The public is invited to a reception at the Bruce S. Kershner Gallery for “Simply Abstract”, the paintings of Raffael Altmann, Elizabeth Nagle, and Vincent Verrillo on May 9 at 4:30 - 6:30 pm. The exhibitors will talk at 5:15 pm. The exhibit will run from May 2 to June 20 at the Fairfield Library, 1080 Old Post Rd., Fairfield. See www.fairfieldpubliclibrary.org
Raffael Altmann is a Fairfield resident and works as an independent travel consultant. He studied fine arts at LIU Post, and recently exhibited at the Faber Birren National Color Show in Stamford, The Pequot Library in Southport, The Small Works show at the Kershner Gallery in Fairfield, the Fairfield County Arts Association Member Art Show in Independence Hall in Fairfield, and the Easton Arts Council Member Show in the Easton Public Library.
Raffael says, “My paintings represent a new beginning: Abstructural Impressions. With this series of paintings I am taking a planned, calculated and systematic approach by setting up the grid. Once established, I let spontaneity take over. Whatever mood strikes me. Whatever comes to mind. With the final composition I aim to achieve a dynamic play between energy: calmness, chaos: control, freedom: restriction. They reflect a mindset – the unrestricted, free expression of creativity is (still) waiting to break out.”
Elizabeth Nagle recently moved from Connecticut to Dorset, Vermont, where she regularly exhibits. She is primarily a painter and a mixed media artist, and also explores printmaking and sculpture. Her work has been in many galleries throughout Fairfield County. In 2012, she was selected to exhibit in the General Electric Annual Women’s History month exhibit. She was juried into SOLOS at the Westport Art Center and was presented in Nine Solos at The New Canaan Carriage Barn. Her work has been included and recognized in many group shows, including Spectrum at The Carriage Barn in New Canaan, Bruce S. Kershner Gallery , Rowayton Art Center and the Flinn Gallery in Greenwich. Elizabeth She also received a grant for a two-week residency at the Vermont Studio Center this spring.
Nagle completed her BFA at the San Francisco Art Institute after first attending Bard College. While in high school in London, England, she designed and painted needlepoint canvases. She still produces designs for several well-known stores and wholesalers and sells her canvases online at her Etsy shop, Doolittle Stitchery.
She says, “Through different methods, I am exploring ways to create a magical atmosphere. From small drawings and collages to large canvases, the artworks are like windows to another place and time where one encounters images both personal and universal. My works all begin as truly abstract and non-representational. Initially concerned with color, gesture, composition and lines my process is mostly intuitive, unplanned and free flowing. Using marks, drips, and brush strokes, adding, subtracting, doing and undoing, layering, covering and uncovering eventually a dialogue develops with the work and a story unfolds. Each piece becomes a journey with it’s own life and language.”
Vincent Verrillo lives in Stratford and has two professions, one as a Bridgeport Police Sergeant, the other as an artist. He has a Bachelor of Arts degree and later earned a Masters of Science degree in Forensic Science. He has been an artist for over forty years and expects to paint, exhibit and sell his work forever. He uses many styles in order to approach a feeling of transcendence. His work has been represented by over thirty galleries in the area, including Greenwich, Bridgeport, New Haven, Westport, and New York City and it is in even more private art collections.
Verillo says, “I became interested in art when I studied English Literature in college. The great writers influenced me, only I used a camera instead of a pen. I stayed with photography for quite some time, then my interest veered toward painting which I took up many years ago. Now I have reached a happy medium where both photography and painting fulfill my need to express, to create. I don't always have an idea in mind when I start to paint so occasionally I will go through some of my sketches to find one that I like. I try to pull something deep out of my soul and put it on canvas. Some of the challenge is to express what I feel in my heart and translate it into two dimensions. The joy of creation. the need to go beyond the physical.”