Oct. 21, 2013. Carlton Gallery’s 31st Autumn Exhibition is abundant is superb art by the local, regional and national artisans represented by the gallery. Acrylic paintings by Debbie Arnold represent her visions, dreams and intuitive process of rendering a canvas. Edie Maney’s bold and commanding non-objective abstract acrylic paintings utilize brushes, palette knives and printmaker brayers to determine the shapes and textures in her design and composition. Horses in the landscape by Holly Glasscock, abstract figurative work by Make Ham, along with the elongated figurative paintings by Warren Dennis bring an added dimension and element of surprise to the gallery’s 31st Autumn Exhibition.
Toni Carlton’s expressions through her paintings of Peace and Oneness with acrylic paints, hand-woven fibers, calligraphy and music offer hope and encouragement to everyone. Mike Grady’s abstract, acrylic/ink paintings are sometimes brushes, poured or dripped to articulate his influence from Asian artisans inspired by the balance of natural forces.
A Visiting Artists’ Exhibition, Alternative Views-Photography, by Dennis Usdan and Carole Usdan with an Artists’ Reception is planned for Saturday, Oct. 26, from 2-5 p.m. The 31st Autumn Exhibition along with the Visiting Artists’ are features for the Avery Tour de Art on Saturday, Oct. 26, from 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
Dennis Usdan’s photography exhibit contains images from the High Country, France and Holland. His technical strategy involves intentionally moving the digital camera along with a longer shutter speed when taking the photograph. The photograph is made in the camera, while post processing of the image is very limited.
In his exhibit, “Alternative Views – Photography”, Dennis Usdan says, “I am attempting to explore the relationship among fading memory, dream and imagination. My idea is that the images explore those concepts by presenting a softer vision and longer moment in time than might be found in the sharp photograph. This may be an alternative way to recall our experiences; I think of it as something akin to what we might see in our peripheral vision. Generally, the printed image will not be documentation but an impressionistic interpretation of the environment – urban or rural”.
Fine art photographer and recovering lawyer, Dennis Usdan, was born and raised on Long Island, New York. He graduated from the University of Vermont and Boston University School of Law. His photographic studies were from the Boca Raton Museum in Delray Beach, Florida.
The photographic works of Dennis Usdan have juried in various art media competitions, including Watauga Arts Council, Boca Raton Museum of Art and Lighthouse Art Museum in Florida, as well as Toe River Arts Council Art Competition. Further, his photographs were published in “Black and White and Color Magazine” in 2011 and 2012.
Carole Usdan’s figurative work (nudes reconfigured) in the “Alternative Views – Photography” Exhibition evolved from a previous endeavor titled “Fractured Females”. The representational aspects of these nudes are identifiable; however, Carole Usdan has revised them through an individualized process of digital deconstruction and reorganization. She says, “This process I call “Photo Work” in order to explore the complexity of sensation and memory, the individual’s attempt to reconcile that understanding is highly imperfect and continuously per mutating over time. Memories are wonderfully fluid, distorted even by that act of remembering, and I am fascinated by this amorphous undoing and redoing of “reality”.
Carole Usdan’s portrait series in this exhibit also reveals the connective tissue of memory and understanding. Her images are assertive and demand the viewer to notice the imbedded detail that transforms the overall portrait.
The contemporary non-traditional photographic work of Carole Usdan has received many awards from “Black and White Magazine”. She has exhibited in solo and group shows, including the Turchin Center for the Visual Arts, Atlanta Photography Group and Toe River Arts.
Enjoy a day of the Avery Tour de Art on Saturday, October 26, 10-5 and visit Carlton Gallery’s 31st Autumn Exhibition with its diverse art collection in all mediums, including Toni Carlton’s expressive art studio and showroom in the new upper gallery. The “Visiting Artists’ Exhibition – Alternative Views – Photography” Artists’ Reception from 2-5 pm affords one an opportunity to meet Dennis and Carole Usdan to discuss their very interesting work.
The gallery is located 10 miles south of Boone and 7 miles north of Linville on NC 105 in the Grandfather Mountain community near the entrance to Seven Devils. For information on artists, exhibitions or workshops, call (828) 963-4288 or www.carltongallery.com.