Mark Stash paints Keuka Lake view in acrylic
at
Pittsford Fine Art
This month I have a waterfall of news to share! Starts off with a visit to Pittsford Fine Art, a gallery in the center of Pittsford, New York. This building has had some recent renovations so on the ground floor is Pittsford Fine Art and on the second floor there is the new Pittsford Upstairs Gallery. Pittsford Fine Art was having an opening by some of the members, including Mark Stash who paints the landscape above.
Mark Stash is known to us as the editor and developer of the magazine: "Life in the Finger Lakes" and this is the first show we have seen of the paintings he likes to do. We want to know how does one have the time to publish a regular magazine and also do the detailed landscapes that we see of his at this exhibition?
The view that Mark paints, which greets a visitor coming into the gallery, is a kind of painterly realism that is tactile and full of vitality. A sweeping vista down Keuka Lake is life-like and I really appreciate his handling of the sky!
A selection of paintings by Mark Stash
This is a kind of artwork that can inspire one to pick up a brush and try it for yourself! There are so many fine sites in our area, and I know as a painter that I will go out and do some landscapes myself... While we were at the opening I had a chance to chat with another one of the exhibiting artists - Bill Finewood. Bill is an illustrator and also was a colleague of mine when we were both teaching at Rochester Institute of Technology. Bill has done some very fine paintings that verge on photo realism, and it was really nice to see a group of his recent works.
Macintosh Apple by Bill Finewood
Pittsford Upstairs Gallery had a poetry reading when we walked up and there are selections of art and craft on view including some striking flower portraits that I admired. These paintings by Judy Baker had unique treatment of color applications that I had not seen often and they had a certain impact.
Flowers by Judy Baker on view at Pittsford Upstairs Gallery
Both of these gallery shows were worth the visit and I will be sure to keep that in mind when I want to go out and see some recent artwork. When I was back at home I received a package with a book: "Wings of the Gods" by Peter Gardella, published recently by Oxford University Press with cover art by my father, Arthur Singer ( 1917-1990 ). I was so happy to get this new edition with the beautiful Albatross that my father painted so long ago!
Alan Singer holds a new copy of "Wings of the Gods"
by Peter Gardella
This month has so many great features, first and foremost for our family is the fact that we are going to drive down to Washington, D.C. for the award ceremony in the U.S. Capitol Building, where the Ghost Army will be celebrated for their participation in World War ll. The Congressional Gold Medal will be given to the members of the Ghost Army, a battalion whose contribution to the war effort was determined by the deceptions they created on the battlefield in Europe. My father was part of this effort as were other artists and theatre people, a few of the soldiers are actually still alive who were in the war, and that is something we do not want to miss!
The Ghost Army book by Rick Beyer
Cover artwork on top is by Arthur Singer
The participation of artists during the war effort was mainly centered around camouflage, but it was more than that. You can read about it in this book by Rick Beyer. Rick was on hand in January when we had the opening of the exhibition "Our Nature" in the Rundel Building of the Central Library in downtown Rochester, New York. You can find a video survey of our show on my website: www.singerarts.com.
And check this out! A new issue of Explore Art Project is out and my artwork is featured there, including a wonderful interview with the founder and editor Renee Rose. Here are some live links to visit if you want to know more!
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