Old Deerfield Painting Group’s annual exhibit putting downtowns on display
Published: 08-22-2024 12:44 PM
Modified: 08-22-2024 6:12 PM |
DEERFIELD — In the 33rd year of the Old Deerfield Painting Group’s art exhibit, local painters are putting downtowns on display.
The Old Deerfield Painting Group is a collective of artists of all skill levels. Each year, the group puts on an exhibit to showcase its members’ work, artist and Old Deerfield Painting Group member Thomas Williams explained.
The work is now on display at the Deerfield Community Center on Memorial Street. Artwork will be up until Aug. 25.
Officially, the theme is “Our Downtowns,” but artists were invited to create work interpreting the theme as they pleased.
Despite living in Conway, Elizabeth Morin, another participant, decided to depict downtown Northampton in her painting. The idea came to Morin when she was walking through the city.
“I noticed the sign [on Thornes Marketplace that] said, ‘Fighting sameness since 1978.’ So I started chuckling because I’ve been fighting sameness since 1970!” Morin exclaimed. “Although this is not my hometown, it certainly captures the hometown vibe. … The hometown feeling of creativity, inclusion and the freedom to be uniquely ourselves.”
Morin, who has only been in the Old Deerfield Painting Group for a year, shared that she was excited to sell the first painting of this year’s show.
Williams’ piece depicts Holy Trinity Church in Greenfield. He explained, “To me, the church is the center of my downtown.”
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Mediums include oil, acrylic, watercolor and pastels. Artwork can be viewed daily from noon to 5 p.m.
There is also a memorial exhibit of Barbara Trask Taylor’s work. Trask Taylor was a group participant and leader, described in an email from Janice James, another participant, as a “dear friend.”
“It’s just a good group of people with a mixed genre of paintings,” Morin said. “It’s just a wonderful sight to see.”