Past Shows

BEYOND THE BOOK--
an exhibition of Books as Art

November 14, 2011- January 6, 2012

Even in this age of computer screens and e-books, there is nothing quite like holding a book, feeling the texture of its materials and interacting with its pages. This is the inspiration for artist's books, a niche art from that continues to enchant practitioners and viewers alike. Artist's books take the viewer into a private world, using the cover to draw us in and the interior to encompass us.

The artist's book is a relatively current art form, drawing on use of personal narrative and unique combinations of materials, text and imagery. Each material has its own history and reference that add layers of meaning to the final work. The artist may produce a part of the book as a print or collage, or perhaps separate a section from the whole and open it for larger viewing. Even a small book can involve weeks or months of careful planning and detailed construction.

Beyond the book, an exhibit of Books as Art will be exhibited November 14 through January 6, 2012. The Munroe Gallery is open between the hours of 10:00am to 4:00pm from Monday to Friday, closed on weekends. Guest curated by Ronni Komarow. Installation by Sally Santosuosso. Special thanks to Annie Zeybekoglu and Nancy Mimno for installation assistance.

Artist participants:

Carol Blackwell
Ania Gilmore
Margret Hall
Ronni Komarow
Peter Madden
Jane Paulson
Susan Porter
Doris Smith
Stephanie Stigliano
Julia Talcott
Annie Zeybekoglu

Plus a collaborative book by: Ann Forbush, Ania Gilmore, Anna Leliwa, Monica Mitchell, Jan Powell, Annie Silverman, Carolyn Swift, and Annie Zeybekoglu

PICTURE THIS!

September 10 - October 30, 2011

Closing Reception: Sunday, October 30, 2-4 PM

PICTURE THIS is an invitational exhibit that celebrates the multi-talented and diverse community of photographers who live and work in Lexington, and in surrounding communities.  These photographers include:  Alessandro Alessandrini, Dave Emerson, Lee Fearnside, Sing Hanson, James Holton, John Hubbell, David Kessler, Al Levin, Zoe Perry-Wood, Rob Schneider, Arthur Sharenow, Karen Watson, and Al Zabin.

Munroe Gallery, a community-based gallery located on the main floor of Munroe Center for the Arts at 1403 Mass Ave. in Lexington, MA will feature PICTURE THIS  during the months of September and October.

The gallery is open between the hours of 10:00 to 4:00 from Monday to Friday-closed on weekends. For more information, call Munroe Center for the Arts.781-862-6040.

Print Works Invitational

June 13- August 28, 2011

Closing Reception: Sunday, August 28, 2-4 PM

From June 13-August 28, Munroe Gallery hosts PRINT WORKS INVITATIONAL, a group show which features various types of printmaking by 11 artists from Lexington and surrounding towns.

Lexington artists chosen from Lexington Depot Square Printmakers include: Vivien Berman, Gracia, Dayton, Joyce Fearnside and Gillian Ross. Celestial Printmakers participants include: Lexington resident, Caroline DiNunzio and regional members, Amy Waltch, Amy Veaner, Marilyn Sherman and Clara Bohrer. Other individuals include: Ann Sullivan of Lowell and Ann Forbush, printmaking faculty of the DeCordova Museum School.

The Munroe Gallery is open Monday through Friday from 10:00a-4:00p.

BLACKEST LIGHT

the multi-media art of scott cahaly

October 15 – November 30, 2010 Reception: Friday, November 20, 6-8:30 PM

Scott Cahaly

Scott Cahaly: “I am a Lexington native who never made any art until I entered the University of Vermont.  As a student there in the mid-nineties, I saw a Picasso exhibit at UVM's Fleming Museum. This is my earliest memory about art. I just kept going back to that show over and over again, absorbing its artistic inspiration and energy. Today, my modest hope for Blackest Light is that an Art Span student finds his or her way into the gallery, sits on the bench or relaxes on the floor, and absorbs some of the creative energy that I've poured into these works in stone, paint, charcoal, and photograph.

  “I am both a sculptor and a painter. Even when I paint, I feel that I am dealing with sculptural form. When I tone down color and allow it to fade to black, I'm left alone with form and space, whether I'm working in two dimensions or three. I begin each new work with an open mind and a hopeful heart; no piece is ever planned at the outset.

  “Blackest Light is an intimate show that includes work from my earliest art-making days to the present. The common thread among these pieces is their darkness. Yet within each of these dark works, there is light. In some cases, the light is literal, represented by lighter paints. In other cases, the light is provided “off-stage” by the flash of the camera, or is expressed only metaphorically within the content of the piece.

  “Two charcoal drawings date back to the mid-nineties and have never before been exhibited; even then, when I was just starting to make art, I took charcoal to white paper and carved away the white space to create figures. At the time, this process was utterly mysterious and completely inspiring to me; I had no conscious idea of where this visual information was coming from. These pieces, although primitive, are filled with visionary figures that emerged unbidden out of my creative subconscious, foreshadowing the reductive process and imagery that were to become hallmarks of the next thirteen years of my sculpture and painting. Lastly, the show also includes a Paul Weiner photograph, taken using a flash in my Somerville studio, of me and a large marble statue I carved by hand from a 5000 pound block of marble.

  “I am very pleased with the way this show emerged, and am most grateful to the Munroe Center for hosting it.”

Ana M. Reyes

After the Storm: Portraits of New Orleans. A Documentary Project - premiere documentary photo exhibition & interview transcripts by Ana M. Reyes of the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. May 5-31. Reception May 16, 6-8 PM.

"As we were going up the stairs the water was following us....so we stayed up in the attic that whole night till the next morning....I kicked the window out and the water was like two inches from the window. My wife was panicking, she thought we was gone. So I said, "Babe, pray, sing or something, but just don't get me where you're at because then I won't be able to think. She found an old, rusty knife and half a broken crowbar and she turned around and said, "Babe, will this help us." I said, 'Thank you Lord.' That was our way out."

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Ana M. Reyes has an MA from the New England School of Photography and a B.A. in Film Video, and Performance from Cornell. She has exhibited her work in Somerville and Concord and is also a professional videographer.

ArtSpan Student Exhibition
December, 2007

The Spirit of Collage: Exhibition by Studio 7 Artists, curated by Sally Santosuosso (Munroe Artist), November 2007

Munroe Studio Artists' Group Show, September & October, 2007

Featuring: Adrienne Sloane, Patricia Sekler, Rani Sarin, Micah Schatz, Mimi Watstein, Gayle Visentine Reynolds, Sally Santosuosso, Emily Passman, Cathi Duffy, Marilyn Paschal, Nancy Mimno Williams.

She liked to Dance, Sew and Hang Her Clothes on the Line - Sally Santosuosso

United States of the Mind - Rani Sarin