The daily Astorian., November 10, 2016, Page 11, Image 21

NOVEMBER 10, 2016 // 11
Continued from Pg. 10
moment, “As light fades
and the shadows deepen, all
petty and exacting details
vanish, everything trivial
disappears, and I see things
as they are in great strong
masses: the buttons are lost,
but the sitter remains; the
sitter is lost, but the shadow
remains.”
This time of day, espe-
cially at this time of year,
when days shorten and
nights are longer, has always
been regarded as a time of
transition and mystery, and
the artists in this exhibit
treat the theme as such.
“It’s one of my favorite
times of the day, and one of
the hardest to paint,” said
watercolorist Noel Thomas.
“The color changes are so
subtle. There are so many
incredible types of light as
PHOTO BY DWIGHT CASWELL
we are losing the light of the
Rhonda Grudenic works on a painting in her studio
sun. There’s a golden glow
for “Nocturne”; it is her first new work to be exhibited
SUBMITTED PHOTO
about everything, and the
“Valley Glow” by David Marty, who chose to focus on natural settings in his paintings in the “Nocturne” in five years.
reds are so red. It’s beauti-
show at RiverSea Gallery.
ful.”
Painter Rhonda Grudenic
is included in “Nocturne”
with her first new work to
be exhibited in five years, a
period she describes as one
in which she has been “ex-
ploring different ideas in my
mind.” She began painting
again because, “I couldn’t
resist the theme of the show.
I mentally put myself in that
place, and all the experi-
ences I’ve had at that time
of day, all the times I’ve
glanced out a window
and suddenly realized
that all the colors have
been transformed into
Noel Thomas, Rhonda
indigos and violets. It
Grudenic, Carol Aust, Stir-
doesn’t seem part of
PHOTO BY DWIGHT CASWELL
ling Gorsuch, Don Gray, Da-
our normal world. It’s
“It’s one of my favorite times of the day, and one of the hardest
SUBMITTED PHOTO
vid Marty, Thomas Benena-
magical; there’s an
to paint,” said watercolorist Noel Thomas about twilight.
“Late Light” by Mary Lou Epperson.
intimacy and a privacy ti, Robert Paulmenn, Betsey
about it, and I love it so Nelson, Mary Lou Epper-
instead to portray views
chosen natural settings, as
a pond seen on a long-ago
much.”
white, blue, and black paper.
son, Christy Harangozo,
from the Longview crossing
David Marty did: “What
morning, but says of his
Most of the other
The “Nocturne” theme
Michael Lindstrom and
of the Columbia River. “The for this show is a fruitful
paintings that they seem, “to intrigues me most about the
artists represented have Barbara Szkutnik.
omnipresent mist and ex-
evening is the silence when
occupy a nebulous region
similar thoughts about
one, challenging artists to
you are away from the city. I haust from the mills in this
between dusk and darkness.
the colors of the eve-
broaden their horizons and
area, brightened by the city
It became clear that I wasn’t love to sit and have it enve-
while the relief prints of
ning, expressed in a variety
to experiment with tech-
lights, caught my attention.” nique and materials. The
lope you,” he said.
trying to depict the place,
Stirling Gorsuch use geo-
of ways. Carol Aust shows
Painting near-darkness was
Pastel artist Thomas
figures in her paintings mov- metric forms to interpret the but rather the place it occu-
result is a striking exhibit
something new to Benenati,
Benenati, who often depicts
pied in my mind.”
changes of color through
ing through homes or land-
that captures beautifully a
and he experimented with
the natural world, chose
Most of the artists have
time. Don Gray remembers
scapes as night approaches,
time and a season.
THE ARTISTS