Summer may be over, but art is never out of season. You can paint something white well past Labor Day and still be in style. Plus, many Island galleries stay open year-round, so get out and get your art on.
Featherstone Center for the Arts
Located in Oak Bluffs, Featherstone Center for the Arts is a community art center offering year-round arts education and experiences for all ages and abilities. They provide a wide range of programs and collaborations, making art accessible to everyone. There are a number of events and shows coming up at Featherstone, including Summer Celebrations and Reflections, which will be held in the Francine Kelly Gallery. Summers are always memorable — beach days, barbecues, bike rides, sandy toes, and wet bathing suits. And even though we know summer must come to an end, sometimes it’s hard to say goodbye. There is good news however, you’ve got one more chance to catch some summer vibes during Featherstone’s show. In this exhibit, Island artists share their summer stories and memories through a variety of mediums including paintings, photography, sculpture and more. Show runs Sept. 17 to Oct. 9.
As we bid farewell to summer, we say hello to winter and welcome the holiday season. Check out Featherstone’s 21st Annual Holiday Gift Show, which opens on Nov. 13 and runs through Dec. 17, 12 to 4 pm daily. (Closed Thanksgiving Day). Support Island artists and celebrate the holiday season by shopping for unique gifts such as paintings, photography, pottery, crafts, jewelry, knitwear, clothing, accessories, ornaments, cards, calendars and stocking stuffers. Whew, so many treasures to choose from. ‘Tis the season for supporting the arts community.
Featherstone also offers a series of fun and engaging Art Nights. Art Nights are socially themed evenings, where participants create art and sip on delicious beverages, while exploring a variety of mediums, including ceramics, jewelry, printmaking, painting and crafting. To learn more about Art Nights, visit featherstoneart.org/art-nights.html or email featherstone@featherstoneart.org with any questions.
Louisa Gould Gallery
Louisa Gould is a busy Island photographer who offers a full range of photography services. Gould also represents 50 local, regional, national, and international artists who work in a range of mediums. Her gallery, the Louisa Gould Gallery, is one of the largest galleries on the Island and is located at 54 Main St. in Vineyard Haven.
On Saturday, Sept. 23, from 4 to 5:30 pm, come in and meet artist Michael Zigmond, who paints whimsical, almost surreal realism, in addition to breathtaking landscapes. On Oct. 1, from 12 to 1:30 pm, artist Ralph Frisina will be at the gallery for a meet-and-greet. For the first time, Frisina will have prints of his works, including fishing lures, old antique engines for boats, as well as new oil paintings of antique fishing lures and fishing gear.
First Fridays in Vineyard Haven provide an opportunity to explore Island galleries, enjoy the inspiring work of local artists, and meet new people. On Friday Oct. 6, from 4 to 7 pm, Sean Roach and Donna Blackburn will be First Friday’s featured artists at the Louisa Gould Gallery. Roach is a bit of a Renaissance man, and has worked as a television host, actor, scenic artist, and fine artist for more than 20 years. He studied painting at the Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia, and he currently resides on Martha’s Vineyard with his wife and two children. Donna Blackburn works in a variety of mediums, including oil, acrylic, watercolors, pastels, and has dabbled in fiber arts and scrimshaw. Blackburn’s paintings feature nature, coastal vistas, world travel views, interesting still life subjects, portrait commissions, and genre settings.
Currently at the Louisa Gould Gallery, the Summertide Show, featuring the works of Alexandra Averback, Paul Beebe, Linda Besse, Eileen Corse, Anne Grandin, Jack Hornady, Kate Huntington, Gwen Marcus, David Witbeck, and more runs through Oct. 31.
On Oct. 6, meet Island artists and enjoy refreshments during an open house at Louisa Gould Gallery, from 4 to 7 pm. Also in October, stop by the gallery for a dynamic show featuring ceramic artist Suzanne Hill, which will run through Oct. 31. Suzanne Hill has worked in clay for over 50 years. She graduated with a major in illustration from Rhode Island School of Design, and went on to earn an M.F.A. from the College of Ceramics at Alfred University.
Turpentine Gallery
Artist Mitch Gordon owns the Turpentine Gallery in West Tisbury, which, in Gordon’s own words, is “an oasis for purposeful exhibitions.” Gordon uses strong gestural brushwork with bold realist focal points and lyrical compositions in his paintings. Drawing from both traditional Western and Asian influences, his works explore the natural world and dynamic relation of the self to the quantum realm. After graduating from Tufts University and teaching at Bowdoin College, Gordon moved to the Vineyard to raise his family. During this time he studied traditional Chinese watercolor painting in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, and color field painting with Japanese artist Kaji Aso. Gordon founded and operates Indian Hill Builders, a design/build construction company, and taught at Featherstone Center for the Arts.
There are two shows coming up at the Turpentine Gallery: The Bounty of the Sea, which opens Oct. 28 and runs through December, features paintings and sculptures by Gordon and wire sculptures by artist Steve Lohman. On Nov. 25, the show It’s the Small Things that Matter opens with a reception from 4 to 6 pm, and will feature wire sculptures by Steve Lohman with paintings by Mitch Gordon. Lohman’s graceful and whimsical steel and wire sculptures are three dimensional line drawings that bounce in space. Lohman’s aunt was the Gayhead seaweed artist and michologist Rose Treat, and he’s been coming to the Island his whole life. Currently, Lohman has large sculptures at the Martha’s Vineyard airport, the Mansion House Hotel, and created the Chicken Ally chicken sculpture and logo. Turpentine Gallery hours through December are Thursday to Sunday, 11 am to 5 pm. Email mitch@turpentinegallery.art with any questions.
There is still so much art to explore off-season. Go out and get inspired. You won’t be disappointed.
