Gallery: The variety of art is exciting

"The brilliance of art… is that it has a way of reaching out on an emotional level. It touches on mystery, even spirituality."

- Robert Genn, Canadian painter

I love my work. To paint, to write, to create and then start all over again is bliss. Viewing and celebrating creations by others artists is equally as thrilling. While it may be true that "there is nothing new under the sun," that we only see variations of what came before, I am continuously amazed that there is always something that feels brand new.

It is those twists and amazing perspectives and creative approaches that keep us, as observers, excited and energized. It is a true gift to start the day with one outlook and end it with another, having been induced to see things differently, whether subtle or profound, by witnessing the creations of another.

The variety this month includes 2D and 3D works that are fresh and unexplained, as well as exceptional examples of our favorites genres with opportunities to learn about their history. From what I have seen so far, I am left with a broad smile across my face and my soul. It really doesn't get better than that.

49 West's March exhibit is "TRYBE-ALL," a combination of acrylic on canvas and archival prints by Tony Spencer, which echoes a triumphant declaration of success, enduring life's storms, disappointments, or just an unfortunate experience. TRYBE-ALL (tribal) is a play on words with this intentional message to all trybe/families. Each painting is titled to reflect a story line or meaning, while leaving the viewer to find his or her own meaning.

Meet Tony Spencer at a reception in the Back Room from 5 to 7 p.m. today.

MFA's Circle Gallery has three exhibits this month:

In the Main Gallery, MFA presents its annual Member Mélange, which consists of two 2-week exhibitions of artwork created by dedicated MFA members.

•"Member Mélange I" is open now and runs through March 12, and features both 2D and 3D artwork by Janna Zuber, Stacey Sass, Temple Blackwood, Chuck Engstrom, Kate Stillwell, Desiree Holmes Scherini, Patrice Drago, Jennifer Wilkinson-Rynbrandt, Jim Mackey, Joe Dickey, Evelyne Albanese and DH Banker. Meet the artist reception is 3 to 5 p.m. today.

•"Member Mélange II" runs March 16 to 26, and features artwork by Richard Niewerth, Mary Ellen Geissenhainer, Teresa Jarzynski, Chris Kelsey, Christopher B Fowler, Bob Peterson, Maggie O'Leary, Carole Falk, c.l. bigelow, Steve Borko, Wil Scott and Kass McGowan. Meet the artist reception is 3 to 5 p.m. March 20.

In the Holley Gallery, for the 6th year running, MFA hosts the "Hospice Cup Poster Competition" running through March 16. Hospice Cup is a charity sailing regatta, raising funds for hospice programs throughout Maryland, Washington, DC, and northern Virginia.

The submitted artworks are on display at Holley Gallery, and during the reception the public votes for their favorite piece, ultimately selecting one artwork that will be featured on the promotional poster for the Hospice Cup. The reception is 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday.

Annapolis City Hall Art Gallery presents "Washed Away, an exhibit of watercolors by Nancy Lee Galloway, in the front of the gallery through March 24. Raised in India, studying and & working overseas, former model and partner in an Annapolis Charter Boat operation, she brings a global perspective to her work and a heightened sensitivity to color.

Also showing, are works by photographer by Wil Scott. Join them for a reception from 5 to 7 p.m., tomorrow.

Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts presents two exhibitions on display through April 9, with an opening reception from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Thursday.

•"The Pace of My Consideration, The work of Don Cook," in the Chaney Gallery, exhibits the work and creative process of the late Donald Cook. A former visual arts instructor at MHCA, Cook was an artist, writer, poet, teacher and a scholar who was a resident artist at the Creative Alliance and a faculty member at MICA until his death in 2010.

•"Spring AIR: Work by Maryland Hall's Artists In Residence" will be on display in the Martino and Openshaw Galleries. The group exhibit showcases the work of six of Maryland Hall's Artists In Residence in a variety a media such as painting, ceramics, and sculpture. Artists are: c. l. bigelow, Anne Hathaway Chamberlain, Patrice Drago, Kate Osmond, Lindsay Pichaske, Nathanael Scott.

Main Street Gallery opens a Guest Artist Show on March 9, featuring works in oil by Jack Frazier, Melissa Gryder, Ann Hayden, Terry Peterson and photography by Marty West. The exhibit will run through April 3, with an opening reception to meet the artist from 5 to 7:30 p.m. Saturday.

Gallery 333 in the Unitarian Church of Annapolis presents "Two Different Points of View" open now and running through April 31. Two artists, Carol Donahue and Gail Higginbotham, collaborate in an exhibit portraying their different viewpoints.

The show includes Donahue's use of the alternative photographic process of Van Dyke printing as well as her contemporary digital photographic prints, and Higginbotham's oil pastel and acrylic paintings depict her love of color and mastery of composition. A Meet the Artist reception will be held 12:15 to 1:30 p.m. March 13.

MFA's "Lowe House Exhibition," at the Lowe House of Delegates Building, runs through April 11 and features artwork of a variety of media created by MFA members and residents of Anne Arundel County. The artwork is on display while the legislature is in session and can be viewed in and around the Anne Arundel County Delegation Room and Delegates offices. Reception is open to the public through the Bladen Street security entrance, from 5 to 7 p.m. March 14.

McBride Gallery is hosting a solo show, "Travels Here and Abroad" for noted Maryland artist, Michael Godfrey, opening March 20 and on display through April 6. Following travel to France, Switzerland and Ireland with stone fences, thatched cottages, winding roads and rolling green hills dotted with grazing sheep, Godfrey found it picturesque with more scenes than he had time to paint.

The exhibit will also include paintings from trips around the United States, including Alaska. Godfrey is a nationally recognized award-winning plein air painter, invited to demonstrate his skills at the recent National Plein Air Convention. Artist Reception is from 1 to 4 p.m. March 20, with an artist talk at 2 p.m.

This month the Annapolis Collection Gallery features work by Bill Payne of Little Feat. Meet the artist and enjoy a reception following his 8 p.m. Rams Head show when his audience follows Payne, the founder of the band "Little Feat," down Gallery Row to see his art exhibit inside the Annapolis Collection Gallery 10 to 11:30 p.m. March 23.

Opening March 17, MFA presents the second annual "Stormy Weather" at the Annapolis Maritime Museum, running through May 1. Juried by Nora Sturges, area head of painting and drawing in the Department of Art + Design, Art History, Art Education at Towson University, the exhibit features original 2D artwork by artists across the country, all inspired by the sights, sounds, colors and impact of weather. Reception is 3 to 5 p.m. April 3.

The Mitchell Gallery at St. John's College, opens its new exhibition "American Impressionism: The Lure of the Artists' Colony" Tuesday. The story of American Impressionism is told, in part, by the popular artists' colonies that emerged at the end of the 19th century and served as destinations for painters, beginning in the Northeast, close to New York, Philadelphia and Boston.

From the coast to coast, artists assembled together to escape the rigors of their city studios, exchange ideas, collaborate, teach, exhibit together and attract new clientele. Works by those attending the Pennsylvania Academy of Design served as a springboard for the colony in New Hope, Pennsylvania and the Philadelphia area.

Artists J. Alden Weir and John Henry Twachtman from the colonies of Cos Cob, and Guy Wiggins and Childe Hassam from Old Lyme, Conn., are represented, as well as Massachusetts-based artists, including Charles Webster Hawthorne in Cape Cod, and the Boston-based Impressionists, William Paxson and Frank W. Benson.

This collection of over 45 works, on loan from the Reading Public Museum, Reading, Penn., will be on view through April 24. Events during this exhibit:

•Opening Reception: 3:30 to 5 p.m. March 20, which includes a hands-on workshop.

•Lecture by exhibition curator Scott Schweigert: 5:30 p.m. March 23

•"Tuesday Try-It," workshop on Impressionist palettes led by artist Abigail McBride: 3 to 4:30 p.m. March 29. The workshop is free, but registration is necessary.

•A festive "Evening of Art, Food, Drink and Dancing" with music by the Tiki Barbarians: 7 to 10 p.m. April 2.

West Annapolis Artworks this month will hold it first "Unframed" event. We will be displaying affordable works of art on paper by dozens of local and national artists, with a fresh selection of bold contemporary art, a clean, contemporary new look and a renewed focus on finding the right art for your home.

Paul's Homewood Café continues the exhibition of nature photography by Christopher B Fowler and assemblage artwork by Kass McGowan, both Maryland artists and MFA members, through April 3.

The Galleries at Quiet Waters Park presents the Photography of the Park and Recreation sites throughout Anne Arundel County by the employees of the parks, and "Mid-Winter Mélange" continues; both exhibits are on display through April 3.

Patrice Drago is a writer and painter living in Annapolis. This column is written in cooperation with the Annapolis Gallery Association. Contact Patrice at [email protected].

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March 7, 2016