As avid collectors fill their walls with works of art, they often seek out smaller scale paintings to fit in the nooks and crannies that are available in their home. The annual BIG ART small canvas exhibition at RJD Gallery in Bridgehampton, New York, presents these scaled-down canvases at $7,500 or less. Gallery owner Richard J. Demato elaborates, “The global art world, and all of our collectors, are thirsty for smaller, quality, unique artworks to add to their space-starved collections, and they’ve really appreciated and very much enjoyed this annual exhibition; and the artists love to meet the creative challenges.”Aneka Ingold, Reverence, mixed media on paper, 30 x 22"

Included in this year’s exhibition will be artists such as Mihaela Atomei, Aneka Ingold, Alexander Klingspor, Andrea Kowch, Lesley Thiel, Margo Selski, Pamela Wilson, Juan Béjar and Suzy Smith. 

Klingspor’s series Eat The Night is a rather personal one for the artist, as it features his friends from New York City. One of his paintings from the grouping, At Pete’s Tavern, has an even closer bond for the artist with the subject being the late painter David Penna, who was not only his friend, but colleague and studio neighbor.Alexander Klingspor, At Pete’s Tavern, oil on canvas, 12 x 9"

“This painting of David is based on a dinner we had at Pete’s Tavern at Irving Place in Gramercy. David was an amazing person with so many great New York stories. He was like a character out of a movie,” Klingspor says. “Unfortunately, he passed away a few years ago, and I ended up taking over his studio. I painted David’s portrait from Pete’s Tavern posthumously, based on photos I had and as how I remembered him.”

Selski’s surrealistic painting My Mother’s Mandolin is a moment of recollection in her otherworldly design. Describing the piece, she says, “I take the mandolin in my hands and I enter a faraway world: vaguely familiar memories come back in me with magic appeal of being held tightly in my mother’s arms and listening to her lullaby. Spellbound, I travel to a time beyond a memory, a place that stands still, the smell of fresh towels and baking bread, in a remote corner of my mind. Suzy Smith, Mouse Trap, oil on canvas, 24 x 24"

“I blink and stretch out my hand holding the mandolin and look at it. Unwilling to let go of the reverie, I run my finger across the strings hoping that this gesture will bring me a little closer for a few more seconds,” she continues. “But I have returned from my musing and the spell is broken. Somewhere outside, I hear the city bus pass and it reminds me that I am in a rented room in a city, thousands of miles from home and even further from the small girl who, for a moment there, returned to existence in the evanescent life of daydreams.”

Reverence, by Ingold, depicts a woman surrounded by nature. “Reverence can be a feeling of awe in the presence of something new, beautiful or inspiring. A moment of discovery and open-mindedness,” the artist explains. “The woman in the drawing is expressing deep respect and honor for the flora and fauna that exist in the world around her. Reverence can be an opportunity for new growth in a divisive time. This artwork symbolizes a desire to admire and value other human beings, cultures, rituals, creatures and the planet itself.”Margo Selski, My Mother’s Mandolin, oil on canvas, 24 x 14"

While shopping for painting props, Smith found a pair of adult Minnie Mouse ears and knew it would add a touch of whimsy to one of her pop art-inspired paintings. The piece’s title, Mouse Trap, plays on the double entendre that is often found in the genre of work. “Sometimes the ‘mood’ of the model, paired with a combination of costumes, or lack of costume, as with the mouse ears and the ruff collar, is kind of an evolution of trying various combinations of attire that culminates by dictating the choice of background,” Smith explains. “Somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew of Andy Warhol’s prints of Disney’s Mickey Mouse. The colors and design of his piece bring my painting alive. This painting probably asks more questions than it answers, which I like, because it gets the viewer involved.”

BIG ART small canvas will be on view October 5 through November 4. —

RJD Gallery  2385 Main Street • Bridgehampton, NY 11932 • (631) 725-1161 • www.rjdgallery.com

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