A distinctive view of nature

CORNWALL — There was a large turnout for a reception at the Cornwall Congregational Church on Sunday, March 24, for the art work of Scott Zuckerman. 

The theme of the exhibit might be described as nature in motion. His brush strokes add movement through texture; dappled color captures living beings in their natural environment. Impressionism comes to mind.

“Snow is not white,” Zuckerman pointed out when speaking about one of his paintings. Indeed, snow is made of lots of colors to a painter’s eye.

The event was also about community spirit, a concept underscored by Zuckerman. 

Organized by the House Committee at the church, the event is one of four or five planned throughout the year to celebrate the Cornwall community. The community invites local artists to participate.

“We’ve never had anyone say ‘no’; we stick to Cornwall,” said Peg Keskinen, one of the organizers. 

“What I love about Scott’s art is that he knows and loves the woods,” Lolly Besozzi said in her role as another of the team of organizers.

Zuckerman joined the conversation, and when asked what an average walker-in-the-woods should be looking for these days, he said fiddlehead ferns are coming soon as are morel mushrooms.  Listening to spring is also important, and hearing the birds and other woodland gobblers calling for mates.

“I notice color all the time,” Zuckerman said, adding that he likes restrained colors.  

Zuckerman’s medium of choice these days is oil. “I painted with watercolor for about 20 years, starting as an illustrator, but 15 years ago, I switched over to oil.”  

“I like to slap the paint on and let it do the work,” Zuckerman said, drawing a parallel to a short-order cook who butters a slice of toast with a single thick pass of the buttering knife. The thick paint makes an interesting surface, he added.

Considering himself a painter, rather than an artist, he said, “There is an aspect of me that gets anecdotal with a picture.”  His animal subjects are most often depicted in motion in their natural habitat.

His subject matter, he says, is “stuff I see in Litchfield County. We’re lucky, we have a wonderful place to live. There is lots of stuff around.”

Asked why he agreed to show in this exhibit, Zuckerman said, “I am a member of this community; my kids grew up here and went to Cornwall Consolidated School. They turned out well.”

Zuckerman thinks of the exhibit as his contribution, noting that so many other local residents commit to serve in other ways. 

He singled out the fire department volunteers and all others who volunteer in community service on boards and commissions and in all the other organizations that make the town work.

The exhibit is open daily between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. and on Sunday, after church, until April 30. More of Zuckerman’s works can be viewed at www.scottzuckermanart.com.