‘Resilient,’ ‘relevant,’ ‘approachable’
Art association works to broaden reach
STAMFORD — Nadia Martinez has always had great faith in community.
“It’s important because, as artists, we usually work alone,” said the Hondurasborn artist and educator. “We can get isolated very quickly.”
That tradition of solitary toil has been deeply felt during 2020, as even the closest circles of friends were forced apart. And that’s why Martinez and the 150 members of the Stamford Art Association said they are excited about the group’s current exhibition,
“Spring 2021,” a celebration of post-pandemic possibilities and the nonprofit’s 50th birthday.
“COVID put us in a transition time,” said SAA President Christine Irvin. “But we’re hanging in there — just being resilient and relevant and making art approachable.”
Formed in 1971 in an historic 19th century townhouse on Franklin Street, the SAA has been a second home for painters, sculptors, printmakers, photographers and multimedia artists looking for a place to find kindred spirits and grow as artists through evaluation of their work.
Marguerite Weinert, who recently retired after about 20 years as gallery manager, said she enjoyed encouraging new artists just finding their vision.
“I would see young people coming in just starting to paint who wanted to get an opinion,” she said. “They didn’t always get chosen. But I would say, ‘Don’t get discouraged. It’s never personal. Keep trying.’ ”
In a typical year, the group mounts a dozen or so exhibitions, including the international Faber Birren Color Award Show, a popular student show, solo exhibitions and three “Art at the Ferguson” exhibitions at the Ferguson Library. Launched in 1980, the Faber Birren competition features jurors from major New York City museums and organizations including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art and Sotheby’s.
The student show, which would have been 48 this year, features 100 to 150 works from students at about 15 Fairfield County high schools. Over the years, the SAA has awarded $150,000 in scholarship prizes, Irvin said.
“It’s an homage to the art teachers, too,” she said. “It’s
wonderful. It’s all over the place. Just really innovative work every year.”
This past year has been anything but typical. But while the gallery has had to move all its exhibitions online, Irvin said interest in them has grown to a larger, previously untapped audience.
“Spring 2021,” which runs through April 24, features 45 pieces that hail from both Stamford and around the country.
“Our reach of artists involved with us has blown open,” said Irvin, who has worked on Wall Street and in the photography and fashion industry. “It’s much more broad-based.”
Though they include various techniques, the pieces were chosen for their craftsmanship, color, composition, subject matter and how successfully they address the exhibition’s spring theme, said curator Lina Morielli.
Stamford artist Alissa Siegal took first place with her “Pink Magnolias,” while Texas artist Tiffany Heng Hui Lee won honorable mention for “Cherry Blossoms.”
“This abstract mixed media collage reminds us of happy times and joyful memory,” she said in a video introducing the exhibition. “The intimate detail in the artwork is intended
to draw the viewer close to examine and to discover things they are not able to see from far away, just like our daily life.”
The rise of online art exhibitions, classes and lectures has allowed those far and near to zoom in on the current exhibition and others throughout the year. The townhouse will continue to be used for more solo shows until the space is safe for larger crowds, spokesmen said. SAA is also forging a new partnership with Norwalk’s Lockwood Mathews Mansion Museum for a fall exhibition envisioning space and architecture.
Martinez, a board member since 2014, said the group is bolstering its website, blog and social media to encourage the recent digital interest. And everyone is looking forward to being able to open the doors to art fans, who continue to make Stamford a creative destination, Irvin said.
“We were the only gallery here in town at first. There was nobody else,” she said of the bustling downtown. “But we’ll get there again.
“I’m an ‘onward’ person.”