John MacDonald: Williamstown Landscapes

    


  The Harrison Gallery will be presenting a solo exhibition of paintings by John MacDonald - one of the most popular, prolific and respected landscape artists of this area from September 7 - 30, 2013. An opening reception with the artist will be held on Saturday, September 7th from 5 – 7 pm and is open to the public.

     
When John MacDonald paints a landscape, it is what he leaves out of the image that makes it so true. He paints nature the way it really is – no romantic flourishes, sentimentality or symbolism. By omitting most architectural structures and all human figures his paintings avoid any narrative and achieve a classic timelessness.

      McDonald has staked out the Berkshires as his favorite terrain, painting portraits of the area as it appears in all seasons.  Because he knows the area so well and has trained himself to paint only what he actually sees, emptying his mind of all preconceived images, his paintings speak with authority, distinctiveness and above all, great authenticity. 

Remembering Henry

Henry Geldzahler, former Curator of Contemporary Art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and NYC Commissioner of Cultural Affairs, fostered an unusual spirit of community amongst young modernist artists in NYC during the 1970's & 80's. As I hear it, Henry was tireless and generous with his energy, often shared on a summer evening at his home in the Hamptons.

We have shown three of these artists over the years: Stephen Hannock, Tom Slaughter, and Ray Charles White. Scott Kilgour with join them to complete "the crew" for our summer show, "Remembering Henry", July 6 - 31.

Get ready for a trip down an artistic lane full of anecdotes, recognitions, and contemporary works created by these artists, hand-picked by Henry G. in his days of recognizing artists who "make it new". This will be a celebration worth the trip.

T.D. Kelsey Sculpture at St. Louis Zoo

T.D. Kelsey created a a bronze pieces as part of the new installments at the St. Louis Zoo .The Warthogs bronze sculpture is a life-sized scene of a warthog family. Kelsey truly captures the dignity and serenity of these animals in a beautiful way. The bronze sculpture sits outside of the park at the south entrance, so even when the zoo is closed, passers by can enjoy the piece.

T.D. Kelsey grew up on a ranch near Bozeman, Montana. He rodeoed for many years in rough stock events and team roping. Following that T.D. trained and showed cutting horses for several years. He worked as a commercial pilot for United Airlines until 1979 when he resigned to devote full time to his art.

Kelsey's work is found in private and public collections worldwide; his monumental  pieces have been placed in several private companies and public facilities such as zoos and museums.  He is a member of the Cowboy Artists of America, and fellow member of the National Sculpture Society. He has works on permanent display at the Thomas Gilcrease Museum, the Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame and Museum, the C.M. Russell Museum, the National Museum of Wildlife Art, the Buffalo Bill Historical Center, the Owensboro Museum of Art, and the Old Town Museum.

To view T.D. Kelsey's sculptures click here.

Visiting an Artist's Studio

Wandering down Rte 7 to Curt Hanson's studio outside of Litchfield, CT, on a warm spring day brings to us the artist's source of inspiration - quiet greens and buds, serene and intimate moments in the landscape. There is nothing more satisfying than selecting a body of new work for a show in the studio space, where one connects to and absorbs the essential character of the artist.

We are so excited to share these paintings, along side Hanson's teacher and friend, Stan Taft. The show opens Saturday, June 1st.

To view Curt Hanson's paintings click here. 

Points of Connection: Generations of Mingei

This show is a story about connection. In 1918, through an association with Japanese a esthetic critic Yanagi Soetsu, the British potter Bernard Leach visited Japan where he met a young, then unknown now legendary, potter Shoji Hamada in the small village of Mashiko. This friendship sparked the resurgence of the mingei aesthetic, from which sprung the life force of modern Japanese ceramics. Mingei, the "art of the people", aspires to celebrate beauty in the functional.

Shoji Hamada, one of Japan's National Living Treasures, mentored Tatsuzo Shimaoka, also a National Living Treasure, who in turn mentored Ken Matsuzaki.  Shinsaku Hamada, son of Shoji, continued the tradition, passing it along to his son, Tomoo Hamada. Tomoo Hamada and Yoshinori Hagiwara represent the contemporary work in this lineage. Inspired by Bernard Leach, Phil Rogers carries on the legacy in Great Britian.

The clay soil in the humble village of Mashiko , Japan, has yielded hundreds of years of creative acts of object formation, derivations of patterns and glazes, examples of  which are here to be enjoyed or collected at the Harrison Gallery. It is with great appreciation and gratitude that we bring these fine ceramics to the Berkshires, in cooperation with the Pucker Gallery. The show will run through July

The Harrison Gallery now on Facebook

      

    The Harrison Gallery is now using Facebook as a fun and exciting way to follow our friends, stay in touch, and get further involved in our community!

  

Each Saturday we will also post the director's "Hand Picked" artwork of the week!

  

To follow us on Facebook click here.

2013 Show Schedule

  

An entire year of shows have been planned and published on our website. This year brings new works by our extraordinary artists, exciting group shows,  as well as new artists showing in our gallery.

 

We hope you will be able to visit us to meet your favorite artist at one of our openings and see the brilliant talent being showcased each month.

 

Click here to view the 2013 show schedule.