SYMPHONY IN ART! Opening Reception: Saturday June 20 3-5 PM / Show runs June 19 - July 26 2015

PRESS RELEASE for upcoming show: "Middle Street Goes Around The World": the art of Leslie Hilton, Carl Zitzmann, Phyllis Northup

Middle Street Goes Around the World

by Gary Anthes

Two painters and a photographer will show their works at the Middle Street Gallery in Sperryville from May 8 through June 14. The artists, Leslie Hilton, Phyllis Northup, and Carl Zitzmann,  from Warrenton, Luray, and Amissville respectively, are all members of the non-profit artists co-operative.

Hilton will offer paintings from her travels to far away places, including Turkey, Hong Kong, Northern Canada, and the Caribbean. Oh, and Baltimore. “I have included faces from the other side of the world, from the South, North, East and West,” she says. “Most are not the traditional smiling portraits, but images of people in their everyday lives, doing what they do and not concerned about my intrusion into their worlds.”

Northup also travels in this show, to the National Parks that she has lived in over the years married to a Park Ranger. “My 'backyards' have included the soaring majesty of the Tetons, the ever changing, awe inspiring Grand Canyon, the stark beauty of the Big Bend desert, the beaches of Cape Hatteras and Fire Island, the flowing water and limestone cliffs of the Buffalo River, the misty ridges of the Smoky Mountains, and the pristine jewel of Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, where the spirit of Lake Superior inspired me on a daily basis,” she says. “The adventure continues as we return to the beautiful mountains of Shenandoah National Park, where our journey began many years ago.”

Northup adds, “Nature recharges my soul, and I hope that my paintings will help others to see and be open to the beauty of the natural world that surrounds us all. Awareness and appreciation will hopefully lead to the desire to protect, preserve and care for this fragile planet we dwell on.”

Photographer Zitzmann says he uses his camera as a tool to capture “those delightful moments which manifest the synchronicity of time, motion and light. I then define, and refine, my original vision through modern digital technology to create the print to be joyfully shared with the adventurous viewer.”

Zitzmann's works show a mix of artistic sensibility, technical skill and serendipity. He describes one work, a surreal image that is back-lit and out of focus, as “the result of a happy accident that I captured while shooting a photo essay at Santa Anita racetrack in Arcadia, California.”

Another Zitzmann image came about following a casual afternoon photographing mules in a friend's pasture near Old Rag Mountain. “As the sun dipped below the mountain, I put away my camera gear and headed for the house and dinner. Coming around a corner, I glanced up to see the last bit of sunset reflected in an upstairs window in a brown clapboard farmhouse. Hurriedly, I ran back to my car and grabbed my camera just in time to catch this beautiful shot.”

Catch beautiful shots of the art and meet the artists at a reception on May 9 from 3pm to 5pm. The gallery is located next to River District Arts, 3 River Lane, in Sperryville, Va. Hours are Fri.-Sun. 11am to 5pm. Please call 540/987-9330 during business hours or visit www.middlestreetgallery.org for more information.

CARL ZITZMANN, LESLIE HILTON, and PHYLLIS NORTHUP at Middle St. Gallery

NEXT SHOW at the MIDDLE ST. GALLERY, which will run May 8th – June 14th:  

CARL ZITZMANN, LESLIE HILTON, AND PHYLLIS NORTHUP. 

Additionally there will be a group show of work by the rest of the Gallery's members. The opening reception will be May 9th, 3-5 p.m.

CARL ZITZMANN SAYS OF HIS WORK:

"My working mantra is the original definition of Photography: writing with light. I use the camera as a tool to capture and preserve those delightful moments which manifest the synchronicity of time, motion and light. I then define, and refine, my original vision through modern digital technology to create the print to be joyfully shared with the adventurous viewer."

LESLIE HILTON SAYS OF HER WORK:
"This show is a sample of my travels far and away.
 I have included faces from the other side of the world, from the South, North, East and West.

Most are not the traditional smiling portraits but images captured in their everyday life, doing what they do, not concerned about my intrusion into their world.

I hope you enjoy this glimpse as much as I enjoyed the moment."

PHYLLIS NORTHUP SAYS OF HER WORK:

"This collection of paintings celebrates the National Parks that I have been privileged to live in.  Having married a National Park Ranger I have had the good fortune to move all over the country and live in some of our nation’s most spectacular places.  My “backyards” have included the soaring majesty of the Tetons, the ever changing, awe inspiring Grand Canyon, the stark beauty of the Big Bend desert, the beaches of Cape Hatteras and Fire Island, the flowing water and limestone cliffs of the Buffalo River, the misty ridges of the Smoky Mountains, and the pristine jewel of Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, where the spirit of Lake Superior inspired me on a daily basis.  The adventure continues as we return to the beautiful mountains of Shenandoah National Park, where our journey began many years ago."

"I have such a collection of images in my mind and soul from living in all of these spectacular places; I will never loose my passion for attempting to capture the essence of their beauty and spirit.  Nature recharges my soul, and I hope that my paintings will help others to see and be open to the beauty of the natural world that surrounds us all.  Awareness and appreciation will hopefully lead to the desire to protect, preserve and care for this fragile planet we dwell on!" 

There will also be 4 MINI SHOWS AT MIDDLE ST. GALLERY March 27 - May 3

In addition to the upcoming show of work by ROSABEL GOODMAN-EVERARD, the Middle St. Gallery presents 4 mini-shows of work by (clockwise from upper left as they appear below): BARBARA HEILE, NANCY BRITTLE, KATHLEEN WILLINGHAM, and GARY ANTHES. Meet the artists and see these great pieces of art at the opening Reception: SATURDAY, APRIL IIth, 3-5 PM! The show will run from March 27 - May 3.

ROSABEL GOODMAN-EVERARD and Mini-Shows at Middle St. Gallery: Reception April 11 3-5 PM

NEW SHOW AT THE MIDDLE ST. GALLERY:

March 27 - May 3

Opening Reception: SATURDAY, APRIL IIth, 3-5 PM 

 

ROSABEL GOODMAN-EVERARD

Middle St. Gallery member Rosabel Goodman-Everard

shows new work in a show titled "ELEMENTREE STORIES":

One day the water stopped flowing. The blooming trees on the riverbed withered and died and the creatures living in and among them disappeared. Stark tree-trunk shapes were all that remained. The only solution was to work with these shapes.

What felt at first like a limitation of my freedom became a world of its own. First there was color, shape and texture to explore. Modest images, but together these shapes yielded yet another effect: a new vibrancy and unexpected rhythms within groupings.  Then the tree trunk shape became a tapestry for narrative, for I am drawn to the narrative.  It remained dry and dark for a long time. Then, slowly, the water started returning.

PLUS: GARY ANTHES, NANCY BRITTLE, BARBARA HEILE, AND KATHLEEN WILLINGHAM show work in mini-shows. 

Additionally there will be a display of work by Pam Pittinger and Jim Ramsay, held over from their winter show. 

JIM RAMSAY AND PAM PITTINGER: I:I (eye to eye)

February 13 - March 22, 2015

JIM RAMSAY AND PAM PITTINGER   

I:I (eye to eye)

Don't miss this exciting show by 2 former Middle St. Gallery members! 

Opening Reception: SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 3-5 PM

Below: The King And I", a new work by Pam Pittinger, and below that, "Trapp", a new work by Jim Ramsay. 

FEBRUARY - MARCH SHOW: PAM PITTINGER AND JIM RAMSAY: I:I (eye to eye)

February 14 - March 22
JIM RAMSAY AND PAM PITTINGER:

I:I (eye to eye)

Opening Reception: SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 3-5 PM

Former Middle St. Gallery members Jim Ramsay and Pam Pittinger will each have works of their own on view, as well as several collaborative pieces. Jim and Pam have been working together for many years and feel they have a strong affinity for each other’s style when they team up to work on a single piece of art. Jim and Pam are both abstract artists; Jim’s style is more structured and linear, whereas Pam’s is more organic and playful.

Jim Ramsay remarks:

Collaborative art is not a new idea. Reubens had a workshop of assistants who translated his small drawings into wall sized paintings while he was out of town. Back home, Reubens would rework much of the canvas, finishing it with his signature flair, his bravura detail brushwork. Picasso and Braque famously worked each on the other’s paintings in their early cubist period. Pam Pittinger and Jim Ramsay each draw and paint their own individual work, but they sometimes work collaboratively, often side by side, often passing an image back and forth between them.

PLUS: Group show of art by Middle St. Gallery members.

Image: "Tic Tac Taoism", Jim Ramsay and Pam Pittinger