"THE EASELS" PROJECT

September 30th, 6-8p: The Easels project featuring artist Siri Berg with
Guest Moderator David Cohen, Publisher/Editor of artcritical magazine. 

David is British born, an American citizen and has lived in the US since 1999.  He was gallery director at the New York Studio School from 2001-2010 and art critic of the New York Sun from 2003-08, and moderates the ongoing forum of critical discussions of contemporary art, The Review Panel, at the National Academy Museum.
Moderation will be from 6:30-7p

May 13th, 6-8p: The Easels project will feature artist Eleanor Winters (calligraphy quilt collages) and Guest Moderator Maureen Mullarkey.

"Copperplate", alphabet quilt collage
Eleanor Winters

March 25th, 6-8p
Guest Moderator:
Judith Page is a nationally recognized artist, curator, writer and educator living in Brooklyn, New York. Page received Individual Artist’s Fellowships from the Gottlieb Foundation in 2002; and from the Pollock-Krasner Foundation in 2005-06 and 1998-99. In the past five years, her art was written about in Art in America, The New York Times, and Art on Paper and shown at The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, The College of Saint Rose and Lesley Heller Gallery. She has organized over 200 exhibitions, and written articles, essays and criticism for publications such as Sculpture magazine and for individuals. An essay on Annette Messager is included in the recently published book, A Sculpture Reader: Contemporary Sculpture since 1980. Page currently teaches at the Maryland Institute College of Art. Her website is www.judithpage.com.

Featured Artist: Liz Whitney Quisgard

Liz Whitney Quisgard’s fiber works are made from yarn on buckrum and have lush textured surfaces with exquisite patterns.  These circular pieces are decorative, detailed and have a rich color sense. Directional light is apparent and breaks the composition – Moroccan mysteries fill our senses. They are strong yet warm intricate works.  
Liz is an accomplished and recognized artist who lives and works in Manhattan.  She has exhibited at museums and galleries nationwide including the Asheville Museum, NC; Richmond Museum, IN; Chicago Art Institute; Corcoran Gallery, Washington, DC; Baltimore Museum of Art, MD and the Austin Texas Art Museum.  Her work is in the collection of the Mississippi Art Museum, the University of Arizona Museum, Fordham University and Libyan Mission to the UN as well as other numerous corporate and public collections in Brazil, Norway, Bermuda and the United States.

E-vite by Elisa Pritzker

January 21st, 6-8p
"The Easels"
Featuring artist Tripp
Guest Moderator: Larry Qualls, Contributing Editor of Art on Paper and a contemporary art consultant to ARTstor. For thirteen years he was an associate editor of PAJ: A Journal of Performance and Art and before that a co-editor of Art + Cinema.


























E-vite created by Elisa Pritzker

The Evaporation Plus series by Tripp:

PAST EASELS PROJECTS

 November 19th, 6-8P
"The Easels"
Artists: Rosetta Bentz & Elisa Pritzker
Guest Moderator: John Goodrich, Artist and Independent Critic

Rosetta Bentz, Landscape #27, oil

Elisa Pritzker, mixed media

“The Easels”: Side by Side
Curated by Joyce Pommer
Featuring Rosetta Bentz & Elisa Pritzker
November 19th, 6-8P

Guest Moderator: John Goodrich, artist and Independent Critic

Franklin 54 Gallery + projects is pleased to present the second night of the “The Easels” on Thursday November 19th from 6-8P.  This month the featured gallery artists’ works will coincide with the solo gallery exhibition by Sharon Bartel-Clements called “The Side of the Road.” As before we hope to continue the conversation and communication between the public, the artists and their work in an informal setting opening up an informative session of dialogue. In this one night only event the gallery can offer another way for our artists to gain exposure. The project also allows us to emphasize the focus of the gallery through the artist’s process with the goal of stimulating emotional attachment to the work.

Approximately 6 small works by each artist will be exhibited on table easels throughout the gallery, for easy viewing by visitors. This Easels project will feature works by Rosetta Bentz an abstract painter of the landscape/seascape and Elisa Pritzker a mixed media artist. Rosetta’s paintings are lush, rich in texture and forever moving. Her simple strokes and use of color enrich her process. Elisa’s work will focus on her Inside-Out series that is about transformation; they are minimal and compelling. Her mixed techniques and photo resin process work well in emphasizing this as the materials themselves are forever changing.  Each artist compliments the gallery exhibition by adding to the real and symbolic meanings of the Side of the Road.  We hope you will join us to find out more.

From our September night of "The Easels":

Quartet, mixed media on panel, AJ Nadel

“The Easels”
Meet the Art/Meet the Artist
Curated by Elisa Pritzker
Featuring AJ Nadel
September  24th, 6-8P

Guest Moderator: Dominique Nahas, Independent Curator and Critic

Franklin 54 Gallery + projects is pleased to present a new project called “The Easels” previewing on Thursday September 24th from 6-8P.  This new project will continue the 3rd Thursday of every other month and feature small works by one or two gallery artists whose work will coincide with the gallery exhibition for that month.  Curator Elisa Pritzker will be selecting the artist and the works and will also moderate a talk with the artist during the evening. We hope to develop communication between the public, the artist and their work in an informal setting opening up an informative session of dialogue. It is a one night only event and allows the gallery another way to offer our artists exposure and where we can also emphasize the focus of the gallery through the artist’s process and stimulate emotional attachment to the work.

Approximately 15 small works will be exhibited on table easels throughout the gallery, for easy viewing by visitors. Our first Easels project will feature works by AJ Nadel- a mixed media artist whose process of Polaroid photo emulsion transfers come together as intriguing images. His process is an interesting one and we are fortunate to have him share it with us.  As in “Quartet”, a new piece consisting of Polaroid photo chemical and emulsion transfers combined with enamel paint on panel is an overlapping of facial images peering through different layers.  The faces are dissected, fractioned and powerful, coming together as a mysterious piece; the imagery is sophisticated and complex to be viewed over and over to discover the rich detail below. AJ will be present to discuss his work and available for questions.