10th Charleston Fine Art Annual, November 7-8, 2008
On November 7, 2008, Ann Long Fine Art will present its Fine Art Annual show titled “Maestros” in honor of four master painters who have been teaching classical painting techniques for over thirty years. Charles Cecil (Charles H. Cecil Studios, Florence), Daniel Graves (The Florence Academy of Art, Florence), Ben Long (The Fine Art’s League of Asheville), and Jeffrey Mims (Mims Studios, Southern Pines) have been passing on their painting craft in the atelier tradition to generations of young classical painters. Their students are taught to draw and paint from nature using the techniques of the Old Masters, a process that requires continuous education and discovery. Exhibited will be current work from these four masters and examples of work from several of their apprentices, including Jill Hooper who was fortunate to have studied with Mims, Cecil, and Long. While these four Maestros have similar training and their careers have crossed over the years, never before have they exhibited together. Don’t miss this unprecedented event!
For the 10th Charleston Fine Art Annual, The Audubon Gallery will feature a very special exhibition of engravings from Pierre-Joseph Redoute’s Les Liliacees from Empress Josephine’s garden at Malmaison that were published in 1802 and a rare selection of John Gould’s Hummingbirds from 1849 that all feature fabulous orchids from the Americas.
Carolina Galleries will present new work by Stephen Chesley and Chestee Harrington on Friday, November 7, 2008. During the Charleston Fine Art Dealers Association’s 10th Fine Art Annual, new landscapes by Stephen Chesley and a new artist to the gallery, Chestee Harrington of Louisiana, will be celebrated with an opening reception from 5:30-8:30 pm on November 7. The work will hang through the month of November.
From November 8, 2008 through January 5, 2009, the Charleston Renaissance Gallery will present Spot: Southern Works on Paper, an exhibition of 64 works on paper related to the American South. This exceptional selection ranges from Joshua Shaw’s pioneering 1820 view of Virginia’s famed Natural Bridge; to Charles Shannon’s expressive Syncopation Number 3 (c. 1939); to William Dunlap’s contemporary landscape, Waterside—Iris Watch (2004). In style and subject matter, the works reveal evolving approaches and varied subjects, including topographical and romantic landscapes, figure studies, genre, and city scenes. Over the course of two centuries, we can examine classical, realist, impressionist, modernist and post-modernist styles; and the distinctive mediums of pencil, watercolor, pastels, and gouache on paper. Accompanying Spot: Southern Works on Paper is a comprehensive catalogue with an introductory essay by Dr. Philip Brewer—a noted expert on drawings and co-author of Lines of Discovery: 225 Years of American Drawings (Columbus Museum of Art, Georgia, 2006).
Coleman Fine Art will present a unique show “Convergence: Fine Artists Paint New Orleans” displaying an exciting body of work which showcases the talent of five nationally acclaimed painters in mid-career. This past spring, John Cosby, Marc R. Hanson, Joseph Paquet, George Strickland & Mary Whyte gathered as a group to collaborate on recording the essence of New Orleans – the city, her people and the surrounding waterway. These painters came cross-country from their studios, ranging from California to the Carolinas, converging in New Orleans with the sole purpose of painting for this show. Each seemed to be drawn to a personal aspect of the city for subject matter; Mary Whyte connected with the people, Marc Hanson the river traffic and coastal vistas, George and Joe each were drawn to the cityscapes and John captured the interaction of the locals. When asked if he thought the character of New Orleans was still there after the impact of Hurricane Katrina, – and was it something he felt inspired to record in his work, Joe Paquet replied “Yes, the coexistence of old/new, wealth/poverty, light/dark all in such close proximity was what hit me so profoundly.” In this exhibit New Orleans is shown with an evolving identity, brandishing the spirit of survival and resilience in the many colors of an artist’s palette. These five artists have truly depicted the vibrancy of New Orleans, both in its willingness to recover and in its richness of hue.
New works by Lese Corrigan will be on view at the Corrigan Gallery LLC in a show titled “Mid and sky from the Charleston area’s bridges” with a post-impressionistic sensibility and a reverence for nature and life’s transitory states. The show will hang from November 3 to November 30, 2008. With this series Corrigan places the viewer looking out from the structural stability of a bridge and into the natural interaction of the water and sky. By painting the most elemental constituents of water and sky she hopes to capture light and nature in its purest truth and to illustrate the poignancy of electrical ions in creating the vibrations that affect the natural world. According to her vision everything is alive and vibrant with these molecular dances. Her brushstroke by brushstroke approach and her keen interest in color theory all help her capture her vision on canvas. This approach to painting not only furthers Corrigan’s vision of nature, it integrates the symbolic layers of meaning in her show’s title Mid of the immediate Charleston area, finding the middle of the river is a challenge due to the twists and turns of the waterways.
Ella Walton Richardson Fine Art is pleased to announce “A Two-Man Show,” a new collection of figurative and city-scapes by Korean born artists Hye Seong Yoon and Zin opening on Thursday, November 6, 2008 and on display until Saturday, November 29, 2008. These two artists have emerged with a talent and professionalism that measure well beyond their age. Opening reception will take place on November 7, 2008.
On November 7, 2008, Helena Fox Fine Art in historic Charleston presents an exhibition of paintings by nationally renowned artist, West Fraser, entitled “Another Look.” This exhibition will showcase new paintings and rarely seen Works on Paper. Fraser has delved into new national territory and old haunts from his native southern coast, looking for a different perspective and approach to present the evocative naturalistic imagery he is so well known for. Fraser says, “I have my favorite places to paint and I am looking for new ways to see them.” The exhibition will include classic West Fraser Charleston imagery as well as works from California, Maine and the South Eastern Coast.
On November 6, 2008, Horton Hayes Fine Art will open an exhibition entitled “Recent Travels: New Works by Mark Kelvin Horton.” The opening will correspond with the Charleston Fine Art Dealers Association Fine Art Annual and the show will run through November 26th. Mark Kelvin Horton is widely recognized for his landscape paintings. In this series, Horton presents an array of Alpine, Mediterranean and other European scenes as well as several paintings from a recent trip to Monhegan Island, Maine. These paintings are notable not only for their outstanding portrayal of dramatic scenery, but because they convey the artist’s keen appreciation of natural forms and exquisite light regardless of setting or place. “Each location has its own special light and atmosphere and it’s always exciting to explore the qualities of diverse landscapes and cultures. This is why I love to travel and paint”, remarks Horton. Based on Horton’s last sold-out “travel” series composed of paintings from Ireland, this new exhibition is expected to draw broad admiration
John Carroll Doyle Art Gallery will host an art opening on November 7, 2008; the reception will take place from 5:30pm-8:30pm at 125 Church Street. The gallery will be serving light hors d’oeuvres, as well as offer an opportunity to meet the artist, who has been a prevalent part of the Charleston art scene for decades. Following the art walk on Friday evening, Mr. Doyle will be plein air painting in Washington Park Saturday morning November 8th from 9am-12pm as part of CFADA’s Annual Fine Art celebratory weekend. The painting he completes will be included in the annual Charleston Art Auction Saturday evening.
Martin Gallery is pleased to welcome visiting artist Simon Kenevan. Simon was born in London and encouraged to grow freely as an artist. His life revolved around the beaches and the sea, where he spent as much time as possible fishing, rowing, beachcombing, and of course, painting. Despite an apparent gift, Simon had no formal art training. Simon later moved to the United States, and currently lives and paints in his home near Atlanta, Georgia. His heart still lies at the sea, and is moved by the symbolism of space. He paints predominantly coast, sea and skyscapes in pastel, and has just started to explore the medium of oil. Of his work, he says: “The common factor is light. We all yearn it and seek it out when it is absent from our lives. Even in our darkest hour the faintest glimmer of light, a ray of hope, is enough to strengthen the soul, yet we all possess it, deep inside. I believe that people find light, and hope, within my paintings.” Simon will be presenting a new collection of work on November 7, 2008. He will also be demonstrating his unique painting style in Washington Park on Saturday morning.
In his first solo show with Robert Lange Studios, Nathan Durfee (b. 1983) presents twenty new narrative paintings and a series of miniature ink drawings. The show depicts characters whimsically featured in an array of settings and situations and is titled “Where Petals and Rain Fall.” Durfee playfully manipulated the formal conception of each piece in order to create narratives that reveal the particular struggle or adventure of his subjects. The focus in his series lies within the delicate moments experienced by these fanciful characters. Durfee’s inclusion of bold graphic brush strokes and patterned backgrounds creates stunning worlds for his characters to tell their stories. The larger paintings for the show have settings inspired by the Lowcountry, the area surrounding Charleston, including the inner coastal waterway, with weaving rivers and islands of sweetwater grass. On view through the end of November, with a festive reception to be held on November 7, 2008 starting at 5:30 p.m. featuring wine, hors d’oeuvres, and music in conjunction with the Charleston Fine Art Dealer Associations’ Fine Art Annual weekend.
The Sylvan Gallery presents Scott Burdick: Drawings and Paintings from Travels as the special show for the 10th Charleston Fine Art Annual Weekend. The opening reception will take place on November 7, 2008, from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. with the show continuing until November 25. Burdick will participate in the Charleston Fine Art Dealers’ Association’s Saturday Painting in the Park as well as be present for the auctioning of that painting during the Charleston Art Auction gala event the evening of Saturday, November 8. The reception and Painting in the Park are free and open to the public. The auction is a ticketed event raising funds for the Charleston County High School Art Departments. The works in this show will be a mix of paintings and drawings as well as mélange of subject matter. There are a number of people figuring the works. They might be from Tibet or Africa or even North Carolina. A blues singer from North Carolina had his guitar stolen while he was washing windows to make money. Burdick offered him a new one but he would not accept it until they traded with the guitarist sitting for Burdick. Posing allowed the musician to earn his guitar. Adding plein air landscapes from Idaho and Montana including a pack trip in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, one finds great variety in this exhibition.
Opening for the Charleston Fine Art Dealers’ Association’s 10th Fine Art Anuual on Friday, November 7th, the Wells Gallery will present plein-air impressionist George Pate and world renowned watercolorist Earl B. Lewis. A reception will be held at the gallery’s newly renovated space on Meeting Street, from 5-8 p.m. and the show will run through November 21st.
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