Co|So Exhibitions :: Jim Connelly at Boston Private Bank

To celebrate the arrival of baseball season, the Copley Society of Art presents a series of Fenway Park paintings by Jim Connelly on display at the Boston Private Bank in the Prudential Center.  Accepted into Co|So last year, Jim Connelly is fresh painter whose works displayed at Co|So have been popular and well received by both patrons and collectors.  Connelly's background in commercial art and illustration lends a stylistic perspective to his works, which present Boston viewers with novel takes on familiar Fenway landmarks, such as like the CITGO sign and Yawkey Way.  

Jim Connelly, CITGO Sign, 20 x 24, oil on canvas

These painterly snapshots are derived from the artist’s technique of cropping sections of complete compositions just enough to develop an energetic composition without pushing the subject matter into complete abstraction.  As seen in CITGO Sign, Connelly’s work captures a view of Boston’s beloved “north star” that a passerby wouldn’t normally see but for more than a split second.  Connelly, on the other hand, is inspired by these typically unnoticed and fleeting moments in the city, and skillfully transforms his unexpected observations into eye-catching paintings.  He has been known to climb up to great heights or sit level with the ground to explore new perspectives whose viewpoints provide fresh appreciation for ordinary surroundings.  Connelly aptly shares these insightful observations through his paintings.  

Jim Connelly, Foul Pole Fenway, 24 x 36, oil on canvas

In the painting Foul Pole Fenway, a grid of yellow poles occupies the foreground of a day-lit scene of Fenway Park. The composition of this painting reveals the highly-geometric underlying structure of the park. Additionally, Connelly uses keen attention to light and shadow to reveal variegated dimensions to the greens, blues, and reds that saturate Fenway Park. Commenting on both his passion for light and the Red Sox, Connelly says, “Living close to this historic park and being a loyal Red Sox fan provides me with ample opportunity to see the ever-changing way the light transforms the building, not to mention the many angles of the structure.”

Jim Connelly, Yawkey Way Fenway, 24 x 36, oil on canvas

 The final painting included in Connelly’s series at the Boston Private Bank is Yawkey Way Fenway. Connelly reverently presents a lamppost displaying the street signs of Van Ness & Yawkey Way before a triumphant deep blue banner, curled and rippled by the summer air. The visceral feel of summer in the city brought to life by this work will resonate with devoted fans and native Bostonians alike. 

Jim Connelly’s innovative depictions of Kenmore and the ballpark will be on view at the Boston Private Bank located at the Prudential Center at 800 Boylston Street thru July 17, 2012. 

Click HERE to view the online exhibition!

Co|So Events :: Upcoming Artist Demonstrations

With the return of spring and beautiful weather in Boston comes the return of weekend artist demonstrations at the Copley Society of Art! Stop by the gallery from 1-3pm on Saturday, April 21st, Saturday, May 5th, and Sunday May 27th  to watch three of our artists create works and answer questions.

On April 21st, Boston-native Ian Factor will be painting a portrait of artist and musician Valerie Forgione. A member of the Copley Society for many years, Factor is a seasoned portrait painter and has studied in numerous art institutions both State-side and abroad. Factor's desire to paint from life extends past his realist work in portraiture and the figure, as he also paints landscapes en plein air. His paintings, as seen in December Morning featured below, are imbued with both his devotion to the human form as well as "the fine art of realist painting.” 

Ian Factor, December Morning, oil on canvas, 30 x 24

Whether painting figures or landscapes, the goal for Factor's art remains universal: “Through my work I am not searching only to explain my own theories and opinions to others, alone. I am searching for the common ties and lines between all human beings that break down all barriers, walls and separations, and am searching for the means and techniques to bring these commonalities to the minds, hearts and emotions of every person who makes contact with these works. The supreme ultimate is to transcend all cultural and personal relativity, to link all human beings together.”

Currently, Factor lives and paints in Boston while teaching Anatomy at the Montserrat College in Beverly, MA, which allows him to focus on his passion, the human form. 

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On Saturday, May 5th, Co|So will host Copley Artist Anne Heywood as she demonstrates how she creates a pastel masterpiece.  Like Factor, Heywood creates realist landscapes, but works primarily in pastel. Her pastel evocations of both traditional and modern spaces and objects reflect her dual life spent in both New England and Italy. Both her landscapes and still lifes feature strong compositions and a natural color palette that combine to create a strong sense of mood. Recently featured in the Copley Society's 2012 Winter Members' Show: Impressions was Heywood's intriguing rendering of an Art Deco glass bowl suggestively placed on top of a small table. 

Anne Heywood, CA, Desideri Fugiti (Fleeing Wishes), pastel and glitter, 28 x 20

Heywood says of her art: “I strive to entice the viewer into my world, beyond what is seen and known, to what is felt.” A New England based artist, Heywood works out of her studios in East Bridgewater, MA and Waldoboro, ME. Her works can be found in both national and international corporate and private collection. She is author and illustrator of Pastels Made Easy (Watson-Guptil Publications, 2003) and has published articles in books and magazines such as “Australian Artist” and The Best of Pastel. 

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On Sunday, May 27th Pamela duLong Williams will be in the gallery demonstrating oil painting to visitors. Also a portrait painter, Williams' work focuses on a specific object, either in the form of a person, a flower, or a house. Her loose, impressionist brush strokes add a lively, dynamic energy to her subjects. Williams diverse subjects allow her to fully explore her impressionist style, most recently seen in Co|So as a feature of last summer's Contemporary Still Life show, Reflections. According to Williams, "...working from life is essential with still life and plein air painting as well as portraiture." 

Pamela duLong Williams, Reflections, oil on canvas, 16 x 22

Stay tuned for more information on this wonderful artist's demonstration amidst the display of Fresh(ly) Paint(ed) works in the gallery from May 20th until June 2nd!

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All three demonstrations represent a special opportunity for these artists to present their creative processes to the general public.  We hope to see you there!

Co|So Exhibitions :: J.B. Jones - Still Light

This spring, the Copley Society of Art has the pleasure of presenting the solo exhibition of realist painter J.B. Jones entitled Still Light.  An architect turned artist, Jones has devoted himself to painting since 1994 and specializes in large, abstract works depicting ordinary objects.  Jones’s hyper-realistic paintings combine the ambiguous with the familiar on a monumental scale in an effort to engender a heightened sensory experience in his viewer.

J.B. Jones, Pink Suite, oil on canvas, 46 x 50

In Pink Suite the object of focus is a rectangular glass sugar dish filled with different colored packets of sweetener.  The dish is positioned on an angle and is reflected on an unknown surface.   The transparency of the glass dish magnifies and distorts the sugar packets into staggered abstractions that electrify the canvas.  The reflections of the packets become live-wires of energy as they extend down and out of the painting into the space of the viewer.  The precise use of light brings out the most minute details and highlights the contrast of bright colors against a dark background.  The ordinary is transformed into the extraordinary as the painting pulses with the creative force of the artist.

J.B. Jones, Blue Clip, oil on canvas, 42 x 54

In Blue Clip the small-turned-monumental objects take over the canvas, merely suggesting a sense of pictorial space.  The viewer is confronted with a close-up of a glass jar filled to the brim with blue metallic paper clips.  Colors swirl and collide as they are reflected off of the metal and glass surfaces and the use of line creates a dizzying sensation as the eye attempts to trace any one path of movement.  The attention to extreme detail and texture suggest the use of airbrush though the artist remained loyal to his paint brush.  Jones rejects the static, functional qualities of these office supplies and transforms them into pictorial inventions of dynamism and energy.  

These two works are but a few examples of the possibilities explored by J.B Jones in his unique creative process. The rest of J.B. Jones’s work can be viewed in the exhibition on display from April 5^th until May 10^th or online at copleysociety.org. We look forward to seeing you in the gallery soon!

Members' Reception*
Saturday, April 7 5:30 - 7:30
Members: Free | Non-Members: $10

Artist Talk
Saturday, April 14 | 1:00 - 3:00pm