The Marion Art Center’s latest exhibit is a solo tour de’ force from local artist Nancy Dyer Mitton, now to August 9. The opening reception was heavily attended by fellow artists, family and friends on July 12. In the lexicon of the art world, the show is not considered a retrospective but instead is a “survey” of this master’s last 40 years of creating impressive works of visual art.
Upon entering the first-floor gallery, one finds small works full of color, full of gentle flowing images inviting one to study the images just a bit longer.
On the second floor are massive, expansive scenes inspired by coastlines. And then there are those early paintings of a library scene with first-edition volumes and antique porcelain. The juxtaposition of the books and her newer linear seascapes demonstrates not only the artist’s evolution over four decades but her desire to connect times and spaces into visual concepts.
“My painting helps me connect to life, most are autobiographical,” Mitton shared.
The artist’s background is also impressive. Her resume lists study at the Massachusetts College of Art where she earned her BFA studying under George Nick, a highly respected artist in his own right who taught hundreds of students the finer points of painting for many years.
Mitton cofounded the Water Street Gallery that was in Mattapoisett and received artist in residences twice (1995 and 2001) at Rochefort-en-Terre in Brittany, France. She became an exhibiting artist member of The National Arts Club in New York in 1993 and a member of the Artists’ Fellowship in 1995.
Mitton is also a published author of a book titled “A Romantic Art Colony: Marion, Massachusetts,” described as a book about careers of key American artists and writers who put Marion and New York on the global, cultural map during the late 19th Century. The Metropolitan Museum of Art is exhibiting this group, “New York Art Worlds, 1870-1890,” on view through Sunday, July 21.
Mitton’s works have been represented by Soprafina Gallery in Boston since 2001. Gallery director Frank Roselli describes Mitton’s art, “…its expansive beauty, power and light. Her paintings use the physicality of the oil paints as she creatively constructs her canvas using wet paint with adroit skill.”
For Mitton the passion for painting remains strong. Her art survey brings to the public an opportunity to see works that spans styles, use of linear elements and, of course, color over 40 years of artistic perfection.
Marion Art Center
By Marilou Newell