12/31

Slug: Michener Art Museum To Highlight Work Of New Hope Area Artists

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NEW HOPE, PENN. — The James A. Michener Art Museum in New Hope will open, on January 28, “The Contemporary Eye,” featuring the work of 12 Bucks County artists working in a variety of styles and media. From abstract to realist, in paintings, sculpture and collage, the artists offer an exciting survey of the local arts scene today. “The Contemporary Eye” will run until May 8.

Judith Heep’s work combines the abstract with the seemingly real, such as animals or people with fields of color, in a mixed-media format, while Robert Ranier’s work suggests both the density of architecture and open areas in his acrylic paintings.

Solebury artist Mavis Smith uses a painting process of semitransparent layers of egg tempera to gracefully hint at narratives that are never fully explained. Mixed-media artist Marilyn Gordley of Pipersville works in a semiabstract style. Her paintings often tell the story of her life, including her unusual portraits in which the faces sometimes protrude from the canvas in a bas-relief fashion.

A powerful portrayal of society’s disenfranchised infuses Trenton based Susan Twardus’ works whose charcoal drawings and paper sculptures are infused with a noble sadness. On the other hand, Valeriy Belenikin shows his humorous, sometimes biting observations of the human condition by peering behind the elaborate facades people construct to hide their weaknesses.

After undergoing a series of medical tests, photographer Ann Lovett became interested in the “luminous beauty” revealed by x-rays and other imaging systems while Charlotte Schatz is fascinated with the many abandoned buildings near her studio, and New Hope painter Al Lachman creates colorful, evocative images of houses and buildings.

Morrisville-based artist Ricardo Barros’ photographs are featured in the monograph Facing Sculpture, a collection of portraits of contemporary sculptors. His images for this project often include visual references to the artists’ works or their inspirational sources. His probing photographs suggest how each artist uniquely transforms materials and reinvents space.

Valerie Von Betzen’s twilight and evening scenes of river towns along the Delaware River from Easton, Penn., to Lambertville, N.J., explore the variety of light sources emanating from the shops, taverns, automobiles and bridge guardhouses unique to these towns. Von Betzen is inspired by the haunting beauty and quiet, lonely qualities of life in small river communities.

Woodworker David Ellsworth of Quakertown developed a process called hollow turning, which resulted in the creation of thin hollow wooden vessels that are considered both craft objects and formal sculpture. Inspired by his prior experience of working in clay, his love of wood, and Native American ceramic and basketry forms, Ellsworth’s creations express the spirit and pulse of his raw materials.

In conjunction with the exhibition, the museum will present an Artists Studio Open House Tour on Saturday, April 16, from 10 am to 4 pm. This special self-guided tour offers a rare opportunity to go behind the scenes, meet the artists in their own studios and learn about their techniques, what inspires their creativity and what new works they have in progress. The price is $15 for members and $20 for nonmembers; directions will be provided. Reservations can be made at 215-340-9800 or online at MichenerArtMuseum.org.

The James A. Michener Art Museum is at 138 South Pine Street, Doylestown, and at 500 Union Square Drive in New Hope. New Hope gallery hours are Thursday, 11 am to 5 pm; Friday and Saturday, 11 am to 8 pm; Sunday, 11am to 5 pm. Galleries are closed Monday–Wednesday. For information 215-340-9800 or MichenerArtMuseum.org.