'External spaces, interior imaginings'
"Ley Line," by Kathline Carr, at Fountain Street Fine Art, Boston, through Aug. 2. Ley lines are lines that crisscross around the globe, like latitudinal and longitudinal lines.
Ms. Carr, who lives in the Berkshires, writes:
“My process of making is one of construction and reiteration: I render abstractions of real and imagined space, while imposing diagrammic marks through those planes. My work seeks to fuse mappings of external spaces with interior imaginings and associations. I utilize materials that are meaningful to me, often employing fabrics, collage, or found objects to hone in on a particular locale or experience. The landscape interests me as a point of entry to explore isolated forms, light, and implications of human interference.’’
See:
kathlinecarr.com
and:
https://www.fsfaboston.com/
With hidden faces
"Abstract Reflections," by Marcia Wise, at Fountain Street Gallery, Boston, through July 19.
See:
https://www.marciarwise.com/
and:
https://www.fsfaboston.com/
Blurred Boundaries
“Francoise” (color and silhouette, video still), by Melissa Shaak, in the group show (seen online) “The Boundaries Between,’’ at Fountain Street Fine Art, Boston, through June 7.
The gallery says:
“Through collaboration, documentation, and experimentation, artists Jim Banks, Joseph Fontinha, Georgina Lewis, A_Marcel, and Melissa Shaak blur boundaries between our physical and virtual domains. They are investigating longevity, beauty, and resilience; surveilling our behaviors, movements and identity; liberating our imagination by bringing fictional characters to life and immerse us in the digital realm.’’
'Repository of joy and pain'
"Simpler Times," by Chelsea Revelle, in the show (which you can see online) “The New Nostalgia,’’ at Fountain Street Fine Art, Boston, through May 24.
The gallery says:
“These days, with mundane freedoms temporarily off-limits, it’s tempting to reminisce, to dwell on rosy ephemeral memories of a better time. The ways we remember affect us as we experience the uncomfortable present and forge ahead into an uncertain future.
“For artists Brenda Cirioni, Patty deGrandpre, Chelsea Revelle, Alexandra Rozenman, Rebecca Skinner, Sylvia Vander Sluis, the past is a reservoir, a repository of joy and pain in a complex relationship with our own private histories. Their work illuminates the cracks in the veneer of idealized past emotions and experiences and creates space for us to re-examine our relationship with the past and inform our experience of the present.’’
Would she approve?
“Paint Me to Match My Grandma's Drapes’’ (oil and acrylic on canvas), by Mia Cross, in her joint show with Daniel Zeese (only visible to the public on Internet now) , “Where the World’s Meet,’’ at Fountain Street Fine Art, Boston, through April 26.
Music into paintings
Translation of "Firebird" II (Igor Stravinsky) (acrylic, ink, graphite on canvas), by Shany Porras, in her show at Fountain Street Fine Art, Boston, by appointment through April 26.
She told the gallery:
“My current paintings are translations of music into abstract paintings. These translations came about as I was looking inside myself for what to paint. What would be my muse? And how would I paint it? I remember a wise college professor who advised me to “paint what you know” while I was pursuing my B.F.A. at Rice University. At the time, I thought I didn’t know anything, really, so my paintings were disjointed. I was young and inexperienced. Now, well into adulthood, I finally see the connection of my love for music and abstract art. I also know that I have played the role of translator throughout my life. Early on I translated English to Spanish for my Mom when we first moved to the USA {from Venezuela}. Then, professionally, I took on roles that benefited from my ability to translate technology into regular business terms. Now as an artist I choose to translate music, which is inherently abstract, into paintings.’’
'Honesty equates to exaggeration'
"Seek Higher Ground," by Tracy Spadafora, in the show “Exaggerated: Not How I Remember It,’’ at Fountain Street Fine Art, Boston, July 31-Aug. 25.
The gallery says:
“The show of painting, photography, and mixed media highlights the unique abilities of artists to interpret and tell stories. Through visual imagery, specific details of a story are either recalled or forgotten, brought to light or buried, minimized or exaggerated. These portrayals tell us not only their importance within a story, but also what is significant to the individual doing the telling.
”Artists have the ability to translate what they know through the language of art-making; what is remembered takes root in the act of creation. The duty of artists is to use their toolsets to reflect a distinct place, person, emotion, or story—muting some information while intentionally favoring aspects which become embedded as truths. In this, honesty equates to exaggeration. ‘‘
'Yearnings for wholeness'
Work by Joel Moskowitz, in his joint show “Unspooled,’’ with Sylvia Sluis, at Fountain Street Fine Art, Boston, through June 30. The gallery says he “draws long, spiraling lines, mesmerized. He erases and revises over time, building up a shape that seems, finally, both loose and tightly wound. One end of the line typically hangs free, giving the viewer a way into the maze. Ink grows dense and looping like script. He blends minimalism and expressionism with a metallic sheen. His work, says Moskowitz, ‘is influenced by religious icons, yearnings for wholeness.”’
Pay attention!
“Self Portrait as a Beautiful Lady’’ (detail), by Arhia Kohlmoos, in the show “Depth of Perception,’’ at Fountain Street Fine Art, Jan. 2-27.
The gallery says the show:
“{E}xplores the concept of taking notice. For many people this action represents a single moment in time that encourages reflection and to focus one’s attention on the present. It can be viewed as the link between human and spirit; darkness and light; scarcity and abundance. ‘‘
'Surreal waiting game'
Left, “So Sophisticated” (oil on canvas), by Alexandra Rozenman; right, “Witness’’ (oil on canvas), by Anita Loomis, in the show “Untold Stories, at Fountain Street Fine Art, Boston, through Dec. 23.
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To see a video of the show “Untold Stories,’’ by Anita Loomis and Alexandra Rozenman, please hit this link.
This is the show’s last weekend at Fountain Street Fine Art, Boston.
From Artscope’s review:
“The immediate condition and activity conveyed within the pictures made by painters Anita Loomis and Alexandra Rozenman is extrapolation. …{T}he paintings allow and welcome conjecture. The artists have created environments that focus the viewer’s attention towards inference, encouraging the seer to intellectually step into and become part of vague spaces and curious scenes — to participate in a surreal guessing game.
“For the viewer, the stories within the compositions are open-ended and puzzling, being directed in possibility by the depicted visual objects and glimpses of human form. We approach these compositions by asking what’s going on. Some paintings depict relatable imagery such as domestic interiors, landscapes and active scenes, while others are expressive and fantastical with abstracted and speculative shapes and figures.’’
'Stillness within change'
"Preface That" (detail), (encaustic paint), by Mary Marley, in her joint show with photographer Rebecca Skinner, at Fountain Street Fine Art, Boston, through May 27.
The gallery says:
"Marley and Skinner’s work explores the paradox of moments of stillness within larger patterns of change. Each part is connected to the whole but not subsumed by it. The work deals with the distinctness of passing moments as they meld into the current of time. Everything is in flux, but nothing is lost.''
"Mary Marley generates wholeness from fragments by patching together patterns and structures from disparate times and cultures. Having manipulated oils, paper cuttings, and mixed media, she has most recently found expression through encaustic painting. The layering of these pigments creates a unique luminous quality to her graphic narratives.''
Mobile patent-medicine clinic
Work by Stephen Martin in his joint show with Sorin Bica, "Identity,'' at Fountain Street Fine Art, Boston, through April 29.
The gallery says that Mr. Martin "is a mixed-media artist and sculptor who works primarily with antique photos and found objects to fashion unique human stories. His work is about reclamation; while he incorporates found objects to form the 'ground' of the pieces, the figurative element is of primary importance.
He went to the airport
"Waiting for Isaac Levitan After School'' (oil on canvas), by Alexandra Rozenman, at Fountain Street Fine Art, Boston.
But will they vote?
"We the People'' (on on canvas), by Mia Cross, in the show "Thrive: Core Member Exhibition,'' at Fountain Street Fine Art, Boston, Jan. 31-Feb. 25.
The communications industry
"Tendrils,'' by Catherine Carter, in the show "Lines of Communication,'' at Fountain Street Fine Art, Boston, through Oct. 8. The gallery says that her paintings focus on lines and their connections to natural forms.
A tolerance for ambiguity
"Through,'' by Kathy Soles, in the show "Place and Memory: Two Views: Iris Osterman and Kathy Soles,'' at Fountain Street Fine Art, Framingham, Mass., March 9-April 2.
At this time of year, we might prefer green
''Mellow Yellow'' (oil on canvas), by Mia Cross, in the show "Yellow,'' in the annual
''core member'' exhibition at Fountain Street Fine Art, Framingham, Mass., through March 5.
At least the roof is still there
"Shine On'' (photo on aluminum), by Rebecca Skinner, in the current "Divergent Thinking'' show at Fountain Street Fine Art, Framingham, Mass.
Late but sometime before March
"Pond, through forest'' (oil on panel), by ROY PERKINSON, at Fountain Street Fine Art, Framingham.
Where light is a Maine event
"The Summit at Dusk,'' by ROY PERKINSON, in his show "The Poetry of Light: New Work by Roy Perkinson,'' at Fountain Street Fine Art, Framingham, Mass., Sept. 10-Oct. 4.
The summit here is that of Cadillac Mountain, in Acadia National Park, Maine.