LYNNFIELD ― After an 18-month-long wait, the Lynnfield Art Guild (LAG) is finally displaying its art work to the general public ― up front and in person.
Its latest show, “Creativity on Parade,” is now open at the Beebe Estate Gallery in Melrose. The exhibit, which features the pieces from 24 LAG members, is free and open to the public every Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. through the end of October. The gallery is located at 235 West Foster St.
“The show was most enthusiastically received with several sales,” said LAG Leadership Team member and Director of Publicity Beth Aaronson. “Visitors remarked on the quality and range of the participants. It was a truly heady experience to share our art in person with the community and other artists.”
When the pandemic hit, LAG was forced to shut down all in-person shows, including its popular fall and spring art shows and sales. The guild quickly pivoted to virtual shows on Zoom, a platform which LAG President Dan Abenaim admitted was extremely difficult.
“For those 18 months (of the COVID-19 pandemic), it was like watching ‘Gone with The Wind’ or ‘Star Wars’ on a 12-inch, black-and-white TV: lucky to see them at all, but not the same as full-color Cinemascope,” he said. “The impact of seeing the real paintings on the walls of a beautiful venue like the Beebe Estate is almost physical ― you are assaulted by multiple stimuli of beauty and forms that make you appreciate the magnificent power of imagination.”
One of the show’s contributing artists ― Topsfield watercolor artist and member Patricia (Pat) O’Connor ― is the guild’s latest featured artist. O’Connor has been painting for over 40 years in all mediums, starting in oil and acrylics. She now specializes in watercolor. Her paintings are chock full of vibrant color and cover a wide range of subjects including still life, landscapes, and seasonal images.
While O’Connor describes herself as self-taught, she has also taken formal art courses at the Boston Center for Adult Education, Lynn Evening School, North Shore Community College, as well as studying for three years under the well-known local artist Jack Jones. O’Connor painted on location with Jones’ students in Vermont and various places on the North Shore, and her paintings have been in shows in Lynn, Lynnfield, Chelmsford, Ipswich, and Topsfield and have received numerous awards.
O’Connor said that both her painting and the friends she has made with the Lynnfield Art Guild have sustained her through many difficult times and brought much joy into her life.
“Art has always been a part of my life,” she said. “I love to travel, cook, and work with my hands doing sewing, knitting and, of course, painting in various mediums over the past 40-plus years.
“In my free time I have been involved in various community and professional activities all my life. I love working with people.”
Abenaim said that he is grateful for the support from the Beebe Estate, adding that more arts venues like Beebe, which reopened its doors to the public in September, are needed. The president also touched upon the theme of the exhibition, “Creativity on Parade,” and the importance of creative expression for everyone ― not just artists.
“Creativity is essential for everybody,” said Abenaim. “Sure, it is on display when you see a painting or a movie or a play, but it is also on display when you don’t have all the ingredients for a recipe and you make do with what you have, or when you are closed by a pandemic and you reinvent yourself to survive and strive.”
The guild will be hosting its second demonstration of the new LAG year on Oct. 21 from 6:30-8:45 p.m. via Zoom. Featured artist Eddie Bruckner will demonstrate his Pop Art acrylic pastels techniques. See LAG’s October newsletter issue for an artist bio and examples of Eddie’s works. To learn more about the guild, its upcoming events, and to view samples of O’Connor’s and Bruckner’s work go to www.lynnfieldarts.org.
Sam Minton can be reached at [email protected].
