Exhibits

Currently showing
April 11th  through May 19th.

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To view the work's of additional Artists visit the The Artists Page

• Joseph Garlock (1884-1980)
• Joseph Richards
• Dale Payson
• Craig Johns
• James Bleecker

showing at the Carrie Haddad Gallery
April 11th through May 19th.

A reception for the artists takes place on Saturday,
April 13th from 6-8 pm. All are welcome.

Local Master Painters at the Carrie Haddad Gallery:
Paintings and sculpture by recently discovered self taught artist Joseph Garlock will be on display. Also showing concurrently are the luscious still life paintings by local Claverack artist Dale Payson and landscape paintings by Craig Johns as well as "American Paradise" Photographs of the Hudson Valley by James Bleecker.

....Joseph Garlock (1884_1980)
Paintings and sculpture by recently discovered self taught artist Joseph Garlock will be on display at Carrie Haddad Gallery in Hudson, NY from April 11 through May 19th. A reception is planned for Saturday, April 13th from 6_8pm. All are welcome.
    Born in Russia in 1884, Garlock immigrated to the United States with his new wife in 1905. Finding harsh conditions on Manhattan's lower east side unbearable, Garlock moved to Bloomfield, NJ. Here he worked as a cobbler and later opened a fruit and vegetable stand. In the 1930's he expanded his private enterprise to include a single vehicle private bus line which transported commuters along Bloomfield Ave. to Newark, NJ. Garlock's bus line eventually became Public Service of New Jersey's #82 Watsessing line.
    Shortly after World War II Garlock began to pay summer visits to his daughter Rose at her Catskill cabin in Woodstock, NY. By 1949 he decided to retire. It was at this time that Rose suggested that he take up painting as a hobby.
    His first effort was executed on a pie tin and depicted his daughter's rustic Woodstock cabin. This enamel painting marked the first of over one thousand paintings and sculptures created by this highly prolific and gifted self_taught artist. Garlock's choice of subject matter is as diverse as the materials he used. Memories of Jewish life in Russia, portraits of movie stars, landscapes, still lifes and snow scenes were crafted on department store box lids, blocks of wood and backs of advertising posters, as well as canvas and paper.
    Garlock was also a dedicated sculptor, fashioning images that were as varied and imaginative as his paintings. Some are carved from twisted tree limbs, others are painted on bluestone or whittled from blocks of wood. Again, many subjects are addressed _ Biblical figures, icons of popular culture, politicians, birds and animals as well as ordinary people, including a figure of a cobbler working at his bench.
    This fascinating body of work had been stored in a shed at daughter Rose's Woodstock home since Garlock's death in 1980. Five years after Rose herself died in 1995 her nieces and nephews gathered at the cabin to rake and clean up the property. It was then that they discovered the outbuilding full to the rafters with paintings, drawings and sculpture created by their grandfather.
    The family contacted local art dealer James Cox who has been working with them to bring Garlock the recognition he deserves. In April of 2001 a successful premier exhibition was held in galleries at The Woodstock Guild. Now, a year later, Garlock's work will be featured at Carrie Haddad Gallery in Hudson. A lecture sponsored by the Synagogue at Malden Bridge will also be held in conjunction with the Carrie Haddad exhibit. Slated for April 14 at 2 p.m. the event is part of the synagogue's Conversation Pieces series. Garlock is also receiving recognition in two important New York venues. In January his work was included in the prestigious Outsider Art Fair at the Puck Building. In May an exhibition of Garlock's work will open at Chelsea's Ricco_Maresca Gallery.

....For years, Joseph Richards has focused his attention on painting mechanical subjects. He has had several successful shows at O.K. Harris Gallery in New York City displaying his large canvases of locomotive engines, oil rigging and massive steel geers.
    However, Richards’ fascination with the totally different subject of hayloft ventilators, or cupola, goes back even beyond his first painting of industrial imagery.
    The ventilators are often seen as adjuncts to barns in landscape paintings, but Richards feels that they make excellent subjects for paintings in and of themselves. You can decide for yourself at the upcoming show at Carrie Haddad Gallery where five large cupola paintings will be hanging from April 11th to May 19th.
    Richards describes the charm of his subjects as "usually the one bit of whimsy and frivolity displayed in an otherwise austere and functional structure – the American barn." Although most of the subjects in this vein are found in rural areas, they can also be seen in urban settings on carriage houses that predate the automobile age. Seldom does one find them in pristine condition. Since the cupolas that Richards has painted so far are over 100 years old there is usually at least some bit of decrepitude or decay that only serves to enhance their character and charm.
    Having now rendered some of these subjects on canvas, Richards knows they will be an integral part of his future work both for the pleasure of finding and painting them, and also to record their existence. One of the pieces in the current exhibit titled "P Street" shows a beautiful red cupola in Washington DC which has since been torn down for a parking lot.
    Joseph Richards was born in Des Moines, Iowa and studied art at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, the Chicago Art Institute, the American Academy of Art and Mizen Academy, Chicago. His corporate collectors include Mobile, AMOCO, and United Airlines.
    Richards moved to Columbia County 16 years ago and enjoys painting in his well_lit, glassy studio. During the winter months, Richards can rarely be found there since he takes full advantage of Hunter Mountain’s ski for free program for enthusiasts over 70.

....Painter Craig Johns lives in both New York City and Pawling, NY. Following his very successful first exhibit at Haddad Gallery last year, Johns has completed several new landscapes for this upcoming show with views of Block Island, Virginia, Chincoteague and the Hudson.

....James Bleecker:
According to gallery_owner Carrie Haddad, American Paradise: Photographs of the Hudson Valley, "features a selection of James's most spectacular landscapes taken over the past three years. His style as a photographer is singularly distinctive for his extraordinary use of light, with effects that range from a picture suffused in a soft glow to bold illumination that captures the power of a dramatic autumn sky."
    Several of Mr. Bleecker's images prominently featured in a recently published book, Saving Working Landscapes: A Campaign for Hudson Valley Farms, will be exhibited. The book, a collaboration of American Farmland Trust, a national organization, Scenic Hudson, and the Open Space Institute, celebrates the Hudson Valley's agricultural heritage and the farmers and communities helping to shape its future. Ned Sullivan, executive director of Scenic Hudson, calls Mr. Bleecker, "the Hudson Valley's pre_eminent landscape photographer."
....Mr. Bleecker is known for his innovative approach in building his images from two or more original exposures, selecting, for example, highlight detail from one exposure and shadow detail from another. "This technique," he explains, "expands the picture's contrast range beyond that of traditional film, allowing for richer shadows and more luminous skies. Images are often months in gestation before I make the first full_scale print."

The public is invited to the show's opening reception on Saturday, April 13, from 6 to 8 PM, and to a special slide presentation by the artist on Saturday, May 11, at 4 PM."
....A retrospective of images by James Bleecker are featured in the 30^th anniversary May issue of Hudson Valley magazine. Information about the artist and his prints can be found on his web site, www.JamesBleecker.com, and more can be learned about the upcoming show by calling the Carrie Haddad Gallery.

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