A View Apart

Whether you like the traditional styles of the past or are into a fresh new take, you will enjoy exploring the viewpoints of three artists who are featured in the Downstairs Gallery during the Grand Opening exhibit of The New Studios of Jack Richard, “Three Artists, Three Viewpoints.”

Whose viewpoint will you choose? If you are an artist or art aficionado, you might go for the traditional. If you are a student of art, you might gravitate toward the abstract or abstract-expressionist. Some of you may call it conceptual. Whatever your viewpoint, there is something in this show for everyone. You don’t have to know anything about art to have a viewpoint! You can just enjoy being in an artistic environment.

The show expresses three different thoughts and feelings that are based on the same themes. Viewers will be amazed at how cohesive the disparate expressions become, considering that the only common element among the featured painters is their representational style.

The three viewpoints come from three area artists. Paul Jersik often paints in watercolor, but extends to other mediums as well. Carolyn Lewis, a signature member of Plein Air, paints in open air with oil like the old masters and has a book available about her step-by-step Plein Air style. Jana Volkmer concentrates on oils, pastel portraits and luminous pastel florals.

The changes in the Studios give the area its ambiance. The rooms are vast, brightly lit and chock-full of art. Surrounding the featured exhibit are portraits, landscapes, pottery, sculpture, three-dimensional collage, tiles decorating tabletops and tiles sold separately as gifts. Window displays feature furniture and glass cases tempt patrons with jewelry.

Both floors of the Studios have a main gallery that will become the stage for students, well-known area artists and the Artists in Residence to exhibit their work, which offers a broad selection of styles and mediums. Private studios for the Artists in Residence open off of the Upstairs Main Gallery. One such resident artist is also an Art Therapist who is eager to share with visitors the symbolic language of images.

The Downstairs Gallery has been newly opened this year for area artists, but the spirit and history of the Studios cannot be denied. For 50 years, students have come and gone through the doors of this unique Front Street space, so it’s likely many of the exhibiting artists were students here at some point. They keep the artistic spirit alive.

The Grand Opening of both the Upstairs and Downstairs Galleries is Friday, January 15, with a meet-the-artists reception from 5:30 to 8:30 pm. “Three Artists, Three Viewpoints” continues through Tuesday, March 15, 2016. The New Studios of Jack Richard is located at 2250 Front Street, Cuyahoga Falls. For more information, please call 330-929-1575.