The Mayor’s Gallery presents Maria C. Friscia “Observations in Nature” A collection of landscape paintings
September 7 – October 26, 2018
Reception: Thursday, September 13, 2018, from 5:30 – 7 pm
Maria C. Friscia attributes her love of art to her wonderful memories growing up in a small mountain village in Italy admiring the picturesque countryside. She immigrated to the U.S. at the age of twelve with her parents and brother and lived in New York City. Her inspiration for art was sparked after observing a family friend’s works of art. Despite taking painting classes in college, she worked in the finance industry in NYC and in Greenwich in the 1980s. After moving to Greenwich and with children now occupying her daytime hours, she returned to her studies in art taking evening courses at Lehman College in NY. She completed her second B.A. degree in art and subsequently graduated with an M.F.A. in 1997.
Her medium has been mostly acrylic but she has discovered painting with oil as well. Although landscapes have been her primary interest she has explored different subjects and multi-media including experimenting with digital art and photography. She has painted extensively over the last several years developing her technique and exploring new themes.
Whenever I go out in the fields, in the forest, on the mountains, or along running streams, I feel enchanted when surrounded by nature and its beauty. While observing the combination of trees, mountains and water, I am inspired from my soul, from the idea or feeling I associate during my observation of nature.
Forms of nature speak to me in terms of human emotions. Nature pleases me and touches me, evoking enthusiasm for solitude–a quasi-religious experience with God and the universe. Nature frees me from all onuses of life, and when looking at landscapes, I find myself concentrating on the “self”–that which is to me the spirit, the soul of being. Through investigating nature, I am compelled to understand myself and reflect on my role and purpose of being. Art and philosophy are one during this engaging time of observing nature and creating a landscape while painting. During this creative process I am in constant touch with my inner feelings. The woods, the hills, the cliffs, the water–these are all motifs for inspiration and reflection of a particular experience.
I create my landscape work as I understand it intellectually and my art is an expression of my concept of nature. When I choose my composition I sacrifice detail in order to improve the overall effect of the composition. It is the effect of nature that is important and not the descriptive detail of the landscape. I concentrate on the emotional expression or the aesthetic ideas that the forms in nature may suggest. I do not feel obliged to represent nature realistically; this gives me the freedom to experiment with form, design and color.
The scope of my work is an awareness of the emotions which nature gives me. I want the viewer to enter my landscape and be part of the scene merging him or herself into the picture and experiencing, even if for just a moment, its quietude, tranquility and relationship with nature.
Maria has always been supportive of the arts and has been a Board member of the Greenwich Symphony Orchestra since 1998.
Visit Maria’s website: mcfriscia.com
10th fl Government Center, 888 Washington Blvd, Stamford, CT.
Weekdays 9am – 4pm. Parking on site. Handicap accessible. More information: 203 858 3082