Reception Friday opens ‘BookMarks’ at In-Town Gallery
A new body of work by artist Jane Newman will be featured during the month of August at In-Town Gallery.
“BookMarks: A Library of Line, Shape, Value, Color & Texture” is a series of paintings that crosses the threshold of hyper-realism into abstraction. Images of old, time-worn, leather-bound books inspired Newman to explore her feelings about the printed word using a very nontraditional visual approach.
“BookMarks” opens with a reception Friday, Aug. 2, from 5 to 8 p.m. at the gallery, 26-A Frazier Ave. The exhibit will remain on view through Aug. 30.
“I like books,” says Newman. “I enjoy reading books. I like the look of books and the feel of books, especially old books. I like books whose age gives them character — weathered, leather-bound books with tattered pages that have faded over their well-thumbed history. They have a beauty that is simple and quiet.”
Newman has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Memphis State University and enjoyed an award-winning career as a graphic designer and art director. A painter of still life, landscape and portraits, many of her paintings are inspired by nostalgic objects that bring to mind memories from the past.
Her work walks a line between realism and abstraction, focusing on the interaction of marks made by shape against shape, value against value. Just as books are made of layers of pages and bindings, these paintings are built up on layers of underpainting, on which she creates dramatic surface textures.
“The paintbrush just wasn’t enough for these paintings,” Newman says. “I used some pretty unorthodox tools like wood-chiseling instruments, gardening spades, screwdrivers and house-paint scrapers. You might say designs dictated the plot of what I did visually on the surface of the canvas.”
In-Town Gallery is an artist co-op gallery that offers a wide range of art and fine craft from 30 artists. In-Town hours are 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Saturday, 1-5 p.m. Sunday.
For more information: 423-267-9214.