MAS Members
I cannot believe it is already approaching the fourth of July. Our very first MAS bus to the Brooklyn Museum was a success and Sargent's watercolors were spontaneous and wonderful. I did not realize that he used Chinese White with opaque color andwax crayon resists along with his watercolors. You should take advantage of seeing them at Brooklyn or they are going to Boston next. The museum docent said they were going to put all of them in storage for 25 years after the show so this is once in a lifetime chance to see them. If you went on the trip, please let me know what you thought, whether we should offer another bus tour and where we should go. A special thanks to JohnCopelin for coordinating this trip for all of us. Nancy Armstrong said you can go on you tube and listen to an interview In Conversation: Richard Ormond and Teresa Carbone discussing the Sargent Show.
We will have three openings on the Board of Directors. We need your leadership skills. Volunteer.
Beverly Schirmeier
President of the MAS
Board of Directors Openings - Three Positions
Three of our Board of Directors will be retiring from the board this September. We have a strong working board and we would like to thank Penny Chittenden, Ellen Fabian and Joan McPherson for their years of dedicated service to all of us. If you are interested in joining the Board of Directors, please let me know at
bschirmeir@yahoo.com or contact our two members that are on the Nomination Committee -
Ellen Fabianat
1-203 - 245-2652 or
eff04@aol.com or
Penny Chittendenat
860-669- 7144 or
chittenchat@sbcglobal.net . We are filling the Treasurer spot earlier to cross train the person. If we get more than 3 volunteers, the members will selected by a majority vote at the Annual Meeting on September 16th. You can attend a board meeting to see how we work in advance :
July 1 at 4:30 p.m. in the lower level Community Room in the Scranton Memorial Library or on July 29th on the 2nd floor , Local History Room of the library.
Dont's miss our next Demonstrations
Dolph LeMoult, Acrylic Demo, Thursday, August 1, 6:30 pm, Memorial Town Hall
The demonstration, co-sponsored by GAL and MAS, is open to the public. Nominal donations are appreciated to offset costs.
Born and raised in New York City, Dolph LeMoult received his early art training at the University of Cincinnati and the Cincinnati Academy of Fine Arts, completing his art education at the School of Visual Arts and the Art Students League in New York. His early experience in the art field was as a designer, art director, and creative director for a number of New York advertising and promotion firms.
In addition to his advertising and promotional career, LeMoultattracted a sizable freelance clientele, primarily in the field of corporate identity programs. He has designed logos and corporate materials for such companies as U.S. Plywood, Burlington Industries, American Home Products, RCA Institutes, and General Electric.
In the 1980s, he turned his attention exclusively to illustration. Working from studios in New York City, and later Westport, Connecticut, he developed a technique for intricately designed montage illustrations, which have been commissioned by major editorial and advertising clients throughout the United States and abroad, including U.S. Tobacco, AT&T, Anheuser Busch, MasterCard International, and McDonald’s.
At ease with a variety of mediums, including oils, watercolors, pen and ink, and pastels, LeMoult has worked extensively in the field of portraiture, and, not content to be labeled only as a realistic illustrator, he developed a reputation as a decorative illustrator, cartoonist, and caricaturist.
Turning to abstract expressionism in the late 1990s, he created “Infrastructure,” a series of paintings inspired by photo journalistic images in the New York Times. The paintings, combining strong deconstructionist themes and conceptual color fields, became the taproot for his later, more complex works.
Also an author, Dolph LeMoult has published nine fiction and nonfiction books.
Jim Grabowski, How to Re-use an Old Painting to Create a New Artwork, Thursday, October 3, 6:30 pm, Memorial Town Hall
The demonstration is open to the public. A nominal donation would be appreciated to offset costs.
James Grabowski, a current resident of Marlborough, Connecticut, received his bachelor’s degree from Central Connecticut State University in 1966 and, after serving as the University Art Department’s first graduate assistant earned his MFA there in 1968. After leaving Central, he taught art for several years, but soon found himself being commissioned for his paintings and collages. For the last thirty-five years, he has devoted himself exclusively to his art, which he creates in his studio in Marlborough.
In recent years Mr. Grabowski has received commissions for his abstract paintings from more than one hundred national and international corporations, among them Pratt & Whitney, Connecticut National Bank, General Electric, IBM, Aetna Life & Casualty, Otis Elevator, SNET, and First Jersey Securities. His work has also been sought by non-profit organizations such as Connecticut Public Television, the New Haven Symphony and the Hartford Graduate Center. In each of his large and dynamic paintings Mr. Grabowski seeks to reflect the values of his clients, to interpret their aspirations, and to enhance their working environments
Although known primarily as a painter of expansive abstract canvases, filled with bold color and motion, Mr. Grabowski’s recent work also includes impressionistic landscape paintings that are quieter, often inspired by the Connecticut countryside around his home in Marlborough. Both abstracts and landscapes are included in his exhibit. Pat Seremet, former Java column writer for the Hartford Courant named Grabowski “Painter to the Corporate Stars.”
Scranton Memorial Library Festival of the Arts
The Madison Art Society will hold the annual Festival of the Arts outdoor exhibit on Friday and Saturday, July 26–27, 10 am–5 pm, at the Scranton Memorial Library. The show is located under two large tents at 26 Wall Street in Madison. It’s a great opportunity for the public to view paintings by a number of MAS artists and to support the library by purchasing paintings. The artists donate 10% of the proceeds from the sale of their paintings to the library. Thanks to John Copelin and Seymour Page for coordinating this event again. Contact Seymour Page,203-245-7280, seymourpage@sbcglobal.net. Official sign up for artists is in June.
Participating artists are Jay Babina, Pat Barone, Terry Bogan, Paul Bunnell, Penny Chittenden, Richard Christofferson, JohnCopelin, Paula Emery, Bill Hosking, Jill Matthew, Joan McPheson, Gloria Nilsson, Maryanne Rupp, Seymour Page, Beverly Schirmeier, Loren Scholl, Patricia and Bill Seekamp, and KarenWiesner.
Madison Exchange Club Art and Antiques, August 10
MAS artists are invited to display their work on the Madison Green near the Memorial Hall. No entry fee, but artists donate 10% to the Madison Exchange Club for works sold. No rain date.You can set up and use your own tent or just bring racks. We encourage everyone to come out and support our local artists, antique vendors, and the Madison Exchange Club community efforts. Artists must sign up in advance, so contact Beverly Schirmeier at bschirmeier@yahoo.com or 860-399-6116. We need to provide a list of participating artists to the Exchange Club a week prior to the event, so sign up early.
Artists signed up to date are Tom Mayer, Lorene Sholl, Pam Carlson, Blair and Laura Pessimer, and Beverly Schirmeier.
Bauer Farm, October 19
MAS artists will be painting and exhibiting their scenes of the farm during the Bauer Farm Harvest Festival. Only plein air painters and only paintings of Bauer Farm.
Plein Air Painting
Between the raindrops and scorching weather, Jay Babina has started our summer outdoor painting sessions. We try very hard to find interesting places that can accommodate our large group. We need to coordinate with owners of private places, so please understand that these places are available only on the dates and times that we have negotiated. We don’t want to wear out our welcome! To be added to the list, email Jay at jbabina@snet.net.Paid MAS members only.
Annual Meeting, Monday, September 16, Madison Country Club
The annual meeting will be Monday, September 16, 5–7 pm. Please RSVP Nancy Chapman, nacrdc@gmail.com,203-245-1305. There are beautiful views of the golf course and a porch overlooking it. No cost. Wine, soda, and coffee will be served.
I will attend: Yes ____ No_____
I will bring a guest: Yes ____ No____ Name of Guest _____________________
I will bring an appetizer _____ a dessert ____
Elected Artists’ Small Works Holiday Show
People’s Bank in Madison has again invited MAS to exhibit our Elected Artists’ Small Works Holiday Show in November and December. Over half of MAS members are elected artists. Paintings must be 6 x 8 inches or smaller in any size frame, and all work must be wired to hang. Notify Sara Drought Nebel,saranebel@yahoo.com or 203-245-6081, if you plan to show your work so she can plan the exhibit space. You can bring one piece of artwork to the People’s Bank on Monday, November 4, 9-9:30 am only. She will have tags to fill out and tape to the back of the piece for catalog/price list/identification purposes. No entry fee and no sales donation. The show will run thru New Year's Day. Pick up is Monday, January 6, 2014, 9–9:30 am. Sara also coordinates the People’s Bank Gallery, and there are some openings for the fall for individual artists. No fee or commissions.
Madison Town Hall Artists
Patricia Barone and Paula Emery are artists of the month for Julyand August at the Madison Town Hall, 8 Campus Road. The exhibit is open to the public free of charge and can be viewed during normal business hours. If you want to display your paintings, contact Patricia Seekamp, wseekamp@sbcglobal.net or203-453-6720.
Artists in the News
Tony D’Amico’s oil painting, North Country, was selected by Oil Painters of America Juried Salon Show at the Crooked Tree Gallery in Petoskey, Michigan, June 21–August 31.
Richard Christofferson’s paintings will be shown at the GuilfordLibrary during August. There will be an opening on Wednesday, August 7, 4–7 pm, in the meeting room at the library.
Lorene Riess has a solo show, Bridal Suite, at the Essex Art Association Exit Gallery, June 28–July 22. The opening is June 28, 5–7 pm.
Betsey Haigis’s watercolor, Ogunquit Celebration, won an award at the Connecticut Watercolor Show at the John Slade Ely House.
The MAS BOD will be showcasing their artwork at the Scranton Memorial Library, August 31–September 28, during normal library hours.
Congratulations to Maryanne Rupp, Patricia Seekamp, Diane Stone, and Chris Ivers on their acceptance to the Cape Cod National Juried Pastel Show this July.
The Juried Connecticut Pastel Society Exhibition, Pastels Only, is taking place throughout June and July at the Hartford Frame Art Gallery in East Hartford. Over 70 pastels were selected and MAS artists Maryanne Rupp, Beverly Schirmeier, Patricia Seekamp, Diane Stone, Diana Rogers, and Debbie Temple were chosen to show their work.
