| Issue #1 - March 30, 2007 |
The 69th Guild Hall Members Exhibition
Last weekend, the first installment of the 69th Annual
Guild Hall Members Exhibition opened with a display of works by artists
whose surnames begin with the letters A-L. The exhibition will run through
April 21, with the next installment, artists M-Z, opening on May 5 and
closing on June 2. Long known as one of the most prominent art venues
on the East Coast, Guild Hall has a history of bringing lesser-known
artists to the forefront of visitors’ minds by illuminating their
best works under the talented direction of their curatorial staff. Many
artists “discovered” by Guild Hall have gone on to receive
international acclaim, making its walls some of the most coveted space
for an artist to display their work. The grand prize of the Guild Hall
Members Exhibition is a solo show at Guild Hall the following year,
a prize that has attracted artists on every level, from the most well-known
to weekend painters, to enter their pieces in hopes of being chosen.
The Guild Hall Members Exhibition also holds the title of being the
oldest non-juried art show on Long Island, making it one of the East
End’s most popular places to take in the best of what the Hamptons
art world has to offer. Because the show is not juried, all current
artist members of Guild Hall are invited to enter their works for a
small fee, with a valid Guild Hall Membership. Although the artists
do not have to be considered professionals to enter the exhibition,
the judge of this year’s competition, Faye Hirsch, has been selected
from the most discriminating of art publications, giving prizewinners
a real sense of how their art stacks up against the rest of the art
world. As the Senior Editor of Art in America magazine, Ms. Hirsch has
been separating good art from revolutionary art throughout her career
and her expertise will surely add even more prestige to the honor of
winning the solo exhibition.
The winners of the first installment were announced during the opening
reception on March 24, giving a handful of artists the recognition they
deserve. Top Honors were awarded to Priscilla Heine, a frequent exhibitor
at the gallery and museum shows in the Hamptons. Her works have varied
from a paint-splashed wine bottle for the Sag Harbor Whaling Museum’s
“Art of Wine” auction to diaphanous abstract works. Ms.
Heine will receive a solo exhibition at Guild Hall as her prize. Grant
Haffner’s vivacious, colorful, acrylic landscape painting won
the Catherine & The Hios Landscape Award and a $250 cash prize.
Although many artists in the Hamptons highlight the grace of the Long
Island landscape, Haffner’s young eye catches the boldness of
the black roads cutting through neon green summer fields framed by sinewy
black telephone lines, giving the traditional Hamptons landscape a new
vitality and sense of urgency. The more traditional depictions of the
Hamptons were not overlooked, however, and the award for Best Representational
work was given to none other than Plein Air painter extraordinaire Susan
D’Alessio. D’Alessio’s landscapes are subtly hewn
in naturalistic colors and capture the movement of the dune grasses
and shallow creeks that wind through so many East End landscapes. Elegant
art writer and curator Janet Goleas, received the award for Best Mixed
Media piece. John Philip Capello, a frequent Guild Hall exhibitor known
for his fanciful depictions of mythical creatures roughly hewn in stone,
received the award for Best Scultpure. Best photograph was awarded to
Joy Goldkind, famous for her bromoil prints of haunting subjects that
recall dim images plucked from Surrealist films. Other awards went to
Annette Heller for Best Abstract Work and Steven Filler for Best Work
on Paper. A.G. Duggan, Rosalyn Kane, Leonard Green, Joyce Kubat, Josef
Head and Stephanie Brody Lederman all received honorable mentions.
Now that the winners have been announced, it is important that the community
turn to support these artists who are our neighbors, friends and a wealth
of talent cultivated right in our collective backyard. Because there
are only so many honors to give, most of the great artists in the show
were not mentioned here and the only way to appreciate their work and
talent is to view their artwork in person at Guild Hall. By April 21,
all of these works will be taken down to make room for the next great
exhibit – we will never have another chance to see works by all
of these great artists side by side. On May 5, from 4 to 6 p.m., the
next batch of winners will be announced and one more artist will be
awarded the great honor of their own solo exhibition at Guild Hall.
The moment that these artists have all been waiting for is not to be
missed. Be sure to be on hand when the winners are announced, to soak
up the art and the excitement of those artists who have worked so hard
to have their work displayed on the hallowed walls of the East End’s
own Guild Hall.
– Sabrina C. Mashburn
The first installment of the 69th Annual Guild Hall Member’s Exhibition,
with work by artists whose last names begin with the letters A-L, will
be on view until April 21. The second installment, with works by artists
whose last names begin with the letters M-Z, will be on view from May
5 until June 2, with an opening reception on May 5 from 4-6 p.m. Guild
Hall is located at 158 Main Street in East Hampton. Guild Hall is open
from 11 a.m. until 5 p.m. from Thursday through Saturday, and from noon
to 5 p.m. on Sunday. For more information, please call (631) 324-0806,
email info@guildhall.org or visit www.guildhall.org.
 |
