As
the dark of night descended upon a November day, I arrived in the
town of Milford, PA on Saturday November 12th
for their monthly Art After Dark Event. I've always enjoyed visiting
this artsy mecca and the joy of my previous visitations was soundly
echoed during this occasion. I had the opportunity of exploring the
work presented in three galleries throughout the evening.
The
late Autumnal chill that was in the air accompanied me as I moved
from one gallery to another. The Golden Fish Gallery
www.goldenfishgallery.com
was
my first destination and what a great pleasure it was to be greeted
by John Longendorfer who opened the establishment with his son,
Edwin, in 1997. It was after a time we engaged in some heartwarming
conversation did the yearning to meander around the venue in order to
experience the aesthetic wonders it held move me.
I
was peering into the depths of three and two dimensional renderings
when the sound of hammering caught my attention. It emanated from a
room in which art work was being place upon its walls. I then
discovered that an Artists' Reception was being prepared to showcase
the work of young artists who live within and the surrounding areas
of Milford. The beauty and diversity of the work had an underlining
energy to it that derived from the abundance of the artists' youthful
abilities to summon it.
From
the vibrant colors circling the imagination of the viewer in several
abstracts to the shadows found in a number of black and white
photographic pieces which brought the profound sense of realism
through the multi-layered realms of light and dark to the viewer, the
exhibit held a fascination to all who visited the gallery which
remained with each fortunate individual for quite some time
afterwards. It was good to discover these pieces and to chat with
some of the artist who created them. It was after spending some time
at The Golden Fish Gallery did I venture across the street to begin
visiting more galleries that offered their aesthetic gifts to the
community.
An
Artist's Reception The Stone Bear Tattoo Gallery
www.facebook.com/MGATattoo
was
held
for a
Solo Exhibition
that featured
the work of Jesse
Clemente www.facebook.com/jesse.clemente.3.
The shapes, colors, and emotion placed within the composition of the
abstract pieces attuned the viewer to the mind blending elements that
are communally conveyed. A rawness can be felt from each canvas
touched by Mr. Clemente's creativity that weaves in and out of the
overly sophisticated senses allowing the primal naturalisms of life
to emerge from the psyche.
Although
the two dimensional work Mr. Clemente presented at the Stone Bear
Tattoo Gallery was outstanding, he is better known, at least by me,
for the sculpted pieces which include on titled, “Keith Bearing”
that he created for the recently held Black Bear Film Festival. The
Jesse Clemente Exhibition is on display at The Stone Bear Tattoo
Gallery (formerly
known as "Moon Gravel Arts") which
is owned by Jim
Palmer who is the main Tattoo Artist and serves as the President of
Operations. He is joined by El Denman who serves as the Vice
President of Operations and maintains the establishment's presense on
Social Media and Tattoo Artist Jen Lee.
It
was after some time at the Stone Bear did I travel down the street to
enter The
ARTery Gallery www.arterygallerymilford.com
to partake of the work the venue had on display. The artists featured
for their monthly exhibit were Bill Rabsey www.billrabsey.com
and Liza J. Smith - Simpson www.paintingsbyliza.com.
Mr. Rabsey's sculpted pieces were created from found objects which
expanded the imagination of the viewer through their shapes and
unique qualities. Ms. Smith - Simpson's deftly created paintings
touched upon a number of aesthetic disciplines and mediums ranging
from soothing depictions of landscapes to abstract designs that
challenged the perceptions of the viewer and thereby opening the
subconscious to the flight paths of their imaginations. The work of
both artists complimented each other's endeavors while simultaneously
creating an aesthetic schism between their individual approaches.
The
ARTery Gallery has a number of constructed barriers throughout the
venue upon which the work they display are hung. Walking through
these corridors, the visitor comes upon each grouping with a
wonderful sense of discovery. A plethora of pieces shared the gallery
with Mr. Rabsey and Ms. Smith - Simpson. They included the
extraordinary works of
Alvin Rosser, Madeline Tully, Dawn J. Benko dawnbenko.com,
John Capanna www.creativeexpressionsinwood.org,
Harriet Cotterill, Ron Demuth www.rondemuth.com,
Randall FitzGerald www.randallfitzgerald.com,
Rosealind Hodgkins www.rozhodgkins.com,
Kate Horan, Carol Mainardi www.bythecpress.com,
June Ponte medievallight@gmail.com,
and the gallery's curator, Marie Liu www.mliuart.com.
Their work not only enhanced that of the featured artists, but the
content and quality of the conversations that were inspired by Mr.
Rabsey's and Ms. Smith - Simpson's endeavors were profoundly affected
as well.
It
was after some time did I leave the gallery and the town of Milford
to journey back home. My visits to this little but vibrant community
of artists never fail to bring an inspired joy to my being. The art,
as always, was wonderful to explore and the congeniality of those I
met re touched my being. The exhibitions on presented at The Golden
Fish Gallery, The Stone Bear Tattoo Gallery, and The Artery Gallery
are scheduled to be on display until December 5th.
The Art After Dark Event takes place the Second Saturday of each
month. The next event is scheduled for Saturday December 10th
beginning at 6pm. The featured artists for the month of December are
yet to be announced. In the meantime, you'll
find more photographs taken during my November meanderings in The
Night of the Milford Art Gallery at
www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10155461425878761.1073742035.91146283760&type=3.
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