Paul Weingarten’s ‘Meadow Montclair’
MONTCLAIR, NJ — Studio Montclair presents “Life and Landscape: Inspired by George Inness,” a dual exhibition on display from Sept. 9 through Nov. 6 at Studio Montclair’s Leach Gallery, 641 Bloomfield Ave., and Montclair Museum of Art, 3 South Mountain Ave., both in Montclair. The two venues are a convenient five-minute walk apart. An opening reception will take place at both settings on Friday, Sept. 9, from 7:30 to 9 p.m. The exhibit is the fifth collaboration in Studio Montclair’s Virginia S. Block Community Partnership Exhibition Program, founded on the concept that an interface between artist and community can result in a flourishing of creativity.
Inspired by George Inness, this show takes its cues from the upcoming exhibition of MAM’s renowned Inness collection. This exhibit showcases the work of Inness, Studio Montclair members, and MAM instructors and staff.
“We are extremely pleased to be continuing our collaboration with Montclair Art Museum again this year for our Community Partnership exhibition. This year is especially exciting because we will be exhibiting 64 pieces of art in our newly acquired gallery at the former Leach building,” curator Virginia Block said, adding that the 3,000 square feet of raw space with high ceilings at the Leach building “allows us to exhibit very large format works of art, something which we were not able to do in the past. Another benefit of the Leach space is its proximity to the museum. Guests will be able to walk between the two spaces during the opening reception and throughout the duration of the dual exhibits, which is a huge attraction.”
“MAM is thrilled to be working together with Studio Montclair to present this collaborative exhibition opening together with a major reinstallation of MAM’s world-renown Inness collection, described by leading Inness scholar and Little Falls resident Dr. Adrienne Baxter Bell as the ‘greatest Inness collection in the world,’” MAM Executive Director Ira Wagner said. “George Inness said, ‘Art is a subtle essence. It is not a thing of surfaces, but a moving spirit …’ It was wonderful to see how artists continue to carry forward that special spirit that is part of Inness’ work in many new directions. It is very clear that the legacy of George Inness is very much alive today and can inspire such a broad range of interpretation. Visitors will have a unique opportunity to see Inness’ work together with a selection of over 100 works in MAM’s Vance Wall Education Arcades and SMI’s Leach Gallery, which drew their inspiration from a master — an artist that was inspired by the beauty that is Montclair.”
Participating artists are Peter Allen, Ry An, Evangelia Anagnostopoulou, Bob Barnett, Donna Bassin, Mariette Boerstoel, Lynne Breitfeller, Robyn Burns, Virginia Carroll, Dennis Connors, Pamela Deitrich, Elizabeth Demarco, David Derr, DJ Dougherty, Harriet Finck, Jocelyn Fine, Rosemary Fineberg, Tim Folzenlogen, Leslie Ford, Karen Fuchs, Bruce Garrity, Karen Goldberg, Marsha Heller, Nancy Iovino, Martine Kasmin, Aubrey J. Kauffman, Michael Kloepfer, Mary Millan Klunk, Ann Kraus, Steven Kushner, Fran Legman, Anni Lorenzini, Yvette Lucas, John Markowitz, Paul Mindell, Pamela Moore, Howard Nathenson, Ruth Bauer Neustadter, John Patterson, Arthur Paxton, William Pew, Eric Reid, Matt Roberts, Joanne Ross, Paula Schiller, Ela Shah, Francisco Silva, Pat Sinatra, Linda Steinhardt Majzner, Heather Stivison, Noaa Stoler, Peter Tilgner, Sue Eldridge Ward, Paul Weingarten, Bill Westheimer and Lisa G. Westheimer.
For more information about Studio Montclair, visit studiomontclair.org, call or text 862-500-1447, or email smi@studiomontclair.org.
Photos Courtesy of SMI
About the Author
