Co|So is proud to present our annual New Members Show featuring the new members accepted into the gallery in 2023. Selected by the Membership Committee, new members are accepted into the Copley Society for their exceptional work, unique vision, and technical skills. This year, our new artist members represent a great variety of artistic genres and media, including; pastel, oil, acrylic, watercolor, printmaking, mixed media, photography, and sculpture. We also have six emerging artists who were presented with membership to the Copley Society of Art for their outstanding work in our exhibition Emergence: Art from MFA Boston Staff.
In this month’s blog, Co|So shares 4 pieces as a preview for the New Members Show 2024!
Please join us in the gallery on January 19th from 5 – 7 pm for the opening reception.
Pictured: William Hays, Migrant Sky, linocut print, 22×18
Using a printmaking technique called lino printing, William Hays dazzles us with his ink application of multiple layers showing a small flock of geese heading north over a New England mountain top. Lino printing is where a sheet of is used for a relief surface. A design is cut into the surface, then the sheet is inked with a roller and then in this case, impressed onto paper. Quite the stunning outcome!
Pictured: Peter Knapp, Calm’s Chaos – Twilight, mixed media, 25.5×37.5
Peter Knapp uses a wide range of mediums for his works. Calm’s Chaos – Twilight is a mixed media piece where he uses acrylics (paint, gouache, ink – regular, iridescent and “shimmering”, assorted mediums, resin fixative), graphite, colored and metallic pencils, Sakura Pigma Ink, and various brushes and pens on acrylic gesso primed hardboard panel. The complexity of Knapp’s work engages the viewer and begins to bring them into this new world he creates with his vision.
Pictured: Ann Gillespie, Afternoon Adventure, pastel, 13×18
In her landscapes, Ann Gillespie transports the viewer to her dreamy pastel. When speaking on the scenery in this selected work, Gillespie writes, “Afternoon Adventure is a scene inspired by late day snowshoeing with my husband on conservation land near our home in Bolton, MA. We explored the fresh snowfall through the fields, a river, and wetlands. As we turned around to return, the sun was quickly sinking on the horizon, catching light in the dried grasses and making the snow sparkle with warm colors contrasting the deep blue winter shadows.”
Pictured: Nancy Berliner, Ships Passing in the Dark, paper and oil pastels, 16×10
Using pages from old books, Nancy Berliner first paints the pages with oil pastels. After cutting the pages and weaving them into shape, she and then paints the pages again to create her intriguing works of art. When speaking on the way she constructs her work, she writes, “One might say that they are a way of integrating two separate sheets into one whole, while each page still retains its own integrity.” Such an interesting process that is fascinating to see in person.
We hope to see you at the opening reception for this show being held in the Upper Gallery at 158 Newbury Street, Boston on January 19th from 5pm – 7pm. This is a great opportunity to meet some of these artists, as well as greet the new members of our arts community to the Copley Society of Art.