Paintings and Prints by Roberta Rosenthal at Aroma Thyme Bistro

Paintings and Prints by Roberta Rosenthal will be featured for the month of August 2009 at Aroma Thyme Bistro.


ARTIST’S STATEMENT

I grew up in the Bronx near the New York Botanical Garden. I considered the Garden my back yard so it was only natural for me to decide, at age five, to become an artist. I graduated from the High School of Art and Design and then the Fashion Institute of Technology with a degree in Textile Design. I took graduate courses at the Art Students League and the New York Botanical Garden’s botanical art certificate program. Later I studied Japanese Sumi-e with Koho Yamamoto and Chinese brush painting with master painter, Guo Liang Jui.

My professional art career began in 1969 as a graphic/textile designer for Macy’s and as a staff artist at a prominent New York studio. In 1976 I started my own business, RSR Designs. From 1976-2000 RSR Designs was a prime New York source for botanical illustration. My art was published as postage stamps for the Republic of Palau and the Marshall Islands; editorial art for the New York Times, as well as Fine Gardening, Horticulture, Kitchen Garden and National Gardening magazines: and as botanical logos for Weston Nurseries in Hopkinton MA and the Institute of Eco- System Studies, Millbrook, NY.

In 1990 I purchased a weekend home in Sullivan County where I planned and planted a woodland garden. In 2001 I turned my weekend home into a full time residence, and devoted myself to fine art.

My inspiration comes from botanical subjects, local landscapes and spirituality. I work primarily in watercolor and gouache. When I start a new painting it may require extensive research, photography and a period of meditation. Rough pencil sketches are followed by a precise pencil outline drawing with the design concept and color roughs sometimes worked out on the computer. Then I do a color rough using the appropriate media. The final art is a yoga exercise where the brush and paint flow with my breath and motion. The process of painting is like watching a plant grow and blossom over time. I pay attention to the small details and always keep my eye on the center of my subject. Each season I reinterpret nature as a path to spiritual renewal.

If painting is my passion, then educating is my avocation. I have been teaching botanical art for twenty-two years at the New York Botanical Gardens. I also instruct classes locally at Mount Saint Mary College, Catskill Art Society and the Wallkill River School. I receive great delight and satisfaction when my art students achieve their own creative goals.

I am currently a member of the American Society of Botanical Artists, Guild of Natural Science Illustrators, Catskill Art Society, Wallkill River School Gallery and former president of the Wurtsboro Art Alliance.

SECOND TIME AROUND
August 1 – September 3, 2009

Paintings and Prints by Roberta Rosenthal

Original artworks
1. Vancouver Centennial Geranium watercolor & ink on Lei River silk $95
2. Orchid and Primrose watercolor & ink on Lei River silk $95
3. Pepper Cilentro watercolor & ink on Lei River silk $95
4. Iris and Bud watercolor & ink on Lei River silk $95
5. Iris and Dahlia watercolor & ink on Lei River silk $95
6. Bamboo watercolor & ink on Lei River silk $95
7. Lotus and fish watercolor & ink on Lei River silk $95
8. Iris watercolor & ink on Lei River silk $95
9. Basha Kill Landscape watercolor & ink on rice paper $375
10. Rain watercolor & ink on rice paper $675
11. Basha Kill 1 oil on canvas $225
12. Basha Kill 2 oil on canvas $225
13. Cyclaman Mountain oil on canvas $275
14. Large Orchid still life watercolor & ink on rice paper $1000
15. Freesia watercolor & ink on rice paper $800
16. African Violet 1 watercolor & ink on rice paper $325
17. African Violet 2 watercolor & ink on rice paper $325
18. Rhododendron watercolor on hot press paper $700
19. Amaryllis 1 watercolor on hot press paper $700
20. Vegetable Still Life oil on canvas $275

Prints
1. Two Amaryllis & Rhododendron Mimaki print on Hahnemuhle $325
2. June Epson print $125
3. July Epson print $125
4. May Epson print $125
5. August Epson print $125
6. P.J.M. Rhododendron Epson print $125
7. Blueberries Epson print $125
8. Hydrangeas and White Roses Epson print $125
9. Peonies Epson print $125
10. Maple Pansy Epson print $125

www.robertarosenthal.com rozenart@aol.com 845-733-1848

Ruth Wetzel, April 2008 at Aroma Thyme

Hudson Valley Artist & Restaurant Bring Awareness to Local Lake Preservation

Ruth Wetzel is exhibiting selections of recent work that show different states of water at the Aroma Thyme Bistro in Ellenville, NY. Proceeds from the exhibition will be donated to Save the Lakes, a non-profit organization that educates the public about the environmental and economic issues related to the development of the Williams Lake property in Rosendale, NY. Her art will be on display for the entire month April at the Aroma Thyme Bistro in Ellenville.

The art depicts water in three physical states. The churning water originates from a video of wildly frothing ocean water, presented in a scroll of three carborundum aquatint prints. Stilled water sits as a glassy plane in swamps of dark reflecting branches. Frozen water hangs as icicles in the cave and as snow on a creak bed taking on colors of its surroundings. Primarily works on paper, this show consists of drawings, hand pulled prints and oil paintings. A hand pulled carborundum print, mounted on acid free foamcore, of the cave at Williams Lake, will be available as a take away item from the opening for $90.

Wetzel’s solo exhibitions include The Ashawagh Hall in Springs, NY, The Firehouse Gallery in Newburyport, MA, and Columbia-Greene Community College in Hudson, NY. In the northeast, she has shown at BEGallery in High Falls, Sarah Nightingale Gallery in Watermill, NY, The Kingston Museum of Contemporary Art, Nan Mulford Gallery in Rockland, ME, and the Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art in New Paltz, NY to name a few. She has been a resident artist at the Women's Studio Workshop in Rosendale, NY, the Vermont Studio Center and the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts. Further information and images of the artist work can be viewed at http://www.ruthwetzel.com/ .

Save the Lakes opposes the over-development of 750 acres around Williams Lake and Fourth Lake. They have created a forum for raising awareness and sharing information with the public through their website and public meetings. On the site, the Canopy Development proposes 160 dwellings and no public access to Williams Lake, the cave and trails. A 900% increase to water usage from the lake and negative effects on the habitat of the endangered Indiana bats are a few of the environmental concerns. More information on the organization’s goals and research is available at www.savethelakes.us/. Save the Lakes is a member of the Shawangunk Ridge Coalition.

Images:

"Cave at Williams Lake" 8" x 10.75"
Carborundum Aquatint Print (Take Away Item for Opening)
"SparkleTrail" 11.5" x 20", Solarplate Etching

Artist Contact:

Ruth Wetzel
(845)332-3104 or (845)687-2106
Email Ruth Wetzel
www.ruthwetzel.com

Exhibit Location:

Aroma Thyme Bistro
165 Canal Street, PO Box 731
Ellenville, NY 12428
http://www.aromathymebistro.com/

Venue Contact:

Jamie and Marcus Guiliano
(845) 647-3000
Email Jamie

Nonprofit Organization:

www.savethelakes.us/
Email Noelle Damon
(845) 658-8919