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Just Men, a series of twenty-six bronzes, many measuring no more than five or six
inches in all dimensions,
depict delicately stylized people, their small heads and elongated hands, emerging from, or submerging into,
boxes. With their thorny hands contrasting effectively with the smooth, unbroken surface of the bronze matrix,
they gape open-mouthed, registering expressions of grief and horror.
By virtue of their scale--the pieces can be held comfortably in one hand--the viewer is simultaneously
empowered and implicated.
The name Just Men has two meanings: only men, and righteous men, which was suggested by
an old
rabbinic narrative, whereby thirty-six good men must be present in the world at all times to assert morality
and justice in the face of counter evil forces.
But the sculptures can also be seen as metaphoric of each person's struggle to be born;
to allow the Self to emerge from the container shaped by society and/or childhood.
Depending on one's point of view, the repressed soul is either succumbing, or breaking free.
Wood Men appear to be very different from the bronzes, but express the same struggle against repression.
They are positioned to walk and talk, but are stiff-jointed and gagged.
The unique power of Richard Levenson's sculpture has ultimately to do with its positive aspect;
its healing power. Only when we can externalize, name, recognize, and integrate that which is dark,
negative, unjust and evil, can we free ourselves.
All of his work can be seen as an attempt to reconcile man with his best aspect;
it therefore functions like an exorcism, and one might say, it is egoless.
Richard Levenson spent many years of his life deeply immersed in the NYC advertising world.
The last part of his life was spent in Columbia County deeply immersed in his art.
You may have noticed one of his billboard installations, "Please God" which seems to combine the two.
....David Eddy is a self-taught painter, but don't call him an outsider artist or he'll growl.
Eddy is firmly grounded in the mainstream of contemporary art. His paintings are full of raw energy and passion,
with a naive sophistication the New York Times described as "notably reminiscent of Paul Klee.
" Eddy's semi-abstract figurative compositions are personal and autobiographical; inspired by his surroundings in Warwick, NY, and his family, dog, barn, and salt box house.
A disciplined and hard working man, Eddy paints everyday. This is fortunate since his work appeals to a number of
dealers who are all clambering for more paintings. This year alone, Eddy will present solo exhibits in Kent, CT,
Provincetown, MA, Los Angeles, CA, New York City, Beacon, and Hudson, NY.
With all of this success, it is surprising to find that Eddy only began his art career six years ago.
Previously a roofing contractor, Eddy always had a good sense of color and design, but never would have thought of entering an art gallery other than to impress a girlfriend (now his wife).
He did enjoy drawing, however, and would entertain himself on rainy days (remember, he was a roofer)
with crayons and chalk.
Fortunately, his wife saved the work and artist Alex Echo happened to see some of these drawings years later and
encouraged Eddy to pursue his creativity. Echo came back the next day with three bags full of painting
supplies and gave them to Eddy. A first attempt at the easel only frustrated Eddy so he tried to cover up his
unsatisfactory efforts with more paint, and in doing so, discovered the joys of moving slippery paint on a wet
surface, colliding with other colors.
Eddy seems to experience this same joy each time he approaches a blank canvas. He puts down lots of
paint and pushes it around, scratching, smearing, brushing, rolling and generally distressing until
something in the paint attracts him. He paints in a simple complimentary vocabulary, enjoying the
physicality of painting on a rigid surface.
"My painting was a gift," says Eddy, "a result of circumstances I could never have predicted or dreamed.
I have embraced it with all the passion and energy that I own. I now know what I want to be when I grow up."
....Marion Vinot, a recent newcomer to the area, will exhibit for the first time in Columbia County
at the Carrie Haddad Gallery.
Vinot was born and raised in Paris and has moved to many other locations including Mexico City,
Texas, New York City, and St. Barts. She feels quite at home here in Harlemville and has been filling her
walls with beautiful paintings inspired by this area.
When examining Vinot's work in both pastel and oil, one is immediately impressed with her soft and
romantic style of painting. She could easily have been a member of the Nabis, a small group of
French painters formed in the late 1800's.
Her figures are usually women, wearing flowing dresses in beautiful gardens or working in golden fields.
Her compositions most resemble the work of Maurice Denis, but her opulent palette brings Pierre Bonnard
to mind. Some of the pieces in the upcoming exhibit are tall and narrow vertical shapes like Vuillard did
during his membership as a Nabi at the turn of the century.
The work is quite colorful and decorative with patterned prints in the clothing and busy garden flowers,
but Vinot's female subjects are not simply decoration.
Her women are intelligent and vital, spiritual and contemplative.
....Pamela Blum lives in Kinston , NY part of the year and Illinois State University most of the year where
she teaches sculpture, drawing, and microcomputer applications in the arts. and ceramics.
She has exhibited in many cities across the United States and has given countless lectures and
workshops on light, color, art theory, chaos theory, computers, and encaustics.
The later is one of her specialties since she has been working in encaustics for some time.
Her husband Richard Frumess owns and operates R&F Encaustics in Kingston.
Her work on exhibit at the Carrie Haddad Gallery through September 9th is new and intriguing.
Blum uses black and white encaustics and oil paint applied in 6 or 7 layers over a finely made curved wood
panel. The abstract work is both sculptural and painterly.
The finish is buffed and smooth to look like taut and shiny skin. Each little curved box is covered in the
beeswax medium and then scratched and marked.
Sometimes the markings resemble images, sometimes they don't.
The work in entitled "Dwellings" and each precious object is
wonderful.
Vicarious Travel to Quiet Kingdoms.
Confronting the new photographic landscapes of Richard Kagan, you enter a
world of dreamlike enchantment.
Far removed from teh influence of Madison Avenue hucksterism and Disney-esque glitz,
it's a quiet kingdom of soul satisfying serenity.
The small scale images comprising the show may be seen at Carrie Haddad Galley through September 9th.
Employing a rare touch of creative magic, Kagan has transformed vistas shot on film in Wales and
Ireland into subtle black and white compositions alive with a sense of suspended stillness.
Beckoning a spectator to become one with the interactions unfolding inside the pictorial shapes,
the photographs pulsate with a wonderful range of visual contrasts.
They include variations of small and large elements, near and far objects and a whole host of straight,
bent and curved configurations.
Empty of any human presence, they are made up mostly of references to trees, shrubs, meadows,
roadways, bodies of water drifts of sky and occasionally, some suggestions of animal life.
Making use of film emulsions that provide the pictures with an overall grainy texture,
the photos are rendered with a rich tonal scale running from dense blacks through a long gradation of
gray notes to delicate, silvery whites.
While the pictures are clearly representational in character, they are, simultaneously, beautiful
abstractions with an honesty and lyricism that are the essence of pure visual poetry.
The Carrie Haddad Gallery is located at:
622 Warren Street in Hudson, NY.12534
Please call (518) 828-1915 for directions, more information or
visit our Contact Page for detailed Maps.
New summer hours, find the gallery open everyday from
11-5
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