Annual New Members Show Opens at MAG
The artists’ reception will take place this Saturday.
Thursday, January 7th 2010
By Sara Kandler
The Mamaroneck Artists’ Guild will hold its opening reception for a show called “Revelations” this Saturday, Jan. 9, from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. The event is an annual show for new members, who are selected by a jury to join the Guild, a 300-member-strong artists’ cooperative in Larchmont.
The show features a wide variety of artistic styles and media, from traditional still-life oil paintings to contemporary mixed-media works. “We’re very excited to have new works of such great variety,” said gallery director Suzanne Montresor.
One of the most impressive pieces being shown is a large oil painting by Marie Hines Cowan entitled “Medea.” It is a strongly expressive image of a woman staring outward, her eyes glowering and eyebrows arched. She wears dramatically draped, strongly-colored clothing, from which her muscular arms extend, pushing against what look like a wall and a doorway, as if she had just arrived to express her fury.
Ellen Asbyll’s paintings are also captivating. She chose to show her skill in both oil and watercolor with two pieces entitled “Bowl of Fruit” and “Venetian Vase” (each artist is limited to two works). Both paintings are still lives, but the similarities between the two stop there. The oil is a sensual, light–drenched, classically depicted bowl of apples, while the watercolor is a dynamic, cropped image of magenta tulips that practically dance off the canvas.
The show also features inventive mixed-media work, as well as photography, pottery and sculpture. One of the most interesting of the three-dimensional pieces is Marilyn Miller’s ethereal, stone sculpture of a woman’s head entitled “Sophisticated Lady.” The smooth, milky-white skin and elongated form of the subject’s face convey serenity, while her hair, marked with striations that appear as though made by forcing a fork through the stone, evokes intense determination.
The Mamaroneck Artists’ Guild, affectionately called “MAG,” is located at 126 Larchmont Avenue in Larchmont (corner of the Boston Post Road). It is a non-profit cooperative that was started in Mamaroneck in 1953. MAG sells only unique, hand-made pieces, many of which are very reasonably priced. “Revelations” will run from January 6 to January 19; the reception on Saturday is open to the public, and refreshments will be served.
