On a compass, the rose is the decorative or symbolic representation of directions. This summer, its needle is rotating in all directions: N-S-E-W. If we create an anagram from the directions, it spells NEWS! And that’s what this art blog is all about—art from all points around central Pennsylvania for the summer.
Perry County Council of The Arts
Headed to Newport, you will find the art haven, Perry County Council for the Arts (PCCA), located on the square. The borough of Newport is celebrating its special day this Saturday, June 7, with food trucks on the square from 11a.m. to 3 p.m. with a wagon full of activities. In addition, the borough is the home of Little Buffalo State Park, which plays host to great fishing, hiking, campgrounds and more. The PCCA headquarters reaches across art genres and mediums. Art guru Ariana Koch is excited to announce romantic painter, Valerie Moyer of Beaver Springs, opened her new exhibit, which runs through July 5. The show is “Rural Serenity,” reflections on canvas of known landmarks and idyllic scenes found throughout the countryside of Pennsylvania. From rolling fields to covered bridges, Valerie interprets realistic vignettes of simpler times in her poetic paintings. The artist reception coincides with Newport Day, running from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Travel to 1 S. 2nd St. to the PCCA and greet Valerie in person for a slice of rural Americana.
Painting by Valerie Moyer
Lebanon Picture Frame & Fine Art Gallery
There’s a hidden gem for art if you take a 45-minute scenic drive on Rt. 422 through Hershey, Palmyra, Annville, with the next stop being home to Lebanon Picture Frame & Fine Art Gallery. It’s found at 847 Cumberland St., so close to another Lebanon jewel, the legendary farmers market just a mere 400 feet away. The market is open Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, also prime hours for the gallery. Owners Eric and Melody preview its summer showcase. For the months of June and July, local painter, Eva Bender, a longtime artist from Mt. Gretna’s art community, highlights her vibrant new series of watercolors in her signature style. She is a visual storyteller and began her career as a journalist with both writing and painting flowing into each other. The artist shared, “I can’t imagine not drawing and painting…it gives me a language—a way to express what I experience. Art deepens and clarifies; sometimes, it even saves your life.” Recently, she returned to her native Sweden to be closer to family. The exhibition’s opening is Friday, June 6, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and is also able to be viewed during normal business hours now through July 26. Make a special day in Lebanon for shopping and art—that’s no bologna. Whet your appetite with art and then go grab lunch at the market.
Lebanon Picture Frame & Fine Art Gallery
Carlisle Art Learning Center (CALC)
CALC showcases art “In a Different Light” from the dramatically diverse perspectives of abstract painter Jill Peckelun and photographer Louise Thomas. Both explore the parameters of light, from the familiar to the yet-to-be-discovered frontiers of images imaginatively impressionistic. The opening reception to meet Jill and Louise is Friday, June 13, from 5:30 to 7 p.m.
“Three of a Kind” by Louise Thomas
CALC’s pop-up gallery takes place at the height of summer with “Perspectives” from photographer Eliseo Rosario, who expertly homes in on the quiet moments of life, the small and the marvelous, often missed and overlooked in our rush to get to the next big thing. Dr. Rosario’s wondrous exhibit opens on July 18 with a reception from 5:30 to 7 p.m., located at 38 W. Pomfret St., Carlisle.
“When You Stop by a Farmer’s Office” by Jill Peckelun
York Pops the Art Cork for Summer!
Venture Forth with Brenda Welty
Leave it to the ladies at 126-128 E. King St. in York to lead the way for art this summer. JoAnne Schiavone, Susan McDaniel and Karen Paust recently shared the adventure at Venture, now in its seventh year. This June and July, one of its featured artists, painterly photographer Brenda Welty, immersed in more than darkroom dialecticism, embraces the idea that the world is in a constant state of flux and change. Enveloping herself in the natural world, Brenda’s teenage years always had a camera in tow or wrapped around her neck as a necklace, a talisman for transpicuous tableau that was constantly unfolding before her eyes, always on the lookout for the next great shot. Stylistically, she crosses art borders mixing media in a potent concoction of creativity and collaboration.
“Where Trees Dream” by Brenda Welty
Experimentation in technique, incorporating processes and special effects, heighten the mood of meaning emanating from her lens. The artist shared, “Images collected and their interplay work together to create something larger than life…how a burst of light or the sway of the trees symbolize expressions of our experiences—how they evoke emotion as a reflection of life.” Her work has a luminous quality to it, reflecting light just so, bright, clear and glowing. Ms. Welty’s eye is honed to the subtle nuances of nature and how our experiences shape the images in our mind. “Maintaining integrity” is crucial to Brenda. Using archival ink and paper ensures the finished product is the very best, giving the client as close to the moment of the photo’s capture. “Where Trees Dream” is one such shining example of introspective incandescence. Images run from sumptuously saturated with color while others are dramatically diffused, creating their own brilliance one frame at a time. One can picture the glow of golden glimpses gleaming once before a teenager and now as a photographer of polish and poise.
Also this summer, Venture open a new show, “Sand & Sea,” featuring images by Claire Stoner, Gretchen Levin and Susan Darling. The exhibit opens June 6 for York’s First Friday.
Birds Rule the Roost at Hive
Speaking of Hive at 126 E. King, it will be soaring to new heights for summer with “Aviary IV” taking flight and landing for June and July. Susan Scofield, owner/proprietress, will be counting the flock to fill Hive’s rafters with all sorts of art mediums featuring fine feathered friends flying in from hither and yon as her birds will be ruling the roost starting this Friday, June 6, with its grand opening. Susan has her hand in so many art events based in York that she squawked at me to share…June 13, 4 to 6 p.m. Pre-Pride Pop Off gallery 4 to 6, Radiant Spectrum Stroll shop & stroll with special treats at each stop. Continuing on the 13th from 6 to 9 p.m., the official Pride Pop Off party in Royal Square Mural Park, the official opening party for York Pride weekend. Then from June 13 to 21, York Arts Week throughout the city. On June 21 fine art, fine craft, fine spirits festival on King Street. Also, on June 21, Make Music Day throughout the city. Five locations in Royal Square. First Fridays of June, August, September, October—Firefly Night Market on King Street.
Fossil Me This @ SAM
Lastly, the compass spins back to Harrisburg for a blockbuster and its five-month run at the Susquehanna Art Museum. The thought-provoking exhibit, “Future Fossils,” posits the query, “If life as we know it were to come to a sudden stop, what would archeologists find decades from now?” Pardon the pun but I really “dig the (w)hole” concept—one moment in time frozen for eternity. An original exhibit of art is something rare indeed. Susquehanna Art Museum breaks new ground with “Future Fossils” as artistic archaeologists from around the globe unearth treasures of modern-day life frozen indelibly. The exhibit explores a concept outside the box, as “conjured relics of today” reveal the fascination that our society clings to in its daily appropriation of necessary items. Cell phones, tablets, CDs, refrigerators and car parts are all cultural totems that mankind feels they cannot live without. Our world as we know it today operates behind the curtain through algorithmic avatars, diabolical despots and robotic raconteurs, all playing their part. However, front and center, the exhibit skillfully examines everything from weaponry, space exploration and even clothing, which are represented by skeletal sneakers, coming into crystal clear clarity, dramatically displayed throughout the Lehr Gallery. But, in the end, are physical manifestations of things what we want to be remembered for–when technological tools take priority over humans? Or will it be its polar opposite: life-altering medical breakthroughs with cures for the ills of the world, when no one goes hungry, and the entire planet lives in peace and harmony. “Future Fossils” makes us take pause, considering what we purchase will one day be discarded and forgotten—as obsolete as yesterday’s paper.
“Future Fossils” just opened to the public and runs through Nov. 2 in the Lehr Gallery at 1401 N. 3rd Street in Harrisburg.
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