wynn Yarrow

         Jennifer Fais                                  Treacy Ziegler

                                                           

We’re showing just  a small sampling  of their great work here.  Stop in at the West End Gallery to see the whole exhibit or view it online.          

                                                                                                                                         

Don’t Miss Ileen Kaplan Radio Interview This Week!

 

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