English philosopher and critic John Ruskin is said to have chided Hudson River School landscapist Sanford Robinson Gifford (1823-1880) for being “too much of a topographer and not enough of a poet.” Perhaps taking Ruskin words to heart—or brush—the artist went on to prove him wrong, ultimately earning a reputation as a master of light and atmosphere.
Vincent Giarrano, Sunlight in Soho, oil, 18 x 24"
It is this ability, to imbue a piece with palpable mood and emotion, that elevates a work of contemporary realism from a clinical rendering into an evocative work of art. An exhibition on view at Susan Powell Fine Art through November 25, celebrates more than a dozen artists whose paintings achieve this level of visual poetry. Among the artists featured in Realism Today are Del-Bourree Bach, Paul Beebe, Peter Bergeron, Zufar Bikbov, David Dunlop, Vincent Giarrano, Neal Hughes, Leonard Mizerek, Larry Preston, Andrew Sjodin and Kyle Stuckey.
“I think a lot about what the experience feels like and how our eyes take things in,” says Vincent Giarrano, who revisits a favorite subject of his in Sunlight in Soho. One of his techniques is to use a higher level of realism for focal points and a looser handling for objects in the distance or reflections. “I think it’s not enough to just paint what you see. It’s important to distill your observations to capture what you feel about your subject. In the end it’s mainly about capturing the mood and having your paint be appealing to the eye.”
Kyle Stuckey, Seaside, oil, 18 x 23"
Kyle Stuckey has always thought of his style as impressionistic realism. “My goal is to render an accurate representation of my subject but through my artistic lens and my individual experience,” says Stuckey. “To me, realism is about representing the multi-sensory human experience. It is not represented through hard lines and stagnant form. We actually experience most of what we see through our peripheral vision and in a content state of movement and change.” His piece, Seaside, is not merely a portrait of his wife, but looking at it, once can almost smell the salt air and feel the breeze as the warming sun begins to break through overcast skies.
Del-Bourree Bach, Summer Solstice, acrylic, 8 x 18"
Del-Bourree Bach, on the other hand, has come to describe his work as illustrative realism. “I always try to paint the atmosphere and feeling of a scene, to bring the viewer in so they can not only see but feel what is going on and bring themselves into the story,” he says. His show piece Summer Solstice is a good example. “As the sun goes down, everything seems to get quiet and the air becomes especially clear…the last rays of sunlight bring a final fleeting, brilliant light.” He intensified the golden hour light on the barn for an even greater impact. “I hope this painting can bring whoever looks at it to that quiet time when we can all relax at the end of the day.”
Peter Bergeron, Shoreline Cloud, oil, 24 x 18”
Pete Bergeron doesn’t set out to copy a scene as much as respond at a deeper level to what initially attracts him. “Atmosphere and emotion are the key factors I look for,” he says. “Or the relationship between the external and the internal. Although he is a representational painter, Bergeron consciously maintains a painterly quality in his work, only employing detail when the overall effect he wants, requires it. “Mood is what I am painting,” he says. Shoreline Cloud, in which a billowing thunderhead slides over shoreline grasses toward an open sea, is a perfect example—a vision both powerful and gentle that summons a response of awe and calm. —
Susan Powell Fine Art 679 Boston Post Road • Madison, CT 06443 • (203) 318-0616 • www.susanpowellfineart.com
Powered by Froala Editor
