Artists:

Robin Goodale, Dave Powell, Nancy Sirchis, Winchester Artists' Network, Mark Flannery, Edward Davis, Cindy Cloutier, Charles Wilcox, Oxana Michkasova, Winchester Public Schools Students, Mary W. Hart, James Obbard.

January 2005. Robin Goodale, Maine to Mississippi.

Vibrant paintings of New Orleans' unique architecture and collages of jazz musicians and serene watercolors of the Maine coast.

On Wednesdays, January 12 & 19 from 10:30 a.m. to noon and from 5:30 to 8 p.m.; and on Wednesday, January 26 from 10:30 to noon, Robin will be at the library and provide "mini-tours" of her artwork, along with informal discussions of techniques, art history and contemporary art ideas.

Goodale has had exhibitions in New Orleans , Maine, Philadelphia , New York and Washington , D.C. and recently received an award in the Louis Armstrong painting exhibition. She has also been commissioned to create both sculptures and paintings and has taught art history and studio art at several universities.

February 2005. Dave Powell, Light Unseen: Digital Infrared Dreams.

Shangri-La

Powell uses digital cameras to capture the invisible world through a unique filter that blocks visible light and admits only infrared rays. In his digital darkroom, some images then become dramatic black-and-white landscapes and still-lifes, where plants fairly glow, and skies turn dramatically black with brilliant white clouds. Other images become magically colored infrared dreamscapes. While still others reveal our real visible world "emerging" from its invisible infrared veil.

Powell, a Winchester resident, won Grand Prize in the 2003 WREN Photo Competition, in neighboring Woburn. Last fall, his photos also appeared in the exhibit, "The Unseen Garden: Nature Beyond Light," at Tower Hill Botanic Garden, in Boylston, Mass. And Burlington Cable Access Television(BCAT) hasrecently been airing "Emergence," a short music video featuring 60 of his photographs. Powell can be reached by e-mail at Dave Powell or by telephone at 781-729-6144

Blues in the Night

March 2005. Nancy Sirchis, Paintings

Nancy Sirchis, a Winchester resident, will be the featured artist in Winchester Library during the month of March. The public is invited to an opening reception in the Library Meeting Room on Wednesday, March 2, from 6:00 to 8:00 PM.

Sirchis works primarily with watercolor, her paintings known for the vibrant, almost iridescent, color she uses to create mood and a sense of place. Included in this exhibit will be paintings of flowers in a still life setting, landscapes of Maine and Cape Cod as well as a few figurative paintings. One painting which will be exhibited, titled "Black Eyed Susan and Blue Vase", was recently awarded a prize in the Reading Art Association show.

Sirchis is one of a group of artists who have been selected to exhibit at the Library on a monthly basis by means of a nine person panel of jurors. Her paintings are in private collections in the Boston and Winchester area. She has been studying watercolor with Carolyn Latanision for the past seven years at the Wilmington Arts Center and has exhibited her work there as well as at the Reading Art Association.

April 2005. Winchester Artists' Network Open Show, Energy

Emerging Energy ... Boston at Twilight
photograph by Mark Flannery

What do "Night Moves", "Water Games", "Sparks" and "The Windmill in Thaxted, England" have in common? Each is in the title of a depiction of the theme "Energy" by one of the 25 Winchester artists whose works will be on view at the Winchester Public Library during this year's 5th Annual Winchester Artists' Network Open Show. Works on view span media from the oldest art forms to cutting edge computer renditions and their creators range from lifelong professionals with established national reputations to recently self-taught novices. (You may find it difficult to decide which is which!) The show is open to all Artists' Network members with out a competition or jury. Show co-chair, Jean Cataldo, of Ridgefield Rd. Says, "I often find unjuried shows much more interesting and of higher quality than jurried ones.. The artists love and have a keen eye for choosing good work and you can see many different styles unfiltered by a critic's prejudices. I think that visitors to this show will find the range, talent and creativity of our local artists amazing..." There will be a closing reception (open to the public) on Saturday, April 30th, from 3:00 to 5:00. The Winchester Artists' Network is open to any artist living, working, or making art in Winchester and information about membership and activities may be obtained from Mary Hart, 251 Forest St, 781-729-3306 or Bob Hesse, 6 Sargent Rd.,781-729-5013.

May 2005. Edward Davis, Photographs

Edward Davis is a local Winchester artist. The show features photographs taken during travel to Tuscany, the Canadian Rockies, San Francisco, Nova Scotia, as well as local scenes. The common thread is the use of light and color to convey the wonder of our world. Some images are from a recent Winchester Jumelage trip to California wine country. On a stopover in San Francisco, the artist took dawn photos from Telegraph Hill and the top of Lombard Street, the twisty lane featured in a number of films. Others were taken on a trip to Tuscany with the Appalachian Mountain Club. True to their roots, the AMC party hiked the countryside, but also visited major Tuscan cities including Florence and Lucca.

One image shows morning light falling on Tuscany vineyards, and another (shown above) titled Hillside Church shows the building bathed in light and framed by dramatic clouds.Still others are from a recent trip to Nova Scotia on a workshop with the Rocky Mountain School of Photography. The group spent a week shooting the Southeast coast, an area sometimes called the Lighthouse route. The images portray the striking beauty of the Maritime coast. Edward Davis has been photographing landscapes and nature scenes for many years. His work has been displayed in a number of local shows. He is an active member of the Winchester Artists Network.

June 2005. Cindy Cloutier, Instinctual Art

Local artist Cindy Cloutier will be exhibiting her artwork in the Library during the month of June. Her brightly colored, symbolic and abstract images and textures are created through an instinctual, kinesthetic process she calls Instinctual Art.

In her artist's statement, Cloutier says "I am attracted to and inspired by warm bright colors and textures. Often my work involves passionate and sometimes violent juxtapositions of motion and shapes. Most of my paintings are approached without preconceived images, but become a manifestation of emotions, memories, instincts and visual patterns. Canvases evolve as each stroke creates a visual challenge that decides and dispatches my next stroke. My tools vary from paint brushes, knives to kitchen utensils and found objects. Paint is brushed, scraped, shaped, layered and tossed until the structure feels complete.

Most paintings and limited edition lino-cut block prints are available for purchase. Please visit my web site, www.instinctualart.com or call 781-632-2692."

July 2005. Charles Wilcox, The Margins of the Day; The Margins of the Land

This nature photography exhibit will feature photographs of coastal areas, river scenes and evening skies taken in eastern Massachusetts as well as Hawaii, Aruba and California.

Mr. Wilcox's color photographs capture the beauty of a natural world at the edges, in places where two distinct and often opposing realms-day/night, natural/artificial, land/water- mingle and create a third, captivating reality, full of contrasts, color shifts and unique compositional possibilities.

August 2005. Oxana Michkasova, Strangers

Raised in Moscow, Oxana Michkasova found an outlet for her creative expression early in life. "I have been in love with photography for as long as I can remember. My interest ignited when I first learned to develop in the darkroom at age twelve. I would work alongside my father, who had his own darkroom, for days at a time. It wasn't a chore - it was like a holiday." Oxana credits those happy hours developing her father's photographs as the beginning of her own education in composition, the play of light and the possibilities of capturing an artistic vision on film. "Since then, I have devoted myself to understanding photography and other forms of art in everyday life," she says.

After Moscow, Oxana completed her education in Budapest, Hungary. "Visually, Budapest and Moscow were not terribly different, but the life I led there was a great contrast to what I had been exposed to in Moscow. The people were friendlier, more open. Life was so much better during those years." It was in Hungary and, subsequently in more than 15 other countries, that Oxana began to practice her art in earnest, capturing her experiences of the world through through the lens of her camera. "I am continually inspired by nature, by the faces, colors and details of different countries and cultures," she says. These insights have influenced her entire approach to photography. "By paying special attention to the details, I am able to tell a more colorful story about the place, person, celebration, or union. I believe that memorable photographs are made by learning the language of light, by knowing what you want to say, and then expressing that desire not just with your eyes but also with your heart."

In this, her first exhibition “Strangers” in the Winchester Public Library, Oxana has put together a show of portraits taken around the world. "What I love about portraits is that no matter where the photograph is taken, there is something universal about the human experience. Look carefully at the faces. Few clues exist to let you know if the shot is taken in Rome or in Zagreb or in Somerville. Each human moment exists in time, not in geography." And it's in capturing that perfect, timeless human moment that Oxana's photographs speak to us.

To find out more information about my art, or myself, please feel free to contact me by email or by phone. I regularly travel for weddings, engagement and children portrait sessions, and would be happy to serve you the best way I can. Contact Information:
web: http://angeleye.net
email: oxana@angeleye.net
phone: (781) 354 6902

September & October 2005. Winchester Public Schools Students, The 7th Annual Show of Student Artwork

The 7th Annual Show of Student Artwork is presented by the Winchester Friends of Art, a non-profit organization devoted to the appreciation and support of the K-12 Art programs in the Winchester Public Schools. Winchester is blessed with one of the finest art programs to be found in any school system. Students at all levels and in all programs are encouraged and have the opportunity to pursue an interest in the arts. An unmatched faculty inspires and guides them in developing imagination, expression, and their individual creative voices. These skills, developed through pursuit of art, endure and enrich all areas of life.

The Winchester Friends of Art is proud to showcase a glimpse of the student art, a small tribute to the dedication of the faculty, the support of the Town, and the crucial efforts of all the individuals and organizations who labor to ensure funding to continue this vital program. This show features the works of student artists ranging form grade 1 to 12; there are examples of work from all grades and all of Winchester's Schools. Enjoy this sample and note how these young hands, informed by hearts and eyes and encouraged in their creativity can open new views and restore our sense of wonder. We are specially grateful to Frame Haven, 7 Waterfield Rd. and Winchester Art and Frame, 755 Main St. for the generous donations of the professional skill, time, and materials needed to present these pieces, professionally framed, in a way which respects the creativity of the artists who created them.

A Reception for the artists, parents, art teachers, Friends of Art, and the general public will be held in the Library Meeting Room at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, October 5.

November 2005. Mary W. Hart, Recent Calligraphic Work

The exhibit showcases work which combines calligraphy with collage and encaustic painting. The new series of works incorporate elements of written texture and botanical forms, says Hart; the work is a departure, a more abstract direction, although there is some more traditional work in the show as well. The exhibit also includes work done for the Democratic Convention offices, featuring the words of famous politicians.

Hart, a native of Pittsburgh, studied calligraphy at Carnegie Mellon University with Arnold Bank, a noted teacher. "It was a class I had to take for my Graphic Design degree," says Hart, "but it quickly became something I loved to do. Even 34 years later I am still finding new ways to use this skill."

In addition to practicing calligraphy, Hart teaches a number of classes in the area, most recently at Middlesex Community College, Cambridge Center for Adult Education and in the Applied Arts program at Wellesley College. There is currently a class going on at the Jenks Center in Winchester as well, proving it's never too late to learn calligraphy.

December 2005. James Obbard, Paintings

pictured: Crystal and Sunlight

James Obbard will be displaying his paintings at the Winchester Public Library through the month of December.

Mr. Obbard has been painting for almost 25 years, painting figurative works, primarily in oil, of familiar people, landscapes and everyday objects. As an artist he finds inspiration in the mundane and common which he finds during both everyday walks and contact with people. His paintings feature very high contrasts, the use of subdued primary colors and a careful organization. He has exhibited with the Concord Art Association, the Winchester Art Network and Western Maine Art Group. Some of his works may be seen at his website www.obbard.net/art.

A reception will be held at the Winchester Public Library, Wednesday, December 7th from 6:30-8:30. All are welcome.