EDWARD EVANS @ NINA BLIESE GALLERY through March 13, 2009

"Fire Dance", acrylic on linen, 36x26"







Nina Bliese Gallery
225 South Sixth Street
Minneapolis MN 55402
612-332-2978

January 15 – March 13, 2009

Gallery Hours:
Monday through Friday, Noon to 5 pm

For more information, contact:
www.ninabliesegallery.com

Leendert van der Pool curates at the Salmagundi Club

"World Trade Center/Ellis Island", oil on canvas by Leendert van der Pool

















"From Trade Pier to Museum Pier", oil on canvas by Leendert van der Pool




For Immediate Release
November 17, 2008

Contact: Kathleen Arffmann or Chris Nunnally
info@salmagundi.org
(212) 255-7740 or 
Leendert van der Pool
(718) 855-7964

Salmagundi Club Celebrates New York's 400th Anniversary

NEW YORK: In conjunction with the year-long 400th anniversary celebration of the Dutch discovery of New York, Wilbert Weber, Director of the MuZEEum of Vlissingen, the Netherlands - an historical maritime museum - has invited the Salmagundi Club to be part of a reciprocal celebration of events between the cities of Amsterdam and New York. Leendert Van der Pool, resident artist member of the Salmagundi Club since 2000, is the guest curator as well as a formally recognized honored Dutch artist.
The Salmagundi Club, located at 47 Fifth Avenue between 11th and 12th Streets, will present one of the earliest celebratory events in New York. The Club has served as a center for fine artists from New York and around the country since 1871, providing exhibitions of paintings, sculpture, and photography, lectures, and other art-related programs.

On Monday, January 26, 2009, the Club will open its exhibition titled History Panorama: Salmagundians Illustrate Manhattan's 400-Year Founding by the Dutch. The Panorama consists of 24 panels, 6 feet in height and 3 feet wide, created by Salmagundi artists that depict 400 years of the history of Manhattan. The exhibition will run through February 13, from 1:00 - 6:00 PM daily and 1:00-5:00 PM weekends. There will be an opening reception on Friday, February 6, from 6:00 - 8:00 PM.
The Salmagundi's History Panorama will then move to the Hudson River Gallery & Conservators, opening on Saturday, February 21 and running through March 14. The Hudson River Gallery is located at 86 Main Street, Yonkers, NY 10701, across from the Metro North Station. Their contact information is as follows: Helmut Zitzwitz at 914 964-0401; e-mail hrivergallery@optonline.net.
The Salmagundi's History Panorama's next venue will be at the prestigious Fraunces Tavern Museum, well-known for its historical importance, starting March 23 through July 31, 2009. Its contact information is Richard Gregory, 54 Pearl St, New York, NY 10004, at 212 425-1778 and email: curator@frauncestavernmuseum.org. After its close, the exhibition will then be shipped overseas to be on exhibit at the MuZEEum in the Netherlands from September 4, 2009, through February 28, 2010. 

Many talented Salmagundians have devoted their time and skills to portray the history of Manhattan: among others, Joseph McGlynn's panel "Henry Hudson's Ship - Half Moon" shows the ship fording the North River (later renamed the Hudson River); Jane Haher's panel - "New Amsterdam" shows Manhattan as a colony of the Netherlands; Karen Loew chose for her panel "The Battle of Fort Washington;" Ann Kullaf recreates the most severe blizzard recorded in the United States - "The Great Blizzard of 1888" and last but not least, the curator Leendert Van der Pool has created a montage titled "Ellis Island, World Trade Centre."
The museum in Vlissingen is planning a catalogue of the History Panorama that will include images of the panels, historical information about the artwork, and biographical sketches of the artists that will be available at the reception at the Salmagundi Club on February 6. Questions should be directed to Kathleen Arffmann at 212 255-7740 or info@salmagundi.org, and/or Wilbert Weber w.weber@muzeeum.nl; his phone number in Holland is 01131-118-41-24-98.
There will be a second exhibition in the Upper Gallery titled The Contemporary Harbor of Manhattan: Salmagundians Celebrate Manhattan's Bustling and Historic Waterways. This exhibition will run the same dates as the History Panorama and will present smaller works by Salmagundi artists depicting the New York harbor and water structures as they are seen today. Guy A. Wiggins, the grandson of J. Carleton Wiggins (1848-1932) and the son of Guy C. Wiggins (1883-1962), will contribute his "Manhattan from the Brooklyn Shore" to the exhibition.
This second exhibition's next venue will be the Fraunces Tavern, February 18 through March 16, after which time, the paintings will be shipped to the MuZEEum and will be on exhibit at the MuZEEum from May 15 to August 30, 2009.
Lastly, there will be a theme exhibition titled "New York-Its History and the Dutch" that will depict any aspect of the 400-year history of Manhattan, the medium and subject to be chosen by each Salmagundi artist, in the Club's Lower Gallery. There is a possibility that some of these paintings may also appear at the other venues.
Many distinguished dignitaries, including Mayor Michael Bloomberg, have been invited to the reception on Friday, February 6 from 6:00-8:00 PM. Do not miss this very special historical occasion.
***
For additional information, please visit www.salmagundi.org

The Salmagundi Club is dedicated primarily to the exhibition of fine art created by living American artists and to nurturing a friendly atmosphere conducive to learning about art with classes in drawing and painting, discussions about art materials and techniques, and a host of social activities.  All exhibitions and most events are open to the public. 
Salmagundi Club
47 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY  10003
(212) 255-7740
info@salmagundi.org
www.salmagundi.org
***

"Our Neighborhoods" - January 3-29, 2009

"On the Bowery", Paula Goldfader











Franklin 54 Gallery presents:

“Our Neighborhoods”
January 3-29th, 2009
Opening Reception: Saturday, January 3rd, 3-7P

A group exhibition of photographs by the Creative Center’s photo club. Images are from the neighborhood of each artist – the project started with photographing the Lower East Side of Manhattan where the Creative Center is now located but branched out to other neighborhoods. All of the artists in the exhibition are connected to the Creative Center and are cancer/serious illness survivors. Please visit the Creative Center’s web site for more information on their organization and view their online gallery.

www.thecreativecenter.org

SIRI BERG: "It's All About Color" - November 20-December 28th

"It's All About Color #6", Japanese woodblock prints on archival board, 60x30"
















For Immediate Release: November 1, 2008
SIRI BERG
“It’s All About Color”
Collage and Assemblages
November 20th – December 28th, 2008
Opening Reception: November 22nd, 4-7P

Franklin 54 Gallery is pleased to present collage works and assemblages by Siri Berg. Rich in color and design, the “It’s All About Color” series is comprised of 6 large panels of 20 individual rectangular Japanese wood block prints within each panel. The series starts with little color in the copper, grey and green range and transforms through each panel into the brilliance of fiery reds and oranges, blues and purples. Each individual print within is unique with interesting textures and designs, although still within Berg’s minimalism they complete a larger cohesive vision. The 4 panels in this exhibition are attractive and elegant with rich and subtle colors.

The remainder of the exhibition is a combination of collage works and assemblages that make for a striking contrast of the artist’s work in color and lack of it. Her assemblage works from found objects are again minimal in design and color. Industrial looking because of the materials and choice of grays, silver and gold, the pieces are simple and serene. The direct and clean works of the Coloratura group continue to reinforce Siri’s excellent use of design and color. Part texture (collage, oil on canvas, pastel on paper) and part flat surface, her use of line with geometric shapes in the horizontally moving base juxtaposed against the lines evaporating upwards makes for an effective image, although again subtle.

Opposites and progression have been an inspiration and an interest of this artist’s for many years.
Extra treats included in the show are Berg’s smaller colorful collages – “Red Hot” is a spatial textural beauty with its warmth of colors suggesting a floating landscape joined by a waterfall of sunbursts. Even smaller gems exist in the precious collage pieces under plexi – these modest works are small pieces of diverse papers combined from silver rectangles and squares with bright flashes of color - there are slight changes here but huge impacts from the different surfaces, some being dull and others shiny and slick.

Born in Sweden, Siri has lived and worked in New York City for many years; she is on the faculty at the Parsons School of Design. Berg has an extensive resume of solo and group exhibitions in the United States and internationally in renowned galleries and museums. Her works are widely collected privately and in major museums including the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and the Jewish Museum, NYC. Cynthia Maris Dantzic recently profiled her in the book “100 New York Painters”.

MINIATURES, to love & collect, by ELISA PRITZKER - November 2-16th with a reception on Nov. 15th

Click on the card for larger viewing

Edward Evans Paintings, Sept. 12th-Oct. 31st

"White Spaces", acrylic on linen













"Come Together" acrylic on linen











Opening Reception: September 20th , 4-7P

Franklin 54 Gallery is privileged to present the new paintings of Edward Evans. These works continue with the Contemporary Chinese theme this artist has been using for a number of years. The simple Chinese characters that Evans incorporates into his paintings heighten the sensibility of the pieces, as he concentrates on the shapes of the characters. These new works are even stronger and sharper in contrast, the finished paintings are vivid beauties. The fine scriptural writings make them unique and draw you closer for examination, daring us to connect and become immersed in them and enveloped by them; one can hardly restrain oneself from touching the work to feel the embossing that is not there. On first glance, thinking they are photographs or 3 dimensional layers we are pleasantly surprised that these are flat acrylic paintings on linen - subtle illusions come about because of this artist’s silky airbrush technique that has been perfected. Ed’s work is clean and crisp, exact yet not stiff - smooth and inviting. Every part of the painting is given equal consideration and importance, again showing us the influence of traditional Chinese painting. For sure these are handsome pieces, full of character and intrigue.

Impressed with the way the old masters painted their illusions, Evans was attentive to how drapery was used to create various moods and feelings by abstracting from the draping cloth and from paper and metal. Lettering, handwriting and signs also fascinated the artist - symbolic forms expressing a desire to communicate and a hope that people can remain individual while working together. Contrasts and tensions have always been evident in his work – hard edges define shapes while some areas are made soft to serve as a foil and allow flow and human sensitive feeling. “My labor intensive process starts with layering and sanding white paint that is applied to fine linen canvas. Then I spray colors with an airbrush because it lends itself to shading so subtle that images can be highly illusionistic from even close up. Because paintings are meant to be looked at, these legible designs must fit into an aesthetic entity. It is not important to read the paintings, but there must be a mood or spirit of the writing.”

Edward Evans spent his early years in Minnesota and now lives and has his studio in Stroudsburg, PA in the Pocono Mountains. He is the curator at the Southwest Minnesota State University Art Museum as well as other venues and with his wife Connie, is the owner of Gallery 705 in Stroudsburg, PA. Edward’s works have been exhibited widely in museums and galleries in the United States and internationally including Italy and Switzerland and are included in numerous museums, private and corporate collections.

SUMMER HOURS

Big WIndow, oil on canvas by Laura Duggan

During July and August the gallery will be open by appointment only - please give us a call if you would like to see any works by gallery artists and we will be happy to arrange a visit with you. September 12th we will resume our regular hours with a solo exhibition of new paintings by Edward Evans.




Light Chambers, acrylic on linen, Edward Evans