5/13 – 8/15, 2014
Opening Reception:
Friday, May 16, 6-9pm
SMI Virginia S. Block Gallery
33 Plymouth Street Montclair, NJ
Hours:
Monday thru Friday: 7am to 7pm
studiomontclair@aol.com
Artist as Mentor showcases the work of our artist members and their students. Running from May 13 through August 15 at Studio Montclair’s Virginia S. Block Gallery. All are invited to the opening reception that will coincide with the Montclair Gallery Walk on Friday, May 16, from 6 to 9 pm. The galleries are open to the public 7 am to 7 pm Monday through Friday.
People who visit Artist as Mentor will gain insight into the creative process of teaching and the various ways in which artists pass their skills to the next generation. Artist and mentor Fern Bass says that the artworks she chose for the exhibit “all have common threads. Each has a soulful quality, an emotional impact and a strong sense of textural mark-making.” She adds, “When I work with students, we spend a good amount of time on careful observation from life, rendering form, compositional structure, and anatomy–all very necessary and very teachable. But it’s most important to facilitate an environment in which young artists can find their own particular intuitive and authentic voice. That is not teachable, but it grows out of the relationship with the individual student,…through developing a connection and really trying to see who the student is as an artist and reflecting it back so she/he can see it for himself. I try to meet them where they are and support and encourage their emerging artistic personalities.”
Participating mentors are Catherine Kinkade, with students Ruby Reichardt, Rebecca Rosenheck, and Judy Howells; Sharon Pitts with student Bonnie Bornstein Fertel; Matt Roberts with student Calvin Roberts; April Tracey with students Barbara Johnson and Suzanne Patry; and Fern Bass, with students Ellie Waggoner, Katie Charney, Lucia Giron, Madeline Clearfield, and Savannah Strenz.
Curator Virginia S. Block is a fine artist with work in numerous private and corporate collections. She has had a long and varied art career, including teaching, package and logo design, and as a director of incentive marketing. Since 1980, galleries in Washington, DC, PA, NJ, and NY have represented her and currently, Fredrick Clement in NYC represents her.