interview:
Gail Winbury
Get in touch:
What are you working on right now?
I am preparing a one-woman exhibition in October, for a gallery in Pittsburgh, Pa. That involves a lot of preparation time. All of my current work is on paper and smaller than usual. I have an on-going Covid-19 series, composed of about 30 oil paintings on paper. These paintings sequentially record the emotional reactions of my community, the world and myself, to the pandemic. They are full of color, mark-making and gestural-abstraction. I am also working on abstract watercolor paintings in black and white.
What would you like to say about Manufacturers Village Artist Community?
I have been at Manufacturers Village for four years. It is a community of talented and eclectic artists . Three stories come to mind.
1. One day last spring, I was driving the 30-minute commute to Manufacturers Village. I planned on applying layers of gesso to all of the canvases already stretched in the studio. I arrive to find out I am out of gesso. All it took was a quick text to an artist friend and a 2-minute walk to another building. Soon, I was back in my studio applying gesso from a borrowed barrel.
2. I came to the studio in June to quickly get supplies and leave, during the pandemic. I ended up sitting on the pavement ,in the sun, social distancing and catching up with a lovely artist I hadn't seen in months.
3. A curator came to my studio for a studio visit. I arranged a visit with two other artists. One whose edgy, raw, sculptural work I loved, but he was going to be away. He gave me his keys to his studio so I would take the curator there. When he returned, he said, "just keep them". I guess if he loses his keys he’ll know exactly where to find another set.
Outside of spontaneous work critiques, or shared meals, these stories represent my experience of the village community.
What's next for you?
I am thrilled for my solo exhibition "Another Way to Speak", at The Christine Frechard Gallery, in the mattress factory district of the beautiful city of Pittsburgh, Pa. The show opens October 10, 2020. There is a lot of selecting , wrapping and transporting work ahead for the opening.
I am part of a group of artists making collaborative art for the USPS Art Project at the Pelham Art Center, Pelham, NJ. The exhibit will travel to galleries in Texas and Colorado.
Depending upon the Pandemic and vaccine production, I am scheduled to co-curate "Reinventing Eve" a group exhibition of 10 women artists at the Jewish Art Museum of NJ. It is planned for March 2021.