Chestertown, MD – Marcy Dunn Ramsey’s one-person exhibition – Turning – opens at the Carla Massoni Gallery on Friday, May 17 and remains on exhibit through June 23, 2019. Ramsey has been captivating art lovers and collectors at MassoniArt for over twenty-five years. She paints the river. And as those of us who live near water understand, there is always a new experience to be mined. The rivers of the Eastern Shore are the true treasures of the Chesapeake Bay and Marcy is their fierce advocate.
For this year’s body of work, Ramsey has turned her gaze in a new direction. For many years she has been inspecting the small worlds of river flotsam and jetsam and these familiar subjects are also part of the exhibition but the idea of literally “turning” came to her last fall. Her focus shifted to the riverbank and the walls of color in the stands of trees, where the color mutates, or turns, from one hue to another in subtle and not so subtle ways. Her use of paint also evolved. She used flicking and skipping brush motions, and utilized luscious paint sticks, for a looser, more crayon-y graphic effect in several of the new works.
Her masterful paintings demand a response. Although her large-scale oil paintings are almost pure abstraction, Ramsey’s trees beckon the viewer to a new vantage point on the riverbank. One senses the wind and can almost hear the rustle of leaves dancing in the river’s reflected light. The viewer is invited into a world of sky, water, grasses, and trees. Fortunately for collectors both old and new, with Ramsey you never leave the river, you simply experience it anew.
Also featured in the gallery will be Claire McArdle’s new collection of sculpture – Natura. The rich patinaed figures are right at home in Ramsey’s river world. “Torso Sol”, a bronze cast from one of McArdle’s travertine works, has the soft mossy exterior one would expect from a forest creature. Woodturnings by Joe Dickey round out the exhibition. His sycamore vessel “Nude in a Red Dress” celebrates the magical world Ramsey has created with this year’s exhibition – Turning.
Marcy Dunn Ramsey – Turning
Claire McArdle – Natura
May 17 – June 23, 2019
Also featuring new work by Joe Dickey – Woodturnings
Opening Cocktail Reception – Friday, May 17, 6-7:30 pm
Open House – Saturday, May 18, 11-3
Artist Talk – Saturday, May 18, 12 noon
June First Friday Reception – Friday, June 7, 5-7:30 pm
Gallery hours during Turning are Thursday-Friday, 11am-4pm, Saturday, 10am-5pm and Sunday, 11-2 pm. The Gallery is always available to be open by private appointment or by chance. For additional information please contact Carla Massoni. MASSONIART, 203 High Street, Chestertown, Maryland. 410-778- 7330 or visit our website for directions and links to other activities in Chestertown’s Arts & Entertainment District. www.massoniart.com
Gallery hours: Thursday & Friday 11-4 // Saturday 10-5 // Sunday 11-2 // Monday- Wednesday by appointment or by chance. Call the gallery at 410.778.7330 before you visit to insure we will be here to welcome you. Private appointments may be scheduled at any time by contacting Carla Massoni – 410-708-4512.
