Youngsville, NY – “Betty & Me, a Prelude” will open Saturday June 1^st at Domesticities in Youngsville. This very local show features pastels by Elizabeth Harms and bentwood sculpture by Kevin Gref, artists who live and work in nearby Jeffersonville.  The opening reception begins at 4 pm.

Elizabeth Harms received her MFA and BFA from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. She has been exhibiting her paintings and pastels for more than 30 years in various solo and group exhibitions. Solo exhibitions include New York’s Paul McCarron Gallery, Condeso/Lawler Gallery and 55 Mercer; Jersey City Museum and Jupiter Gallery in New Jersey; Museum of Art, Carnegie Institute and Carnegie-Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and the Delaware Valley Arts Alliance in Narrowsburg, New York. Of her work, she says, “All of my work is truly, purely abstract or non-objective or non-representational. Many times I have been stimulated by the colors or shapes in nature. The environment is always a constant source of inspiration and can be something as simple as the light and shapes of snow on the hills in winter.”

Kevin Gref received his BFA from University of Buffalo, specializing in Sculpting. After retiring from a career as a carpenter, he returned to his artwork with the opening of his studio Jeffersonville Steamworks in 2013 where he began to experiment with steam-bent white oak, cherry, and other hardwoods. His work has appeared in group shows at the Orange County Art Society, Catskill Arts Society, and the Delaware Valley Arts Alliance, was featured in the Broadway production of Harold and Maude and also is part of the private collection of actor Mark Ruffalo. Gref presently is working out of the studios of accomplished abstract painters Elizabeth Harms and Douglas Craft.

Their work will be on display through the end of June.

An afternoon with Helena Pittman and Scott Woods

Join author/artists Scott Woods and Helena Pittman for a lively discussion on writing and painting on Sunday, December 2^nd at 1 pm.  WJFF’s Valerie Mansi will facilitate the discussion.

Helena has written and illustrated 17 books for children and her best-selling book “A Grain of Rice” has just been published in a new edition by Penguin Random House. On the origins of this book on exponential progression, Helena writes “Math was never my strength, anything but! But I worked out the transactions up to one hundred doublings of the numbers. Kids would love this, I thought. I hadn’t yet imagined the pictures the numbers would ultimately inspire me to conceptualize and draw—the book was published in black and white, its drawings in pencil. I was just taken with what the numbers did.”

Scott started his career illustrating boys’ adventure novels for Simon and Shuster, then moved on to the film business in LA, animating for Amblin’ Entertainment and DreamWorks. He spent his childhood summers in Callicoon Center and that landscape provided the inspiration for many of his later illustrations. Eventually the Catskills called him home and his recent book “We Hillfolk” describes his re-entry into country life, a real-life, grown-up boy’s adventure.  He is a portrait artist and painter whose work captures the charm of each subject.

Ann Higgins, Elise Hornbeck, Valerie Taggart, Laverne Black and Kate Hyden, have created an early winter show featuring their vibrant watercolors and drawings of landscapes, wildlife, flowers and faces. This professional group of local artists and friends meet regularly, getting together to paint, share their expertise and have some fun.
Join us for an opening reception Sunday, November 18th at 1 pm.  The show will run until December 16th.

Don’t know these artists?
Ann Higgins is a former Liberty, NY teacher, a founding member of the Catskill Art Society, a signature member of the North East Watercolor Society (NEWS) and a renowned artist who continues to exhibit her work from the Adirondacks to Connecticut.
Elise Hornbeck has a passion for drawing and painting the Catskill and Adirondack Mountains, including the old covered bridges and barns of New York State. She is also a signature member of the North East Watercolor Society and has exhibited locally and throughout the region.
Valerie Taggart is a former Art Teacher with an MA in Painting/Printmaking from SUNY Oswego.  She is also a signature member of the Northeast Watercolor Society. Watercolor is her favorite medium, about which she says “it allows for direct and immediate expression.” Invoking the quiet solitude of rural life, she strives to create a sense of place in her work.
LaVerne Black grew up on a small farm in Sullivan County and she holds dear the rural landscape and country lifestyle. She has exhibited widely throughout the region and in NY City. For many years she roamed the countryside photographing the rural scenes that were rapidly disappearing. She has returned to painting, drawing upon her photography for inspiration.
Kate Hyden has a degree in Painting from FSU and is a resident of Livingston Manor, NY. She is a member of the North East Watercolor Society, Catskill Art Society and has exhibited in the area for the last several years. She is also a member of the Sullivan County Audubon Society.  Her love of birds is reflected in her work. She created and participated in the three Audubon and Friends Too exhibitions in Sullivan County.