Bill Storm: A Letter to the Editor

Bill Storm, a photographer and a current exhibitor in our show Visions, has written the following Letter to the Editor of the Post-Standard regarding Katherine Rushworth's review of September 27th. His letter is copied here in its entirety. We cannot say if it will be published by the Post-Standard, or, if it is published, whether and how the P-S will edit it, so this blog entry can both inform you and give you an unedited baseline. Also, feel free to comment by going to the bottom of this entry and clicking on comments.

-Bill Delavan, Director

**Note the letter that follows is Bill Storm's original letter, which he later shortened to fit within the Post-Standard's length limits for Letters to the Editor.


An Art Critic Fails Badly
 
Among the many things that fall into the domain of subjective criticism is the world of art. There is no membership required. Everyone and anyone who wishes to participate can join in with their opinions. That is part of the fun for the viewers and as well as the artists who are trying to convey through their work some expression of what is inside of them.

At a bit more formalized level, we have the interjection of the art critic.â These folks can provide a rallying point for individuals who may share a particular critic's sensibilities. Done well, the critic can be an educator and a motivating factor in any community to help promote the arts. So while one may or may not agree with the critics subjective views of some art, a positive dialog can be fostered that is stimulating and benefits all concerned.

Unfortunately, Post-Standard contributing writer Katherine Rushworth, in her September 27, 2009 review of the Delavan Art Gallery fell badly in reaching the level of a respected art critic. From the onset of the article it was blatantly clear that Rushworth had a personal agenda with the gallery and it wasn't a constructive one. Rushmore made it plain she did not like the manner in which the gallery operates. On that note she then let loose with lines laced with contempt that quickly lost any credibly in the context of her disturbing approach. Interestingly, her comments about the art appeared to pick up on earlier reviews (Nancy Keefe Rhodes, City Eagle, et al.) and turn positives into negatives.


Art helps reveal what is inside the artist. Writing can do the same. In this instance Rushmore's words spoke volumes about an animosity that had no place in the Post-Standard. The Delavan Art Gallery, all galleries and the community deserve better than this.
-Bill Storm

Fall/Halloween Party Sneak Peek!

Here's a little sneak peek of the scarecrow that will be joining us at the Fall/Halloween party tonight at Delavan Art Gallery! Stop by between 6 and 9pm for lots of fun! (Admission $10 at the door, costumes optional)

 

City Eagle article by Nancy Keefe Rhodes

Delavan Art Gallery would like to highlight the article written by Nancy Keefe Rhodes for the City Eagle newspaper. Published on September 17, this article takes a look at the Visions and Discoveries exhibitions that opened the season at the Delavan. Thanks Nancy!  Click the link below for the article:

http://www.cnylink.com/cnyarts/view_news.php?news_id=1253207849

Fall/Halloween Party at Delavan Art Gallery!

 

Please Join Delavan Art Gallery for

All Treats and No Tricks

at our Fall/Halloween Party!!

Featuring

jazz vocalist Marcia Rutledge

and guitarist Doug Robinson

Friday, October 23

6 to 9 PM

Admission $10 at the door

(Costumes optional)

Stop by to celebrate Halloween and the fall season with the staff at Delavan Art Gallery! We'll be in costume, and you're welcome to dress up or not, whatever you like. Our favorite musicians Marcia Rutledge and Doug Robinson will supply the entertainment, and we'll supply the light, non-alcoholic refreshments and hors d'oeuvres! Give us a call if you have any questions (315-425-7500). We hope to see you for a good time!

Christine Chansamone, Intern

Hey! My name is Christine and I am an intern at the Delavan Art Gallery. My work with the gallery began in September of this year. I made my way to Syracuse, NY via an education at Syracuse University. Growing up in a lower middle class suburb of southern California, there weren’t any galleries or museums in the immediate area for me check out. The community did not support the arts, and the arts programs in school were severely under funded. When there’s something you can’t have, you want it all the more, and thus I came to SU to learn art and music history in the College of Arts and Sciences. During this time I began to learn about the subjects I had not been thoroughly exposed to. At SU I was able to attend frequent gallery exhibits, recitals and orchestral performances on and off campus. I began to imagine that if I could get some experience volunteering or interning at a gallery, museum or performance arts space, I could possibly make a career out of supporting the arts.

Upon graduating from SU in December, I began looking for opportunities in Syracuse to learn more about supportive roles for the arts. I gained a position in the Dean’s Office for the College of Visual and Performing Arts at SU where I have been able to make many contacts in the field and learn more about the arts community within Syracuse. My favorite part about Syracuse is how artistically rich the city is. There are so many artists and organizations working in this city, and so many opportunities to learn from them.

I have worked with TH3, Arts Covenant, Westcott Theatre and now the Delavan Art Gallery. This is the first exhibition space I have worked with. I have learned a tremendous amount from the awesome staff here in the short amount of time since I’ve come on board. I enjoy every minute spent here because I am constantly learning or being entertained by our conversations with the each other and the exhibiting artists.

I have had the opportunity to hang and light multiple exhibitions. The hands on experiences have been priceless. Bill and Caroline are an encouraging and patient team when it comes to teaching the interns how to properly hang and light exhibitions. They always make sure to let us know what rules to follow and what tricks to use.

It’s not all work here at the gallery though. Doggie breaks are always welcomed, and Monty, Caroline’s dog, is always sure to be cute and silly on call. We also welcome chocolate breaks. You are sure to always find some kind of cookie, cake or chocolate treat in the kitchen!

Everyone at the Delavan Art Gallery has been very warm and inviting. I feel as if I have known these people forever, and it only adds to the fun! For anyone thinking of interning with the gallery, I would highly recommend it. The experience is absolutely wonderful.

Independent Review of George Earle: A Retrospective

George Earle: A Retrospective
Bonnie Rosenberg
October 8, 2009

The Delavan Art Gallery’s retrospective of George F. Earle comprehensively charts the progression of one artist’s style along with his diverse choice of subject matter. Hung chronologically, the show plots the trajectory of Earle’s long artistic life.

In the gallery’s Wild Card space, the viewer can see a bevy of 95-year-old Earle’s classically American paintings. Richly colored scenes of rural New York and beyond expose the viewer to the familiar yet striking. Earle abstracts nature with his highly linear style and inventive use of color.

In “The Bay in Fall,” a barrage of fluorescent yellows, oranges and reds are balanced by the cool, blue color palette that dominates the right half of the painting.

 
The crown jewel of the exhibit is Earle’s large scale “Clark Reservation.” This wooded vignette is laded with color, texture, and imagination. Each natural surface is treated with a different painting technique, the conglomeration of which amounts to a visually stunning painting. The large tree trunk that dominates the composition seems to come to life with its snake-like appearance – its white, red, blue, and yellow scales slink across the painting. Globs of paint jet out from the canvas as they intersperse with the swirls of color that upon closer inspection come to resemble Van Gogh’s undulating brushstrokes.

Although the show consists chiefly of landscapes, it also highlights Earle’s foray into portraiture. “Mexican Caretaker” features the stern likeness of the artist’s former maid in Mexico. Drawing his color palette from the terra cotta bowls that rest beside the sitter, the painting becomes a study in pink, red, and burnt orange.

Earle’s overall command of technique is evident in this exhibition. His “Leadville, CO” looks like an Impressionistic view of a rural, Rocky Mountain town. Wisps of greens, teals, and cream define the lush background, as stark buildings exist in the foreground. At the same time, “Water Under the Bridge” is highly abstracted. Save for the suggestion of a dock at the bottom left corner of the canvas, the work appears to be an organic string of blue and white lines that twist like puffs of smoke.

Each painting in the collection offers insight into the artist’s skill. As agreeable as the paintings are themselves, perhaps the greater attraction is the clear delineation of an artist’s entire career. It is varied and vibrant.

George Earle: A Retrospective

Wild Card

George Earle: A Retrospective
(October 8 - October 31)

George F. Earle is 95 years old and still painting with the same passion for his craft that emerged when producing his first oil painting at age eight. Delavan Art Gallery is pleased to honor this accomplished artist and his creative legacy through a retrospective curated by his family. The display in the gallery’s Wild Card space opens with a reception from 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm on Thursday, October 8, and remains up through Saturday, October 31.

Throughout George Earle’s adventurous life, he has managed to combine his love of painting with his passion for skiing and urge to write. In his early years growing up in New Bedford, MA, the pursuit of artistic studies coupled with the desire to experience better snow conditions brought him to Syracuse University to the undergraduate art school that remains one of the oldest in the country, and to the hills of Upstate New York that allowed him plenty of opportunity to ‘hit the slopes.’

Back then, Earle started the University’s first ski team, and many years later, he would return to that campus to teach design and art history before moving on to SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, School of Landscape Architecture where he now holds the title of Professor Emeritus. 

During the years between 1933 and today, Earle traveled an exciting journey. In 1937, he was awarded a Tiffany Foundation Fellowship and spent the next year painting in Mexico. In 1941, the day after Pearl Harbor, Earle interrupted his advanced studies at Yale to enlist in the army, where for four years he served as an instructor and coach of the great 1944 10th Mountain Division ski team. After the war, he returned to SU to teach art and direct what was, at the time, the largest ski school in the country.

Throughout his journeys, Earle continued to paint whatever subject was at hand and would later publish books visually documenting his adventures, both with palette and written words. In The Road Less Traveled, Earle recounts his escapades in Mexico, while Birth of a Division takes the reader through the first operation that established the 10th Mountain Division as an important part of the U. S. military force that remains so today.

Following are the artist’s comments on three of the paintings included in Delavan’s display. Of “Mexican Caretaker,” Earle says: “In Mexico, I rented a small house complete with a maid who slept on the front step and did my cooking and laundry. It is among the many paintings I sent home that year.” He says “Water Under The Bridge” was painted in New England and adds, “the stream crossing, dark with pine trees, shows the complicated patterns of water in it’s eddies and turns.”

The painting, “Clark Reservation” was done first as a quick sketch to show his Landscape Architecture class ‘a few tricks’ when brought there to paint from the reservation’s natural scenes. “Later, I enlarged and developed the sketch,” Earle says. “I was particularly interested in the snake like tree trunks and beams of light through the trees.”