"Captivate" featuring Dennis Leri, Brian Craig, Martha McAleer, Kat O'Neill, Linda Sirow
On view July 11 - July 29, 2018
Opening Reception: Saturday, July 14, 2018 from 6 to 8 p.m.
The White Room Gallery, 2415 Main St, Bridgehampton, NY 11932
The definition of captivate is to hold the interest and attention of, to attract and delight. "Captivate," the exhibition, features five featured artists and bring together sculpture, photography, encaustic painting and mixed media which lives up to this definition.
Crayon wrappers are part of the art. So is the beauty of the East End in its myriad of movement and colors. Cool palates and textures hang alongside vibrant abstracts. Painted welded steel curls in magical ways. "Captivate," the exhibit, does not disappoint.
Read on to discover the artists with work on view in "Captivate."
BRIAN CRAIG
After retiring in 2015 from the consulting and marketing business, Brian Craig began painting full time. He has studied drawing and oil painting at the Manhattan Studio and is continuing his studies at the 92nd Street Y.
He has participated in shows at the Manhattan Studio, Guild Hall Members exhibits and The 92nd St. Y students show. Craig has sold work at the Guild Hall Clothesline shows for the last three years.
He volunteers at the Museum of Modern Art where he is a member of the MoMA Contemporary Arts Council and serves on their acquisitions committee. He is a docent at the Pollock Krasner House and Study Center in East Hampton. He also is a volunteer at the Solomon Guggenheim Museum.
Craig divides his time between New York City and East Hampton, NY.
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Artwork by Brain Craig. Courtesy of The White Room Gallery.
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DENNIS LERI
I create sculpture for indoor, outdoor, private and public spaces from various materials such as steel, copper and wood, states Dennis Leri. Through the free association of color, texture, scale and form my work defines itself in an intuitive manner. Curved shapes, clean minimalist lines, and abstract designs are common themes. My sculpture reflects the intense relationship between myself and the material, and is a statement of my identity. I continue to learn about myself and my material as the relationship progresses.
I begin to develop my concept with the traditional process of a sketch, then through trial and error the form is worked out with maquettes. The maquettes stand on their own as works of art. The full-scale work is further adjusted and tweaked until I am satisfied. I aspire to create work that conveys my desire for balance and harmony utilizing minimal elements.
The expressive properties of steel and the techniques required to create metal sculpture intrigue me. I focus on line, shape and the relationship between the two. Like Calder and Lassaw I believe that the work has an inner life, space within space and spaces between the shapes.
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Artwork by Dennis Leri. Courtesy of The White Room Gallery.
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MARTHA MCALEER
All I've ever wanted to be and all I've ever been is an artist, states Martha McAleer. From a very young age, my view of the world was that of a moving painting. My earliest memories were of a fascination with nature and its mechanics. I'd get up close and visually erase anything but the singular object that I was viewing. That was the start of my seeing the world in black and white. For me, it was a simpler way to remember details.
To this day I see the world at large in black and white but when I paint it becomes vibrant with color! My award winning projects inspired me to make art my life's work.
For many years, I illustrated figurative floral paintings and freelanced creating logo designs. I always adored Georgia O’Keefe’s work and was inspired to create my own style and began painting and selling very large and colorful florals. I love to paint just large enough for the painting to consume my field of vision.
Today I work primarily on canvas with acrylic paint and plaster. I create paintings with lots of texture. I'm very drawn to a cool palate. I want to draw the viewer in for a moment with a curiosity as to what they are seeing. I have a thing about order that I consistently put into my work along with lots of texture and clearly bright colors. I build my paintings systematically as a sculptor of architecture would do by layering one color, texture and idea at a time.
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Artwork by Martha McAleer. Courtesy of The White Room Gallery.
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KAT O'NEILL
Kat is an award-winning photographer, mixed media artist and writer as well as Co-Director/Co-Owner at The White Room Gallery. Her work has been described as provocative, imaginative, unique, bold, crisp and unexpected. Street art is mixed with city images, rocks turn into characters, industrial pieces take on their own beauty in abstract reflections or evocative still lifes, vintage album covers create montages, words convey a story and, often, paint and layers add dimension as her pieces are born.
Kat is intrigued by a myriad of catalysts. Both masculine and feminine, her images are burned into metal because of its vibrancy, simplicity and the fact that it can withstand the elements. Kat has won many awards for her art including two Golds for Best of the Best East End Artist and The Award of Excellence by Juror Karen Marks, Director of Manhattan’s Howard Greenberg Gallery, one of the world’s leading photography galleries, as well as Juror Dr. Naomi Rosenblum, eminent photographic historian and Juror Jennifer McGregor, Director of Arts and Senior Curator at Wave Hill Cultural Center.
Her work has been featured in numerous websites and publications, including The New York Times, and has been displayed by museums, galleries and private collectors. All Kat’s images are limited editions, printed with archival pigment inks.
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Artwork by Kat O'Neill. Courtesy of The White Room Gallery.
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LINDA SIROW
Linda Sirow is a New York based artist who focuses on creating abstract images in variety of materials including traditional oil on canvas or boards. Recently she has been most involved exploring the seductive qualities of encaustic painting.
Sirow's work reflects her love of color, movement and the process of painting. Using simple and recognizable shapes and a strong sense of depth enables her to transform her pieces into compositions that express infinite emotions and relationships. Recently she has been most involved exploring the seductive qualities of encaustic painting. Reflecting the creative process is an important aspect of her artwork.
Linda Sirow has shown her work in New York City at a variety of places including the BAM Artist exhibits, Kathryn Markel Fine Art and 79th Professional Galleries. In the Hamptons, Sirow has exhibited at Silas Marder Gallery, Hampton Road and Monika Olka Gallery.
Linda Sirow trained at the Boston Museum School, Pratt Institute and The Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture. Some of the artists she is inspired by are Eva Hesse, Joan Snyder and Ida Kohlmeyer. In addition to painting, she teaches art at The Dalton School in New York City.
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Artwork by Linda Sirow. Courtesy of The White Room Gallery.
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