THE ART LOVER’S GUIDE TO COLLECTING FINE ART IN CAPE COD & THE ISLANDS
As summer kicks into high gear, travelers flock to one of the most picturesque regions of the United States: Cape Cod, Massachusetts. The Cape, and the nearby islands of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket, are not only relaxing beachside retreats but they also brim with arts and culture.
It has long been a hotspot for artists, with some of the most recognized past artists—including Edward Hopper and Charles Hawthorne—making the Cape their permanent homes. That tradition has continued today with many artists setting up studios and galleries in the cities.
Recognized as the country’s oldest continuous art colony, Provincetown is located on the outermost point of the Cape and boasts a hub of galleries and museums on Commercial Street. One of the most anticipated events in the city is the Provincetown Art Association and Museum’s annual Members’ 12 x 12 Exhibition and Silent Auction. The event, which is a fundraiser for the museum, happens this year from July 19 to August 25, with more than 300 works of art available for sale.
Orleans on the Lower Cape is one of 44 communities that has been designated a Cultural District by the Massachusetts Cultural Council. It is home to galleries, studios, performance venues, historical sites and museums. Saturday nights in the
city, collectors and art enthusiasts can join the Orleans Gallery Association as they host Gallery Night where there is the chance to meet artists and see their latest works of art.
Chatham also boasts a number of arts-centric events, as not only are there galleries and studios in the area but the Creative Arts Center is an advocate for offering fine art to the masses. The center’s 48th annual Festival of the Arts will take place August 16 to 18 with 120 artisans exhibiting their works. Included are ceramics, woodworking, graphics, metalwork, glass and more, allowing for an array of art to be purchased and enjoyed.
Across the mainland are the islands of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket, which are home to dozens of art galleries as well as annual events. The Artists Association of Nantucket has been fostering the arts of the island since 1945 and hosts an array of special events each year. On July 13 at the Great Harbor Yacht Club is the annual Summer Art Auction & Gala, which will this year honor Nantucket artist Carol Keefe.
This culturally rich area is home to a number of artists, galleries and promoters of the arts, among them are Abby Lammers, Addison Art Gallery, Aries East Gallery, Gallery 31 Fine Art, Gallery Antonia, Provincetown Office of Tourism, Quidley & Co. and Sharon Johnson.
ADDISON ART GALLERY
43 S. Orleans Road, Orleans,
MA 02653, (508) 255-6200 gallery@addisonart.com www.addisonart.com
With collectors and artists that span continents, Addison Art Gallery has spent more than two decades adding to the richness of our country’s oldest art colony. Addison is the creator of After Hopper, a celebration of contemporary artists inspired by Edward Hopper; In Thoreau’s Views, explorations in paint of places Henry David Thoreau immortalized; and Before the Masterpieces, exhibitions of finished works along with sketches, reference photographs and artists’ comments. The intriguing shows, along with unmatched community support, help cement it as one of the nation’s leading galleries.
Recent additions to the gallery’s roster are Jonathan Earle and Paul Batch. Influenced by George Bellows and Johannes Vermeer,
Earle’s tonalist works provide the framework to trigger a connection or an emotion, while leaving uncertainty for the viewer to complete. Batch’s paintings—focusing on transitions of the times of day, the weather and seasons— are a poetic response to the fleeting and ephemeral light cast by the passing sun or rising moon.
The gallery also represents artists Paul Schulenburg, Jonathan McPhillips and Marc Kundmann who, along with Earle, will all have solo shows in July. On August 3, the gallery will open its exhibition for Olivier Suire Verley, whose coastal paintings of the Île de Ré are reminiscent of Cape Cod.
“With consistent sales through this past winter and sales vibrant this spring, predictions are for another banner year.”
— Helen Katherine Addison, director, Addison Art Gallery
QUIDLEY & COMPANY
26 Main Street, Nantucket, MA 02554 (508) 228-4300 www.quidleyandco.com
Quidley & Company, with locations in Massachusetts, Florida and Connecticut, offers artwork by contemporary and traditional artists from the United States and Europe. These galleries are renowned within their periods and genres, allowing some of the highest quality art to be offered. Since 2006, the gallery has worked closely with its clients to satisfy their needs while building and maintaining an art collection.
This summer, the gallery’s Massachusetts location, on Main Street in Nantucket, will host three exhibitions to entice visitors. Opening June 28 is the group exhibition Surf’s Up where artists present beach-related works of art. Then, on July 12 is the opening for Forrest Rodts’ solo exhibition that also takes to the beach. August
9 is the opening for Hunt Slonem’s next one-man show, featuring his graphic images of rabbits, birds and more.
All three receptions happen from 6 to 8 p.m. The gallery also features work by still life artists Janet Rickus and Greg Haynes; marine scenes by Tim Thompson and William R. Davis; and the waterways of Collin Berry, among others.
GALLERY 31 FINE ART
34 Main Street, Orleans,
MA 02653, (508) 247-9469 info@gallery31capecod.com www.gallery31capecod.com
Nestled on a square of upscale shops where Main Street and Route 6A meet in the Orleans Cultural District, Gallery 31 Fine Art specializes in representational and interpretive fine art of Cape Cod—the sea, the shore and the sky. Internationally acclaimed award-winning artists paint the unique character and luminosity found here. Well known for original art in pastel and oil, the gallery also represents works in alcohol ink, watercolor, encaustic and monotype.
Visitors enjoy the insights of an artist on the gallery tour with owner Sherry Rhyno, whose experience at the easel provides an insider’s view to art, from defining composition to techniques applied and materials used. New artists at the gallery include Tony Allain and William Gotha. Eminent continuing artists include Richard McKinley, Jeanne Rosier Smith and Deborah Quinn-Munson. Local gallery artists include Rhyno, Jen McCalmont, Snefrid SneveSchultze, Paula David and Mary Wojciechowski, among others.
Gotha leads the summer season with Cape Cod and the Nearby Sea, an exhibition of oceans and beaches opening June 29 from 4 to 6 p.m. with a demo at 2 p.m. Hydrangeas in Bloom opens July 6 with Rhyno, David and Sneve-Schultze painting in the gallery throughout the day and a “fresh paint sale” following until 6:30 p.m. On July 20, Smith demos from 2 to 4 p.m, with her solo exhibition Simple Pleasures opening from 4 to 6 p.m. Summer Scents opens August 3 with a “Boston School” demo in oil by McCalmont at 2 p.m. and reception to follow. Abstracts Attract opens August 10 with a demo at 2 p.m. by Arnie Casavant, and features works by him, Quinn-Munson, Allain, Smith, Wojciechowski and Kelly Milukas with a reception until 6 p.m.
“Interpretive works leaning toward abstraction are in demand this year, though representational art of the sea, shore, sky and the classic still life remains strong.”
—Sherry Rhyno, owner and artist, Gallery 31 Fine Art
GALLERY ANTONIA
1291 Main Street, Chatham, MA 02650 (508) 469-4020 domonic@galleryantonia.com www.galleryantonia.com
Owner Domonic Boreffi opened Gallery Antonia in 2010, named for his paternal grandmother. The year-round gallery, celebrating its 10th season, features awarded Cape Cod and regional artists working in oil, acrylic, sculpture and photography. Gallery Antonia specializes in residential and corporate art consulting and placement.
“Although Cape Cod is known as a thriving summer art market, we had quite a bit of activity in the recent winter months,” says gallery owner Dominic Boreffi. “Gallery Antonia was one of the featured galleries at the second annual Winter Art Series at the prestigious Chatham Bars Inn [in Chatham, Massachusetts]. Friday Evenings from midJanuary through March featured a different gallery or artist. Art patrons flocked to these weekly shows, which had really picked up speed from the previous, first year art series. Our arts community is grateful to Chatham Bars Inn for offering a lovely venue to support local artists and galleries. Many works had sold during the art series or created a great buzz and follow-up for interested collectors.”
During the summer, the gallery will host its annual Group Artist Show on July 20 from 4 to 6 p.m. Featured will be new works by Hiram Ball, Sam Barber, Eli Cedrone, William R. Davis, Sue Gilkey, Laura Griffith and Ann Hart. Next is a two-person exhibition for Cape Cod artists Elizabeth Lazeren and Ginny Nickerson that will be held on August 10 from 4 to 6 p.m.
“Although Cape Cod is known as a thriving summer art market, we had quite a bit of activity in the recent winter months.”
—Domonic Boreffi, owner, Gallery Antonia.
PROVINCETOWN OFFICE OF TOURISM
330 Commercial Street, Provincetown, MA 02657, (508) 487-3298 tourism@provincetown-ma.gov www.ptowntourism.com
Provincetown, Massachusetts, which has a reputation for celebrating the creative spirit, is recognized as America’s oldest continuous art colony. This began when Charles Hawthorne, in
1899, arrives in the region. He founded the Cape Cod School of Art and taught painting in the city for 30 summers. In addition to Hawthorne, the city has hosted major figures in American culture such as Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, Tennessee Williams and E. E. Cummings. Its atmosphere of experimentation draws artists yearly to deepen their talents and collectors to add to their collections.
In the city are dozens of art galleries, as well as the Provincetown Art Association and Museum (PAAM), which was established in 1914 and houses an important 20th-century American art collection. There are gallery strolls every Friday night from 5 to 10 p.m., June through September. Attending the stroll provides free entrance to the museum, as well as have the chance to meet visiting and local artists at the galleries. Another institution to visit is the Fine Arts Work Center, which presents noted exhibitions and readings. The majority of these events are open to the public and offer guests the opportunity to view and purchase artwork.
Being surrounded by water at the tip of Cape Cod is one of the draws to the area for artists. Because of that visitors will see plein air painters and photographers with easels and tripods out to interpret the town’s sights onto canvas or through a lens.
ARIES EAST GALLERY
2805 Main Street,Brewster, MA 02631 (508) 896-7681, (508) 237-9873 geoffreysmitharieseast@gmail.com www.arieseastgallery.com
Located in Brewster on Cape Cod is Aries East Gallery, a 41-year-old establishment featuring established artists who work in oil, acrylic, pastel and watercolor. Their artwork spans a number of subjects including sporting art, landscapes and seascapes. Showcased throughout the gallery is the work of owner and artist Geoffrey Smith.
Smith’s artwork is found in a number of corporate collections, and he has been invited by the Kentucky Derby, America’s Cup races and more to cover their events artistically. Among his achievements are being selected by the New York Racing Association to have an exhibition of horseracing paintings at the Clubhouse Gallery in 1987 and being chosen as the featured artist at Belmont Park in 1990. He also has been a cover artist for Boston Pops Orchestra and the Hyannis Yacht Club’s Figawi Regatta, and more. In 1994, Smith’s painting of Muhammed Ali was selected by Northeastern University’s Sport in Society to present to Ali as first inductee.
In his artwork, Smith has taken a recent departure by painting other animals— particularly the shark and the wolf—in a more traditional wildlife style rather than sporting art.
ABBY LAMMERS
ablammers@comcast.net www.abbylammers
Abby Lammers, a native of Missouri, has been a working artist for 25 years. She creates her art from her studios in
East Falmouth, Massachusetts, and Rochester, New York. A love for design is apparent in her landscape and still life paintings where she presents ordinary objects and scenes in a contemporary representational style.
“My focus is on the composition/design and the organization of the space within,” Lammers says. “The process starts by working directly from life to understand my subject by rendering the structure of the object/subject. I may try different versions of the same composition changing the value patterns and color palettes. This is the experimental part of my process, which can reveal a completely different feel to an everyday scene or subject.”
Through July 28, her work will be in the invitational group exhibition LAND WATER SKY at Blue Gallery in Kansas City, Missouri; and in A Taste of Cape Ann at Charles
Fine Arts in Gloucester, Massachusetts, through the end of the month. Along with these galleries, her work can be found at Chapman
Art Gallery in Cotuit and Mashpee, Massachusetts, and at the Copley Society of Art in Boston.
SHARON JOHNSON
www.sljohnsonart.com
Sharon Johnson, the daughter of a boat builder, has long felt a calling to the sea and some of her newest paintings depict the cities of Cape Cod. Her painting Winter Dunes – New Year’s Eve on Cape Cod depicts a fast-moving storm leaving the dunes bathed in a glowing light. According to Johnson it was an unexpected sight on a cold December drive, and she only had a few minutes to get out of the car and snap the fleeting moment for reference. The memory, however, has remained “as vivid as the colors in the painting,” she says.
Another of her paintings, Piano at Provincetown, is opposite to the winter scene, as it was inspired by a sunny day when she was looking down from the deck of a crowded wine bar. She says, “The psychedelic-painted piano sits on the beach where a local character would play. Beaches, bars, bohemians, Bach, Buffett, on Old Cape Cod—it doesn’t get any better than that.”