THE ARTFUL MIND
FEBRUARY 2025
PHOTOGRAPH BY BOBBY MILLER
the ARTFUL MIND
SINCE
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—zc
In Other Words Poetry by Elizabeth Cassidy 11
Jesse Tobin McCauley
Interview by Harryet Candee 14
Gail Thacker
Interview by Harryet Candee 24
Richard Britell | FICTION
Something for Over the Couch PART 24 “Claudia and the Italian Pastry shop” 47
Mining My Life
Diaries of Jane Gennaro ... 48
Publisher Harryet Candee
Copy Editor Marguerite Bride
Contributing Photographers
Edward Acker Tasja Keetman Bobby Miller
Contributing Writers
Richard Britell Jane Gennaro
Third Eye Jeff Bynack
Distribution Ruby Aver
Advertising / Editorial inquiries and Subscriptions by mail: 413-645-4114
artfulmind@yahoo.com
Read the online version. Go to ISSUU.COM Type in -The Artful Mind
Join the FB group: ARTFUL MIND GALLERY for Artful Minds 23 THE ARTFUL MIND PO Box 985
Great Barrington, MA 01230
JOANE CORNELL FINE JEWELRY
Double Peridot Spinal Necklace
GHETTA HIRSCH
RICHARD TALBERT
The image is a montage of two contrasting scenes. The top half features a vibrant abstract painting with a mix of colors and shapes, while the bottom half shows a photograph of a rainy day with a red truck. Combining these two images creates a visually striking contrast between the colorful, expressive painting and the gloomy, wet weather scene, creating an intriguing visual juxtaposition.
Email: Richtalbert1@gmail.com My Lenox Studio is open by appointment. 413.347.3888
richtalbert1@gmail.com | website: richardtalbertdesign.com
Richard Talbert c, House Tree Truck, Montage - Mixed Media - Acrylic/ Photograph on Canvas, 10” x 20”, 2021.
GHETTA HIRSCH
This small painting was started fall 2024 when the sky was surprising us with burning hot colors. Mixing the colors was like cooking as the heat was touching my brushes with every stroke. Sadly, I had a painful accident and surgery after that and this painting was left to nag me while I looked at it from my bed. It resembled the heat and pain from my broken bones in an unpleasant way.
But healing came slowly, and I went from the bed to a wheelchair, reaching again to the paint brushes and the warm tones that needed my muse. I consider this work to be a recovering painting, a sign that things heal and that we can go on - perhaps as a different person, but still like the mythical Phoenix rising from the ashes, we recover and are reborn.
We recover our strength and resilience, facing life again. I remember that the phoenix is associated with the sun and this painting has the burning colors of fire and ashes… yet we know that this dying sun will return in the morning… so I will walk again. Yes just like the Greek phoenix story this painting will symbolize “renewal” for me.
“Fruitland Sky” is now hanging in Gallery North in North Adams and I hope that you will have a chance to explore this new Art Gallery, 9 Eagle Street. Check their website www.gallerynorthadams.com
There is more to see in my studio in Williamstown. I will be happy to show you my work using my cane for balance.
Ghetta Hirsch413-597-1716.
Ghetta-hirsch.squarespace.com
BRUCE PANOCK
I am a visual artist using photography as the platform to begin a journey of exploration. My journey began in earnest almost 14 years ago when I retired due to health issues and began devoting myself to the informal study of art, artists and particularly photography. Before retiring I had begun studying photography as a hobby. After my retirement, the effort took on a greater intensity.
My world had changed for reasons outside of my control and I looked for something different in my work. I wanted to do more than document what was around me. I wanted to create something that the viewers might join with me and experience. Due to my health issues, I found myself confined with my activities generally restricted. For the first time I began looking inward, to the world that I experienced, though not always through physical interaction. It is a world where I spend more time trying to understand what I previously took for granted and did not think about enough. The ideas ranged from pleasure and beauty to pain and loss; from isolation to abandonment; to walking past what is uncomfortable to see. During this period of isolation, I began thinking about what is isolation, how it can transition to abandonment and then into being forgotten. The simplest display of this idea is abandoned buildings. They were once beautiful, then allowed to run down and abandoned, soon to be forgotten. After a while they disappear. Either mankind knocks down these forgotten once beautiful structures, or remediates them, or Nature reclaims the space. Doesn’t mankind do the same with its own?
JAYE ALISON MOSCARIELLO
Jaye Alison Moscariello harnesses water-based mediums like acrylic and watercolor, influenced by a creative upbringing and artistic journey. Through abstraction and intuitive color selection, she captures the interplay between forms, with lines that articulate deep-seated emotions. Her art resonates with joy and upliftment, transforming personal and worldly complexities into visual harmony.
The artist is passionate about creating art, painting on flat, smooth surfaces, and using materials that are environmentally friendly.
“There is no must in art because art is free.”
—Wassily Kandinsky
My work employs references to other photographers, painters, as well as sculptors. The brushwork of Chinese and Japanese artists is appealing for both its simplicity and beauty. Abstract art has its own ways of sharing ideas which are jarring and beautiful at the same time. Black and white and color works each add their own dynamic. My work is influenced by these art forms, often using many of them in a single composited image.
Bruce PanockAssembled, Mad Rose Gallery Group show Through March 2, 2025, Millerton, New York Panockphotography.com bruce@panockphotography.com Instagram @brucepanock
Moscariello’s work has been exhibited both nationally and internationally, and has appeared in print, film, television, the web and Off Off Broadway.
Transforming personal and worldly complexities into visual harmony. In celebration of her new studio, enjoy 10% off large paintings and 30% off small paintings.
Abstract Memories, Knox Gallery, January 31March 8, 2025. 452 Main st, Monterey, MA. Jaye Alison Moscariello310-970-4517
Studio visits by appointment only: Pond Shed (behind the Buggy Whip Factory), 208 Norfolk Road, Southfield, Massachusetts jayealison.com jaye.alison.art@gmail.com
TREE AND SHRUBS
PATAGONIA
ACRYLIC, LATEX, GRAPHITE ON CRESCENT BOARD, 40”X30”
BETWEEN THE LINES 2023, ACRYLIC ON CANVAS, 36.5” X31.5”
FRUITLAND SKY, OIL ON WOOD PANEL 2025, 12”X12”
Works on Paper, acrylic on water color paper, 18 inches x 24 inches
BRUCE LAIRD
Clock Tower Artists
Business Center Studio #307
75 South Church Street, Pittsfield, MA
Instagram- ecurbart
cassidy
“I
Practiced Kissing on My Arm”
I practiced kissing on my arm. I wanted to see how it felt
To do something
Just for me.
Behind closed doors.
I did not need my mother calling yet another doctor
Explaining my odd new behavior.
I practiced kissing on my arm.
While watching a black and white movie
On the small TV.
The only one in the house.
Where did I get the time
To be alone?
Our family seemed to number in the hundreds
Even though only nine of us lived there.
I practiced kissing on my arm.
I wanted to be ready for the first person
The one person brave enough to place His dry lips on mine.
I remember being beyond nervous that I licked off all of my drug store brand lipstick.
I did that at 12.
I still do it.
My choice of lipsticks has matured.
I practiced kissing on my arm.
And that spot is still sensitive
To the cold, the burning sun and The kind touch.
That one spot that reminds me
That I am still kissable.
elizabeth cassidy studio works artist, illustrator, writer, poet, peace lover
elizabethcassidystudioworks.com
a poem by elizabeth
MAD ROSE GALLERY ASSEMBLED
Mad Rose Gallery presents ASSEMBLED, a captivating group exhibition featuring the works of six extraordinary artists whose diverse backgrounds and mediums reflect a shared commitment to creativity, craftsmanship, and artistic exploration. The exhibition runs through March 2, 2025. Participating Artists are:
Karen Dolmanisth, a multifaceted artist with a career spanning over forty years, brings her internationally recognized work to ASSEMBLED.
A seasoned photographer and educator, Michael Lavin Flower’s work bridges the worlds of commercial and fine art photography.
Emily Rutgers Fuller’s illustrious career includes studies at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and Tufts University.
A photographer and printmaker with over 60 years of experience, Arthur Hillman’s distinguished career includes over twenty solo exhibitions and appearances in prestigious group shows at institutions such as the Library of Congress and Williams College.
After a forty year career as a CPA, Bruce Panock turned his passion for photography into a flourishing practice.
Kim Saul’s work fuses her imagination with the natural world, resulting in vivid and evocative imagery. A graduate of the University of Massachusetts, her multidisciplinary background as an illustrator, textile designer, and gallery director informs her artistic voice.
Mad Rose Gallery5916 N Elm Ave, Millerton, New York https://madrosegallery.com
CARLOS CAICEDO
Carlos’ award-winning graphic work has been shown throughout the United States, from Alaska to New York, and from South America to Europe. Museums include Museo La Tertulia in Cali, Colombia, The Anchorage Art Museum in Alaska, The Waterloo Arts Center in Iowa, The Ft. Wayne Museum in Indiana, The Springfield Art Museum in Missouri and the Housatonic Museum of Art in Connecticut.
During the last ten years, he has concentrated on exploring photography as an art form. Since 2019, he has won multiple National and International Silver and Gold Awards for his photo work with paper, including the well-known international publication Graphis. During the same consecutive years, he was honored with two Gold medals and two Best Of Show for his Photography series using pencils as a subject, by Trierenberg Super Circuit in Austria, the largest photo Art contest in the world. His photo artworks have also been translated into museum-quality apparel.
As he put it, "Paper and pencil have been lifetime companions for me, not simply tools. In a digital age, these humble objects remain stubbornly useful, and our connection goes back to memory. It’s a physical relationship. A yellow pencil in a child’s fist moving on blue-lined paper. A word is being bo:n, MOM. The weight of a book and the sound of a page as it turns, the curve it makes, and how its shadow moves.These are pleasures that haptics can’t mimic. My photography is a journey of discovery with these old friends to see if we can still surprise each other.
He also published an award-winning book called “paperandpencilsbycarloscaicedo”. Some of his work can be seen at https://500px.com/p/carloscaicedo1 and has over 75,000 followers. His page has been visited over 20 million times over the last 9 years. Carlos moved from Colombia to The United States in 1981.
Carlos CaicedoEclipse Mill, 243 Union St North Adams MA carlosart.net / Apparel:
https://www.legaleriste.com/33/carlos.caicedo Prints:
BACH SUITES FOR CELLO COLIN CARR & YEHUDA HANANI
Six Unaccompanied Bach Suites for cello performed by Colin Carr and Yahuda Hanani will take place on Sunday, February 23, 2025, at 4 PM at Saint James Place, Great Barrington.
Two leading Bach interpreters embark on a journey traversing his Six Suites, the apogee of the cello repertoire. Filled with mystery and beauty, blasted through with rapture, every note is a bold statement. Music that first flowed from the composer’s quill in the early 1700’s, it belongs to no specific time or place. At the same time as it floats in the heavenly spheres, it provides plenty of earthly pleasures—courtly music, riffs, Celtic jigs, the merriment of a tavern musician, and glimpses of modern minimalism.
The title “Unaccompanied” is a bit of a misnomer: a single cellist takes on numerous voices, making the music a drama for three or four characters played by one actor! If angels danced, this is the music that would no doubt accompany them on their gramophone.
Colin Carr has been hailed for his “supreme technique and ebullience” (Boston musical Intelligencer). And Yehuda Hanani has been lauded by, among many other publications, the San Francisco Examiner:
“Without freedom, no art; art lives only on the restraints it imposes on itself, and dies of all others.”
~Albert Camus
https://www.pictorem.com/profile/carlos.caicedo carloscedo@yahoo.com
“In this era of the cello, Hanani is among the best. His Bach was absorbing, imaginative, beautiful in all respects.”
Close Encounters With Musichttps://cewm.org
TOP: COLIN CARR BELOW: YEHUDA HANANI
Bruce Panock, Reaching for the Heavens
LESLEE CARSEWELL - ARTIST
~ A Valentine Thought ~ Experiencing Art is like candy. Longer lasting but no calories!
JESSE TOBIN MCCAULEY
ARTIST AND DESIGNER
Interview
by Harryet Candee / Photographs courtesy of the Artist
I strive for spontaneity and playfulness - the most planning I do in my work is with my color palette. Color transforms our moods, delights our senses, and can transform our lives. —JTM
Jesse, what project are you currently working on?
Oh, I'm so excited about this group show I'm in at the Lichtenstein Center for the Arts in February. It's called OFF THE STREETS, and it is composed of 10 mural artists who have created public art in Pittsfield. It's a great group, and seeing mural artists going smaller to suit gallery walls will be fun. Such a great group of artists are working and living in Pittsfield and contributing to our downtown landscape and city overall.
Your studio is the heartland where you create and thrive as an artist. Tell us about your relationship with this space and how it reinforces your gains and challenges today.
I cannot express how much I love the Lichtenstein. I grew up going there with my dad, F.X. Tobin. My first memory of Lichtenstein was going to an art opening when I was 15, and I think my dad, my
uncle Jay Tobin, and their friend Mike Melle were in the show. The fact that I have a studio and work there now is a meant-to-be thing in my mind. When I was offered a studio in 2016, I was so excited and jumped at the chance. It's an iconic place for art in Pittsfield.
Seeing your passion for the arts community in Pittsfield is wonderful! I would love to hear about the projects that have brought you the most joy and significantly impacted the vibrant arts scene.
My mural "The Sun Will Rise" at 443 North Street is on a building my grandmother lived in when I was a kid. We used to watch the 4th of July parade from her window and walk out on the roof of the building where the mural now lives! When it was proposed as the location, I was elated. She would have absolutely loved it!
Also, currently, I collaborate with Hot Plate Brew-
ing Co. for their beer can artwork, with my art featured on their beer cans. I love that this gets my art out into spaces and people's hands, which it usually would not be able to reach.
Could you describe your approach to art-making and its process, from the initial idea to completion?
Simply put, my approach is to create happiness and fun, to feel a sense of joy from the saturated colors and fun, free-flowing marks mixed with geometric shapes. I'm color-obsessed and would love it if people dove head-first into bright, saturated hues. Finished pieces are works of unplanned surprises and informed curiosity.
Your work reflects a constant search for understanding. How has being an artist helped you gain clarity in your life?
Art is therapy. It's always been there. It's a constant
through creating, viewing, and experiencing. It just elevates everyday life. My mom always told me, "If you're bored with the view, just look up." Your perspective changes if you just change how you look at things. It is as simple as walking down the street, just looking up.
Were you the type of child always involved in art, or was creating art just a fun hobby?
I always liked art. I never knew it could be a career or where it would go, but I was always involved and exposed. As a kid, my mom signed me up for all the free art programs in Pittsfield. My dad was a working artist and lived in LA, so whenever I was out there, we went to all sorts of art shows and museums. My uncle Jay is an abstract painter, and my uncle Bill was a sculpture artist, so it was just a thing in our family.
At what moment did you feel that pursuing art became essential?
Well, I graduated college with a chemistry and environmental science degree and realized pretty quickly that that was not going to be my path. I was living in LA and working at a film company when I discovered Graphic Design and realized I could
put my love of art into a form that could be a career, so I went back to school at Otis College of Art and Design for graphic design and photography and have worked in that career every since. But painting has always been a hobby that I dove more into when both my parents passed away somewhat suddenly and within a year of each other. It was and has been my solace.
Do you remember any specific experiences significantly impacting your creative path?
Saying yes to my first mural. I had made a deal with myself to say yes to any new projects that terrified me during COVID-19. I was asked to create two small murals outside the Lantern to bring some joy to the staff. I was automatically out of my comfort zone. But I did it, and it led to so many new opportunities, and now, a few short years later, I mentor other upcoming mural artists in Pittsfield.
What aspects of your art-making process are intentional, and which do you find unpredictable? My color palette is intentional - bright, happy, saturated colors. People shy away from color daily, and I want to dive head-first into it. It brightens your day and elevates your mood. My brush strokes
are super unplanned and develop organically, and sometimes I'm surprised where things go, in a good way!
Public murals and canvas paintings serve different purposes. What public murals have you created, and how do you approach a theme? In what ways do they differ from personal artwork?
Public murals in nature reach more people - there is no barrier to seeing them, hopefully. My paintings are completely me. Murals commonly involve others in the conception stage, deciding what is approved; sometimes people want a say in the concept, color, and theme, and sometimes people don't. The one I created at 443 North Street, called "The Sun Will Rise," is an abstract mountain meant to depict Bousquet, which was a concept chosen by the funder. "Welcome to Pittsfield" at the BRTA train tracks was an abstract depiction of the Berkshire Flyer logo. Their team chose the Miraval mural "A Happy Balance" with a childlike playfulness theme. The team at Miraval selected the color palette; they knew my style, but it was a compromise on some elements.
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ALL HEART, 2023, Acrylic on canvas, 30"x 30". Private collection
MAYHEM, 2023, Acrylic on canvas, 36" x 48". Hanging at Pizzeria Boema in Lenox
WELCOME TO PITTSFIELD Mural at the BRTA Intermodal Center created for the Berkshire Flyer train
SUNSHINE, 2023, Acrylic on canvas, 36” x 36”. Private collection
What are some of your upcoming projects for you?
I'm a board member of Let It Shine! Public Art Partnership Committee. We work to bring more public art to Pittsfield and develop emerging mural artists. I'm excited to continue that work in 2025. The more mural artists with different voices and viewpoints make for a more diverse public art experience in our city. We have also been reviving the Paint Box project in Pittsfield for years. They add vibrancy all over town, and I'm really happy it's coming back. I painted one on the corner of Elm & East Streets in 2022, and it's just such a fun project to work on.
Can you tell us about a particularly challenging piece or series you've worked on and how you overcame the obstacles?
Oh gosh, the mural at Miraval Resort in Lenox. I absolutely loved the result, but my gosh, getting there took a team. From the approval process, which involved the corporate office with many involved in the approval process, to the fact that halfway through, I broke my right arm (I'm right-handed), thank goodness for my husband Joe and my uncle Jay, who jumped right in to help me
out and a handful of wonderful friends who took time to help finish painting it! Luckily, I had the whole thing drawn out and started the painting process before I broke my arm. After that, I became a bit of a project manager and learned to use my left hand a bit. Getting that 40-foot x 11-foot mural completed in the tunnel under Route 7 was a huge accomplishment.
Artificial intelligence is frequently discussed in the media, prompting valuable conversations about its influence on creativity and productivity in the art world. Have you had the opportunity to experiment with AI-generated art? Nope, I do enough computer work with graphic design. My painting is totally off-line. It's my time to unplug and just be in the studio with paint, markers, inks, crayons and just have fun.
How would you say your paintings become a conduit for emotion and feeling? It's more like they might turn sadness, a bad mood, or a dark day into happiness. Suspend the idea that paintings need to be understood, mean, or depict something. Instead, just enjoy them.
What art supply makes your heart race with excitement?
Posca paint markers, inks, new colors of fluid and high-flow acrylics, and neon pinks!
What is your vision of contemporary art, and what do you believe is the artist's role in today's society?
For me, art is sanity. When everything else is going haywire, you can count on art to clear your mind and bring peace. I look to art for that solace, and I hope others do.
Can you tell us when Off The Streets is happening?
The opening is at the Lichtenstein Center for the Arts, 28 Renne Street in Pittsfield, MA on Thursday, Feb 13th, from 5-8 pm; The show runs February 5 through February 28, 2025, and everyone needs to stop by. It will kick off the 10x10 Upstreet Arts Festival.
jessetobinmccauley.com
Instagram @mooreofthetobin
Sampling of the beer cans featuring Jesse’s artwork at Hot Plate Brewing Co.
COTTON CANDY, 2023, Acrylic on canvas, 36"x 36". Private collection
LIONEL DELEVINGNE
Lionel Delevingne is a French born photographer and author whose work has taken him all over the world for publications such as the New York Times, Mother Jones, Figaro magazine among many others. His work has been collected and exhibited widely in Europe and the US.
His two most recent books “To The Village Square, from Montague to Fukushima 1975 to 2014” and “X-ING …My Adventures at the Carwash 2022” are emblematic of his commitment to environmental concerns as well as the uncovering the absurdity of today’s reality.
Lionel Delevingne917-496-1863
lioneldelevingne@gmail.com https://www.lioneldelevingne.com https://www.instagram.com/Lioneldelevingne
JOANE CORNELL FINE JEWELRY
My designs are derived strictly from an organic process. A portion of my designs come to me in the wee morning hours when sleep evades me. My work studio tables are peppered with different groupings of stones. Tourmalines, corundum, beryl, moonstone, amethyst, etc. Strands of Peruvian pink opals, turquoise, black tumbled tourmaline. Rough tumbled ruby, and green garnet beads.
I enter my studio, walking slowly past these surfaces, absorbing the images/stones for reference. The design comes first, then, what stones will fit the process. And at times, it’s the reverse. A stone will inspire a design.
Commission orders are welcome.
Joane Cornell Fine Jewelry9 Main St., Chatham, New York JoaneCornellFineJewelry.com / Instagram
Susan Flex Gilbert
ERIKA LARSKAYA
Confinement and Breakaway examine the mental state of struggle to make sense of our environment, both physical and psychological. I incorporate childlike drawing to represent nonconformity; the unadulterated state before we get confined by rules, commitment, insecurities, and other “add-ons.”
“I distress and repair parts of the painting, as we do within ourselves. The drawings of floor plans and elevations, which I use as a starting point, create a sense of enclosure, which I expand by continuing the lines outward, breaking the structural pattern. This alters the sense of confinement, breaking away from the [rigid, static] norm”.
Erika Larskayahttps://www.erikalarskaya.art
CONFESSIONS, MIXED MEDIA ON CANVAS, 24” X 24”
©VINTAGE DELEVINGNE SILVER PRINTS FOR IN THESE TIMES
Jennifer Pazienza
Gallery 78
796 Queen Street • Fredericton, New Brunswick • Canada phone: 1-508-454-5192 email: art@gallery78.com website: gallery78.com
Sorella 2 54 x 54 inches Oil on canvas
Other artists in the photo: (Left to Right) — Judy Blake, Amy Dryer, Wendy Johnston, Céline Genest, Teresa Bergen
BRUCE LAIRD
I am an abstract artist whose two- and three-dimensional works in mixed media reveal a fascination with geometry, color and juxtapositions. For me it is all about the work which provides surprising results, both playful and thought provoking. From BCC to UMASS and later to Vermont College to earn my MFA Degree. I have taken many workshops through Art New England, at Bennington College, Hamilton College and an experimental workshop on cyanotypes recently at MCLA. Two international workshops in France and Italy also.I am pleased to have a studio space with an exciting group of artists at the Clocktower Building in Pittsfield.
Bruce LairdStudio #307
Clock Tower Business Center, 75 South Church Street, Pittsfield, MA
RUBY AVER STREET ZEN
Growing up on the Southside of Chicago in the 60s was a history rich and troubled time. As a youth, playing in the streets demanded grit.
Teaching Tai chi for the last 30 years requires a Zen state of mind. My paintings come from this quiet place that exhibit the rich grit of my youth . Movement, shape and color dominate, spontaneously combining raw as well as delicate impulses. My recent series, Strike a Pose, is inspired by the dance genre Voguing. Colorful feminine images with amplified characters grace the canvas with their mystery.
Ruby AverHousatonic Studio open by appointment: 413-854-7007, rdaver2@gmail.com Instagram: rdaver2
RICHARD TALBERT
My paintings are a vibrant exploration of color, space, and dynamic movement. They draw inspiration from modern architecture and the complexities of Venetian kaleidoscopes. In both my paintings and watercolors, I use layering techniques to create abstract compositions that balance geometric shapes with organic forms. This invites viewers to navigate through overlapping planes and discover hidden patterns.
The interplay between positive and negative space generates tension and resolution, evoking a range of emotions and thoughts. Additionally, my work engages with surrealist influences, aiming to immerse the viewer in a rich visual dialogue. This balance between structure and fluidity leads to a journey of emotional and subconscious exploration.
Richard TalbertLenox Studio by appointment 413-347-3888 richtalbert1@gmail.com richardtalbertdesign.com
I often create my abstracts using my intuition of colors, shapes, textures and design with no subject matter in mind.I wanted to keep it neutral, so I only used two colors: off‐white and gold. What came about through design manipulation is a group of Golden Orbs or Spirits travelling around our earthly dimensions with their energy.
A benevolent spirit is characterized by kindness, generosity and compassion towards others. It supports you without expecting anything in return. We need this more today than ever.
‐Don Longo
http://www.donlongoart.com
FOLLOW THE YELLOW BRICK ACRYLIC ON CANVAS 16” X 20”
SYMPHONY #5 IN C MINOR, 2021, ACRYLIC AND MIXED MEDIA ON CANVAS, 10” X 10”
CROSSTOWN CROSSHATCH, ACRYLIC ON RAW CANVAS
GAIL THACKER
“Yes” is a powerful word and action. Words and actions are contagious. As I say this it free falls. Anyone can catch it and it becomes theirs. -GT
Gail Thacker is a multidisciplinary artist known for her Polaroid photography that highlights artists, performers, friends, lovers, and the intriguing culture and heartbeat of New York City. Gail is a member of the Boston School; she collaborated with peers including Mark Morrisroe and Pat Hearn, sharing a “life as art” philosophy while studying in Boston during the 1970s and early ’80s.
Gail combines her background in painting with photography, using experimental chemical techniques on Polaroid 665 film, resulting in a decay effect on the positive and negatives, reflecting her thoughts on life, death, and the fleeting nature of human experience. Her art reflects the beauty between wanting to preserve what we love and accepting life's impermanence. I was fortunate to be introduced to Gail through mutual friends Bobby Miller and Jorge Clar, who contributed invaluable artistic insights to this interview.
Gail, please give us a take on what your childhood was like?
I grew up in a big brown house on Veterans Memorial Parkway in East Providence, Rhode Island. My parents, Bud and Ann, raised me alongside my older brother, Lou, and sister, Kathy. They say a child’s personality forms by the age of four, and for me, that was when my imagination began to flourish. I loved making things up and crafting little worlds in my mind.
My dad, Bud Thacker, was an interior designer and artist. He taught me to paint and, like me, had a vivid imagination. He loved to spin stories and often shared fantastical tales. Once, he pointed to the statue of Roger Williams as we drove past and told me, “That’s me.” I believed him completely. Later, I was riding in the backseat of a friend’s car and pointed out the statue. “Look! That’s a statue of my dad!” I declared. Her father turned his head, eyebrows raised, and said, “That’s not your
father—that’s Roger Williams, the founder of Providence, Rhode Island.”
I remember sinking into my seat, cheeks flushed, and muttering a small “oh.” I believed Dad, of course—I was only four years old. This was the 1960s, before Google and computers. Researching information in the mid-'60s was not at your fingertips like it is today. The Vietnam War was raging, and the first draft card burning was about to take place. Immediately, riots would rage against the war; two anti-war activists set themselves on fire in front of the Pentagon and United Nations Headquarters. The civil rights movement and ERA were brewing. That moment became my first lesson in believability.
Artmaking often demands a profound engagement with intuition. How does your intuitive sense guide and inform your artistic process? To me, intuition is our ability to tune into the inner
Interview by Harryet Candee | Photography by Bobby Miller | Other works courtesy of the Artist and Candice Madey Gallery, New York
Photo: Bobby Miller
workings of the world. There is a saying: “They have their finger on the pulse of society.” This, I feel, is when an artist’s work is intuitive, and the viewer connects. That invisible thread between all things is what I feel art connects us to.
Your work often incorporates accidental elements that resonate with viewers in unique ways, inviting them to connect with both intentional and unintentional aspects of the art. Could you walk us through the intricate, and at times labor-intensive, process behind creating these layered experiences?
This ties back to your earlier question about intuition and the thread that connects all things. I try to approach this on multiple levels—from the physicality of the medium I work with to the actuality of the photoshoot itself. I let nature take its course, embracing decay in the process and then engaging in the act of creating the photograph later in the darkroom. There are so many layers in the creation of art, and for me, it’s an open-ended collaboration—with my subjects, with nature, with our ancestry, with the universe, and even with the very first cell that ever existed.
I won’t dive too deeply into chaos theory and entropy here, but understanding them helps. I see it as a spiritual journey—one that begins with break-
ing down the walls between myself and the artists I photograph. The connect with who they really are, identify, or want to be through collaboration and participation.
This philosophy is inspired by Alfred Jarry’s concept of 'pataphysics, which, in a basic sense, embraces absurdity. It’s about exploring the laws of the particular instead of the general—investigating what can happen instead of what should have. By allowing things to take their natural course, we open the doors to something extraordinary. People are at their most unique when they embrace their creative, childlike selves, no matter their age. This process requires shutting down systematic boundaries and embracing the unexpected.
What aspects of your artistic process have been most rewarding for your personal growth and self-discovery? How has creating your work deepened your understanding of yourself? Which aspect? They’re all important and rewarding. But, in a larger sense, the answer is the people—the conversations, the knowledge, and the inspiration I draw from others in visual art and theatre. All of my significant periods of growth have come from being in a group setting. First in Boston, and later at the Gene Frankel Theatre.
I’m constantly in awe. Just a couple of days ago, I
walked into an exhibition of Tabboo!’s early paintings. Tabboo! was speaking to a small audience, and I turned on my camera to record him. As I pressed record, he said, “Get in the positive. Instead of saying, ‘I hope it is not going to rain’ or ‘I hope I don’t forget my umbrella,’ you say, ‘Oh God, please help me remember to get my umbrella.’ If you ask for something positive, you get it. If you ask for the negative, it gets you.”
My heart connected in that moment. Moments like this help me grow, both as an artist and as a person. We learn so much from each other if we just stop and listen. It’s one of those simple threads that connects me to my art—and, in a way, to you.
Your portraits offer a captivating glimpse into the energy of others. What part of the process is most engaging for you when creating an image that truly captures someone's essence?
First and foremost, I don’t usually photograph strangers. But even my friends—people I know well—put up this wall the moment a camera is pointed at them. I strive to break down that wall by inviting them to play and participate in what I call performance for the camera. I ask them to bring their toys, and I bring mine.
Some of these people are veterans of the stage and Continued on next page...
Gail Thacker. Shani & Francois, The Libation Bearers (1999).
Analog color print from a B&W Polaroid 665 negative with watercolor and acrylic, 24 x 20 inches
Gail Thacker. Scooter as André Kertész’s Satiric Dancer in Kevin Aviance’s Dress (2018). Polaroid 665. 3 1/4 x 4 1/4 inches
Gail Thacker. Eiko Blowing Sparkles (2024). Analog color print from a 665 Polaroid B&W negative and acrylic. 24 x 20 inches
Gail Thacker. Good Night, Sleep Tight, Don't Let the Bed Bugs Bite (1995/2017). Analog color print from a B&W Polaroid 665 negative with watercolor and acrylic. 20 x 16 inches
performance, so they come with lots of ideas. But even then, it takes a magical energy between us to create that spark—to touch upon their essence and let it be revealed.
That’s why having my photographs in perfect focus isn’t important to me. It’s about something else entirely. It’s about an energy so intense that the image itself feels like a living thing. I allow all the natural occurrences of being to participate—a collaboration with nature. To live, to decay, to change, to grow, to simply be.
It’s about the love of life and celebrating these artists. Even with Mark Morrisroe on his deathbed, my intention wasn’t to point and say, “Look at how horrible.” It was to say, “Look at how beautiful my friend still is.” Does that make sense?
But often, my intentions are different from what the viewer sees—and that’s okay.
Given that many of your closest friends, collaborators, lovers, and acquaintances endured the profound challenges and dangers of the 1980s AIDS epidemic, how did this experience influence the trajectory and themes of your artwork?
During this time a technique of decaying the negative started to connect with my art practice. The negatives began to react in a way that mirrored the
epidemic. I watched my beautiful negatives—and my very good friend—break down, waste away. The negatives of the Polaroid 665 responded to change in the same way life does with the passage of time and disease, much like our bodies. I found this fascinating. Fractals began to appear, similar to patterns we see in lungs, plants, and many aspects of nature. When I enlarged the images, they revealed repeating chains that you can’t easily see in the actual prints. It’s almost microscopic—what’s happening in those details—but it’s beautiful.
This relates to the idea of transforming something we typically fight against, like death and decay, into something beautiful. Why not? You are such an amazing person—let’s celebrate that.
I’m intrigued by Mark Morrisroe's life and work. Could you share the nature of your relationship with him and how it intersected with your own artistic journey?
Mark Morrisroe was like my brother. When I first met him, he walked with a cane and went by the name Mark Dirt. There were different students and artists who wove in and out of our scene, but together we created a dynamic force. Mark was prolific and determined to be famous.
In photography, the images were—and still are—
personal. My life was the art. We were queer and loud. We wanted to be visible. Boston was conservative at the time.
Our teachers were documenting neighborhoods, subjects, and foreign lands separated from their culture. It felt more organic for us to photograph each other and ourselves. It was very natural. It wasn’t intentional on anyone’s part—it was just us as young art students trying to find an individual voice. Nan Goldin, a graduate of the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, cast a significant influence on the queer community, with many of us attending the school and regularly discussing her work in the hallways. The Vietnam War had ended, and we were unknowingly licking the boots of the AIDS epidemic. It was 1980.
Could you speak to your experiences within the realm of theater, particularly your ownership of a theater? What aspects of this venture excited you most, and were there moments when the various artistic endeavors you pursued converged and intermingled?
This theatre—something I often repeat—literally saved my life. It was here that Gene Frankel asked me a deeply philosophical question: 'Do you want to be an artist, or do you have to be an artist?'
Continued on next page...
Gail Thacker. Jorge (2018). Analog color print from a B&W Polaroid 665 negative with watercolor and acrylic. 23 1/2 x 19 3/4 inches
When I answered him, 'I have to be an artist. I was born an artist,' he hired me.
At the time, he didn’t know I didn’t know much about theatre, but I learned very quickly. Gene became my mentor. He had this remarkable ability to truly see people. One day, he told me, 'Gail, you’re not a photographer!'
I replied, 'What? Yes, I am.'
He corrected me: 'You are an artist with a camera.' He could see things in people that they didn’t even see in themselves. He was an activist who genuinely cared about how society treated people. He directed groundbreaking plays like Jean Genet’s The Blacks, Arthur Kopit’s Indians, and Lorraine Hansberry’s To Be Young, Gifted and Black. As a mentor, he was extraordinary—an amazing, amazing person.
At this theatre, I learned the contagious power of saying yes. I’ve embraced that philosophy, opening the door to the theatre and encouraging people to take chances on their creative ideas.
The list of what followed is long and wonderful. When Gene Frankel passed away, I remember sitting alone at my desk by the window. Everything that happened afterward was because I stayed, opened the door, and said yes.
There were endless festivals and competitions, collaborations with directors like Kara Tyler, the early plays of superstars like Kevin Aviance, the great
success of Paul Alexander and his play Trinkets, and Nora Burns’ David’s Friend
All of it started because of Gene and the opportunities he opened for me—and the opportunities I’ve tried to keep open for others. I followed my father’s advice all along: “You either do it or you don’t. There are no backup plans or half measures if you are to be an artist.”
The building at 24 Bond Street, which inspired the name of your nonprofit 24 Bond Arts Center, has a rich and fascinating history. Originally built in 1893, it has long been a hub of artistic innovation, from housing Robert Mapplethorpe's photography studio to Sam Rivers' influential Rivbea Studios, which was central to New York's loft jazz scene. In 1986, the Gene Frankel Theatre became a vital part of the building’s story, playing a key role in the city’s off-off-Broadway movement and fostering the careers of countless emerging artists. Given this remarkable history, could you share your connection to the Gene Frankel Theatre? What were your experiences like there, and how did the building’s vibrant artistic community influence your work?
This is indeed a rich history. 24 Bond began as a hat factory, and the list goes on. But by the time Gene passed in 2005, all of the artists and their
community were gone. It was suddenly just me. Andrew Bauer, Gene’s partner, had also left the theater, and the Gene Frankel Theatre and Film Workshop had closed. I found myself in a nameless theater and scrambled to reopen it as the Gene Frankel Theatre.
I sat at my desk by the window and felt like I was in the movie Field of Dreams—“If you build it, they will come.” Luckily, that window is a picture window at street level. People would walk by, look at me sitting at my desk, and come in asking, “What is this?” I would answer, “A theatre.” I’d give them a tour, and it would turn out to be the most amazing performing artists—and friends were soon to be made.
I welcomed dreamers. Very quickly, friends stopped by to help clean up the theatre and turn it back into a performance space like it was before. Gene had turned it into a school with performances every now and then, but we removed the panels and mural, creating a solid black box.
The space, in the beginning, needed a lot of work, but more friends and theatre people showed up to rent the space, or I’d give friends shows and split the ticket money. I was on a roll with the dream and the possibility of anything—even a successful play.
I would tell people Gene’s story of his direction of Jean Genet’s The Blacks and name the legendary Black cast. Continued on next page...
Gail Thacker. Walter Hurley Beauty (2012). Polaroid 665, 3 1/4 x 4 1/4 inches
Gail Thacker. Bobbie Hondo at Trinkets (2017). Analog color print from a B&W Polaroid 665 negative with watercolor and acrylic. 26 1/2 x 22 1/2 inches
Gail Thacker. Love and Energy Claire Barnler (1999). Polaroid 665 with stitched thread. 4 1/4 x 3 1/4 inches
Gail Thacker. Agosto Machado (2008). Polaroid 665. 4 1/4 x 3 1/4 inches
Gail Thacker. Je m'appelle Tabboo! (2005). Polaroid 665. 4 1/4 x 3 1/4 inches
Gail Thacker. John Kelly as The Starfish (2009). Analog color print from a B&W Polaroid 665 negative with watercolor and acrylic. 23 1/2 x 19 3/4 inches
Gail Thacker. Dee and Crystal Gene Frankel Theatre (2005). Polaroid 665. 4 1/4 x 3 1/4 inches
Gail Thacker. Joey Gabriel Brooklyn (2009). Polaroid 665. 4 3/4x 3 3/4 inches
At this time, I learned the contagious power of saying YES.
Gene had taught me to be fearless. With him, I found that fearlessness is an essence, not a way to act.
So, I opened the doors to the fearless. And soon the space became a community, with parties, memorials, and a hangout. Acting coaches returned and started teaching at the Gene Frankel Theatre, like Tony Greco, Lyle Kessler, Bill Balzac, and Tom G. Waites. Productions of plays like Down to Eartha, Finokio, Papa from the Underground, Miss Julie, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, and many more were in full swing.
Gene’s voice would repeat in my head: “Fear is an abuse of the imagination.” So, in his honor, we were fearless.
How did you first meet Bobby Miller, the photographer?
I met Bobby years ago in Provincetown. He invited me to see his studio, and we shared a little history. His friend Mapplethorpe lived on the fifth floor of 24 Bond, where the theatre was on the ground floor. There, he told me the story of how he knew Robert, took his portrait, and created his only portrait in
drag. We quickly became friends, and he took my portrait. We still speak and catch up—it’s amazing. It’s such a rich history. I wish he was still in Provincetown.
Can you tell us about Karload of Klowns, the clown troupe you perform with?
Oh, Hapi Phace and Jorge Clar! One day, I asked Hapi to create a cardboard, three-dimensional car I could sit in so that when I drove in to play my part as the mother in Trinkets, I’d have a clown car. It didn’t quite blend with the sexy drama of Trinkets, but that car was made and used for our first 15-minute performance of Karload of Klowns in Thomas R. Gordon’s benefit for Onomatopoeia. We had long discussions about what our clown troupe was—we were intellectual clowns. All of Hapi's— as author and dramaturg—personas. Jorge is the older Hapi, playing "Palimpsesto," like a wise owl. My character's name is "Poppers," who has the mindset of a seven-year-old prankster. I don’t speak. I only pop balloons. Absurdity at its finest.
Please explain why you chose the opening quote in this interview: “Yes” is a powerful word and action. Words and actions are contagious. As I
say this it free falls. Anyone can catch it and it becomes theirs.”
It’s a philosophy of life.
What is happening in your life right now, both generally and artistically?
Art, art, friends, meeting new people, and talking on the phone. I do love building ideas with people on the phone. When I sold to the director Thomas R. Gordon and left the theatre on December 31, 2023, I felt positive and excited. The Candice Madey Gallery embraced me. I now had time to archive my thousands of Polaroids and prints. I’m doing my artwork full-time with a beautiful art studio and a gallery to represent me. I’ve never been happier—living the dream.
Instagram: @pataroid & @candicemadey_gallery
Karload of Klowns: (L-R) Nora Burns, Jorge Clar, Hapi Phace, Gail Thacker. Photo by Michael “Formika” Jones.
Erika Larskaya
"As an abstract artist, I search for ways to represent the invisible, subtle, and unexpressed. I am driven to lay out fleeting and intangible experiences on physical surfaces". —Erika Larskaya
Erika Larskaya Studio at 79 Main St. Torrington, CT www.erikalarskaya.art
Untitled, Charcoal, acrylic on cardboard, 8 x 10 inches
ERNEST SHAW
book soon to be
In reality, we don’t get a ‘fixed" and solid thing called a “self”, with a “life”, but rather, in a world of constant change, we get moments to live. Art speaks of those moments, raises the eloquent ash of artists, birth and death. How we live the moments matters. What we leave behind matters. Weaving words or images together reveals a story, from the personal to the universal, not as absolute truths, nor certitude, but as an open query, raising possibilities, a way of facing into life’s mystery, and, as Kafka said, “letting the world roll in ecstasy at your feet. It has no choice.”—Ernest Shaw
Latest
released by Ernest Shaw
Series. Ht 24” Graphite on wood 1989 Concage. Length 12” Concrete 2023
DRAFTING AND MECHANICAL DRAWING TOOL
I’m Leonardo Sideri: artist, interior industrial designer, inventor. I’m the creator and maker of ‘drawall.net’, a product devised in the 1980s. At the time, I was drawing, drafting my own design projects using a Mayline straight edge on a traditional horizontal drafting surface. There were times as a designer when I wanted to draw something full size, large format.
I don’t recall when the idea to adapt the Mayline concept to a wall application occurred but at the time, I had a project involving pulleys and belt drives, so I had an assortment of pulleys lying around my studio. The process involved assembling the odd parts to create this new drawing device: pulleys, sash cord, counterweights, a straight edge. Surprisingly, it worked quite well. Who knew 40 years later I would offer it to the art world.
Due to changing life circumstances, Drawall went into storage. Until one day, at age 75, I viewed a room size ‘Sol Lewitt’ pencil drawn installation at the DIA Museum. It was all I needed for inspiration lasting the next 11 years. I started drawing using what’s now known as Drawall and referring to myself as an artist. I’ve produced what I consider a small modest body of work based on my mystical X theme.
I’m offering Drawall to the ‘art world’ as a new tool to explore, to hopefully resurrect drafting and mechanical drawing to a new ‘art genre’. It’s not every day a new analogue tool is introduced to the art world.
Leonardo Siderileonardosideri.com
BERKSHIRE DIGITAL
Since opening in 2005, Berkshire Digital has done Giclée prints/fine art printing and accurate photo-reproductions of paintings, illustrations and photographs.
Giclée prints can be made in many different sizes from 5”x7” to 42”x 80” on a variety of archival paper choices. Berkshire Digital was featured in Photo District News magazine in an article about fine art printing. See the entire article on the BerkshireDigital.com website.
Berkshire Digital does accurate photo-reproductions of paintings and illustrations that can be used for Giclée prints, books, magazines, brochures, cards and websites.
“Fred Collins couldn’t have been more professional or more enjoyable to work with. He did a beautiful job in photographing paintings carefully, efficiently, and so accurately. It’s such a great feeling to know I have these beautiful, useful files on hand anytime I need them. I wish I’d called Fred years ago.” ---- Ann Getsinger
We also offer restoration and repair of damaged or faded photographs. A complete overview of services offered, along with pricing, can be seen on the web at BerkshireDigital.com
The owner, Fred Collins, has been a commercial and fine art photographer for over 30 years having had studios in Boston, Stamford and the Berkshires. He offers over 25 years of experience with Photoshop, enabling retouching, restoration and enhancement to prints and digital files. The studio is located in Mt Washington but drop-off and pick-up is available through Frames On Wheels, 84 Railroad St. in Great Barrington, MA Berkshire Digital413-528-0997 and Gilded Moon Framing 17 John Street in Millerton, NY 518-789-3428 / 413-644-9663, or go online to www.BerkshireDigital.com
"PALIMPSEST:
REMNANT TALES” MIXED MEDIA WITH COLLAGE ON WATER COLOR PAPER 5.5 INCHES WIDE X 9.5 INCHES HIGH
LESLEE CARSEWELL
My artwork, be it photography, painting or collage embraces a very simple notion: how best to break up space to achieve more serendipity and greater intuition on the page. Though simple in theory, this is not so easy to achieve. I work to make use of both positive and negative space to create interest, lyricism, elegance, and ambiguity. Each element informs the whole. This whole, with luck, is filled with an air of intrigue.
Breaking up space to me has a direct correlation to music. Rhythm, texture, points of emphasis and silence all play their parts. Music that inspires me includes solo piano work by Debussy, Ravel, Mompou and of course, Schubert and Beethoven. Working with limited and unadorned materials, I enhance the initial compositions with color, subtle but emphatic line work and texture. For me, painting abstractly removes restraints. I find the simplicity of line and subsequent forming of shapes quietly liberating.
Lastly, I want my work to feel crafted, the artist’s hand in every endeavor.
Leslee Carsewell413-229-0155 / 413-854-5757 lcarsewellart@icloud.com www.lcarsewellart.com
There are painters who transform the sun into a yellow spot, but there are others who, thanks to theirart and intelligence, transform a yellow spot into the sun.”
— Pablo Picasso
43” X 57” FRAMED / PENCIL ON PAPER DRAWING SAMPLES USING DRAWALL, SIDERI
36” X 36” FRAMED / SPRAY PAINT & PENCIL / PASTEL
Deborah H. Carter is a multi-media artist from Lenox, MA, who creates upcycled sustainable wearable art. Her couture pieces are constructed from post-consumer waste such as food packaging, wine corks, cardboard, books, wire, plastic, and other discarded items and thrifted wares. She manipulates the color, shape, and texture of her materials to compel us to question our assumptions of beauty and worth and ultimately reconsider our habits and attitudes about waste and consumerism.
A sewing enthusiast since the age of 8, Deborah first learned her craft by creating clothing with her mother and grandmothers. Her passion took hold as she began to design and sew apparel and accessories. After graduating with a degree in fashion design from Parsons School of Design in New York City, she worked as a women’s sportswear designer on Seventh Avenue.
Deborah’s art has been exhibited in galleries and art spaces around the US. She was one of 30 designers selected to showcase her work at the FS2020 Fashion Show annually at the University of Saint Andrews, Scotland. She has featured in the Spring 2023 What Women Create magazine.
Deborah H. Carter has been featured in The Artful Mind, Berkshire magazine, What Women Create magazine and was a finalist in the World of WearableArt competition in Wellington, New Zealand 2023.
Deborah H Carter413-441-3220, Clock Tower Artists 75 S. Church St., Studio 315, 3rd floor Pittsfield, Massachusetts Instagram: @deborah_h_carter Debhcarter@yahoo.com
JANE GENNARO TRANSFORMATION
This month’s Mining My Life connects me with photographer Lee Miller. Miller documented an era of historical significance and dramatic change in the world. In light of the current state of the world, Lee Miller’s photographs command our attention. Warn and provoke us—pay attention! Notice what’s happening around you.
The process of documentation gives a subject relevance. I have been documenting my life since childhood. Do I matter? What does matter? I can say that the power and beauty of art, whether absorbing or making it, endures through its capability to connect us to one another, and the larger world in inexplicably personal, occasionally transcendent, and surprisingly necessary ways.
Thus, Lee Miller’s photographs of rat tails in Paris (1932), liberated concentration camp prisoners singing while waiting for bread (1945); my clothespin doll of Louis IV (1993), pen and ink drawing of the Jazz Age (1977), and Bob Newey’s photograph of me à la Sally Bowles in Cabaret (1986) are able to join forces like newborn cells in a survivor’s body.
Jane Gennaro is an artist, writer, and performer based in New York City. She’s been featured in The New York Times, New York Magazine, and NPR. Her illustrated column, “Mining My Life” appears monthly in The Artful Mind magazine. Jane’s art studio is in Claverack, NY
Jane GennaroJanegennaro.com
SALLY TISKA RICE BERKSHIRE ROLLING HILLS
Born and raised in the captivating Berkshires, Sally Tiska Rice possesses artistic prowess that breathes life into her canvases. As a versatile multimedia artist, Sally seamlessly employs a tapestry of techniques, working in acrylics, watercolors, oil paints, pastels, collages containing botanicals and mixed media elements. Her creative spirit draws inspiration from the idyllic surroundings of her rural hometown, where she resides with her husband Mark and cherished pets.
Sally's artistic process is a dance of spontaneity and intention. With each stroke of her brush, she composes artwork that reflects her unique perspective. Beyond her personal creations, Sally also welcomes commissioned projects, turning heartfelt visions into tangible realities. Whether it's capturing the essence of individuals, beloved pets, cherished homes, or sacred churches, she pours her soul into each personalized masterpiece.
Sally's talent has garnered recognition both nationally and internationally. Her career includes a remarkable 25-year tenure at Crane Co., where she lent her hand-painted finesse to crafting exquisite stationery. Sally is a member of the Clock Tower Artists of Pittsfield, Massachusetts, the Guild of Berkshire Artists, the Berkshire Art Association, and the Becket Arts Center. Follow on YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram.
Sally’s work is on the gallery walls of the Clock Tower, Open Monday-Friday 9:00-5:00 pm for self-guided tours.
SallyTiskaRice@gmail.com www.sallytiskarice.com https://www.facebook.com/artistsallytiskarice Fine Art Prints (Pixels), Twitter, LinkedIn Instagram, YouTube, TikTok
KENNY PORTER
GRAPHITE PENCIL ON BRISTOL BOARD PAPER
TRANSFORMATIONS, DIGITAL COLLAGE, 2025
DEBORAH H. CARTER
PHOTO: KORENMAN COM MODEL: NATALIE PARÉ
FLUTTERING JEWELS GOLDEN ACRYLIC METALLIC PAINT
Lyn Horton
“My 2024 work grasps at an essence of our world, no matter how narrow its parameters. For Repeated Forms and Leaves and Flowers, my world happened to include a camera, a studio table filled with drying leaves and flowers, boxes of pens and pencils, and an idea.“
https://www.instagram.com/lynhortonphotoart http://www.crossmackenzie.com https://lynhorton.net
Repeated Forms 5, 2024, detail 1. Leaves and Flowers 21, 2024
Repeated Forms 2, 2024, 30 in h x 24 in w, ink and colored pencil on printed photograph
FRONT ST. GALLERY
Pastels, oils, acrylics and watercolors, abstract and representational, landscapes, still lifes and portraits, a unique variety of painting technique and styles you will be transported to another world and see things in a way you never have before join us and experience something different.
Painting classes continue on Monday and Wednesday mornings 10-1:30pm at the studio and Thursday mornings out in the field. These classes are open to all...come to one or come again if it works for you. All levels and materials welcome. Private critiques available. Classes at Front Street are for those wishing to learn, those who just want to be involved in the pure enjoyment of art, and/or those who have some experience under their belt.
Kate Knapp413-528-9546 at home or 413-429-7141 (cell) Front Street, Housatonic, MA. Gallery open by appointment or chance anytime. www.kateknappartist.com
STEPHAN MARC KLEIN
I have been sketching and making art for all my adult life, since my undergraduate education as an architect in the late 1950’s. What interests me most at present about creating art, besides the shear visceral pleasure of making things, of putting pencil or pen or brush or all of them to paper, and of manipulating images on the computer, is the aesthetic tension or energy generated in the metaphoric spaces between the abstract and the representational, between individual work and reproduction, and between analog and digital processes. I enjoy creating images that result from working back and forth between the computer and the handmade.
My wife, artist Anna Oliver, and I have made our home in the Berkshires for the past three years and I am still entranced with its beauty. I think much of my work is in part a kind of visual rhapsody to the area. The idea for Snowstorm, Alford Village, came from an interest I have had in exploring the dimension of time in the plastic arts.
Also, I love snowy winters.
Stephan Marc Kleinstephanmarcklein.com smk8378@gmail.com
Member 510 Warren Street Gallery, Hudson, New York
MARY ANN YARMOSKY
My work is a collection of a variety of people, a collection of experiences and expressions. It’s about understanding their history, understanding the power of their history, the power of their power, the power of their vulnerability, the power of transformation, and the power of purpose.
My works are abstract in nature, but aren’t we all pieces put together by our life experiences? Who is to say what is real when we look at a person. Don’t we always project onto them some characteristic we think we see, some fleeting feeling that crosses their face, or some mannerism that indicates their comfort or discomfort?
I work mainly with acrylic on canvas, paper or wood and often add fabric, thread or other artifacts that seem to belong. My process unfolds unintentionally since my characters dictate what needs to be said. I invite you to weave your own story into my works. You can decide what is held in an expression, a certain posture or the clothes they wear. I hope you enjoy the adventure as much as I do.
Mary Ann Yarmoskymarymaryannyarmosky.com maryannyarmoskyart.shop
STILL LIFE, KATE KNAPP
DURING THE STORM, MID PANEL FROM SNOWSTORM, ALFORD VILLAGE, TRIPTYCK
Some of the ways to use DRAWALL
DRAWALL … ‘Invention as art’ … a new drawing medium, a tool, new age mechanical drawing, pencil drawing on a vertical surface, clean drawing surfaces, large format, reviving the art of the ‘draftsman’ … The ‘built world’ has always relied on drawings by draftsmen, I’d like to reclaim that art form to create a new ... art genre. If I’ve been using Drawall to make art, I’m sure other talented types can use Drawall, too.
I’m offering Drawall to the ‘art world’ as a new tool to explore, to hopefully resurrect drafting and mechanical drawing to a new ‘art genre’. It’s not everyday a new analogue tool is introduced to the art world. —Leonardo Sideri
Contact Leonardo Sideri at leonardosideri.com for further information and inquiries
Drawall with a 36” x 60” sketch, pencil on paper
Cottage watercolor on paper, 2024
Silo Abstracted watercolor on paper, 2024
Greenhouse Door watercolor on paper, 2024
Every month, a new word. A new way to look at our world.
artist, illustrator, writer, poet, peace lover elizabeth cassidy studio works elizabethcassidystudioworks.com
Ruby Aver
It’s All About the Dress Acrylic on canvas 16”x20”
rdaver2@gmail.com | Instagram: rdaver2. Housatonic Studio open by appointment: 413-854-7007
FRONT STREET GALLERY
Painting classes on Monday and Wednesday Mornings 10-1pm at the studio in Housatonic and Thursday mornings 10am - 1pm out in the field. Also available for private critiques. Open to all. Please come paint with us!
Gallery hours: Open by chance and by appointment anytime 413. 274. 6607 (gallery) 413. 429. 7141 (cell) 413. 528. 9546 (home) www.kateknappartist.com Front Street, Housatonic, MA
LIONEL DELEVINGNE
“Back to the Future” 1976—2024
510 WARREN STREET GALLERY, Hudson NY now offering Vintage Delevingne silver prints for these times
https://www.instagram.com/Lioneldelevingne http://www.lioneldelevingne.com/ http://www.510WarrenStreetGallery.com
SUSAN GILBERT
I am a visual storyteller. The subjects for my work are culled from American culture and my own life experiences. I don’t tend to do social commentary, but choose iconic activities, events, behaviors or customs that are distinctly American, some of which are pride parades, baseball, 1950’s vacation trailer parks and roller-skating competitions. Then I create what I hope to be an amusing scenario.
One of the pieces I did was a depiction of my father as a baseball player. He always wished to play, so I had him hit the ball out of the park and called it FENWAY FRED. Fred being his name.
Color, pattern and a cartoony figurative style are three other elements I use to recreate the theme according to my own observations and sensibilities. Some of the artists who have influenced me are Red Grooms, Chicago’s Hairy Who, Roger Brown, Frida Kahlo, Florine Stettheimer and many outsider artists. These, I believe, recreate the world around them according to their own style and vision.
At present I work either on paper with gouache or construct pieces using plywood, masonite and roofing aluminum that hang on the wall. The constructions are my primary focus due to my love of three dimensionality inspired by my childhood toys, dollhouses, mini gas stations, toy kitchens and western forts. I have used Barbie and Ken as my main characters and will be using the 1950s paper doll, Betsy McCall in future works.
My work is my playtime. I have no grandiose concepts or observations that I’m trying to impart through my art. Just having a lot of fun telling my tales based on my crazy culture and life.
Gilbert’s paintings will be on display at the Knox Gallery in the Monterey Library May 2 – June 7, 2025.
Susan Gilbert781-444-1335
7 Art School Rd., PO Box 722, Monterey, MA sgflexart1@gmail.com
MARGUERITE BRIDE
BICYCLES ON THE MOVE
Who doesn’t love bicycles? I have a series of paintings featuring bicycles…take a look at my “Cycle Therapy” page on my website. These paintings were a traveling show and just came home: some of the originals are still available.
In the not-too-distant future (May 2025) I will be moving from the Berkshires to another beautiful New England area….the Lakes Region of New Hampshire. After 30 years in paradise, another adventure is calling me.
How will this affect my art career? My living and working space will be considerably smaller compared to what I have here. But I expect to still be painting and teaching….those details are still unknown for now.
Soon I will be “disassembling” my studio and I have a lot of equipment, studio furniture, art materials/supplies, tables, flat files, print storage shelves, chairs, and racks looking for new homes. Please check my website, my watercolor Facebook page, or call/text/email me directly for more details about dates/times of scheduled sales events. I can also set up an appointment for you to visit privately.
In the meantime, besides planning this move, I am still painting and doing commission work.
Marguerite Bride –413-841-1659
margebride-paintings.com
margebride@aol.com
Facebook: Marguerite Bride Watercolors
Instagram: margebride
LONNY JARRETT BERKSHIRE SCENIC PHOTOGRAPHY
My initial memory of awakening to the creative impulse was hearing the first chord of the Beatles, Hard Day’s Night, when I was six years old. I knew something big was happening at that moment, and I had to get on board! I began studying at the Guitar Workshop, the first guitar school in America. I’ve performed music most of my life and play jazz fusion with my band Redshift.
My interest in photography blossomed as an electron-microscopist publishing neuro- and molecular-biological research out of UMASS/Amherst and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx in my early 20s.
As a lifelong meditator, martial artist, musician, and photographer, everything I engage with comes from the same unified intention toward engendering the true, the good, and the beautiful. I endeavor to capture the light that seeps through everything in landscape and nature photography.
Lonny Jarrett -
Community: Nourishingdestiny.com
Books: Spiritpathpress.com
Art: Berkshirescenicphotography.com
Teaching: Lonnyjarrett.com
IRISH BIKE, WATERCOLOR
HIPSTER, 3-DIMENSIONAL MIXED MEDIA
RICHARD NELSON Ai
Lately I've been tinkering with Artificial Intelligence. Many people feel it is a pestilence on the art world. I can understand that point of view. It took me a long time to convince myself that the loving portrait of my dog which I completed in a matter of a couple hours has the same energy, honesty, feeling, that certain intrinsic human element one would instill in a piece done in a traditional medium: oils, acrylics, pastels etc. Fact of the matter is, I'm not particularly skilled in technique, but I can achieve that depth digitally. Or so I'm told, I'm older, and not particularly healthy, so I find I am more concerned with the final image and not how I got there.
Which brings me to Ai. Using an Ai image as a starting point helps provide a level of depth to the image. To me it's the same thing as using sampling in musical composition. As I slow down with the passing of time, the need to be creative persists. Any tool to facilitate that end result is fair game. Richard Nelsonnojrevned@hotmail.com
JOHN LIPKOWITZ 510 WARREN ST. GALLERY
February 28, 2025 marks the opening of John Lipkowitz’ new exhibition of aluminum photographic prints from his recent trip to Kenya.
On this, the seventh African safari he and his wife Nina have experienced, their goal was elephants, for Nina a visit to one of the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust facilities where young orphans are reintroduced to the wild. For John, it was the opportunity to visit a part of Tsavo East National Park where there are still some surviving Super Tuskers, elephants with one or both tusks weighing at least 100 pounds. Perhaps as few as 50 are still alive today, their numbers having been decimated by natural deaths, occasional poaching and, if you can believe it, by legal trophy hunters if these magnificent animals wander across the unfenced border into Tanzania.
Fortunately, the super tusker genes survive in Tsavo and Amboselli parks and there is also a population of emergents, younger bulls who just might qualify as Super Tuskers given another ten or fifteen years. During a three-week safari many other animals were encountered, and some are represented in this show as well.
Come see them all at 510 Warren St. Gallery. The exhibit begins February 28, with an artist’s reception on Saturday, March 2 from 3-6 PM. The show will continue until March 30, 2025. 518-822–0510. Friday 12-6, Saturday 12-6, Sunday 12-5; 510warrenstgallery@gmail.com
“The nude, if you tackle it, is a very fascinating subject, especially for a woman… Traditionally the Nude was used to express formulations about life as larger-than-life, as Heroic or Ideal… The nude is not a ‘genre’ subject.” -Isabel Bishop
ERNEST SHAW WILLIAMS COLLEGE MUSEUM OF ART
“Shaw’s work at the Williams College Museum of Art has a powerfully direct, transmutive potency. Strongly authoritative, devoid of formal devices, it has an implant of deep primordial consciousness. He has a sensitive eye for the truth of things at a primal level which eludes many of us. The work is profoundly archetypal, without the barriers of specialized “art language”. This sculpture grips the spectator in a time crunching here and now … utter, relentlessly unsympathetic and unreasoning conditions are its cohesive message. His work presents the notion that barbarianism is not a factor of a historically resolved past but is excessively present. It bears the burden on a wholly inhumane predicament and makes a strikingly disturbing and emotionally reductive statement about our essential existences, origins and our world. It is a primordial release!” (From art review in the Williamstown Transcript, November, 1988.)
“A natural progression characterizes Shaw’s oeuvre in a grand sense. Sculpture has become for him a vehicle for an organic development of ideas and forms, and his own attitude and philosophy reflect a rugged individualism. Like other artists and writers before him, Arthur Dove, Georgia O’Keefe John Marin, David Smith, William Faulkner, to name a select few, individuals who felt a strong affinity with nature and a compulsion to work, geographically, outside the mainstream art/literary community, Shaw has found his own niche …. Informed with the contemporary art scene … but at liberty, with distance, to grapple with his own vision in seclusion without distraction. . That he will continue to work and grow, there’s no doubt … that he will bring to fruition the full potential of his vision is the way of future expectations.”
—Douglas Dreishpoon, Emeritus Curator of Albright Knox Museum.
(Excerpt from his catalogue essay of Shaw’s work at the museum of SUNY New Paltz, 1985.)
Ernest ShawErnestshaw179@icloud.com / ernestshaw.net
INFORMANT SERIES, OIL AND PIGMENT ON CANVAS HT 84” W 48” 2001
SELF-PORTRAIT, RICHARD NELSON, JAN 2025
Something For Over The Couch PART 24
“Claudia and the Italian Pastry Shop”
The wrecked and abandoned Elk’s Club building on Cooper Street now became a favorite destination on my walks around the city. I felt emboldened to go in whenever I liked because my painting was hanging in the living room.
I went there when the hoodlums were away. Sometimes I would be there for a few minutes, and at other times I would sit in one of the lounge chairs in the living room for an hour, thinking about absolutely nothing, and staring at the wall across the room, a wall adorned with various large cracks and peeling green paint. My name for the building was,
‘The Ruined Palace of the Common Man,’ a mansion built by poor people. I can’t explain the strange pleasure the wrecked place gave me, just like a child lounging in the driver's seat of a Lincoln Continental that has no engine, rusting in a junkyard.
Sometimes John was there and we would get into awkward conversations. A cloud hung over our brief encounters in the form of an unanswered question. Why had he attacked me that day? Why did he drag me into an alley and threaten me with the knife? Finally I asked him about it, and he tried to give me an explanation. He told me he was from Brooklyn, and having said that he looked at me significantly, as if that simple statement would be sufficient, but my incomprehension prompted him to elaborate. This is what he said to me, as I remember it.
“In Brooklyn I was in a gang. I was given a task. I had to rob a corner store, and I was given a gun. Not a real gun, but one made of wood, and painted black. The store I was to rob was run by a Middle Eastern family, and when I went in, there was a girl about fourteen, with a narrow face and huge eyes like I don’t know what, and pupils so big that… I just pointed the gun at her almost as if it was a prank, and I didn’t say anything.
Her huge eyes got larger still and she began to tremble all over and her teeth began to chatter. The money was in a shoe box, and when she brought it out from under the counter she was shaking so much that the money, almost all small change, went flying all over the place.”
At this point he stopped for a minute, as if he wanted to avoid the rest of his story. It was obvious that he did not want to go on with his confession, something was coming that seemed to be too painful for him to talk about. I thought it was one of those pauses when a speaker knows that if they say one more word their voice will crack.
Then he said, “Really, it was just a prank, I didn’t
even mean anything by it,” and he looked at me pleadingly, as if I was somehow able to absolve him of the guilt he felt, for having terrified a child. So he had crossed the Rubicon by complete accident. It might have even been love at first sight that his evil fate had orchestrated for him.
“I had to run away,” he continued. “I did not think there was any other option, and when I proposed to go upstate, Ivan was eager to go with me as he had his own problems. We got as far as Utica and the car broke down.
I was trying to rob you in the alley, just in order to restore my self respect but like with trying to rob the corner store, I couldn’t go through with it. Not only that, but there was something about your face that reminded me of the girl in the corner store.”
This was such an awkward and embarrassing moment in the conversation that it came to a sudden end.
I saw John and Ivan again on the day they left; they were planning to go to California. The back seat of their car was full of canned food stolen from the cellar of the restaurant Ivan worked in.
John approached me very quietly and somehow apologetically and said “I sold your painting.”
“To whom did you sell it?” I wanted to know. Instead of an answer he pointed to the car as an explanation, saying, “The clutch cost two hundred dollars, that is what I got for it. I sold it to an old guy I met in a restaurant down on Lafayette Street, in an Italian pastry shop”
There was only one cafe in the Italian section. It was a famous cafe bakery and every time there was a wedding or a funeral or any important event someone was sent to the bakery to buy huge quantities of the pastries they were famous for. The bakery was run by an old couple, neither of whom spoke English.
The customers were served by three girls who were probably relatives of the old couple, and it was my impression that the tremendous business the cafe did was because of those girls, and I think the men who went there every day went there simply to admire them. Each of them was more beautiful than the other two, depending only on which of them was behind the counter.
I confess that I was not immune to the hypnotic charm of the clerks, but of the three of them my favorite was one named Claudia. I can’t describe her, I do not have those skills, but she was an Italian type of beauty, straight out of a Neo-realist film, or like one of those perfect faces Bougereau liked to paint. She has an abundant head of hair that was always a mess and covered half her face.
She seemed to be utterly unaware of her beauty, and also extremely indifferent to her admirers. If someone got up the nerve to compliment her, they might be sure to receive an indifferent shrug, as if such a compliment, perhaps just about an earring, or a bracelet, would be a matter of complete indifference to her.
Perhaps you have seen such a woman, standing at a bus stop, or just turning a corner at the end of a street in a town you were only in once in your life and twenty years later you might still be able to conjure her image.
Although this is the first time I have mentioned Claudia in this chronicle, she was a very important person to me, even though I had never said a word to her aside from ordering coffee and an eclair from her.
I was intimidated by her to such a degree that sometimes my voice would crack when I ordered coffee from her.
Caudia had a suitor or a boyfriend, and I was never certain what their relationship could have been. He would stand at the counter for long periods of time talking to her, even when she was busy and waiting on customers. She took no notice of him and didn't even respond to his comments; not even so much as a nod, as if he did not even exist. Even so, he would go on talking to her as if she had replied, seemingly unaware of being ignored. The old couple who ran the bakery would never have tolerated such an imposition unless the man had some sort of right to station himself at the counter and lecture their employee.
At the time of the sale of my painting for the switchblade I was still going everywhere on a bicycle. And although it is probably not that significant in my attempt to describe my attraction to the clerk in the pastry shop, I have to mention it. I was acutely aware that riding a bicycle meant that there was an entire category of girls that would not only reject my attention, but even be insulted by any request for a date. The boys who had cars, preferably their own cars, and not the family vehicle had a sufficient status to aspire to being rejected by some girl who hoped to be a beauty queen.
The suitor of the pastry shop clerk was just such a person, with a late model black Ford convertible, and so if that convertible was parked in front of the bakery I would not bother to even go in. I had no intention whatsoever of trying to talk to Claudia, I would never attempt to make any sort of comment as if to test the waters of the possibility of a conversation with her, but the presence of the insufferable boyfriend irritated me to such a degree that I would not even enter the place.
The day after I had been informed that my painting had been sold to someone in the bakery I went there. I felt somehow strangely empowered to go there, now that there was some obscure piece of information that connected me to the place.
Imagine my amazement when I walked in and saw that my picture was hanging on the back wall among the various prints and photographs the cafe owners had put up on the wall behind the counter.
At the counter was Claudia, as usual, not looking at me, even when I ordered. When she handed me my change I managed to say, “You have a new picture on your wall?” I said it as a question, as if I could not possibly know anything about it. She answered my question abruptly saying, “My Uncle Firp bought it and put it up there, the guy who painted it is going to be the next Picasso.” When she said ‘Picasso,’ she shook her head and took a look at the ceiling, as if to imply that she thought her Uncle Firp was an idiot. She seemed to have an obvious contempt for my little picture and for her uncle, which filled me with respect for her.
Uncle Firp! I also had an Uncle Firp. He was not an actual relative of mine but he was a person everyone called Uncle Firp. He was a strange old man, and I will now have to tell you about him.
—RICHARD BRITELL
JANUARY 2025 PARTS, 1 THROUGH 23, HTTPS://SPAZIFINEART.COM/SHORT-STORIES/
—Jane Gennaro
Reaching for the Heavens
Photography by Bruce Panock will be on view in a group show ASSEMBLED Through March 2, 2025 MAD ROSE GALLERY 5916 North Elm Avenue, Millerton, New York | https://madrosegallery.com
Panockphotography.com
bruce@panockphotography.com 917-287-8589 | Instagram @brucepanock
Deborah H Carter Embarkment
Photo:
Model: @shondaevette
Represented by the Wit Gallery Clock Tower Artists