A messy kind of magic

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Glendale Brook Studio owner Alex Kamaroff

Casey Albert

Alex Kamaroff ’s painting technique is simple but maddeningly difficult. He creates magic using only artist’s tape, acrylic paint and a hair dryer. That’s it. Come and watch him paint in his gallery, Glendale Brook Studio at 27 Church St. in Lenox, Mass., which he does most days and always on Saturdays. He loves to explain what he’s doing and is happy to demonstrate. What looks like a mess of different kinds of tape on a canvas interspersed with seemingly random flashes of paint becomes a vivid, exciting work of art when the tape is pulled away. This style is called “hard edge” because the tape creates precise and distinct edges. Visitors are fascinated by the process, and kids are allowed to try it. They learn right away that it’s a lot harder than it looks, but they love finding that out.

Now flash back to New York City in 1958. Alex was a little boy. He would take the train in from Long Island (back then, kids could do that alone) and meet his grandmother in Penn Station. From there they would go to the Museum of Modern Art, at his request. Grandma Ethel, a feisty lady who ignored bus fare for children (Him? He has no money!) would sit patiently on a bench for hours while her rambunctious grandson ran around, soaking up the priceless works of art that were all around him. He didn’t know they were priceless. He didn’t know that he was in a famous place. He only knew that he was mesmerized by what he saw, and that it felt like a second home.

Following a fruitful career as a novelist, an innate talent came out of its shell and began to take over. It happened when Alex spilled a can of paint and became fascinated with how it moved. Lightning struck. He painted every day, all day, continuing to study the 20th century masters, and he practiced, practiced, practiced. Local businesses began to buy his paintings. After a few years of growing popular demand, he opened his own gallery.

The business had a sensational opening last year, followed by a whirlwind summer season. A significant number of paintings sold, and Alex continued to hone and develop his style. While he is deliberately influenced by the masters, he always adds his own signature twist. If you would like to own a Miro, say, but can’t afford to spend $17 million, try a Kamaroff. It pays homage to Miro and also allows you to have an original piece of art. Original art is very different from a poster. Not only does it have authenticity, but it has the electric immediacy of the artist who created it. You own the real thing. Today, Alex Kamaroff is one of the finest hard edge painters in the world. There aren’t that many of them, because many artists don’t get it, and few attempt it. But for him it was finding the shoe that fit.

Alex was especially gratified that paintings sold to people all over the world. You never know who is going to stop by in Lenox, which is a thriving arts community. His paintings are now in London, Brazil, Israel (where it hangs next to an original Mondrian), Alaska, Boston, and New York.

A successful first year brought more confidence and better art. Alex is eagerly looking forward to this year’s summer season, because now he knows it’s working. When you open an art gallery, you don’t quite know what to expect. As with any new business, you hope that people will walk in, you hope they will like what they see, and you hope they will buy paintings. Buoyed by last year’s accomplishments, Alex was encouraged to move into fresh directions in his work. He is always doing something new and is always surprising himself. Visitors love the new directions; they understand that what they see on any given day is not what they might see on any other day.

In one short year, Glendale Brook Studio has become an integral part of the flourishing Lenox community. Alex looks forward to greeting you in the gallery. He’s the one in the paintstained sweat shirt.

Learn More:

Glendale Brook Studio, 27 Church St., Lenox, Mass.

413-551-7475 | glendalebrookstudio.com