BUSINESS BUZZ
By Michael J. DeCicco
LIKE NO OTHERS It's more practical than you think to give a unique piece of local art as a present this holiday season, when you consider the many places you will find the work of local artisans this time of year.
W
hile there are myriad South Coast area art galleries, here are some of the highlights for your holiday shopping spree.
Inner animals
Fall River's premier art gallery, the Narrows Center for the Arts at 16 Anawan Street, is now featuring an exhibit of masks, sculptures, paintings, and drawings by Fall River artist David Mello called "Man and Beast.” The show will be on display, with some pieces for sale, starting on November 15. "It's a look at man's relationship with animals, imagined and actual," Mello said. The images he's crafted have been inspired by world folklore and myths. It's about our common connection with the natural world, he said. "Some pieces are allegorical, some playful too and fantastical.” A big example of his exhibit's theme is the Phoenix bird piece that fronts the
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Narrows’ website announcement of his exhibit. His phoenix, Mello said, is part man and part bird. Like many of his pieces, they are allegories of man's symbiotic relationship with animals and nature that mankind should always keep in mind. Mello is a lifelong Fall River resident with a lifelong love of the fine arts. The children's librarian at the Fall River public library for the past 30 years said he's worked in the UMass Dartmouth theatre department, designing masks for their productions and teaching students how to use them. Mello’s passion for mask making started with his love of Halloween, he said. "I'd start planning masks for it in May or June. I fell in love with the holiday and with the mythology and folklore of masks. Masks of Greek and Celtic Gods, from classic operas. Masks are perhaps one of the oldest art forms we have. At the beginning of time, it was a way to speak to the spiritual world."
November 2021 | The South Coast Insider
Fall River's premier art gallery, the Narrows Center for the Arts at 16 Anawan Street, is now featuring an exhibit of masks, sculptures, and paintings. At his last show at the Narrows five years ago, Mello sold half of his pieces the first night, he said. He's realistic about his chances this time, but hopeful. "This is a different show. But it will be nice to sell a few pieces. It touches me when someone thinks enough of my work to take it home."
Pretty as a picture
In the heart of South Dartmouth's Padnaram Village, at 286 Elm Street, you'll find stunning still-life and landscape photography at the village's newest gallery, Stephanies Art Works (stephaniesartworks.com).
