Diane V. Radel at the Hermitage
This painting by St. Pete Artist Mary Greico is one of nearly 40 unique creations that honored the official bird of the City of St. Petersburg.
True to its mission of connecting people with art, the Morean invited emerging artists from across the state to vie for space in this exciting annual group exhibition, now in its fourth year. Selected artists will create site-specific installations in our galleries, as well as participate in talks and connect with local collectors. This program nurtures and advances the careers of emerging visual artists while giving our community the opportunity to view new work being made in our region
The Fresh Squeezed artists for 2020 are: Nicholas Kalemba, Orlando; Cindy Leung, Gainesville; Krystle Lemonias, Tampa; Luca Molnar, Deland; Jared Ragland, Tarpon Springs; Chelsea Rowe, St. Petersburg
Thank you to our generous sponsor!
Kirk Ke Wang: Landscape of Human Skins
January 11 – February 28, 2020 (opening reception January 11, 5 to 9pm)
Chinese-American artist Wang (MFA USF and Shanghai Normal University) creates large-scale paintings and interactive sculpture using materials collected from immigrants and various social groups.
LACK: Artists in Residence Exhibition
January 11 – February 26, 2020 (opening reception January 11, 5 to 9pm)
Residents at the Morean Center for Clay (Katie Fee, Danny Dobrow, Claire McCauley, Jonah Fleeger, Yeonsoo Kim, Catherine Mills and Matthew Schiemann) use the ubiquitous LACK shelf from IKEA as inspiration for their work.
BEHOLD: 2019 Holiday Show & Sale
November 9 – December 29, 2019 (opening reception November 9, 5 to 9pm)
Our annual sale of artwork by our member artists! Come find something for everyone on your holiday shopping list, in a variety of styles and price ranges. Includes ornaments, stockings, functional ceramics, paintings, photography and more.
Art of Valor Exhibition
November 9 – December 29, 2019 (opening reception November 9, 5 to 9pm)
The Morean Arts Center has partnered with James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital to offer glassblowing to military patients and veterans as part of a community-based arts program. The inception of Operation: Art of Valor began at the Morean Glass Studio & Hot Shop March 18, 2018, with a mission to serve the military and veteran population through structured, hands-on learning that focuses on improving cognition, social interaction, physical dexterity, teamwork and confidence.
This exhibition features work created in the program, as well as photographs and video of the artists in action.
Terry Brett: Iconic Renaissance
November 9 – December 29, 2019 (opening reception November 9, 5 to 9pm)
Inspired by his travels to Italy, Terry Brett delved deep into religious iconography, frescos, mosaics and gold leaf. With scored clay on canvas and applied fresco images, Terry’s subjects range from the spiritual to the mythical.
Paint by Numbers Pop Up Show
July 13 – August 30, 2019 (opening reception July 13, 5 to 9pm)
In memory of Dan Robbins, inventor of Paint by Numbers who passed away earlier this year, the Morean is hosting a fun exhibition of local artists who took the challenge to think “inside the box” and create a work of art based on a paint-by-numbers kit. Come see artists who have never exhibited in a gallery before, as well as some surprising seasoned artists who embellished a store-bought kit.
Cats Vs. Dogs Show
August 10 – 30, 2019 (opening reception August 10, 5 to 9pm)
The age-old debate gets the artistic treatment this summer. Come pick your favorite!
Jackie Lanier: Shades of Grey
July 13 – August 4, 2019 (opening reception July 13, 5 to 9pm)
Continuing a new tradition at the Morean, we present last year’s Margaret Murphy Steward Best of Show winner, Jackie Lanier. In addition to a cash prize, the winning artist receives a solo show in our gallery to coincide with the following year’s members show. Jackie is the seventh artist to receive this opportunity, and we are pleased to showcase her latest ceramic vessels during this time. Here’s what she has to say about her work:
“As a clay artist, I work to convey beauty and innovation through this complex medium. I strive to make the pieces come alive with the flowing patterns and the smoked effects and flashes that are impossible to duplicate.”
Roles of Engagement 
January 12 – February 22, 2019
Seven artists from across the country challenge expectations of social and gender norms in this thought-provoking exhibition curated by Kelsey Nagy. Participants include Orly Cogan (NY), Sarah Tancred (PA), Marsha Kemp, Cheyenne Rudolph, Desiree Moore, and Paul LeRoy Gehres aka LeRoy “King of Art” MFA (FL). Pictured: Marsha Kemp
Princess Smith: The Evolution of Self
January 12 – February 22, 2019
Princess Smith (MFA, USF) creates drawings and paintings that are mostly narrations, observations and critiques of a perceived black female culture.
Merry & Bright: 2018 Holiday Show & Sale
November 10 – December 28, 2018
With a buy-local retail focus, the annual members holiday show and sale supports local artists and give you the opportunity to pick up some truly unique gifts for your friends and family this holiday season. The exhibition includes one-of-a-kind items from a variety of hand-crafted jewelry, functional pottery, hand-blown glass pieces, paintings, ornaments and more. Pictured: Sara McClarnon
Justin Wagher: Where I Come From
November 10- December 28, 2018
This exhibition by St. Petersburg native, Justin Wagher, explores the connection between home and place. He begins by looking around at his environment photographing scenes that represent his perception of “home”. These everyday, sometimes banal, scenes become slightly abstracted paintings imbued with a sense of nostalgia and recognition.
“The title ‘Where I Come From’ was an attempt to put these pieces into context with what I felt home looked like; not necessarily a whole interpretation of the city but more of the places and sights I find comfort from- where I find my place to be.
Ideally, I hope to share a humbling experience, a visual representation of the people and places, the streets and alleys, the often overlooked surroundings that are St. Petersburg- that are my home.”
SHINE St. Petersburg Mural Festival Exhibition
October 8 – 27, 2018
Featuring artists from this year’s festival as well as our local street artists and muralists. See new works by Daniel “R5” Barojas, BASK, Bekky Beukes, DAAS, Angela Faustina, Illsol, J&S Signs, Jennifer Kosharek, Matt Kress, LOOK the Weird, Cecilia Lueza, Chad Mize, Sarah Page, Palehorse, Pep Rally Inc., Melanie Posner, Gibbs Rounsavall, April Seelbach, Tasko, Michael Vahl, Justin Wagher, Zulu Painter, and more.
Opening Reception is Saturday, October 13th, 5 to 9pm
Thank you to our reception sponsors!
PARTICIPATING ARTISTS
DANIEL “R5” BAROJAS–St. Petersburg, FL
Born in Mexico City and now living in St. Petersburg, Daniel Barojas, also known as R5, works in various artistic mediums including mixed media illustration, watercolor, graphic/product design, jewelry, photography, toys and graffiti. Using cultural and street influences as inspirations for his art, Daniel mission is to spread positivity by means of creativity.
BASK
BASK’s richly textural work imbue his “anti-iconic,” sometimes satirical worldview with an undercurrent of dark emotion. His canvases are the city’s flotsam and jetsam of industrial and consumer decay. Combining his graphic skill with his trademark multi-layered applications, Bask builds up the surface only to break down the image. “My art is a type of deconstruction,” says Bask, “I try to focus on the imperfection of things, rather than their unachievable perfection.”
BEKKY BEUKES –St. Petersburg, FL
Bekky Beukes, known for her emotionally charged work, was born and raised in South Africa and immigrated to the United States in 2014. This personal revolution allowed Beukes the unexpected opportunity to explore her intrinsic love for painting. Intrigued by the notion of combining opposite matter, she creates unnatural collaborations between form, exploring the relationship between dark and light, fueled by her fascination with internal and external chaos.
BELIN–Jaen, Spain
Miguel Ángel Belinchón Bujes, known as Belin, is a Spanish artist with a Postneocubist style. As a self-taught painter, Belin masterfully blends realism with cubism to create a uniquely modern technique reminiscent of Pablo Picasso and Salvador Dalí. His acclaimed paintings and sculptures are found on walls and galleries around the world. His designs are used by Dockers, Sephora and Kat Von D’s High Voltage Tattoo.
DAAS–Jacksonville, FL/Tokyo
DAAS is a Japan-based American contemporary artist. A Florida native who began his career after receiving a degree in Commercial Art and Graphic Design. He enjoys using color as a way to convey emotion, put forward a positive narrative and influence the viewer’s reaction. His artwork often pays homage to influences of Pop Art, Cubism and Origami, combining the basic elements of those styles into his own, creating recognizable portraits of humans and animals.
ANGELA FAUSTINA–Atlanta, GA 
Faustina’s artwork takes close-ups to the extreme. The vibrant imagery is easily identified as organic but from there the imagination can take over. She constantly changes the physical scale of her paintings and species of fruit to heighten the sense of mystery. She seeks to blur the boundaries between abstraction and representation, the microcosmic and macrocosmic, attraction and repulsion, and whimsy and the scientific.
ILLSOL–Tampa, FL
Michelle Sawyer and Tony Krol are a husband / wife team working under the moniker Illsol. The name “Illsol” combines “Sawyer, Krol” while simultaneously referencing the Spanish word for “Sun” (noting Michelle’s Cuban heritage as her family moved to Ybor City from Cuba in the 1930s, and referencing their goal to “brighten” spaces with color and thoughtful imagery.)
Michelle’s work is clean-lined, often symmetrical, and bold, while Tony’s work is often distressed, layered, and muted at times. Their work together is in the realm of large murals and installation projects in which final pieces are subtly textured with overlaying clear images and bold lines.
J&S SIGNS–Portland, OR
J&S Signs was founded by Jeffrey Sincich and Josh Stover in St. Petersburg, Florida in 2013. Jeffrey and Josh became friends at the University of Florida, where they each completed their BFA in ceramics. After college, they each spent some time working in the ceramics field before moving to St. Petersburg and forming a sign and mural painting business. In 2015, J&S Signs relocated to Portland, Oregon, where they are currently based. Jeffrey and Josh love to design signs and murals that include bold, graphic shapes, lettering and some illustrative elements. They draw inspiration from historic “ghost signs”, old advertising and vintage packaging when creating designs for signs and murals.
JUJMO–Tampa, FL
Tampa-based artist Jujmo brings her affinity for color to life through drawings and paintings of happy, intertwined worlds. Fanciful, cartoonish, and strange creatures collide in her densely patterned compositions on walls, canvases, and even shoes and cars.
JENNIFER KOSHAREK–St. Petersburg, FL
Jennifer Kosharek is a professional curator, painter, street artist and rag doll maker. She has shown locally and internationally for the past ten years, and her artwork is held in museum archives and collections around the world, including the Smithsonian and the Museums of Modern Art in NY, Wales and Brazil. Kosharek focuses artistically on bright, cheery images that promote the whimsical side of life.
MATT KRESS–St. Pete Beach, FL
LOOK THE WEIRD–Berlin, Germany
Founding member of the internationally renowned graffiti crew, The Weird, LOOK (Lars Wunderlich) is an accomplished visual artist from Germany best known for his diverse, highly detailed graffiti-style characters. His mural and canvas work can be found throughout the world.
LOOK is a founding member of the design collective Peach Beach with Vidam the Weird.
CECILIA LUEZA–St. Petersburg, FL
Originally from Argentina, Cecilia Lueza’s work is a personal expression of her lifelong fascination with the visual effects of color, light and shadow, negative spaces, and the changing alignment of objects as one’s viewpoint changes. Inspired by nature and geometric abstraction, her recent work explores the concepts of space, movement and transition. Through a meticulous and careful process she strives to create unique pieces of great visual impact.
CHAD MIZE–St. Petersburg, FL
Chad Mize is a multimedia artist, designer and muralist residing in St. Petersburg, FL. His purpose for creating art is to inspire and uplift the viewer. He consistently saturates his work with colors and concepts that radiate happiness. This originates from his endless desire to produce optimistic imagery in various forms. He finds great pleasure in sharing his vision and leaving his mark on modern culture.
NOMAD CLAN–Manchester, UK
Nomad Clan is a collaboration between street artists Cbloxx (Joy Gilleard) and AYLO (Hayley Garner).Hailing from Manchester in the United Kingdom, Nomad Clan is an internationally-known duo whose work often celebrates local history or highlights socio-economic issues relevant to their location. Nomad Clan’s dark yet playful folkloric murals have been featured across Europe, most notably on “Athena Rising,” the tallest mural in the UK.
SARAH PAGE–St. Petersburg, FL
By day, Sarah Page serves as Associate Director of Development and Marketing at Quantum Leap Farm, a nonprofit providing equine-assisted therapies. As a side hustle, she’s an artist and graphic designer. Sarah is inspired by the science of the cosmos and the possibilities of outer space. The unique outcome of life on earth gives her deeper appreciation for our planet and the ever-increasing need for us to protect it.
PALEHORSE (CHRIS PARKS)–St. Petersburg, FL
Chris Parks is the digital illustrator and fine artist known as Palehorse. With well over a decade of experience as a professional illustrator, Palehorse creates incredibly rich and detailed work that draws influence from his roots, combined with an ongoing fascination for Southeast Asian and Latin cultures, cultivated by travel and a love of nature, esoteric art, mythology and spiritual practice.
PEP RALLY INC.–Tampa, FL
Pep Rally Inc. makes ideas physical, blending art and design into one tangible and potent platform. Founded in 2014 by multifaceted artists Jay Giroux, Josh Pearson, and Greg Bryon, Pep Rally shines brightest when building the philosophy of a project from the ground up. They are thinkers, producers, and celebrators who keep their hands in the paint, thriving on interaction and collaboration.
MELANIE POSNER–St. Petersburg, FL
A Fine Arts graduate from the University of Tampa, Melanie is known for painting photo realistic women with beautiful hues of the rainbow. Her signature style of using vibrant colors and mixed media brings an immersive and striking element to her work. Her portraits can be found all around the Tampa Bay Region, in galleries and local businesses.
GIBBS ROUNSAVALL–Louisville, KY
Gibbs Rounsavall is an abstract artist exploring perceptions of space through the relationships of line, shape and color. He has always had an enthusiasm for research and experiment using color to excite the eye and explore the psychology of perception. He is fascinated by color’s ability to transport us through time, elicit memories and suspend perceptions of reality.
APRIL SEELBACH–St. Petersburg, FL
April Seelbach has lived in St. Petersburg nearly her entire life. After driving across the country for the first time in 2014, Seelbach became addicted to life on the road, and has spent hundreds of hours exploring in her seafoam Chevy Astro van. She combines large scale photographs of her travels with 60s and 70s patterns, style and color schemes.
TASKO–Clearwater, FL
Tasko is a Florida based graffiti writer whose specialty is wildstyle. He started writing his name on things at an early age at first as something to pass the time, and it quickly became an obsession. Almost 20 years later his work has evolved from simple tags into works of art. His letters intersect with one another as they float across the wall with an explosion of color that will catch the eye of any one passing by.
MICHAEL VAHL–Clearwater, FL
Michael Vahl is a visual artist born and raised in Los Angeles, California. He specializes in one off detailed portraiture and other unique crafted styles of artwork typically depicted with oil & acrylic that draws influences from pop art and modern culture but with a Vahl twist, creating a one of a kind visual experience.
JUSTIN WAGHER–St. Petersburg, FL
A native of St. Petersburg, Justin Wagher’s work is a mirror of surroundings that reflect commonality with the viewer while highlighting a personal perspective of his environment unique to his experience. Though his paintings, he hopes to share a humbling experience, a visual representation of the people and places, the streets and alleys, the often overlooked surroundings that are St. Petersburg- his home.
ZULU PAINTER–St. Petersburg, FL 
Zulu Painter is a visual artist creating in St. Petersburg. His large scale paintings and murals evoke positive energy and encourage light inside of the viewer. Utilizing organic and in-organic forms, alongside images of people, Zulu paints contemplative picture planes. He says, “I want you to ingest and consider the elements of the painting and allow a moment of mindfulness while viewing my art. We are all connected and share most of the same needs. If we are mindful of this on the daily, maybe we can connect more as a whole.”
Myron Hansen at the Hermitage Art Gallery
July 7 – November 11, 2018
The Morean and Hermitage Apartment Homes are partnering to bring recognition to our local artists by way of exhibition space. The first floor lobby of the Hermitage, located two blocks from the Morean, is a beautiful, airy, contemporary space–perfect for showcasing artwork. See Myron Hansen’s thoughtful abstract paintings at the Hermitage Apartment Homes lobby, located at 151 7th Street S in St. Petersburg.
Myron Hansen taught art for many years, including 24 years at Pinellas County Center for the Arts (PCCA), an arts magnet program for high school students. His formal education includes a BS in Art from Dana College in Blair, NE, and an MA in Art from the University of Northern Iowa. His own art has been exhibited in a wide variety of museums and galleries.
About his latest body of work, Myron states: “Many of my paintings were influenced by lines in nature. Recently I have started working more directly from my imagination beginning with a basic design concept and color. I seldom put these thoughts on paper before beginning to paint. As I begin, my original design concepts are open to change and my movements are very fluid. Discovery is an important part of the process and small changes can have a big effect. The immediacy of working this way is risky, but it keeps the painting fresh. I want the finished painting to express my energy as well as aesthetic.”
Undercover Artists: Morean Staff Exhibition
September 14 – October 21, 2018
The Morean Arts Center proudly presents the hidden artists within our organization. Come out and enjoy the wonderful works of our very own staff members as we display their talents in a dedicated exhibition!
One Hundred: 2018 Members Show
July 14- September 27,2018
2018 marks the 100th anniversary of the Morean’s annual members show! To celebrate our 100th exhibition, we have asked each member to bring a work of art that expresses the theme of “one hundred”—interpreted any way they choose. Pictured: Barry Goodman
Danee Kinzel: Enter Here
July 14- September 27,2018
The Best of Show award winner from the 2017 members exhibition receives a solo show in a Morean gallery to coincide with the current member showcase. Danee Kinzel’s luminous pastel paintings draw the viewer into a world of salt marshes, sand dunes, and sentinel palm trees.
Pride Pop Up
June 21- July 16, 2018
In conjunction with St. Pete Pride Week 2018, the Morean Arts Center hosted a pop-up show in the gallery store as we celebrated the LGBTQ community through art.
This show highlighted 6 artists from our community whose work deals with LGBTQ themes.
Tucker Claxton
Nicolas Glenn
Leroy “The King of Art” Gehres
Melanie Posner
Saumitra Chandratreya
John Gascot
Leslie Neumann: Manna from Heaven…and Earth
May 12- June 29, 2018
The Morean is committed to supporting local artists, and to showing the trajectory of an established artist’s work over a long period of time. In her third solo show at the Morean, artist and environmental activist Leslie Neumann presents a brand new body of work which focuses on the beauty of nature vs. our troubling current events.
Pictured: Leslie Neumann, Squall
Photo Credit: George Blanchette
Click here to download full show catalog.
Water over the Bridge: Contemporary Seascapes
May 12- June 29, 2018
NYC independent curator D. Dominick Lombardi selects artists whose work reflects the effects of global warming on our oceans. This exhibition features the works of artists from both the New York City metro area, as well as Tampa Bay area artists, creating a provocative, cross-country dialog. Selected artists include Selina Roman, Anne Bowen, Babs Reingold, Carolina Cleere, Margaret LeJeune, Holly Sears, Rieko Fujinami, Bill Gusky, Dale Leifeste, China Marks and Kenny Jensen. Pictured: Holly Sears, Swimmers
Click here to download full show catalog.
Thanks to our Accommodations Sponsor:
Sarah Hull at the Hermitage Art Gallery
February 27 – June 24, 2018
The Morean and Hermitage Apartment Homes are partnering to bring recognition to our local artists by way of exhibition space. The first floor lobby of the Hermitage, located two blocks from the Morean, is a beautiful, airy, contemporary space–perfect for showcasing artwork. See Sarah Hull’s bird’s-eye-view beach paintings at the Hermitage Apartment Homes lobby, located at 151 7th Street S in St. Petersburg.
“I’ve always been interested in how perspective, angles and shadows convey tension and mood. A few years ago, I began to paint objects, figures and landscapes as they appear from an elevated point of view. In 2015, I began to focus specifically on beaches in Florida and New England. I first began to photo document beach scenes from the top floor of hotels, later in an airplane. I have also learned to use drones to capture references for this high-elevation, bird’s eye perspective. My intent with this series is to evoke a sense of isolation one might experience in a crowd; the juxtaposition of isolation and loneliness co-existing within a relaxed, leisurely recreational space, voyeuristically looking into, but not being part of the world below.”
Fresh Squeezed 2: Emerging Artists in Florida
March 10 – April 27, 2018
The Morean is pleased to invite emerging artists currently residing in Florida to submit entries for possible exhibition in the second annual Fresh Squeezed: Emerging Artists in Florida. The exhibition will be held at the Morean Arts Center March 10 – April 27, 2018. The purpose of Fresh Squeezed is to encourage, support and celebrate artists who fly under the radar, who haven’t had their big break, whose work may not be typical gallery or museum fare. For Fresh Squeezed, we encourage artists to break boundaries, to think of ways their work can create a dialog in our community, our region, in our wild, wacky, wonderful state.
Thank you to our generous sponsor!
Fresh Squeezed 2 Participating Artists
Catherine Gomez was born in 1992, in Houston, TX next door to Yonce. Born to a beautiful single teen and thief. Raised mostly by strong, independent women, she grew up roaming the mountain sides of Colombia, napping in neighbors’ bushes in Orlando, impulsive, and passionate as hell. She can’t count to save her life and her dog is a jerk. Inspired to pursue fine arts by music videos, muralists, and cartoons, she aspires to integrate the audience in her work through New Media techniques. After studying abroad in Chile she will be graduating in the Fall of 2018 with her BFA from the University of South Florida.
“People are the most important aspects of our lives; they are far beyond the value of most of the essentials we need. It’s because of this that I make art. I need people, so I make the work. I need them, as much as they need art. It’s a mutualistic relationship – my work revolves around communities. For this very reason, my studio practice is intentionally centered on human interaction. My current work in Social Engagement focuses on assembled installations that facilitate viewer participation. The installations are inherently cycles of work, where both the viewer and I process ideas of humanity and collective identity. In my work I seek to unseat established binaries like author//spectator, active//passive, and real life//art. These decisions all seek to further unify with the audience and activate it. To make an effort to bridge the chasm between artist and spectator, my work endeavors to collaborate with the public.”
Matthew Cicanese is a 26-year-old National Geographic Explorer, Emerging League Photographer with the International League of Conservation Photographers, and award-winning documentary artist based in the Tampa Bay region. As a deaf-blind survivor of infant menin
gitis, Matthew’s art has evolved from his sensory deprivations. Matthew was a finalist in the 2015 Environmental Photographer of the Year Awards, and has displayed art in solo and group exhibitions including London’s Royal Geographical Society, The Light Grey Art Lab (Minneapolis, MN), Power Plant Gallery (Durham, NC), Mahato Memorial Gallery (Durham, NC), and others.
“My process in creating photographic art that examines Earth’s “Underdog Organisms” and the microcosms they call home stems from the visceral excitement we feel as children when we discover new things. I peer through my camera’s viewfinder and enter worlds that can fit in the palm of my hand. Through this 
portal I experience dream-like scenes that unravel before me. I watch as residents the size of a pin prick slip into and out of existence – and freeze moments in time through macro photographs. My ultimate goal as a documentary artist and conservationist is to instill in humans the desire to slow down… get low to the Earth… look closer… and observe. It is here that they will discover worlds they have never imagined right beneath their noses. If they can find just one of these worlds, and experience that sense of childlike wonder through discovery of something entirely new, then maybe their visceral connection to Earth can be reborn.”
Katrina Sarah Miller is an interdisciplinary artist interested in the various forms of poetic expression. Nurtured at the performing arts schools of Palm Beach, her studies included poetry, dance, and photography. Upon attending university in Los Angeles at USC, she began working on interdisciplinary projects 
for the Institute of Polymathic Studies and Arts for LA. She has been working with photography for 8 years. She currently resides in the Palm Beaches.
“Through (my series) SABER, I hope to acknowledge the roles of women within a changing environment, the insignificant daily horrors and oppositions endured, the destruction of one’s home, the dumping of trash in community spaces, using residential areas undergoing gentrifying as backdrop for this visual metaphor: the female forms within a political agenda is a reasonable sacrifice for progress. Women who cling to their naturality, use the tools of this earth to carry themselves into an uncertain future.”
Lauren Mitchell draws inspiration from her background in graphic design as well as the colors, vivid light and experience of residing in Florida. She was born in 1984 to a woman who commuted two hours each day to work in a cubicle and took her daughter to McDonalds so much that she got Happy Meal toys for free. She receiv
ed her BA in Graphic Design and Art History from San Diego State. L
auren currently resides in on the Space Coast of Florida with her husband and daughter. She is a photography instructor at Click Photo School.
“Through my work, I explore the idea of Florida as a place of fantasy and mundane reality existing side by side. My subjects are all threads weaved through my ordinary/not-so-ordinary experience. Additionally, I am continually inspired by my neighborhood, even for the reasons why I very much dislike it. Though my images often depict brightly saturated scenes, there is always something slightly dark and odd lying just below the surface — much like how it feels to live in the sunshine state.”
Glenyse Thompson was born and raised in Chicago, and currently lives in St. Pete. She has participated in numerous group shows in the Tampa Bay area, including the Five by Five exhibition at the Tampa Museum of Art. She is a 2017 recipient of the Creative Capital Found
ation for Individual Artists, Professional Development Program —Florida Department of State Division of Cultural Affairs with Citizens for 
Florida Arts, Inc.
“Utilizing lightfast permanent inks, acrylic and ink pen on panels or paper, my series is about conversations, opinions and arguments between people. Inspiration comes from the many interactions we have throughout our days with others. Background colors are used to demonstrate how lively the ebb and flow of discussions are and hand-drawn white ink illustrates how we converse with others during the course of a day, evening or at an event.”
Jack Fields has been creating puppetry since 2007. He has earned two United Arts of Central Florida grants, both for the creation of puppet films. His first film, Happy Memories, has been accepted into 15 film festivals. His music video for an official They Might Be Gia
nts contest was one of three winners selected from one hundred fifty entries. Jack has received two scholarships: one from Puppetfest Midwest, and one from UNIMA. He lives in Orlando.
“My work is inspired by folklore, mythology, and the subconscious. It ranges from puppets that incorporate real teeth, glass eyes, and old sweaters to illustrations 
that feature the Krampus, a holiday demon of Germanic folklore. The underlying theme is similar, whether the inflection of the piece is cute, ghoulish, or naive: that of the stranger from another world wandering into ours, the displacement of normalcy by alien forms. This highlights the subservience of the individual to the society they inhabit, whether or not they choose to take part. There is darkness in functioning within a system.”
PCCA Senior Thesis Exhibition
See works from emerging artists Christopher Velez, Nicolas Glenn & Sara David, all seniors in the Pinellas County Center for the Arts at Gibbs High School. Pictured: Sara David
Word & Image: Did You Ever See…?
October 26, 2017- April 8, 2018
Educating children about the arts, and offering them access to gallery and exhibition space, has been a key component of our mission at the Morean Arts Center. Since 1997, the Morean has worked with Pinellas County schools to create Word & Image: Arts and Education Partnership. The Morean hosts four of these juried exhibits each year, including work from students at the elementary, middle and high school levels.
Each year, students are challenged to create works of art based on a particular theme, and to incorporate a written statement within the piece. Past years’ themes include “Let Freedom Ring,” “On My Block,” “Superheroes,” and “Celebrating Harmony.”
This year’s theme is Did You Ever See…? Students were asked to convey, through visual art and the written word:
What’s the most amazing or interesting thing you’ve ever laid eyes on? Something scary, something funny, something that was hard to believe? Using words and images, tell us what your eyes have seen!
Limited only by their imaginations, these children’s creations are sometimes hilarious, often heartfelt, and always extraordinary.
Thank you to our Word & Image Sponsors:
The Hough Family Foundation
January 13 – February 23, 2018
Christopher Barnes Drake: Known Survivors
Beloved local artist Christopher Barnes Drake (1950 – 2014) served as Artist-in-Residence at the Morean in the mid-1980s. A longtime teacher at the Center, he influenced numerous artists who continue to work today, including Perri Neri and Betsy Orbe Lester. A look back at the painter’s life and legacy.
Pictured: Self Portrait: Tallahassee, 1983, oil on canvas, Collection of Gerald Notaro
Janet Folsom: Living Life
An exhibition highlighting what family means to us and the changing definition of the word, artist Janet Folsom uses those closest to her as inspiration for her ongoing body of work. An interactive component will allow visitors to add their voice to the exhibition, giving the sense of what “family” looks like in our community.
Pictured: Girlfriend, oil on canvas
Bruce Marsh: Figure Drawings
Award-winning artist Bruce Marsh, known for his detailed, luminous paintings of Florida landscapes, turns his attention to the human figure for this exhibition. These ink and watercolor sketches are a way for the artist to keep his hand and eye sharp. While he strives for accuracy, he also tries to leave room for impulsiveness and the element of surprise. Marsh, a resident of Ruskin, FL, is professor emeritus at the University of South Florida, where he taught from 1969 to 2003. His work can be found in the collections of the Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg; the Tampa Museum of Art, The Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota; and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC.
Drawing Artists Together: Celebrating the Saturday Morning Figure Drawing Session
The Morean Arts Center has been hosting drawing sessions on Saturdays for at least 35 years, continuing a robust figure drawing tradition that goes back nearly a century in St. Petersburg. The Morean invited all artists who have participated in these sessions to submit one work of art for display. See drawings and paintings in the figurative tradition by many of your favorite local artists as we celebrate the program and its longevity. Pictured: Figure drawing session from the 1970s at the old Arts Center building, 7th Street S.
November 1, 2017- February 18, 2018
Page Goss at the Hermitage
Page Goss was born and raised in south Louisiana. Her curiosity of new places led her to the Southern Methodist University, where she received her BFA. She moved to NYC to pursue a career in fashion styling, event planning, and lifestyle management in 2010. In 2015 she returned to her roots to follow her true passion of painting in the vibrant city of New Orleans. Goss is motivated by “controlled chaos” and “happy accidents” which happen throughout her painting process, as well as the colorful culture of the Big Easy. She currently lives and creates from her studio located on Magazine Street. Goss’ abstract paintings have been shown throughout the United States and Europe. Her background in fashion inspires the texture and layering process found within her work. Centered on the viewer’s experience, her pieces are interpretative, vivacious and experimental. She has an expansive repertoire of collectors and professional clients some of which include 200 original works on permanent display at University Medical Center of New Orleans, and luxury real estate development firms such as the Naftali Group in NYC. Page is a leading artist of choice for real estate developers and upscale interior designers in New York, New Orleans, and LA.
November 11, 2017 – December 29, 2017
Merry + Bright: 2017 Holiday Show and Sale
Annual member show with a buy-local focus for the holidays!
One Day Tampa Bay
A 24-hour community photography project that documented the lives and light of the Tampa Bay region on September 23, 2017.
September 8 – October 29, 2017
Casey McDonough & Kenny Jensen: (in/af)finities
Two artists probing the analogous and infinitely related structures of our universe, from the microcosmic to the macrocosmic.
Casey McDonough (in collaboration with Joe Page), Post Digital Landscapes (detail), 2017
Bryce Hammond: Structure
Bryce Ham
mond’s work records evidence of human presence in man-made environments through first-hand observation of poverty culture. This data is compiled to pollinate and present diverse techniques of expression including participatory installation, voyeuristic sound and documentation through paintings and other art objects.
Hammond received his BA in Art History from Furman University in 1992, and his MFA in Emerging Media from the University of Central Florida in 2013. He has had solo exhibitions around the US including New York, Los Angeles and Atlanta, among many others. His paintings are held in major corporate and private collections throughout the United States. Hammond has received the Sam and Adele Golden Foundation Fellowship, Florida Fellowship for the Arts, the Gulnar Bosch travel grant, and Fiscal Sponsorship from the New York Foundation for the Arts.
Bryce Hammond, Chartres Cathedral Parkwood Mobile Home Park, 2015, acrylic on wood, Collection of Marcia and Neil Dorsey
Josette Urso: More than Before
Josette Urso makes paintings, drawings and collages working directly and urgently in response to her immediate environment. For Urso, space is a malleable substance that she delights in manipulating acrobatically in a kind of gymnasium of mark making and image collision all governed by intuitive leaps of scale, color, and a wayward geometry. Her approach involves “moment-to-moment” extrapolation where the contrasts and cross-fertilizations are cumulative, non-linear, free flowing and interpretive. She strives to discover and engage the known as well as the unknown in unforeseen ways.
Urso has shown widely in the United States and abroad in galleries, public institutions, and museums including the New York Public Library, the Drawing Center, and the Bronx Museum for the Arts. She has had numerous grants and residencies including those from the NEA, Basil H. Alkazzi and the Gottlieb and Pollock-Krasner Foundations as well as the Camargo Foundation, Ucross and Yaddo.
Josette Urso, Amber Sea, 2017, oil on panel
September 20 – October 20, 2017
You Can Feel What We See: Tactile Artwork by Visually Impaired Students in Pinellas County Schools
August 25 – October 25, 2017
Elizabeth Barenis + Marcia Treiger at the Hermitage
July 8 – August 19, 2017
99th Annual Members Show
The Morean Arts Center continues to dedicate this season as a time to appreciate our members and celebrate their talent.
The 2017 members exhibition includes nearly 250 works of art expressing a full spectrum of images and ideas through painting, drawing, photography, sculpture, jewelry, clay, mixed media, fiber, mosaic, glass and digital art, all from our gifted members. Our members are the heart and soul of the Morean, and we are proud to showcase their work during this time.
Photo: Bea Dreier
Heather Hickman: Light, Color, Abstract
Continuing a new tradition at the Morean, we present last year’s Margaret Murphy Steward Best of Show winner, Heather Hickman. In addition to a cash prize, the winning artist receives a solo show in our gallery to coincide with the following year’s members show. Heather is the fifth artist to receive this opportunity, and we are pleased to showcase her latest photographs during this time. Here’s what she has to say about her work:
“I like it when light catches my eye and then the investigation begins as I seek to capture, with my camera, how the light affects the colors of the objects it touches. The varying sources of light are ever-changing and thus so are the many colors brought to life by light. Whether or not it is bright or dim light from sunlight, fluorescent, incandescent or even moonlight, it is within the interplay of light and color that I strive to find the abstract treasures created by their partnership.”
June 10 – September 15, 2017
Let’s Get Artsy! 2017 Summer Camp Exhibition
This exhibition features work from students in the Morean’s 10-week summer camp program in a variety of media from digital to photography to clay to painting to collage.
Through August 23, 2017
Marci McDonald at the Hermitage
The Morean and Hermitage Apartment Homes are partnering to bring recognition to our local artists by way of exhibition space. The first floor lobby of the Hermitage, located two blocks from the Morean, is a beautiful, airy, contemporary space–perfect for showcasing artwork. Marci McDonald’s luminous works have a purely emotional mystery that strikes the viewer with the desire to come into the paintings, to fully experience her intent. Her desire is to make art of unquestionable quality, executed with ever-increasing skill, in search of NEW beauty.
Click here to visit Marci’s website
May 13 – June 25, 2017
For 100 years, the Morean has been a place for art lovers to gather and exhibit, create, and learn about contemporary art. At the heart of our organization are the artists, including staff members, artists who live in our community, artists who teach classes and the students who learn from them. Artists from all over the country who come to St. Pete to show their work in our galleries, or in murals on our walls. This exhibition tells our history through 100 of the individual artists who shaped our organization and made it what it is today. These artists represent the diversity and talent that has propelled the Morean forward for 100 years, allowing the organization to adapt and grow and remain relevant to this community for a century.
Click here to read more about our 100 exhibiting artists
March 11 – April 30, 2017
Fresh Squeezed: Emerging Artists in Florida
True to its mission of connecting people with art, the Morean invited emerging artists from across the state to vie for space in this exciting group exhibition. Selected artists will create site-specific installations in our galleries, as well as participate in talks and connect with local collectors. This program will facilitate the development of emerging artists’ careers while giving our community the opportunity to view new work being made in our region.
2017 Participating Artists
Marium Rana
Marium Rana is an American-born Pakistani artist. She is a graduate of Florida State University, where she received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art in 2013 and a Masters in Art Education in 2014. In 2011, she received an undergraduate research grant to study traditional Mughal miniature painting in Lahore, Pakistan. Marium has curated numerous art exhibitions, held solo exhibitions, and exhibited throughout the United States. She has served as the design chair for TED x FSU, and presented her research in miniature painting in workshops and symposiums.
“My current series, A Place to Call Home, delves into the complexity of belonging to two different cultures and trying to make a home out of stories of places and moments one has not personally experienced. The paintings depict landscapes that do not exist in our tangible world and seem as imaginary as the places that have existed before us.”
Rebecca Zweibel
Originally from Connecticut, Rebecca holds a degree in psychology from Illinois State University. Rebecca lived in Colorado with her husband and two children for almost 27 years and availed herself of some art classes at the nearby community college while her children were in school. There she discovered clay, which became a focus for her from that point on. In 2008 she and her husband moved to Alexandria, Virginia. She joined a studio nearby and found that clay continued to absorb almost all of her attention. After five years in Virginia her husband retired, and they decided to move to St. Petersburg, in large part because of the artistic bent of the area and the availability of studio space in the Morean Center for Clay.
“Formation of my vessels begins with two identical slabs of clay that have been cut into freeform shapes that I find interesting. I attach them to each other and use my hands and various tools to add volume. The decorative elements of my vessels are driven by their sculptural forms. I draw through the applied colored layer to the base clay below; I find the use of dark clay emphasizes line and the intensity of color. My work is always changing. Clay gives me infinite challenges, inspiration and means of expressing my love of working with my hands.”
Chris Otten
Chris Otten was born in 1984 in Altus, Oklahoma. His interest in photography grew after exploring back roads along the Llano Estacado in West Texas. He received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Central Oklahoma and a Master of Fine Arts from the University of South Florida in 2011. He has exhibited nationally, including galleries in Annapolis, Long Beach, Minneapolis, Tampa and Wichita. He lives and teaches in Tampa, Florida.
“In my series Encounters, I have been looking at domestic spaces that I have occupied and various public outings around my current residence in Florida. For the longest time it was challenging to relate to this place. Even if the images come across as easily understood, that can be the grace of the work. Excluding extraneous subject matter, I noticed that the scenes were more introspective than my previous photographs. The scenes are not representative of Florida or any other place. Rather, they are a closer look at the curious nature of the mundane.”
Penelope Livingston
Penelope Livingston was born in Atlanta, Georgia in 1976 and moved to Tampa in 1990. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Studio Art from the University of South Florida and also holds a Florida Teaching Certificate in Art. She worked out of a studio space in the Corina Cigar Factory for many years where she painted large scale representational compositions in oil, and currently works on small sketches and acrylic paintings in her Riverside Heights home studio.
“Nostalgia, solitude, gratitude, the complexity of the mind and the simplicity of the soul: these are the primary elements upon which my work is based. I am inspired by people and places with a joyous spirit and a quiet humility. The skateboarder coasting downhill against a blue sky, the woman alone with her thoughts at the bus stop, or the aluminum porch awning supporting the weight of an heirloom vine: my heart sings with these glimpses into the gentleness of human nature and I hope to share that joy with others through my art.
Brian Feldman
Brian Feldman’s work has been presented at venues all over the US. Brian Feldman Projects have garnered worldwide media coverage, including television, print, and blogs. He also has extensive experience as an actor, having made his professional acting debut at age 10 with Orlando Shakespeare Theater. Since then, he has performed in over 50 film, television and theatrical productions, working with four Oscar-nominated directors in the process.
For Fresh Squeezed, Brian will be in the gallery space each weekend during the run of the exhibition, making cups of fresh-squeezed Florida orange juice for visitors in exchange for a drawing.
“My performance work seeks to challenge, develop and emphasize human interaction and interpersonal relationships in real time about the facade of intimacy created by contemporary electronic social media. Highlighting everyday events clears up the boundaries between public and private space, to define time (what it is, how we use it) and to challenge societal definitions of norms. The original narrative of a performance serves as a framework, not as a restrictive script, so that spontaneous response can be created and the viewer can interact and participate within the event and not just be passively entertained.”
Barry Goodman
Barry originally intended to become an architect, but studied graphic design instead before pursuing a successful career in design and illustration. He later studied printmaking at The London College of Printing (University of The Arts London). His prints and paintings have been widely exhibited both across the UK and internationally; some of these are now adorning walls as far apart as Streatham, San Francisco, New York and Naples. His work is held in public and private collections including The Library of Congress, Washington D.C. and The China Printmaking Museum, Shenzhen.
“Cartography, in general, requires a degree of artistic license. The maps we use today, although extremely impressive and comprehensive, are totally impersonal. Satellite GPSs, smartphones and Google do all the groundwork for us, and therefore will never have the romanticism of the travel-worn pocket map. When I first arrived in St. Pete, I set about discovering my new adopted home, not just the obvious features of the city, but the mundane and everyday elements of the urban fabric on foot. I wanted to record all of this, and what better way than a hand drawn map? What started on the kitchen table has grown into a very large scale map, covering in detail most of the city of St. Petersburg. Stretching from Downtown to the beach, it features my many observations, both factual, imagined and humorous. “
Fresh Squeezed is sponsored in part by:
January 14 – February 24, 2017
Major Mud 3
Known for exhibiting painting and drawing, the Art Club of St. Petersburg displayed the first sculptural work in 1958, the 30th year of that organization. In the early 1990s and again in 2000, local potter Russ Gustafson-Hilton brought nationally-recognized artists in the field of ceramics to our gallery. Independent curator and former Morean staff member Melissa Yungbluth carries on the tradition by inviting nearly 25 artists from across the country to share their latest works with our community. Though differing in style and studio practice, these cutting-edge artists all demonstrate how this ancient medium is still relevant, with connections to social media, podcasts, collaborations with retailers, and more. Participating artists include: Jennifer Allen, Dan Anderson, Blair Clemo, Sunshine Cobb, Russ Gustafson-Hilton, John Glick, Brian Harper (pictured), Bryan Hopkins, Meredith Host, Randy Johnston, Brian R. Jones, Karen Karnes, Gail Kendall, Suze Lindsay, Lindsay Oesterritter, Jeff Oestreich, Kip O’Krongly, Doug Peltzman, Greg Pugh, Emily Schroeder Willis, Deborah Schwartzkopf, David Shaner, and Shawn Spangler.
The Journey: Photographs Along the Way
Famed National Geographic photographer Sam Abell selected artwork for this exhibition which focuses not on the destination of a journey, but how you get there. Out of nearly 400 entries, Sam chose 32 pieces from artists from 21 states that capture the boredom and exhilaration of travel, and commutes both ordinary and epic.
Participating artists include: Claire Apana, Virginia Blaisdell, Greta Brubaker, John Carney, Brett Leigh Dicks, John Francis, Seth Harwood (pictured), Charles Haynes, Tim LaBarge, Diane Lieux, Kimberly Llerena, Jim Lustenader, Helene Macaulay, Brian Malloy, Trevor Messersmith, Melanie Metz, Lauren Mitchell, Rachel Perry, Joseph Podlesnik, Mary Rhodomoyer, Douglas Schmidt, Abril Sicairos, Larry Simon, Steven Smith, William Stickles, Emily Stone, Marian Tagliarino, Samantha VanDeman, Lillis Werder and Caren Winnall.
September 10 – October 30, 2016
Paradise Cities: Urban Art in Florida
An exhibition featuring the work of 10 female artists in the Sunshine State who incorporate a street art aesthetic into their studio practice. Participants include Hilary White and Iryna Kanischeva of Gainesville, Joelle Dietrick of Tallahassee, Angela Delaplane of Tampa, and Jennifer Kosharek, Cecilia Lueza, Jeannette St. Amour, Suzy Schultz, Naomi Glueck and Sarah Sheppard of St. Petersburg. The show will coincide with the 2nd annual SHINE St. Petersburg Mural Festival, in which several of these artists are participants.
David Williams: I Wish You Could Hear What I’m Thinking
David Williams is known for his paintings appropriating images from magazines, advertisements, and other bits of pop culture. This exhibition features work from series he completed in the last 15 years, and demonstrates his influence on local street artists working in the Bay area.
May 14 – June 24, 2016
Orange State
Synovus Gallery
Have you ever felt like you were in an Orange State of mind? Come celebrate some of Central Florida’s most colorful artists in this exhibition curated by Katherine Gibson. Participating artists include Ruby C. Williams, Bud Lee, Suzanne Camp Crosby, Diana Lucas Leavengood, Margaret Ross Tolbert, Gary Borse and Carl Knickerbocker.
Kendra Frorup: Excess Baggage
Hough Gallery
University of Tampa art professor Kendra Frorup draws from her Bahamian heritage to create her sculpture, prints, and mixed media installations.
Nancy Cervenka: Still/Here
Stanley Gallery
Nancy Cervenka’s intricate lm sculptures are a regular on the local gallery circuit. This is your chance to view her familiar and new works as the artist contemplates a move cross-country.
Esteban Machado Diaz: A Matter of Time
Everette Gallery
Machado Diaz is an artist living in Cuba whose luminous oil paintings question the boundaries of
land and water, dreams and reality. This is his rst solo exhibition in the United States. The artist will give a free gallery talk on June 11th, 6pm.
March 12 – May 1, 2016
Exquisite Porch
Synovus & Everett Galleries
A swampy, creepy-crawly spin on the Surrealist parlor game Exquisite Corpse, this exhibition focuses on the ground-dwelling wildlife of Florida. Artist, writer and independent curator D. Dominick Lombardi selected artists from the New York City area, while the Morean selected artists from Central Florida to play by creating drawings which reference things that go bump in the night. The resulting work raises awareness of the history of the game, its relevance to contemporary art, and celebrates the fauna of the Sunshine State.
Jody Fausett: Crush Velvet
Hough Gallery
Atlanta-based photographer Fausett’s work deals with human vulnerability, the self-construction of facades, the rites of ownership, and the creation of personal icons that represent who and what we are. His ideas are a collision of interests: the encounters he depicts unfold quietly and are laced with the fantastic, a kind of fantastic that deals with personal identity and that overcomes struggle. Fausett is represented by Jackson Fine Art in Atlanta.
PCCA Senior Thesis Exhibition
Stanley Gallery
See works from emerging artists Mallory Lundquist, Indigo Naar and Moses Jeune, all seniors in the Pinellas County Center for the Arts at Gibbs High School.
January 9 – February 19, 2016
ROLE MODELS
Synovus Gallery
A collaborative exhibition with Florida CraftArt, this exhibition explores the relationship between mentors and mentees in the ceramics world. 17 Florida-based artists were asked to select someone who inspired them, and someone they inspire. The groupings will be displayed as trios in the gallery, inviting comparison and dialogue. See functional and sculptural ceramics from artists across the country. Curated by Melissa Yungbluth from the Morean. Exhibition sponsored by Beth Morean and Kathryn Howd.
2016 Student/Instructor Exhibition
Hough, Everett & Stanley Galleries
The Morean has a long and rich history of teaching art in St. Petersburg, reaching back nearly 100 years. See the latest works of our dedicated and talented instructors, accompanied by the accomplishments of their students in our annual exhibition featuring photography, jewelry, sculpture, ceramics, painting and drawing.
Imagine That!: Word & Image High School Exhibition
Risser Gallery
Our 19th annual arts and literacy program for Pinellas County students in grades 9-12.
November 14 – December 27, 2015
There’s No Time Like the Presents: 2015 Holiday Show and Sale
Hough, Synovus & Stanley Galleries
Members of the Morean Arts Center were invited to create items in a broad range of themes and mediums for this retail-oriented exhibition. Find a unique work of art for everyone on your holiday shopping list! Our Morean Gallery Store also has ornaments, stocking stuffers, jewelry, functional pottery, and other items for gift giving for every taste and price range, all from local artists.
Kim Turner-Smith: Labyrinth of Daydreams
Everett Gallery
Florida-based photographer Turner-Smith draws inspiration from her everyday surroundings, specifically, life at home with her two daughters. Full of wonder and spontaneity yet grounded in reality, these images document the artist’s own journey as a mother, and serve as a visual reminder of both the magic and brevity of childhood. Join us for “Family as Muse”, a panel discussion about photographers who use their families as their subject. Beth Reynolds will serve as moderator. Thursday, November 19th, 6-8pm.
Imagine That!: Word & Image Middle School Exhibition
November 14 – December 20, 2015
Risser Gallery
The kick-off of our 19th annual arts and literacy program for Pinellas County students in grades 6-8.
September 12 – October 30, 2015
LEAVE A MESSAGE
Leave a Message returns to the Morean! Urban art has a long and rich history, with many artists who look past permission and conventional art techniques in order to make their talents known. In conjunction with the SHINE Mural Festival, curator Tes One presents a selection of those artists whose work blurs the line between the street and the gallery, and whose practice has evolved the genres of graffiti art, illustration and graphic design—making their message impossible to ignore.
Featuring new works by: Acut/ Andrew Spear / Bask / Derek Gores / Eric Orr / Francesco LoCastro / Hoxxoh /Jeff Srsic / Michael Vasquez / Morning Breath / Nathan Beard / Palehorse / Pep Rally Inc / Phil Holt / Ricky Watts / Stoic / Tes One / Ya La’ford
Art. Write. Now. Tour 2015-2016
Welcome to the Art.Write.Now.Tour, the national traveling exhibition of the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. Curated, produced, and presented by the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, the Tour showcases a selection of works from the 2015 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards – inspiring and innovative work by teens from all across the country.
Now in its sixth year, the Tour is celebrated for being the most fresh and relevant look at creative work by young artists today. If you want to know what issues are on the minds of teenagers, the Art.Write.Now.Tour is sure to provide valuable insights through the lens of sophisticated and captivating artworks.
New for 2015-16, the Art.Write.Now.Tour includes an Educator’s Guide developed by Scholastic Art Magazine for classroom visits and for online learning! Click here to download.
The Best Teen Writing of 2015, our annual anthology of award-winning writing, will be available to view on iPad minis, and also includes an Educator’s Guide developed by the National Writing Project. The book will be available for purchase in the fall on Amazon.com.
July 11 – August 21, 2015
97th Annual Members Show
2015 marks the 97th anniversary of the Morean’s annual members show! To celebrate the approach of our 100th years, we asked each member to bring us their best work in any theme. Tracy Midulla Reller, Founder and Creative Director of Tempus Projects in Tampa, is this year’s juror.
The Carter Venture: ONCE YOU POP THE FUN DONT STOP
Continuing a new tradition, last year’s Margaret Murphy Steward Best of Show award winner receives a solo exhibition. See brand new work by the Carter Venture, dystopian and absurdist in nature, which addresses current cultural issues such as consumerism and immediate gratification.
We Made Some Art!: 2015 Summer Camp Exhibition
A work in progress, view what our campers ages 5 through 15 are creating this summer!
May 9 – June 28, 2015
2015 All-Florida Juried Exhibition
The Morean invited artists from the Sunshine State to vie for nearly $2,500 in prizes. Wallace Wilson, Director of the School of Art and Art History at USF selected 59 pieces from over 350 entries. Visitors will discover new talent as well as see recent work from familiar artists in this exhibition.
Instructor Exhibition
The Morean has a long and rich history of teaching art in St. Petersburg, reaching back nearly 100 years. See the latest works by our dedicated and talented instructors and get inspired to participate in our extensive educational programs!
Student Exhibition
Each year, hundreds of adults experience an art class at the Morean. We celebrate their accomplishments in this annual exhibition which includes painting, drawing, glass, clay, sculpture, jewelry and photography.
March 14 – April 19, 2015
KYLE: Catastrophes
Orlando-based artist KYLE creates mixed media paintings, constructions and site-specific installations that speak to the world in which we live. His work draws paralells between order and chaos, belief and propaganda, the everyday and the uncanny.
David Henry Williams: True Blues
From 1981 to 2014, award-winning photographer and Tampa resident David Henry Williams has documented Blues musicians. This exhibition conveys his interpretation of this unique American music and the individuals who create it.
PCCA Senior Thesis Exhibitions
See works from emerging artists Sophie Ammon, Zoe Cappello, Alex Fox, Fairan Serrano, Pamela Bulu and Amanda Matthews, all seniors in the Pinellas County Center for the Arts at Gibbs High School.
BreakOut: Inspired Artist Studios @ PARC, Inc.
The mission of PARC, Inc. is to provide people with intellectual and developmental disabilities opportunities to gain independence and to live life to the fullest. See the latest works by the Artists who participate in the inspired Studios @ PARC, Inc.
My Personal Hero: World and Image Elementary School Exhibition
The continuation of our 18th annual arts and literacy program for Pinellas County students in grades 3-5.
January 10 – March 1, 2015
7 In/7 Out: Florida Ceramics
To coincide with the Morean Center for Clay’s Florida Heat Symposium Series, the Morean showcases the work of 14 artists–7 of whom currently live and work in Florida, and 7 artists who got their start in clay in the Sunshine state and now live elsewhere.
A True Story: Beth Reynolds and the St. Pete Photo Club
Longtime St. Pete resident and documentary photographer Beth Reynolds ha deep roots at the Morean Arts Center. See works by nearly 20 of her former students who have now gone on to do great things in the field of photography, all starting from taking that first art class.
International Society of Acrylic Painters Florida: Annual Juried Exhibition
Founded in 2006 by a group of acrylic painters in the Tampa Bay area, ISAP-FL seeks to educate the public about the importance of this medium and to encourage artists in the field. 40 paintings by Florida artists were culled from over 400 by juror Robert Burridge for this annual exhibition.
My Personal Hero: Word and Image Middle School Exhibition
The continuation of our 18th annual arts and literacy program for Pinellas County students in grades 6-8.
November 8 – December 28, 2014
There’s No Time Like the Presents: 2014 Holiday Show and Sale
Find a unique work of art by our Morean members for everyone on your holiday shopping list! Our Morean Gallery Store also has ornaments, stocking stuffers, jewelry, functional pottery, and other items for gift giving for every taste and price range, all from local artists.
Thomas Murray: This is Our Garden
In his most recent series of paintings, Thomas Murray uses flowers and figures to provide the vehicles for an exploration in decorative pattern which carries with it a subtle critique of the ownership of deities. A consummate painter and draftsman, this is Murray’s third solo exhibition at the Morean in the past 15 years.
My Personal Hero: World and Image Elementary School Exhibition
The kick-off of our 18th annual arts and literacy program for Pinellas County students in grades 3-5.
September 13 – October 26, 2014
Eyesplice Collective: Spatial Disruption
EyeSplice Collective, a group of emerging artists, uses painting, drawing, video, sculpture and installation to map the boundaries of private and public space, and to examine how we are controlled by our environments.
Participating artists: Maria R. Cochez, Michelle Hagewood, Megan Hildebrandt, Sara Holwerda, Lauren Alyssa Howard, Sarah Kelly, Magnolia Laurie, Cynthia Mason, Ellen Mueller, Briana Phelps, Megan Piontkowski and Christine Sajecki.
Myron Hansen: Water Marks
Myron Hansen’s latest series of paintings focuses on the movement and energy of water and light in fountains, rendered in large-scale black and white images.
July 12 – August 17, 2014
96th Annual Members Show
2014 marks the 96th anniversary of the Morean’s annual members show! To celebrate the approach of our 100th years, we asked each member to bring us their best work in any theme.
Rose Marie Prins
Continuing a new tradition, last year’s Margaret Murphy Steward Best of Show award winner receives a solo exhibition. Rose Marie Prins, winner of our 2013 Members Show, creates a site-specific installation using projection, sculpture, music and poetry.
Artists Under Construction: 2014 Summer Camp Exhibition
A work in progress, view what our campers ages 5 through 15 are creating this summer!
May 10 – June 29, 2014
From the Classroom to the Studio
The Morean has selected seven artists who teach printmaking at Bay Area colleges and universities, highlighting their own artwork and studio practices. See new works by Erika Greenberg-Scheider/Dominique Labauvie (USF St. Pete), Marjorie Greene (SPC), Ina Kaur (UT), Patrick Lindhardt (Ringling), Tracy Midulla Reller (HCC), Bradlee Shanks (USF), and Cat Thompson (Eckerd).
Body of Proofs: 20 Years of Collaboration
Christopher T. Creyts, owner of Collaborative Art Editions, Inc. has worked as a professional printer for many years, including time at Tyler Graphics, ULAE, GraphicStudio and Columbia University. This exhibition features his collaboration with internationally-recognized artists such as Alex Katz, James Rosenquist, Matthew Day Jackson, David Salle, Gary Hume and Frank Stella.
Bite, Scratch & Expose: New Printmaking
27 artists hailing from 16 states demonstrate the versatility of printmaking in this juried survey of the medium. See innovative prints in a wide range of processes and price ranges. Guest juror Christopher T. Creyts will give a brief talk explainging his choices for exhibition.
March 8 – April 27, 2014
Diane Elmeer: Of Sticks and Stones, Leaves and Grass
Retired USF art professor Diane Elmeer presents her latest paintings that are “souvenirs” of the unique visual events that she experiences in her everyday world. Developed over a period of time and structured through what she remembers about how people, places and objects look, these works of art transport the viewer to an imaginary time and place.
Carol Dameron: Barcelona
Carol Dameron’s most recent series of oil paintings on wood resulted from a snake bite fiasco in Barcelona. Preoccupied with life and death, the characters in her moody landscapes weave stories based upon mythology and worldly belief systems.
Storytellers
Works with a strong narrative thread tie these artists together. Ceramics by Stuart Asprey (OK), prints by Amy Lee (FL), paintings by I-Ling Eleen Lin (NY) and digital art by Ian Everett (FL).
PCCA Senior Thesis Exhibitions
See works from emerging artists Jameela Bailey, Angelica DeLillo, Sarah Gray, Emily Steullet, Eric Voorhis and Lauren Watters, all seniors in the Pinellas County Center for the Arts at Gibbs High School.
I See the Rhythm: Word and Image Middle and High School Exhibitions
January 10 – February 23, 2014
Keep It Glassy, St. Pete!: Glass in the Sunshine City
How did the city of St. Petersburg become a significant glass destination in the span of a decade? Using artwork, photographs and interviews, we’ll share stories of artists who make their work exclusively in St. Pete. Pauli Maiville, Douglas Taylor and David Spurgeon from the Morean’s Hot Shop, Duncan McClellan, Jacob Stout and Mariel Bass from Duncan McClellan Glass Studio, Chuck Boux, Harry Boux, Marlene Rose, Trush Duggan and Vasile Lozninau from Sigma Glass Studio, Josh Pohl and David Walker from Zen Glass, Catherine Woods of C Glass Studio, Len Neff and Jack and Val Beatty.
On the Surface: Clay Decoration
To coincide with the Train Station Center for Clay’s Florida Heat Firing Symposium: SURFACE, the Morean showcases the work of artists who push the limits of surface decoration in ceramics. From colorful mugs to textured sculpture, 24 artists from 11 states demonstrate the versatility of the medium.
I See the Rhythm: Word and Image Elementary School Exhibition
The kick-off of our 17th Annual arts and literacy program for Pinellas County students in grades 3-5.
November 9, 2013 – January 1, 2014
Season’s Eatings: 2013 Holiday Exhibition
Members of the Morean Arts Center were invited to create food-themed items for this retail-oriented exhibition. Find a unique work of art for everyone on your holiday shopping list! Our gallery store also has ornaments, stocking stuffers, jewelry, pottery, glass and other items for every taste and price range.
Stuffed
Artists focus on a variety of edible confections in this high-fructose exhibition. See installations by Patricia Schnall Guiterrez (Miami) and Michaelene Walsh (Baton Rouge, LA), glass sculpture by Tim Tate (Washington, DC), paintings by Lou Haney (Oxford, MS) and photographs by Rebecca Sittler (Long Beach, CA) and the late Meredith Allen.
I See the Rhythm: Work and Image Elementary School Exhibition
The kick-off of our 17th Annual arts and literacy program for Pinellas County students in grades 3-5.
Septer 14 – October 27, 2013
The Restoration of the Stolen Lock and other new Hair-inspired works by Jono Vaughan
Since 2009, Jono Vaughan has been producing works focusing on hair and its role in gender and social identity. See the artist’s latest series, including large-scale drawings, paintings, video and printmaking
Hirsute: Artists Do Hair
Hair, from the glorious to the grotesque, is the star of this exhibition. See works by Babs Reingold, St. Petersburg, Justin Nelson, Tampa; Petey Boy, OR; Aisha Cousins, Brooklyn; Kate Kretz, Siler Spring, MD, Joseph DR OLeary, Minneapolis and Rabea Ballin, Houston, TX.
Artists Under Construction: 2013 Summer Camp Exhibition
A work in progress, view what our campers ages 5 through 15 are creating this summer.
July 13 – August 18, 2013
HOME: 2013 Members Show
Come enjoy the best of our member’s talent! We at the Morean are grateful that so many artists call our community “home.” This year, our artist members were challenged to create a work of art that reflects what home signifies to them.
Wade Slater: Family Tree
Starting a new tradition, last year’s Margaret Murphy Stewart Best of Show award winner receives a solo exhibition. Don’t miss Wade’s affordable playful “monsters” and other homages to mystery writers.
Artists Under Construction: 2013 Summer Camp Exhibition
A work in progress, view what our campers ages 5 through 15 are creating this summer.
May 11 – June 30, 2013
Kurt Piazza: Towards the Edge of the Visible
A multi-media artist working primarily in video and installation, Piazza’s recent work explores the notion that physical space has a memory and intermixes dreamlike imagery with compelling sound.
Denis Gaston: YaySayers and NaySayers
In this new series of drawings and paintings, Gaston gives a sense of the ongoing and often contentious dialogue artists must deal with regarding their inner critics.
The Artist as Critic: Elizabeth Indianos, Mark Kerstetter and Gigi Lage
Kurt Piazza and Denis Gaston each selected artists/writers to exhibit alongside them. SPC art professor/playwright Elizabeth Indianos and artist/blogger Mark Kerstetter were chosen by Gaston, and installation artist Gigi Lage is Piazza’s choice.
March 9 – April 28, 2013
Pinellas County Center for the Arts: Three Decades 1984-2013
In August 1984, the Pinellas County school district opened the Pinellas County Center for the Arts at Gibbs High School in St. Petersburg. A magnet program for artistically talented students, PCCA has fostered the talents of countless students who have bone on to do big things in the areas of dance, theater and the visual arts. See familiar faces and discover new talent in this exhibition, which as 5 components:
The Faculty: work in all media from 12 past and present teachers-Steve Beverage, David Malcolm Bewley, Lauren Blackburn, Bede Clarke, Joyce Ely-Walker, Myron Hansen, Alan Johnson, Marty Loftus, Yoko Nogami, Ralph Nurmela, Dara Vance and Melissa Wykell
The Alumni: current work from the class of 1988 to the class of 2012
The Professor Emeritus: Laurance Miller-teacher, mentor and friend (942-2012)
The Archives: A selection of rarely-seen student work from the past 30 years
The Class of 2013: Senior Thesis Exhibitions
Uniquely Creative Me!: Word and Imamge Middle and High School Exhibitions
Our annual arts and literacy program for grades 6-12.
January 12 – February 24, 2012
Functional/DysFunctional
Artists Kathy King and Steven Young Lee selected ceramic pieces by artists hailing from all across the US. See innovative sculptural and functional works in every style and price range.
Florida Heat: Instructor Work
View ceramic work by artists affiliated with Florida Heat, St. Pete Clay, Highwater Clays and the Morean’s Annual 11-day long firing symposium. Local clay lovers will share works in their collection by nationally-recognized artists Don Reitz, Chris Gustin, John Balistreri, Matt Long, Joy Tanner and William Baker. Also included are new works by Kathy King and Steven Young Lee, our guest jurors.
Uniquely Creative Me!: Word and Image Elementary School Exhibition
The kick-off of our 16th annual arts and literacy program for Pinellas County students in grades 3-5.
November 10, 2012 – January 1, 2013
BEAST: Portraits of Pets
Man’s best friend gets the star treatment by Kim Butler (Spotted Dog Photography), Laurie Meehan-Elmer (LME Images), Danette Morse (Photography by Danette), Lisa Presnail (South Tampa Photography), and Eric Wilson (Square Dog Photography).
Creature Comforts: 2012 Holiday Exhibition
Members of the Morean Arts Center were invited to create animal-themed items for this retail-oriented exhibition. Find something for everyone on your holiday shopping list–even the furry ones!
August 31 – October 28, 2012
2012 Members Show
This annual show cements the Morean’s mission of connecting people with art by showcasing our members’ talent and giving the public the opportunity to purchase locally-produced art. This 2012 members exhibition includes nearly 200 works of art expressing a full spectrum of images and ideas through all mediums from our gifted members.
Marjorie Dean Andruk: Metamorphosis
Marjorie Dean Andruk (1922 – 2010) was a gifted artist and extraordinary teacher. With an impeccable eye for color and a gift for communicating emotion, she created paintings that inspire and intrigue. For nearly fifteen years, Marge had been vital member of the Morean family, and her students continue to see her influence on their own paintings. This exhibition highlights Marge’s abstract paintings from the last decade.
Let’s Create! Annual Summer Camp Exhibition
Come see what our campers, ages 5 – 15, have created this summer, and participate in our silent auction! All proceeds benefit the Morean’s educational programs.
June 9 – August 19, 2012
Leave A Message: Urban Art in Florida
Urban art has a long and rich history in the United States, and Florida is home to many artists who look past permission and conventional art techniques in order to make their talents known. Leave A Message presents a selection of those artists whose work blurs the line between the street and the gallery, and whose practice has evolved the genres of graffiti art, illustration and graphic design, making their message impossible to ignore.
Participating Artists: Anna Paul, Acud-Akut, Allen Leper Hampton, Bask, Center, Chris Valle, Christian Thomas, Ciste, Dave Rau, Dolla, Jansen Smith, Jeff Srcic, Joey Clay, Laura Spencer, Nonstop, Pale Horse, Terribly Odd, Tes One, Stephen Palladino, Wes Roos
March 16 – May 28, 2012
WAX: Medium Meets Message
Hailing from divergent places such as Portland, OR, Santa Fe, NM, Maine and the New York City Area. Each artist in this exhibition brings a unique and exciting perspective to this ancient medium of encaustic. A wax based paint with luminous qualities. Viewers will be astounded by floating installations, kinetic sculptures, photo-based paintings, seed-studded altars and geological sculptures.
Participating artists: Kim Bernard, Lorrie Fredette, Ann Taylor Gibson, Laura Moriarty, Leslie Neumann, Lisa Pressman, Marybeth Rothman, Russel Thurston, Elise Wagner
January 27 – March 16, 2012
Bloom
Florida artists create work based on the subject of flowers in this invitational exhibition. Through painting, sculpture, installation and video work, artists convey the beauty and complexity of these forms. Members of our community will also be invited to add their own contribution to this exhibition, creating a “community garden.”
December 2, 2011 – January 20, 2012
Upcycled
Although it is trendy to recycle now, artists are always ahead of the curve. Many of them have been using recycled materials in their work for years, turning trash into treasure. Some do it for aesthetic purposes, some to make a political or environmental statement. This exhibition features the works of artists who will astound with their ability to turn everyday objects into something amazing. Artists include Nancy Cervenka, Lauri Recanati, Charles Parkhill, Jack Bond and Catherine Bergmann.
October 8 – November 27, 2011
Shadow and Reflection: Visions of Florida’s Sacred Landscapes
This installation by photographic artist Suzanne Williamson and writer John Capouya re-envisions the past with words and images inspired by their exploration of Florida’s Native American mound sites. Using an array of materials and photo-reproduction processes, they create an environment that illuminates the multiple meanings of these monuments, built by our first peoples.
September 2 – 25, 2011
The Price is Right: 2011 Members Exhibition
Annual non-juried members’ exhibition held in conjunction with a month-long series of events celebrating member-artists, including workshops, critiques, and works for sale. These activities highlight several prominent components of the Morean Arts Center’s mission—to connect people with art. This year, artists are challenged to create works of art that have a retail value of $500 or less.
July 22 – August 21, 2011
Neil Matthiessen: Recontextualizing Aesthetics
USF Graphics Professor Neil Matthiessen combines technology and traditional art-making methods to create a sense of motion in her work, resulting in a feeling of movement in the viewer.
June 17 – July 17, 2011
Dolores Coe: Mirage
In her current paintings and mixed media works Dolores constructs imagined spaces inhabited by iconic and culturally familiar elements, particularly the carnival and the Las Vegas Strip. The artist utilizes color to create a sense of motion in her work, resulting in a feeling of movement in the viewer.
January 7 – May 28, 2011
My Ticket to Tomorrow: Word and Image Exhibitions
Work by Pinellas County school students is displayed in our 14th season of word and Image Exhibitions. Students are challenged to imagine what life will be like in the future, including the environment, cities, houses and cars, books, magazines and TV. The theme is portrayed using visual art combined with the written word.
March 25 – May 27, 2011
Elastic Authenticity (NCECA)
The artists in this exhibition utilize the versatility of clay to explore concerns related to technology and its effect on the human condition. Participating artists include: Darien Johnson, Susan Beiner, Katie Caron, Bryan Czibesz, Del Harrow, Case McDonough, Megumi Naitoh, Matthew McConnell, Dylan Beck and Gail Heidel. This exhibition will run concurrently with the NCECA conference, held in the Tampa Bay area during the first week of April.
Cristina Cordova: Bestiario
Central to Cristina Cordova’s work is an intense attention to form. She melds ancient with modern and human with animal to create hybrid, other-worldly figures. One is taken aback by the intricacy, power and bizarre, yet entrancing qualities of each creature.
January 14 – March 13, 2011
Paradise Lost/Paradise Found
The Morean Arts Center calls attention to the “state” of Florida in two provocative exhibitions. For Paradise Lost/Paradise Found, contemporary artists wax nostalgic for the Sunshine State, either presenting their version of how things used to be, or satirizing the way things appear today. Neon motel signs, alligators on the loose, mermaids, baseball, and road kill are just a few of the subjects addressed in the gallery space, where visitors experience a whole new appreciation for their environment. Artists include Mark Messersmith, John Gurbacs, Karen Tucker Kuykendall, Randy Van Duinen and Raina Benoit.
Disappearing Florida
Relating to Paradise Lost/Paradise Found is Disappearing Florida, a serious look at the changing landscape of our state. Providing a call-to-action rather than just a passive gallery visit, this exhibition features the work of contemporary photographers who capture the beauty of Florida, while using their websites as a platform to discuss the fragility of that same beauty. Quotes from these blogs are prominent feature alongside the prints on the gallery walls, encouraging our visitors to get involved and be conscious of the fleeting quality of our natural surroundings. Artists include Carlton Ward Jr., Richard O. Jacobs, Kevin Boldenow and Laurie Excell.
December 3 – 31, 2010
Painting a Day/Poem a Day
A relationship between visual art and the written word came to life in this thought-provoking exhibition. Albert Alfonso, architect of the acclaimed Chihuly Collection, revealed another side of his artistic persona via small-scale abstract watercolors. Accompanying these were works by poet Ed Mayes. The poetry and paintings played off of each other in the gallery space, forgoing a true inter-disciplinary collaboration.
October 8 – December 31, 2010
Transformative Influences: Theo Wujcik and Wanxin Zhang
Independent curator and gallerist Mindy Solomon curated an exhibition that addressed the commonality in humankind’s recorded history, a tale that is constantly being reinterpreted as artists search for meaning in a continually shifting media-laden world. Here, two distinct artists find their art expresses a similar story, one that confronts the commercialism of western culture and its impact on the contemporary Chinese society.
Theo Wujcik retired from his position as Professor of Art at USF in 2003 after more than thirty years of teaching. His work has been exhibited at galleries and museums across the country, and can be found in the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art, NYC; the Whitney Museum of American Art, NYC; the Brooklyn Museum, NY; the Art Institute of Chicago, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and many others.
In 1992, Wanxin Zhang moved to the US from his native China. He holds an MFA in Sculpture from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, where he has been a professor since 1996. He is the recipient of numerous awards and honors including a 2006 Virginia A. Groot Foundation Grant, a 2005 NEA Grant, and a 2004 Joan Mitchell Foundation Grant
October 8 – November 28, 2010
Dominique Labauvie
Internationally recognized artist Dominique Labauvie brought his steel sculpture and never-before-seen drawings to our galleries during this time. Originally from France and currently residing in Tampa, Labauvie’s work was on display across the Bay Area including simultaneous exhibitions at the Tampa Museum of Art and Blue Acier Inc. in Tampa. About his sculpture, Labauvie states: “The steel is unfurled by means of my calligraphic practice. The intimate, corporeal gestures are then consolidated within a choreographic space. The combination of these events generates the unique approach to space in my work. The sculpture is the suspended moment of this sudden action, which we perceive as an illuminated memory, revealed and identified.”
September 3 – 26, 2010
The Way Forward: Roads Less Traveled: 2010 Members Exhibition
Annual non-juried members’ exhibition held in conjunction with a month-long series of events celebrating member-artists, including workshops, critiques and works for sale. These activities highlighted several prominent components of the Morean Arts Center’s mission–to inspire, educate and engage a diverse population in the creation of contemporary visual art by providing a dynamic, professional environment to foster the creative process, allowing artists and the community to meet and exchange ideas. This year’s members show theme encouraged artists to try something new, to submit a work of art using unorthodox or unusual materials and media, or create a piece that reflected a remote place, unusual combinations, or an innovative idea.
Margaret Steward: Crossing
Margaret Steward holds a special place in the hearts of those of us at the Morean. It was here that she experienced her first artist-in-residency in the early-1990’s, leading to many more exhibitions and creative endeavors. She was a consummate artist, excelling in everything she experimented with, including sculpture, painting, photography and her personal favorite, printmaking. Her artistic vision and commitment to her craft led to many local accolades, including the prestigious Best of Show Award at Mainsail Arts Festival. The breadth of her endeavors, including never-before-seen collographs from her 2009 residency at the prestigious Anderson Ranch Arts Center in Colorado were on view in this exhibition. Proceeds from the sale of her work funded the Margaret Murphy Steward Memorial Award, to be given our during our Members Show.
Jun 11 – August 14, 2010
Ricky Bernstein: Kitchen Dreams
What Ricky Bernstein does best is tell visual stories. Vibrantly colorful and emotionally engaging, his work is often described as energetic representational painting. His oversize cartoon graphics pull us into domestic dramas that humanely poke fun at our past and present lives. Using a variety of materials, Ricky composes narrative, collage-style wall reliefs with a distinct pop-art flavor. In a delightful way, common stories take on larger than life proportion–a compelling slice of Americana in still life sit-com. Though flavored with humor, Ricky’s approach to social commentary is no less significant in scope an content.
Ricky’s painted glass installations are widely collected throughout the US and Europe, including the Corning Museum of Glass, NY; the Museum of Design, NYC; the Renwick Gallery, Washington DC; the DeYoung Museum of Art, San Francisco, CA; the Detroit Institute of Art, MI; and the Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg, FL.
This Woman’s Work
This Woman’s Work is an exhibition that examined and challenged the stereotype of the multi-faceted role of a woman in her home. From female hunters to overwhelmed housewives, and with both reverence and humor, the artists in this exhbition paid homage to the female in her domestic setting. Works by glass engraver Lisbeth Sterling, mixed media artist Candice Smith Corby, painter Amy Hill and photographer Margaret LeJeune were included.
March 25 – May 29, 2010
The Sly, Wry Paintings of Mernet Larsen
Mernet Larsen’s large-scale, iconic paintings of angular figures in tiling spaces are instantly recognizable among art students in the Tampa Bay area. Her paintings are at once an affectionate parody and a critique of Renaissance narrative paintings, reflecting a longing for something lost and a desire for a sense of space and narrative structure more in accord with contemporary concepts of reality. She depicts events by rendering objects and figures as geometric solids, their structures and proportions reinvented.
Mernet Larsen is Professor Emeritus of Painting at University of South Florida, where she taught for 35 years, receiving the university’s highest distinctions for teaching. She has also taught at Yale, Montana State, and the University of Oklahoma, in summer programs in Paris, Rome and Yale/Norfolk, and has been a visiting artist at Rhode Island School of Design, Antioch College, New York Studio School, and Nanjing (China) School of Art.
Beauty for Ashes: The Portrait Reconsidered
What is beauty? is a question that has intrigued us for thousands of years. The artists in this exhibition approached the genre of the human likeness in an unforgettable way, encouraging the viewer to rethink what the ideal can e. Featured artists include New York City photographer Mare Vaccaro, Sabrina Small and Brian Haverlock, mixed media artists from Sarasota, and Tampa painter and installation artist Lauren Alyssa Howard.
January 15 – March 13, 2010
Babs Reingold: Hung Out in the Projects
Babs Reingold invoked her childhood in the projects on the East Side of Cleveland using the gallery environment. Reingold’s experience as a young Jewish girl in a tough, unsafe world came to life within the gallery walls with her signature constructions of human hair, organza, silk, and clothesline. The installation was viewed from scaffolding, representing a social vantage point of security. A sound component by artist Lin Culbertson completed the experience. A master draftsman, many of Reingold’s preparatory sketches of the installation were also on display
The Sweet Escape
Who are you when no one else is around? Teenagers and young children in private spaces was the subject of this photography exhibition, which tied in with our Word and Image theme “On My Block.” Andrea Land captures affluent young girls in their non-descript, light-filled bedrooms. Kay Denton uses vintage techniques to finish her portraits of children in the woods that look like they were taken years ago. Juanita Hong juxtaposes photos of teens in their rooms along with written essays by her subjects of how their rooms define them. Melanie McWhorter photographs her young subjects, capturing toddlers and young children in rare moments of quiet. Debbie Miracolo documents the fleeting quality of youth in her sitters, photographing them in their homes and their neighborhoods.
January 15 – February 27, 2010
Glen Perotte: OPEN
OPEN transcended traditional perceptions of the portrait genre through the application of new media technology. This exhibit created an open dialogue between artist, subject, and viewer about the relationships between imagery, personal conflict, and reconciliation. These large-scale color portraits demanded that the viewer give it undivided attention.
Perotte continued his exploration of portraiture as he challenged the viewer to look past the creator’s interpretation by presenting the works as hyper-real entities. OPEN achieved two things simultaneously: formed bonds between the subject and viewer by incorporating new dimensions to the conventional portrait genre, and encouraged a deeper understanding of the personal conflict and reconciliation of the subject by virtue of the scale and extreme detail of each photograph; possible only with current new media technology.
October 9 – December 31, 2009
Visual Unity: A Collaboration
Continuing the theme of highlighting work from our local artists, Curator Rocky Bridges brought together 18 artists from the central Florida region to create 36 new pieces of art to share with our community. Each artists worked with one other artists from the group of forge new territory in their bodies of work. A true celebration of artistic unity, this exhibition showcased the work of regional talent, and also stretched the participating artists as they worked with artists who created in methods and themes completely opposite of their own. Artists included Rebecca Sexton-Larson, Catherine Bergmann, Tony Eitharong, Richard Currier, Rocky Bridges, Duncan McClellan, Arnolkis Turro, Kim Michelle Coakley, Margaret Steward, Sucia Taxdal, Tony Savoie, Susan Livingston, Clayton Swartz, Bruce Gilbert, Leslie Neumann, Susan Gott, Anna Tomczak and Lynn Whipple.
Allison Massari: Pyrotechnic Luminescence
Beloved artist Allison Massari returned to her home community to exhibit her newest paper collages. Massari’s powerful, intimate and boldly imagined artwork beckons the viewer – sometimes playfully, sometimes intensely – always with a poignancy that deeply touches the heart. The vulnerability and honesty expressed in her self portraits, the energy and life that flow through her collages, and the unflinching strength and intelligence that can be found in all of her work, show Massari’s commitment to exposing herself in order to find the common thread that connects us as humans. Massari holds a BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design and an MFA from Parsons.
