New exhibit at Cooper-Finn

MILLBROOK — The new exhibit at The Cooper-Finn Gallery, called “Animal, Vegetable, Mineral,” puts on display the paintings of John Folchi and Kathleen Gefell, joined by Rhinebeck photographer Marcia Slatkin as main exhibitors. Also featured are works from Kate Avery and Mado Speigler. The light, open gallery space — filled with just the right number of works — allows visitors to fully study the art or enjoy it, whatever their inclination.Most of White Plains artist John Folchi’s paintings are from a recent series — he does all his work in series — called Streetscape. Here one can see pedestrians, cars and a dog, all in motion, in the city. The paintings in this series possess the energy of an urban environment without being overstimulating. “I started a new series, related to Streetscape, called Pavement. And sometimes I go back to a series,” he said. Kathleen Gefelt’s paintings are almost entirely done with a palette knife, “similar to what you would use to put frosting on a cake,” said the part-time Dutchess County resident. A painting of good friends sitting in the backyard on Nantucket was especially inspiring. Equally as engaging as all the paintings are Marcia Slatkin’s black-and-white photographs, which show correspondences between human and other natural forms. The limbs of trees are like human limbs, their trunks like human trunks — both entwined in nature. “I see it everywhere, I can’t help it,” said Slatkin of her work. Slatkin also has copies of her books of poetry in the exhibit, “Not Yet: A Care-giving Collage,” about four years of caring for her mother with Alzheimer’s and “A Woman Milking,” about her years as a farmer. Susan Sontag, in an essay called “Against Interpretation,” (1964) wrote: “Interpretation is the revenge of the intellect upon art. Even more. It is the revenge of the intellect upon the world. To interpret is to impoverish, to deplete the world — in order to set up a shadow world of meanings.”At this exhibit, it doesn’t matter what category the animal, vegetable, mineral is in; instead, what matters is the viewer’s experience of the art on a sensual level.The “Animal, Vegetable, Mineral” exhibit continues until March.Winter hours for The Cooper-Finn Gallery are Fridays and Saturdays from 1 to 4 p.m. Private viewings are available Sundays through Thursdays. Call gallery owner Judy Malstrom at 845-605-1150 or email cooperfinngallery@gmail.com for details.