Art Watch: Carved wood and hammered steel is a great place to start
“First Friday” in November is brimming with art show openings and pop -ups from Wilmington to Phoenixville, Kennett Square to Oxford. It is hard to know where to start, but I would suggest that you begin on the Wilmington Art Loop at the beautifully renovated Delaware Museum of Natural History. Local artists Jeff Bell and John Rush have been working hundreds of hours to create extraordinary, enormous wildlife sculptures for the museum’s “Carved Wood & Hammered Steel” exhibit.
The opening reception is Friday, November 6 from 5 – 9 pm Come visit this free show and meet the dedicated artists who have carved and forged creatures out of wood and steel to complement the museum’s ongoing collection of natural objects. The Museum does such a terrific job at merging contemporary art interpretation alongside scientific signage and collection.
Moving through the museum, the viewer is amazed by the art exhibit, and cannot help but look again at the museum fossils, shells, animal and geological specimens with new eyes, exploring the extraordinary aesthetics inherent in natural forms.
The du Pont Trophy show is also on view with an opening reception which showcases the watercolors of Philadelphia biologist and artist Lauren Sweeney in “A Celebration of Science.” The Trophy award is provided to shell shows across the United States to recognize the “Most outstanding exhibit” of each show. Proceeds from the sales of these award-winning watercolors will benefit the Delaware Museum of Natural History.
Also catch the “Every Stream Matters” photography show, which exhibits the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary Photo Contest Winners. Three amazing shows open on one night will inspire and delight everyone in the whole family.
Also in Delaware, opening at the Blue Streak Gallery in Wilmington, from 5-8 pm Friday November 6, “Recent Works” by local artists Robert Straight and Sarah Yeoman, which will show through November 30th. Yeoman’s beautiful watercolors are often exhibited throughout Chester County. She is also a gifted teacher of watercolor with classes at The Chester County Art Association in West Chester.
In Kennett Square, First Friday starts at Mala Gallerie with an opening reception from 5-8 pm for award-winning artist Thomas Del Porte entitled “Forever – is composed of Nows.” Del Porte is on the adjunct faculty of the Delaware College of Art and Design and was the former President of the DCCA artist guild. His paintings are described as being “made with thousands of little jeweled, thorn like curls, each stroke acting as an individual painting.” He paints from direct observation in the attempt to capture a unique portion of the infinite qualities of light, line, color and spaces that nature provides.
Down two blocks from Mala, visit the opening for ceramic artist Peggy Oltman at Flickerwood Winery’s Tasting Room. Ms. Oltman creates interesting mythically inspired face mugs, including Dionysus, God of Wine.
Also in Kennett Square, West Chester expressionistic painter John Hannafin will be having a pop up art show and sale at Galer Estate Winery in Kennett Square from 3-7 pm on Sunday November 8. While his studio is in downtown West Chester, you can always see his brightly colored oil paintings enlivening the walls of Roots restaurant on Gay Street (one of my all time favorite farm to table places for brunch!)
In Oxford this week, check out the last days of the terrific “Kennett Square Artists” show at the Oxford Art Alliance which ends November 13th. Their opening two weeks ago was packed with 250 people coming in and out over three hours! The Oxford Art Alliance team really knows how to put together an excellent show.
Their next gallery exhibit is Petite Paintings, where donated 6″ x 6″ paintings are in a Special Event Sale to benefit The Richard Beard Scholarship Fund, Saturday November 28 11 – 4 pm. Mr. Beard’s used to own The Bookplace for many years, which is located at 2373 Baltimore Pike in Oxford.
The Bookplace will also have an art opening on Sunday November 8th from 5-8 pm, featuring the brilliant woodcuts of Dan Miller, entitled “Small Creatures.” Dan Miller graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and PAFA , served as a PAFA instructor in art history, painting and printmaking, and has been PAFA Dean of Faculty, Acting Dean of the School, Chairman of the Painting Department, and since 1998, Chair of the MFA Program. I hope he is there at the opening, because I would love to meet Mr. Miller, and I want to buy one of his woodcuts!
November 8th- January 31, The Bryn Mawr Rehab Hospital, at 414 Paoli Pike in Malvern, exhibits the 20th Annual Art Ability Exhibition with over 400 works of art and fine crafts by artists with disabilities. Their opening gala with butlered hors d’oeuvres, Galer Estate Wine, and delicious food is Saturday November 7 from 5:30-8:30 and requires tickets which may be purchased online at rsvpbook.com/ArtAbility or call 484.596.5425.
The featured artist, Max Tzinman, was born in Romania with a severe hearing impairment that influenced his artistic expression of the world around him. Tzinman merges painting, photography, collage and assemblage to produce a series of deep and mysterious images that often reflect the social isolation that he felt growing up hearing impaired. This is a stunning show that took a year to collect and curate, and helps to highlight a uniquely talented and often overlooked segment of our local artist population.
In Phoenixville, First Friday starts at the Phoenix Village Art Center in the Gallery with featured artist Veronica Tronoski whose show opens 6-9 pm Friday November 6th with a guided tour of the upstairs/ downstairs studios at 7 pm. If you can’t get there on Friday, then go on Saturday, when you can also attend the delicious and inspiring opening reception for ARTSisters at the Gallery at Franklin Commons in Phoenixville from 1-4pm November 7th.
ARTSisters is a group of professional women artists from the Philadelphia who will be exhibiting “Explorations of Contrasts” curated by Katie Naber. The show is open through Friday December 4th, and free to the public. ARTsisters began when two friends, Linda Dubin Garfield and Leslie DeBrocky came together as a supportive endeavor for each other and other women artists. Today, 26 members strong, the ARTsisters work to share knowledge, resources, and encouragement to each other as well as to give back to their communities through donations and good works. The Gallery at Franklin Commons always has interesting shows and monthly wall displays with a range of art from local artists that you should checkout.
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