An Art Couple’s Mosaics And Paintings

Go On View At Anita Shapolsky Gallery

 

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Anita Shapolsky Gallery Art Couple

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NEW YORK CITY — The Anita Shapolsky Gallery is hosting a show on a unique art couple, featuring modern mosaics by Jeanne Reynal (1903–1983) and paintings by Thomas Sills (1914–2000) from the 1950s and 1960s. Opening February 9, the exhibition will be on view through April 25.

Reynal, the mosaicist, was inspired by luminous gold mosaic of ancient architecture of Byzantium. In times, as she observed, mosaic work was conflated to mere juxtaposition of stones, and her project, as a mosaicist, was to recover the lost quality of light. Her “direct method” of laying pieces of stone, shells, marble and semiprecious stones in various patterns let the light glitter on the surface.

Sills, a self-taught artist, inspired by his wife’s collection of abstract art, began working with materials that his wife used in her mosaics, but soon branched out to oil on wood as well as canvas. In his compositions of bright oils, he mimicked her luminous mosaics.

Their works can be seen in a number of museum collections: Museum of Modern Art, Whitney Museum of American Art, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and many more. They were also exhibited by Betty Parsons Gallery for many years. Reynal will be included in an exhibition exploring Isamu Noguchi’s artistic friendships at the Noguchi Museum.

Anita Shapolsky Gallery is at 152 East 65th Street. For information, 212-452-1094 or www.anitashapolskygallery.com.