Jeffrey Carlson from Fine Art Today, the weekly e-newsletter from Fine Art Collector magazine, wrote a fantastic article about our Pay It Forward exhibition titled “How Artists and Galleries Are Paying It Forward.” Thank you so much for the great write-up, Jeffrey! You can check out the article for yourself here. We’re especially pleased to see this incredible show getting some exposure, since a percentage of each sale in September from this show will go towards a deserving charity. To read our full blog post about this unique and incredible exhibition, click here.
Pay It Forward has brought together a great variety of talented female painters, and as a result the show features a wide variety of subject matter and moods–from portraits and figures to still life and landscape, all of them running the gamut of the narrative, the symbolic, and the mysterious. Matter Deep Publishing has creating a gorgeous catalogue of the exhibition, featuring beautiful images of the works as well as artist statements and some of the history behind not only this show’s inspiration, but the Women Painting Women movement as a whole. You can get your own copy of this stunning catalogue by contacting the gallery, or visiting this link.
Each and every one of these special paintings is, as the saying goes, “worth a thousand words,” and we thought we’d take some time this month to share with you some of the stories behind these works in a series of blog posts. We start today with two very different works, each poignant and beautiful in its own way.
Felicia Forte‘s “Dismantling Something You Worked So Hard to Create”
A finalist piece in the RayMar Art Competition, Felicia’s painting “Dismantling Something You Worked So Hard to Create” was aptly described by one of the competition’s judges, Charlie Hunter, as he observed: “Behold the table that is defined only by reflected light! Space and objects come into focus, then recede. Edges. Design. Color harmonies. Contrasts in the paint handling. Juicy darks and sharp geometrics. Mortality. Enigma. There’s a lot to love in this painting (and plenty to get creeped out by, too). Just what the doctor ordered!”
Hunter’s words are echoed by many observers who come into the gallery and stop in their tracks to admire this unique and captivating work. In the catalogue, Felicia describes it as a “more serious” work for her. “I started it last year and then it was put on hold as I went through a divorce. When I finally got back to it, the apathy or disillusionment that I was feeling about everything led me to finish it in large swirling and stabbing brushstrokes. This new more expressive way of painting couldn’t have been found had I not been a bit outside of myself emotionally. The dismantling of a marriage turned out to be the catalyst to a truer form of creative expression.”
Ellen Eagle’s “Portrait of the Young Artist Marela Alvarez”
A touching and utterly lovely work in pastel on pumice, Ellen’s portrait in this show is truly special. In the catalogue, Ellen shares a bit of the story behind the piece.
“My next portrait was supposed to be of my mother. Sadly, my mother died in April 2014 as I was planning her portrait. I have always focused on adult subjects, most often women. Who would I want to paint, at this moment, instead of my mother?
My answer appeared in the hallways of the Art Student’s League of NY: Marela Alvarez, a ten-year-old vision of grace and beauty. Her mother takes her to the League’s children’s class every Saturday, as did my mother when i was ten. My mother would adore Marela, as do I. She is my perfect subject.”
You can view these pieces as well as the rest of this stunning Pay It Forward exhibition by visiting our website here.
