There are stories that women only tell to each other. At RJD Gallery in Sag Harbor, some of these stories will be revealed in "Women Painting Women: The Tales We Tell Together." The group show made up of an international rooster of female artists will be exhibited at RJD Gallery from October 10 to November 12, 2015. An Opening Reception will be held on Saturday, October 10, from 6 to 8 p.m.

"The Tales We Tell Together" is the third edition of an international group show where female artists create art with a female as muse and subject. The paintings selected were the result of an open call for art that drew worldwide submissions. The exhibition includes contemporary art by 30 artists with the majority expected to attend the opening at the gallery in Sag Harbor in The Hamptons.

The exhibition is a special one for the gallery which presents Contemporary American Realism with a focus on Narrative Portraiture, Imaginative Realism and Contemporary Landscapes.

"For many women Art can serve as their voice when they want, deserve, and need to speak," said RJD Gallerist Richard Demato. "We are thrilled to again have an opportunity to provide a venue for these women to share their souls, their hearts, their stories, and their talents. Last year over 250 works were submitted from women around the globe, including artists from Spain, Russia, Mexico, China, Canada, and from across the USA. We look forward to another experience of the incredible energy and affinity created when women are both the subject and the speaker."

Artists selected for the show are newcomers to the gallery, returning artists from last year's "Women Painting Women" exhibition, and artists represented by the gallery.

Exhibiting artists include Laura Atkins, Nancy Boren, Rebekah Bynum, Deborah Chapin, Mary Chiaramonte, Candice Chovanec, Stephanie Deshpande, Teresa Elliott, Carla Falb, Pam Hawkes, Andrea Kowch, Shana Levenson, Rachel Moseley, Sylvia Nitti, Isabel Olivares, Omalix, Yana Movchan, Cindy Rizza, Margo Selski, Beth Sistrunk, Andrienne Stein, Rebecca Tait, Rea Whalen, Pamela Wilson, Sherry Wolf and Daryl Zhang.

The paintings on view mostly portray one subject with others capturing pairs of women in mid-motion. The works reveal many moods and sides of women, whether real, imaged or steeped in fantasy. Prices in the exhibition range from $1,200 to $48,000, allowing for collectors of contemporary art to discover paintings well within their price range.

Following is a small selection of the art and artists exhibiting in "Women Painting Women: The Tales We Tell Together".

Candice Chovanec

"Chloris and Flora, Against the Wind" by Candice Chovanec. Oil on panel, 24 x 36 inches. Courtesy RJD Gallery.

Candice Chovanec was born in Catania, Sicily and was raised in the United States. She moved between Southern California and the Midwest throughout her formative years and this impacted her aesthetic for open spaces and rural scenes. After receiving her BFA in Drawing and Painting from Laguna College of Art and Design, Chovanec traveled Europe studying the works of Renaissance artists and the early Impressionists.

“Painting is forming a connection between oneself and the model as a way to capture the uniqueness of the person’s spirit,” said Chovanec.

Candace Chovanec has exhibited throughout the United States.

Rae Whalen

"The Fall" by Rae Whalen. Oil on linen, 24 x 14 inches. Courtesy RJD Gallery.

An accomplished painter of portraits and still lives, Rae Whalen has gravitated towards figurative work. Combining technical accuracy with expressive brushwork, her subjects are caught mid breath, surrounded by an impression of the natural world.

"My work explores the fragile sensitivity of the unspoken human experience," said Whalen. "I paint the internal struggle, a moment of reflection, an insight. I paint whispers of emotion communicated through a fleeting expression. My subjects are caught mid breath in contemplation. Combining technical accuracy with expressive brushstrokes, I pursue the balance between skill and expression. This allows me to connect with my subjects as a whole."

Whalen's work has been exhibited nationwide and is held in multiple private collections. Rae Whalen lives and works in south suburban Chicago but takes frequent trips to far northern Wisconsin, where she draws inspiration.

Nancy Boren

"The Dressmaker" by Nancy Boren. Oil, gold leaf, 30 x 24 inches.

Nancy Boren is a printmaker and oil painter, depicting a variety of figure, landscape and marine subjects, most often captivated by scenes in which the figure fills the canvas.

"The creative process delights me. I am fascinated by painting and printmaking; by the rich, pure colors on the palette, the power of a line, the texture of the paint, and the creation of a 3D form on a 2D surface," said Boren. "The American West, where I have grown up, has greatly influenced me...Artistically there is much that appeals to me: large simple shapes, interesting silhouettes, and strong contrasts of value and color."

Boren’s work is included in Texas Traditions, 36 Contemporary Artists of the Lone Star State by Michael Duty and Susan Halsten McGarry and Brushstrokes and Balladeers edited by C. J. Hadley. Her painting, Aloft in the Western Sky, is part of the permanent collection of the Booth Western Art Museum in Georgia.

Her work has been exhibited at The National Arts Club in New York, The Gilcrease Museum, The National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame, and national juried shows of the Oil Painters of America, the Outdoor Painters’ Society and the American Impressionist Society. Boren is a Master Signature member of American Women Artists. Her paintings were used in the feature film 9 Months and the ABC TV show The Benefactor.

Deborah Chapin

"Invincible" by Deborah Chapin. Oil on linen, 24 x 36 inches. Courtesy RJD Gallery.

Most of Deborah Chapin's artwork for the last 20 years have been painted en plein air. Her work has been exhibited internationally and published in books and art publications. She was sole representative of the 20th century in a Marine Art Exhibition spanning the 15th to 20th century at the Ketterer Kunst (Hamburg, Germany). When Chapin began making portraiture, water and its varying qualities was a through line.

"So I have followed Sargent‘s advice, following the path for 35 years of exploring and painting everything else first and finally portraits," writes Chapin. "My kind of portrait, with water untethering the model from the restraints of reality and gravity, developing the interaction with line and color and dreaming in reality. The models and I are experimenting to create and depict the interior thoughts of the modern woman. Together we start the creative process of painting with water, hair, color and line and are exploring every aspect of the subject."

In addition to exhibiting nationally and internationally, Chapin has lectured and made film presentations at the Smithsonian American Art Museum.

Isabel Olivares

"Autumn" by Isabel Olivares. Oil on wood panel, 28 x 20 inches. Courtesy RJD Gallery.

Isabel Olivares hails from Mexico and is a returning exhibitor to the "Women Painting Women" exhibitions. She works in a variety of mediums but her primary focus is painting. In her art, she strives to create a place where realism and abstract meet and create an atmosphere where ambivalence between the two results in interplay for the viewer to ponder.

"The use an ambivalent foreplay between realism and abstraction allows the observer to relate with the piece leaving a window for their own interpretation," said Olivares. "The final result is expected to be finished both by artist and the imagination of whom completes the story behind each painting."

Autumn is part of a series titled “Don’t Trust Beauty”. The series is a “rebellion against the contemporary standards of beauty; where honesty is often stigmatized and sometimes sacrificed in pursuit of perfection," the artist explained. Autumn is accompanied by the words of poet Thomas Hood, “I saw old Autumn in the misty morn stand shadowless like silence, listening to silence.”

Isabel Olivares's art has been exhibited in Mexico, Paris, Texas and New York.

Rebecca Tait

"Duplicity" by Rebecca Tait. Oil on canvas, 48 x 42 inches. Courtesy RJD Gallery.

Rebecca Tait is known for painting highly narrative figurative works in the classical realism style. She demonstrates her sheer passion for visual story telling through precision drawing, rich luminous color, and dramatically engaging subjects. In 1983, she founded her highly successful teaching studio, The Studio at Glen Gables, where she continues the legacy of teaching classical realism with the discipline and dedication of the old masters.

Rebecca Tait's work has been exhibited in galleries and museums throughout the United States and is held in many private collections. She has won numerous honors, including the 2009 International Portrait Society’s Award of Excellence. Rebecca’s work can be found is in many private collections.

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BASIC FACTS: "Women Painting Women: The Tales We Tell Together" will be exhibited at RJD Gallery from October 10 to November 12, 2015. An Opening Reception will be held on Saturday, October 10 from 6 to 8 p.m. RJD Gallery is located at 90 Main Street, Sag Harbor, NY 11963. For information, call 631-725-1161 or visit the gallery online at www.rjdgallery.com.

For more artwork, visit the exhibition listing "Women Painting Women: The Tales We Tell Together".

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