Local Exhibit Highlights Value of Portraiture Paintings in the Digital Age
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In the 21st century, millions of images of portraiture are captured every day around the world, primarily through the use of taking photos through cell phones.
But Michelle Falkenstein wanted to bring an exhibit to the North Castle Public Library featuring a select group of artists with connections to the Hudson Valley who present portraits the old-fashioned way, by using their brushes, paint, canvases – and imagination.
The Armonk resident and freelance journalist who has covered the arts for years for a variety of publications, has curated the exhibit “Portraiture in the Age of Selfie,” that is open now through Jan. 11 at the library’s gallery.
“I thought there’s so much portraiture going on, self-portraiture and portraiture, with people taking pictures with their phones, I thought what does it mean to paint somebody nowadays,” Falkenstein said. “Photography replaced painting in terms of representing reality a long time ago, but what does a portrait do that a photograph can’t or doesn’t? What does it mean to be represented through another person.”
The exhibit’s featured artists are David Carter, Darla Barolini, Jeanne Kenney and Alexandra Rutsch, each putting their unique twist on their paintings. Falkenstein said she admires each of their artistic talents but their ability to interpret others in a way that a photo that a cell phone selfie can never convey.
For example, Barolini, who grew up in Westchester and now lives in Texas, has 18 untitled portraits of a wide range of people from many walks of life. Unlike a selfie, which typically strives to put the subject in the best light, the portraiture artist tries to capture a subject’s beliefs or emotional state or evoke other emotions, Falkenstein said.
“There’s an attitude to a lot of these faces,” she said. “And what she said, what Darla said to me about these people is some of them she liked, some of them she didn’t. She would just ask people ‘Can I paint you, and they would say yes or no or whatever, and then some of them she really knew. Some of them she really didn’t know that well, but it’s like this moment of their life.”
Falkenstein had known Carter previously and asked if he wanted to be part of the exhibit. She also conducted research and contacted ArtsWestchester to find additional portraiture painters that would be suitable for the show. All paintings are on sale during the course of the exhibit.
Carter, who now lives in upstate Saratoga County, worked as a student in the Hamptons while in school and met many celebrities and well-to-do people, and began painting portraits. He had been painting since he was a child, and wracked with health issues throughout his life, he has worked in the comforting solitude and creating on his own.
Some of the dozen paintings Carter has at the exhibit feature David Bowie, Eurythmics lead singer Annie Lennox, the French actor and singer Josephine Baker, Queen Elizabeth and Divine, the late actor, singer and drag queen.
He said it was fitting to be asked to be included in the North Castle Public Library exhibit.
“I’m a big library person, and I’ve worked in numerous libraries, including the Smithsonian,” Carter remarked. “If I see something of interest, I research and I don’t even try to paint until I feel comfortable that I know something.”
He estimated that he’s painted at least 1,000 portraitures; however, many of them were lost in a fire last month. Aside from the works at the exhibit, he has only 20 to 30 others now remaining.
Kenney has several fascinating paintings in the exhibit, including one titled “Class Trip to Cordoba,” where a young woman is taking a selfie of herself with two classmates looking on. Another of Kenney’s oil paintings include “Breathless,” where a woman is seen looking at herself in the mirror from the perspective of the painting taken from behind her, as well as “Siblings,” a colorful image of a young man and woman standing ankle deep in water at the beach looking in opposite directions.
The opening reception was on Dec. 7. The exhibit is accessible during library hours in the upstairs gallery.
The North Castle Public Library is located at 19 Whippoorwill Rd. East in Armonk. For more information about the show or to inquire about purchasing any of the works, e-mail mfalkenstein18@gmail.com.
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/