Arts & Leisure
Four artists exhibit at York’s George Marshall Store Gallery through
July 15
"The Round Table" by Peter Brown
"Interior with Tea Pot" by Robin Cody
"Line and circle #5" by Jeff Kellar
"Window Book" by Judy Labrasca
YORK VILLAGE - The work of four artists currently on view in the George Marshall Store Gallery promises to be pleasing to a wide range of artistic taste.
Exhibited in the main gallery are selections of Jeff Kellar's sculptures and wall pieces as well as some of his newest pieces, which explore three-dimensional lines and circles.
Kellar is a highly respected contemporary Maine artist whose work was included in the 2007 Portland Museum of Art's Biennial exhibition, where he was the recipient of two purchase prizes.
The polished surfaces of Kellar's pieces are created using resin, clay and pigment and suggest an illusion of space and dimension. He refers to his images as "minimally representational" because he hopes to "conjure the illusion of space by the most economic means." The installation is elegant and serene.
Judy Labrasca, who happens to be Kellar's wife, is exhibiting in the adjacent gallery overlooking the York River. Labrasca has created an entirely different but equally contemplative space.
With her installation entitled "light from the river," she explores the way light changes the appearance of rooms and objects. The room, swathed in white tissue, serves as a softened background for her improvisational sculptures of brightly colored translucent plastic and photographs she has taken in and around the gallery.
LaBrasca's installation is ever evolving as she studies the changing light and its effects on shadow and color. Throughout the run of the exhibition she will add new photographs and, upon completion, exhibit her handmade books, which include the photographs she has taken during the exhibition.
Kellar and LaBrasca will give a joint gallery talk this Sunday, July 8, at 3 p.m.
The dock level gallery offers another change of atmosphere of rich color and alluring light with paintings by Peter Brown and Robin Cody. Though the couple spends the majority of the year in Sarasota, Fla., where they teach at Ringling School of Art, they find their inspiration when they return to Maine every summer to paint.
Brown's paintings have a dreamlike quality, using light to lure us to a place that is both familiar and somewhat foreboding. Many of Brown's works are divided, an illuminated interior view juxtaposed against a close-up pattern of wallpaper or textile.
Cody's paintings are equally filled with light and atmosphere including several paintings done in Florida and the remainder from New England. Cody enjoys working on site - setting up her easel on the sidewalk to paint the local architecture, or setting up a vase of sweet peas fresh from the Portland Farmers' Market.
Brown and Cody will give a joint gallery talk on Wednesday, July 11, at 3 p.m.
The George Marshall Store is a property and program of the Old York Historical Society. Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sunday from 1 to 5 p.m. and by appointment. For more information, call 351-1083
