“Transitions”

OCTOBER EXHIBIT -GOURGAUD GALLERY-  "TRANSITIONS"---Oct. 7-28, 2012

COLLEEN CAHILL                                        CRANBURY, NJ

This month the blog will feature an autobiography from Colleen Cahill, instead of an interview.

I grew up as most children do w/ my crayons and color pencils doodling and sketching. Very soon it became apparent that ART was something that I needed to explore. I started painting with oils and doing pen and ink sketches. Early on in my middle school years I became enamored with fashion and fashion illustration. I pursued this direction through high school and entered into the Maryland Institute of Art in Baltimore where I took classes in fine art and Fashion design.

 I worked at Head Sportswear a ski wear company where I assisted the designer while I attended college classes. This was my first official foray in the fashion industry.  I loved it all. I was hooked, line and sinker. I then transferred to the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City to finish up my classes. I worked as a fashion designer for a total of 15 years in NYC and Los Angeles.  Most of my sketching time was spent on clothing but I somehow managed to do a painting or two in my spare time between raising a young family and working full time. 

In the mid-nineties I started to pursue more fine art projects. I was working with a close friend who is a photographer. We collaborated on many photo based art projects such as Polaroid manipulations and transfers and painted black and white photos. 

The last few years, I have been studying watercolors and pastel painting. However I would be hard-pressed to narrow down my favorite medium to ONE choice. I love the freedom of water and watercolor paint, the ”hands on” messy ness of pastels, freezing time and mood with Photography, the endless possibilities of collage and mix media, and I really wish I had the time it takes to paint with oils.

I have given my recent collection the title “Transitions” which mirrors my life at this time. I hope you enjoy my most recent efforts to translate my emotional vision to 2 dimensional surfaces.

 

Benny's Landing

additional photos of Collen's paintings will soon appear on Facebook: "Gourgaud Gallery"

https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Gourgaud-Gallery/108657442495068

The artwork is for sale with 20% of each sale going to support the Cranbury Arts Council and its programs. Cash or a check made out to the Cranbury Arts Council is accepted as payment.

The Gallery is located in Town Hall- a Town Hall, 23-A North Main Street in Cranbury, NJ: and is free and open to the public Mon- Fri from 9 AM. – 4 PM and the first, third and last Sunday of the month from 1-3 pm. You can meet the exhibiting Artist(s). Refreshments are served at the Artist Reception. Anyone wishing to exhibit at the Gourgaud Gallery can obtain an application at the Gallery or at www.cranbury.org. For information on upcoming programs and events,  LIKE us on FACEBOOK: GOURGAUD GALLERY, and JOIN the GOURGAUD GALLERY BLOG at www.Gourgaudgallery.blogspot.com . If you are interested in CAC membership or participating in any way, please email us at cranburyartscouncil@gmail.com.

Tree Dance

 

 

 

WINTER WORKSHOP ART EXHIBIT

Winter Workshop Art Exhibit-Sept 8-30, 2012

                                       

The Winter workshops at the Gourgaud Gallery sponsored by the Cranbury Arts Council has given local artists the opportunity to remain painting 12 months of the year. CAC has hosted Art in the garden sessions all around the area for the spring/ summer months for plien air painting. Colleen Cahill started this program to supplement it, so that even in the doldrums of winter we are able to assemble to learn, to paint and to create together. The focus has been on watercolor, collage, pastel and many specialized topics such as perspective drawing and still life with drama.

CAC employs working artists to facilitate these workshops and each year we get a great turnout to these sessions. We celebrate the work done at the workshops (collage, pastels, and watercolors being among the classes) with a gallery showing. Work can be submitted late August from workshop participants that are reviewed and possibly juried, based on the response. We also try to hang a piece from each of our artist and instructors.

The Winter workshop gallery show is one of the highlights of Cranbury Day and we hope many can come see these artistic efforts and join us at the official opening Sunday Sept. 9th from 1-3 PM at the Gourgaud where ART happens.

The Gourgaud Gallery will also offer matted paintings for sale outside of the gallery, as part of Cranbury Day.

The artwork is for sale with 20% of each sale going to support the Cranbury Arts Council and its programs. Cash or a check made out to the Cranbury Arts Council is accepted as payment.

The Gallery is located in Town Hall- a Town Hall, 23-A North Main Street in Cranbury, NJ and is free and open to the public Mon- Fri from 9 AM. – 4 PM and the third and last Sunday of the month from 1-3 pm. You can meet the exhibiting Artist(s). Refreshments are served at the Artist Reception. Anyone wishing to exhibit at the Gourgaud Gallery can obtain an application at the Gallery or at www.cranbury.org. For information on upcoming programs and events, join us on FACEBOOK: GOURGAUD GALLERY, and on the GOURGAUD GALLERY BLOG at www.Gourgaudgallery.blogspot.com . If you are interested in CAC membership or participating in any way, please email us at cranburyartscouncil@gmail.com.

pictures posted on Facebook : Gourgaud Gallery
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.495700590457416.124829.108657442495068&type=1#!/pages/Gourgaud-Gallery/108657442495068
 

AUGUST 2012 EXHIBIT AT GOURGAUD GALLERY:

ALL ABOUT THE BIRDS – THE ART OF NECATI   ITEZ

By Bob Gilbert

This month’s exhibit at the Gourgaud Gallery features the acrylic and watercolor paintings of Mr. Necati Itez.  The thirty works of art capture interesting birds with landscape as background.

I had the pleasure of interviewing Mr. Itez and he told me more about the exhibit and about himself.  Mr. Itez considers himself a self-educated bird enthusiast, and he loves to paint all sizes of birds from the small fly catchers to the large eagles.  He selected birds as the topic of this exhibit because they make such interesting subject matter.  He apparently has quite a knack for capturing our fine feathered friends with a paint brush, as he has been told that he “paints birds like nobody else”.  So bird lovers (and others) – come on down and see this exhibit.

As to his background, Mr. Itez attended art school in New Jersey many years ago, and that led him to a career as a textile designer.  As such, he created paintings (mostly floral) that were transferred to fabric (“yard goods”), and ultimately were made into upholstery or clothing.  So it’s possible that if your couch is several years old, you may be sitting on an “Itez design”!

Mr. Itez is retired, and eight years ago he moved to an active adult community in Monroe Township.  At that time, he decided to take up fine art painting.  In recent years, he has displayed his work in many group shows and competitions, and this year he won the first prize in a painting competition at the Middlesex Community Senior Center (it was a painting featuring birds).  This exhibit at the Gourgaud Gallery will be Mr. Itez’ first one-man show and he is very excited about it.

As to whether he paints subjects other than birds, Mr. Itez informs me that he does and is presently working on a series of paintings of international folk dancers from all over the world.  He intends to display these in a future exhibit.

Here’s wishing much success to Mr. Itez on his one-man show – it really is a “feather in his cap”!   

                             The Gourgaud Gallery

                                     Town Hall, 23-A North Main Street
                                              Cranbury, New Jersey      

“All About the Birds” the Art of Necati Itez

Reception August 5th from 1 to 3 PM

Exhibit from August 5-26

Hours: Mon-Fri 9 AM – 4 PM

    First, Third and Last Sunday 1 PM – 3 PM

The Gourgaud Gallery is part of the Cranbury Arts Council, a nonprofit organization. Any art purchased at the gallery will benefit the Cranbury Arts Council for various programs by receiving 20% from all sales. Cash or a check made out to the Cranbury Arts Council is accepted as payment.

see facebook page: gourgaud Gallery for additional pictures: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.485030678191074.121696.108657442495068&type=1#!/pages/Gourgaud-Gallery/108657442495068

July Exhibit: Flora, Fauna and Mystical-the Art of Linda Gilbert

JULY EXHIBIT AT THE GOURGAUD GALLERY 

   Flora, Fauna and Mystical-the Art of Linda Gilbert

                                                                By Bob Gilbert

Linda Gilbert
"Fit For a King"

The July exhibit at the Gourgaud Gallery is a one-woman show featuring the acrylic paintings of my wife, Linda Gilbert.  The show is entitled “Flora, Fauna and Mystical”. The Show will run from July 8-23, 2012. The Artist Reception is July 8 from 1-3 PM.  As a special incentive, on the day of the reception, a small matted painting is being offered for free with the purchase of any larger hanging painting.

 Here is a little background about Linda – she taught art to New York City public school students for thirty years and retired in 2003.  During her career, she was so busy teaching art and being a mom (and wife) that she did not have much time to devote to her own art work.  That all changed after she retired, as evidenced by this current outstanding (totally unbiased opinion) exhibit. 

Now I will let Linda speak for herself.  Here is a Q & A with Linda:

Q: This is your second exhibit at the Gourgaud Gallery, the last one being almost two and a half years ago.  How has your painting style or approach changed since the first show?

A.      I believe that my painting style has become less inhibited than it was before. Although I started to lean towards doing some mystical or surreal paintings, I have expanded on that concept. Even my realistic paintings reflect a certain “fantasy” that did not quite exist before. This is more my “cup of tea” - using my imagination - getting into the twist of the unknown.

Q: What are your favorite subjects to paint and how do you select them?

A.      I still photograph scenes, objects, buildings, and people - whatever I see that can possibly make an interesting subject matter. They may not always be interpreted as the photo dictates, but they are definitely sources for paintings. I love doing landscape, cityscapes and an occasional Still Life. Sometimes, these paintings have a little twist of fantasy to them. My web site is divided into categories of the different subject matter that I paint. www.PaintingsbyLinda.net.

Q: You have amassed a lot of paintings over the past several years, more than can fit in the current exhibit.  How do you decide which ones to enter into the show (other than asking me and doing the opposite)?

A.      The decision is very difficult. I did an experiment once, sending 25 painting images to 25 friends, asking which paintings they think would appeal to the masses. I received 25 different answers. Selecting paintings is very personal to the artist and the buyer. There is no accounting for taste -it is an individual choice. I ended up choosing a wide variety of subject matter, so there is a wide range of choice.

Q: I have seen you devote a lot of time to painting.  Can you describe what you enjoy most about it?

A.      Painting is relaxing for me. It gives me a sense of accomplishment and joy to see what I can do with a subject. If I achieve the color I am looking for, the way I like it to look (and that may not necessarily be the way it actually looks---which has proven a little more difficult to achieve than doing it realistically), and an overall aesthetically beautiful product, I am then fulfilled in my creation.

Q: When you retired nine years ago, did you anticipate or even imagine that you would get involved in painting to the point of exhibiting your work in galleries and shows?

A.      No. I immediately enrolled in a couple of painting courses offered by the United Federation of Teachers when I retired. This was to “brush-up” on my techniques. I painted every day for 1-2 hours when I retired. I felt good that I was finally creating something I wanted to create, other than painting murals and giant scenery for school plays. It is after moving to New Jersey almost five years ago, that I began to expand my painting to larger and more diverse subjects. I am fortunate to have found the Gourgaud Gallery, as it inspired me to go in a direction of exhibiting in a gallery.  Now, I am exhibiting regularly in various local galleries throughout the area.

Q: You have been teaching an acrylic painting class for retired NYC teachers for the last few years.  What is it like to teach adults as opposed to children, and do they get detention if they repeatedly come late to class?

A.      Generally, there is no discipline problem!!!!! I do not have to tell the students, if they do not listen, I will have to call or write a note home. I do have one student who comes late every session. I tell him to get a late pass, but he hasn’t done that yet. No one yet has received detention…but it is a thought.

On the serious side, it is very different than teaching children, as I am working with my peers, and all former NYC teachers. As I walk from student to student to talk and suggest techniques for their paintings, I can also make some small talk about our experiences when we taught for the NYC school system—and how happy we all are being retired!!!!!!

Q: Finally, as an artist, what is it like being married to a guy that can’t draw a straight line with a ruler?

A.      My “guy” may not be able to draw a straight line, but he plays a mean guitar. Sometimes I think Jimmy Hendrix is in the den! Let us not forget, music is an art also.

Linda Gilbert
"Reflections"

Additional Pictures may be viewed on Facebook: Gourgaud Gallery 

 https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Gourgaud-Gallery/108657442495068

The Gourgaud Gallery is located in Town Hall, 23-A North Main Street in Cranbury, NJ: The artwork is for sale with 20% of each sale going to support the Cranbury Arts Council and its programs. Cash or a check made out to the Cranbury Arts Council is accepted as payment.
 Hours: Mon-Fri 9 AM – 4 PM
Sundays July 8, 15 and 22, 1 PM – 3 PM

“Barns and Beyond”-Watercolorists Unlimited (Lisa Walsh)

 “Barns and Beyond”-Watercolorists Unlimited (Lisa Walsh)

By Bob Gilbert

see pictures from the show on Facebook: Gourgaud Gallery

By June 3-24, 2012 “Barns and Beyond”-Watercolorists Unlimited (Lisa Walsh)

Lisa Walsh, who heads the group “Watercolorists Unlimited”, will have a showing of her group’s paintings. The reception is June 3 (1-3 PM). Refreshments will be served.

The following is an interview with Lisa Walsh:

How and when did you get interested in forming this group?

I've been involved with this group for 12 years. The original group formed 25 years ago, this being our 25^th anniversary year. There are still two members who are original members. They are Bernice Fatto, and Wilma Shimer.

Have you had formal art training?  If so, describe.

I majored in art in college at The Maryland Institute, College of Art in Baltimore. Many of the painters in our group have been professional artists working in fields such as textile design, graphic design and as art teachers.

The work is in watercolor.  Why do you prefer this medium?

There is luminosity to watercolor that you really can't achieve in any other medium.

How does the group select subject matter for paintings?

We discuss it at every meeting. We've kept a list of the subjects we've painted over the years, and sometimes we'll go back to one we've done before.

What artists have influenced or inspired the group?

 Lucille Geiser was the original member of the group and she is still quoted in some of our critiques. Also, Biff Hines was a great influence to many of the members. But we are regularly influenced by one another in our critiques.

In your opinion, what is the relative importance of “raw talent” vs. training when it comes to becoming an artist?  Can a person with modest talent benefit substantially from proper training, and does a person with great talent require training?

I personally believe that you learn through doing and seeing. I think we all get better by looking at the other paintings in our group, and by hearing what others say about our paintings. Critique is a great learning tool.

As part of the non-profit CAC, the Gourgaud Gallery donates 20% of any art sales back to the CAC and its programs that support and promote the Arts in our community. The Gallery is located in Town Hall and is free and open to the public Mon- Fri from 9 AM. – 4 PM. and the First, Third & Last Sunday of the month from 1-3 PM. New exhibit receptions fall on the First Sunday from 1-3 PM , unless otherwise specified. You can meet the exhibiting Artist(s). Refreshments are served at the Artist Reception. Anyone wishing to exhibit at the Gourgaud Gallery can obtain an application at the Gallery or at www.cranbury.org. For information on upcoming programs and events, join us on FACEBOOK: GOURGAUD GALLERY, and on the GOURGAUD GALLERY BLOG at www.Gourgaudgallery.blogspot.com . If you are interested in CAC membership or participating in any way, please email us at cranburyartscouncil@gmail.com.

"An Evening with George" at the Gourgaud Gallery

"An Evening with George" at the Gourgaud GalleryThe Gourgaud Gallery will host a one night art exhibit, featuring nearly 30 paintings by the late George Stave. This event, "An Evening with George," will be held in the Gourgaud Gallery on June 1, Friday evening from 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. The public is invited to view these privately owned paintings and visit with the families who loaned the pieces. The exhibit was curated by Mr. Stave's wife, Mabubeh Stave as a memorial to George and it offers a rare opportunity to see Mr. Stave's work from private collections.

Mr. Stave was a prolific and highly respected painter. He was born July 29, 1923 in Los Angeles, CA. After growing up in Salinas, CA, he returned to Los Angeles at the age of 17 as a scholarship student at the Chouinard Art Institute. In his early 20's Mr. Stave worked as a set painter in the art department of Paramount Studios and as a painting instructor at the Jepson Art Institute. In 1949, he moved to Paris where he studied painting at the Academie Julian. Mr. Stave was awarded a Fulbright Act grant in 1951 for a year's study in India and then traveled throughout Southeast Asia and Japan, where he studied and collected art. In the mid 1950s he returned to New York where he was a student of the abstract expressionist painter Robert Motherwell at Hunter College. A member of the United Scenic Artists union, he worked for most of his career as a set painter for NBC Studios and later, Lincoln Scenic Studios, in New York.


In 1958, he and his wife Mahbubeh Stave moved to Cranbury from New York City.


This is Mr. Stave's third exhibition in the Gourgaud Gallery. He was actively involved in saving the building that houses the Gourgaud Gallery from demolition in 1966 and he and his wife served on the committee that chose to use the space as a gallery. Mr. Stave first showed his work in the inaugural exhibition in 1976 and then again in 1981.

The exhibit is open to the public. Refreshments will be served.

The pieces in the exhibit will not be available for purchase, and the exhibit will be removed that evening to allow for the upcoming exhibit of Watercolorists Unlimited to be displayed for their regular Sunday opening on June 3.

2012 Art in the Park Plein Air Series offered by the Cranbury Arts Council

Welcome to the 2012 Art in the Park Plein Air Series offered by the Cranbury Arts Council. This is the tenth anniversary of the free plein air event and offers new locations to paint in the open air from May - October on Sundays from noon to 4 pm. The series ends in October in Village Park in Cranbury, which was the very first location that began the series ten years ago. The artists who participate will have the opportunity to share their work from the series in the December show in the Cranbury Arts Councl's Gourgaud Gallery located in Town Hall, Cranbury. The events are rain or shine with no rain dates.

Art in the Park 2012 Schedule:

CHECK ON LINE FOR DIRECTIONS TO LOCATIONS

May 20 – 39 Cranbury Neck Rd. Cranbury

June 17 – Mt. Lakes Nature Preserve, Princeton
July 15 – Sayen Gardens, Hamilton
August 19 – "Paint on Main" Main St., Cranbury(between Evans Dr. & Plainsboro Rd. and the West Property)
September 16 – Plainsboro Preserve, Plainsboro
October 21 – Village Park, Cranbury