While we always look forward to the Marion Art Center’s exhibitions, there is something so necessary for our human condition during winter, that being the Winter Members’ Show (January 13 – February 23.) This show not only gives the member artists a venue to share their works (nearly all available for purchase), but moreover to warm and charm our spirits during the gloomy skies that surround us. Thank you all.
As we entered the first-floor gallery on January 13, we were immediately and yes, once again, struck by the sheer variety of artistic expression on display.
In the entranceway, we found a truly unique piece titled Picasso’s Steam Punk Heart by Michelle Lapointe. Using Picasso’s abstract take on the symbol of love, the black, red and metallic elements of the petite offering is striking.
Deeper into this gallery we found sculptor John Magnan’s Infinite Love, a moebius shape delicately carved with flowers, a symbol of love eternal of rich cherry wood.
Magnan’s works are always thought provoking and masterfully executed, such as the other piece on display titled Bookends, walnut and common pins. Magnan told us he is heavily influenced by the abstract artist and fellow sculptor Constantine Brancusi (born in 1876 in Romania and deceased in 1957 in France.) Magnan’s Bookends takes Brancusi’s Sleeping Muse into another realm, taking uncomfortable couplings, smooth wood and pins, to possibly a statement on the world’s current conditions. There’s always so much to ponder.
We had to pick and choose what to note in this piece, which is never a good thing when there is so much to say about each and every work of art, but taking the show in personally will do you a world of good.
Don’t miss Anthony Days’ pictures, especially the precious take on the Marion Music Hall titled Musical Afternoon. The filtered sunlight contrasted against the rich red brick of this local iconic structure is just perfection.
Jane Eagan’s two velvety landscapes, while small, pack a punch thematically.
Peter Stone’s large canvas titled Cloud Break captures the sky and sun at rich juxtaposition. The sky as a natural canvas for the light encircled by clouds.
Lisa Baltz’s Oyster and Quahog oils on paper had us doing a double take. The 3D effect is astonishing.
Brenda Wrigley Scott’s Into the Woods, acrylic and pencil, welcomes the viewer into a dense forest theme, while Zoryana Tershovska’s simply titled Flowers is a fusion of bright, loud florals heralding the beauty of flowers everywhere.
Jaye Degnan Tirimacco’s oil on aluminum titled Marsh Grass gives us a view of a marsh with translucent and shimmering undertones.
And over at the Marion General Store in a window you’ll find Adrift by Barbara Healy. You could call it a much-deserved, one-woman show.
Other artists exhibiting their works are Carol Bliven, Kim Barry, June Strunk, Lynette Torres, Janet Cromer, Helen Bryant, Martha Plumb, Kyle Riseley, Thomas Richardson, Bernie Klim, Susannah Davis, Charles Stockbridge, Jill Law, Susan Gilmore, Iria DeVaooes-Vieira, Heather Long-Roise, Donna St. Amant, Charlotte Smith, Cathleen Broderick, Susan Meadows, Peggy Call-Conley, Helen Johnson, Reginald Carter, Christy Gunnels, Barbara Geagan, Pat Coomey Thornton, Michael Hebert, Nancy Skawinski, David Danis, Milo Fay, Alanna Nelson, Russell Saunders, David Owen Maloney, Robert Dunn, Bunny Mogilnicki, Jay Ryan, Nat Simkins, Dorothy Hebden Heath, Lorraine Stewart, Thomas Geagan, Susan Gilmore, Sarah Calder, Susan Lawrence, Susan Costa, Anita Poyant, Lenore Pennington, Kate Butler, Diana Parsons, Michael Matherson, Adele Daley and Zoryana Tershovska. Winter gallery hours are Thursday through Saturday from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm.
Marion Art Center
By Marilou Newell