By John Paul Stapleton.
Boston, Mass. – The Copley Society of Art is currently displaying their annual Summer Members’ Show in the Upper Gallery.
This year, Richard Baiano & Stephanie Bond, president and vice president of the neighboring Child’s Gallery, juried the show.
“Aphrodisiacs” by Shell Eager took first place, followed by “In The Well of Katherine by Kat O’Connor. “L’Oeuf I” by Debby Krim took third while “Bounty” by Matthew Miller received an honorable mention.
Aside from these great pieces, there are many other works in the show that deserve attention — and are for sale.
Wendy Hale’s watercolor painting, “Running Late,” is a colorful city street scene. A rainbow created by the lights flooding into the image replaces the normal grays and mundane colors. The people in this image take on this rainbow as well, making them silhouettes that are equal parts to the rest of the scene. The lights, at their center, are unpainted, bringing focus to the brightness of the white. The street gives the idea that it is wet as it reflects the lights across it. This causes the street to end on the horizon in a culmination of white lights and their various colorful auras.
Brian Dubina’s “Lightship of Nantucket” oil painting is another notable piece creating a scene out of the boat in the title and the archway at Rowes Wharf. The interesting point of this piece is the perspective of a harbor scene that is not facing out to the water. Various lamps running across the middle of the painting illuminate the nighttime scene of the boat and archway. The light then diminishes as it stretches to the top and bottom edges of the frame.
Another oil painting in the show, “Self Portrait of an Artist” by Pamela Dulong Williams, gives an eerie take on portraiture. The bottom half of the painting puts the artist’s palette into perspective, specifically the realistic texture of the paints on it. The texture also plays an important role in the blue and yellow mask worn by the artist that is shaped by prominent brush strokes. The strokes separate the mask almost into pieces due to their harsh edges. The background of the image is made up of dark shades of teal, which provides an ominous feel that is bolstered by the sinister aesthetic of the mask.
The show will only be on view for a few more days so head down to the Copley Society of Art before it comes down on August 19.
(The Copley Society of Art’s Summer Members’ Show: As Expected continues through August 19 at the Copley Society of Art, 258 Newbury St., Boston, Mass. Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday from 11 a.m.-6 p.m. & on Sunday from noon-5 p.m. For more information, call (617) 536-5049.)