The Chester County Studio Tour is right around the corner and artists are busier than ever preparing to open their doors and welcome visitors on May 15th and 16th. In Chadds Ford, plein air artist Linda Berndt is hosting Elizabeth Breakell, Pat Scarano and Robin Sesan. Painting mostly Chester County landscapes, Berndt works in oil and pastel. Breakell uses oils to paint impressionistic landscape scenes, florals and more.
Scarano draws her inspiration from nature and currently works with watercolor and oil while Sesan creates clay monoprints. Her process is fascinating, “Working on a clay slab, I add wet colored clay (slip), textures and unique images in a multi-layered process. I then transfer the image from the slab onto a woven substrate and a monoprint is created. Many layers show through the top layer revealing the layers underneath.”
Sesan tells stories through her multi layered, captivating images. For a preview of her work visit Steel City Coffeehouse and Brewery in Phoenixville now through April 27th. Sesan’s show titled “Many Voices” is part of the “Solos at Steel City” series sponsored by The Artist Initiative. Linda Berndt Studio is #51 on the studio tour map. Visit here to start planning your itinerary now.
Scarano and Sesan are Heron Crest Studio artists in Aston, PA. While their doors at the former cotton mill are temporarily closed due to Covid-19 concerns, they are looking forward to welcoming guests back later this year. Artists’ paths are always crossing in our abundantly rich art community. Another Heron Crest Studio artist, Ann Guidera-Matey, is participating in the Solos at Steel City, as well, with a show titled “Quiet Harbors” from May 2nd through June 1st. Working with soft pastels, Guidera-Matey creates lush scenes bursting with almost blinding color. Inspired by the outdoors and her travels, she says this about her art, “Somebody once said, don’t paint the thing, paint the light and I think that’s what really grabs people.” Favorite locations include the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Brandywine River Valley and Hudson, NY to name a few. Visit Guidera-Matey’s site here.
Heron Crest Studios co-founder Heidi Hammel provided details about the group’s plans, “Heron Crest Studios, Inc., housed on the second floor, is a vibrant and thriving set of 21 artist studios. We are happily planning a ‘Welcome Back!’ show; our 15th annual ‘Art along the Creek’, this November, assuming there are no further COVID restrictions put in place. All are welcome! Our artists hail from West Chester, Northern Wilmington, Glen Mills, Media, Wallingford, Swarthmore, Bryn Mawr and Penn Valley. Many of them exhibit their work in Chadds Ford, Kennett Square, Wilmington, Philadelphia and other locations around the Delaware Valley.” For details about Heron Crest Studios visit here.
Not to be confused with Heron Crest Studios, there is news to report about Heron Studios this week too. After 24 years, their doors are closing. With studios located on the first floor of the former cotton mill, founders Mary Gordon, Lorri Primavera, and Marion Kassab are ready for their next creative chapters. From the press release, “We are humbled by your loyalty over these many years of supportive patronage and we look forward to continuing in some capacity through other venues. The amazing opening nights will be remembered as magical and treasured memories for us. To all the wonderful musicians that graciously played for those nights we bow to your talents and thank you for your unmeasured creative support. To all the artist's that shared in our invitational shows, we hope to continue our friendships through the years. Thank You for making our open studio shows such an amazing success!”
A “Yard Sale” will be held on Saturday, April 17th from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Items available for sale include tables, chairs, cabinets, shelving, sofas, rugs, tract lighting, easels, pedestals, art supplies, weaving supplies, beads, buttons and more.
Other events worth checking out: In Greenville, DE, Station Gallery is busy re-hanging the gallery as new art arrives. Gallery Manager Laura McMillan said, “In our Spring Show we’ll be including new work by Baltimore artist Andi Curran, soft palette still life & florals in oil by Rosemary Castiglioni, vibrant mixed media paintings by Michele Foster (a Greenville, DE resident) and Eastern Shore oils by Nancy West from Chincoteague Island, VA. These are just a few artists who have brought in new pieces. We’ve been enjoying mixing a lot of different peoples’ work in our Group Shows. Always fun to see what ends up complimenting each other.” Visit here for more information.
In Philadelphia, Stanek Gallery is featuring Moe Brooker in part two of its Master Artist series. Visit here for his story.
Whatever you do this week, support the arts!!
About Constance McBride
A native of Philadelphia, Constance McBride lived in Arizona for 16 years, where desert observations made a transformative impact on her work as a research based visual artist. Passionate about contemporary art, she was actively engaged in the local arts community. She served as a board member for several art organizations, managed an artist collective/gallery space, curated and juried several exhibitions and wrote for two arts publications in Phoenix. She taught ceramics at Shemer Art Center and Museum and exhibited her work both locally and nationally. McBride returned to Pennsylvania in 2018 and resides in Chester Springs with her husband and two dogs. In West Chester, she serves as a board member at The Art Trust Gallery at Meridian Bank and teaches ceramics at Chester County Art Association. She also teaches at Clay on Main in Oley, PA. She is a member of American Craft Council, Philadelphia Sculptors, and Women’s Caucus for Art, Philadelphia Chapter.
(4 votes, average: 4.00 out of 5)
Loading...
Comments