West Branch Gallery & Sculpture Park presents three solo exhibitions of new and recent works by painters Charlie Hunter and Carol O’Malia and sculptor David Stromeyer this summer, with an opening reception Saturday, July 9th from 6 -8 pm.
Charlie Hunter: Rail Town Noir
July 9-August 6, 2016
Charlie Hunter isn’t painting the leaf peeper’s version of Vermont. Though he’s guilty of finding subject matter inside the barn from time to time–he once painted a series of Holsteins, after all–Charlie avoids the imagery of bucolic red barns, rolling green mountains, and crisp fall foliage that has become synonymous with Vermont landscape painting. He’s opted for rusted train cars and their trailing clouds of dark smoke, postindustrial ruins, tired farming equipment, and quiet, muddy roads framed by bare trees in stick season. His palette is instantly recognizable, his preferred color a “muck” of his own mixing, and feels truthful to an often overlooked side of the Vermont landscape. This solo exhibition brings together a selection of new and recent works by the Bellows Falls-based painter in oil and encaustic. A collective account of remembered landscapes and forgotten local histories, “Rail Town Noir” will be on view through August 6, 2016. (image: Milford Freight House)
Carol O’Malia: Intermission
July 9-August 13, 2016
Holding your breath in the split second before jumping off the dock, a beach ball drifting slowly away from its distracted handler, the sudden silence discovered beneath the water’s surface, these are the kinds of “in-between” moments preserved and exalted in Carol O’Malia’s solo exhibition of recent oil paintings, “Intermission”, on view through August 13th. O’Malia taps into our collective memory with ephemeral scenes of familiar objects and places often forgotten in the rush of our everyday lives. Her subject matter is intentionally serene, though the human presence is never far away. “Intermission” presents a collection of gentle, visual reminders that time is never truly still, as the action continues before and after the moment immortalized in the painting; there’s a loud splash just beyond the edge of the canvas.
David Stromeyer: Visions in Steel
July 9-September 9, 2016
In collaboration with Cold Hollow Sculpture Park, West Branch presents a selection of large outdoor sculptures and smaller interior works by David Stromeyer, on view through September 9. The work of David Stromeyer redefines the strength and complexity of steel as he manipulates it in seemingly impossible ways to fit his artistic vision. Pushing the boundaries of conventional fabrication techniques, Stromeyer literally bends steel to his will, taming its strength and forcing it to reveal its hidden qualities of familiarity and ease. Through his methods and unbounded dedication, Stromeyer transforms cold, hard steel into sculptures with elegance, grace and beauty. (image: Banded Rock)
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INFORMATION
West Branch Gallery & Sculpture Park
17 Towne Farm Lane
Stowe 05672
(802) 253-8943
Hours:
Tuesday-Sunday, 10AM-5PM