Windows of wonder: New Risen’s vision of art beyond boundaries

Windows of wonder: New Risen’s vision of art beyond boundaries

Left to right: David Noonan, Millree Hughes, and Michael St. John in front of Judith Linhare’s paintings at New Risen windows in North Canaan.

Natalia Zukerman

New Risen is a roving exhibition based on the belief that art should not be confined to museums and galleries. The two curators of the program, David Noonan and Millree Hughes, are committed to creating an inclusive, living, breathing experience that will evolve and grow but always remain true to the idea that beauty can be found in the most unexpected places.

There will be pop-up shows in various spaces across Litchfield County but to begin, there is a permanent window display at the intersection of Railroad and Main Street in North Canaan. Noonan explained, “I was driving my kids to school, and I drove by this window, and I saw it empty. I always kind of wanted to do a public art thing just because I thought it was cool.” With these windows, he explained, “You can go, and you don’t have to, like, encounter anyone. You can go see it whenever you want. You could see this in the middle of the night if you wanted to. In fact, it looks incredible in the middle of the night.” Noonan got in touch with the building owner who was on board with the idea. Hughes and Noonan then opened the first of their rotating exhibitions with three paintings by renowned American painter Judith Linhares. Born in 1940, Linhares is celebrated for her vibrant, expressive figurative and narrative paintings. Linhares gained recognition in the Bay Area culture of the 1960s and 1970s and has been based in New York City since 1980. Her work, influenced by Expressionism, Bay Area Figuration, Mexican modern art, and second-wave feminism, balances visionary personal imagery, expressive intensity, and pictorial rigor. Her paintings will be on display until mid-July at which point the windows will change over to show three new works by artist Michael St. John whose layered collages will transform the space once again.

“His work has almost got a punky quality,” said Hughes of St. John’s work. “It has a very bold look to it. But just beneath the surface, there’s a critique of minimalism against figuration, gestural painting against stiff painting, commercialism against real art.”

Gathering source materials by casting an inclusive and penetrating gaze on the world through which he moves, St. John layers newspaper clippings, found images, fragmented language, and everyday objects into captivating, collaged portraits of the world at present. His work, informed by Rauschenberg, Warhol, Ashcan School artists, and 19th-century American trompe l’oeil painting, reflects on notions of violence, tragedy, narcissism, racism, and indifference, drawing stimulating connections that kindle new and compassionate perspectives on contemporary culture.

“I usually make paintings about painting,” said St. John. “They’re informed by art history, the language of painting, what makes a painting, what is a painting.”

Hughes interjected, “Michael is a really influential painter. He’s influenced a whole generation,” to which Noonan excitedly added, “He’s big. We’re lucky to have him.”

Hughes and Noonan co-curated two shows in Falls Village at 105 Main Street this past winter and both were successful. But, Noonan said, “The one thing we ran into when we did this space down in Falls Village was that one of us had to be there all the time. So, if someone wanted to see the show, they had to make an appointment, we had to go open the door. You’re kind of like a sitting duck in a gallery which is fun because you get to meet people, but I started to wonder if there’s a way we can do something where people can just go whenever they want. That’s how I had the idea to do the windows.”

With insurance on the space and the artworks, New Risen operates with the utmost professionalism. “We do it very legit,” Noonan assured. By removing the barrier between artist and audience, however, boundaries are dissolved leaving room for an element of the unknown.

“We just show the work we really care about. That’s the bottom line,” said Hughes. Noonan added, “The only thing every artist has in common is that they’re incredibly brave because when you make something, you’re opening yourself up to a scrutiny that nothing else will open you up to.”

Artists are lined up for the fall with the space turning over every six weeks. While Noonan and Hughes have their eye on other spaces to potentially launch New Risen shows, there’s an excitement they share about the windows. The driving force seems to be that they are not just curating exhibitions; they’re curating experiences, reminders that sometimes, all it takes to find beauty is a simple turn of the head, a pause, and a window into another world.

Latest News

Club baseball at Fuessenich Park

Travel league baseball came to Torrington Thursday, June 26, when the Berkshire Bears Select Team played the Connecticut Moose 18U squad. The Moose won 6-4 in a back-and-forth game. Two players on the Bears play varsity ball at Housatonic Valley Regional High School: shortstop Anthony Foley and first baseman Wes Allyn. Foley went 1-for-3 at bat with an RBI in the game at Fuessenich Park.

 

  Anthony Foley, rising senior at Housatonic Valley Regional High School, went 1-for-3 at bat for the Bears June 26.Photo by Riley Klein 

 
Siglio Press: Uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature

Uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature.

Richard Kraft

Siglio Press is a small, independent publishing house based in Egremont, Massachusetts, known for producing “uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature.” Founded and run by editor and publisher Lisa Pearson, Siglio has, since 2008, designed books that challenge conventions of both form and content.

A visit to Pearson’s airy studio suggests uncommon work, to be sure. Each of four very large tables were covered with what looked to be thousands of miniature squares of inkjet-printed, kaleidoscopically colored pieces of paper. Another table was covered with dozens of book/illustration-size, abstracted images of deer, made up of colored dots. For the enchanted and the mystified, Pearson kindly explained that these pieces were to be collaged together as artworks by the artist Richard Kraft (a frequent contributor to the Siglio Press and Pearson’s husband). The works would be accompanied by writings by two poets, Elizabeth Zuba and Monica Torre, in an as-yet-to-be-named book, inspired by a found copy of a worn French children’s book from the 1930s called “Robin de Bois” (Robin Hood).

Keep ReadingShow less
Cycling season: A roundup of our region’s rentals and where to ride them

Cyclists head south on the rail trail from Copake Falls.

Alec Linden

After a shaky start, summer has well and truly descended upon the Litchfield, Berkshire and Taconic hills, and there is no better way to get out and enjoy long-awaited good weather than on two wheels. Below, find a brief guide for those who feel the pull of the rail trail, but have yet to purchase their own ten-speed. Temporary rides are available in the tri-corner region, and their purveyors are eager to get residents of all ages, abilities and inclinations out into the open road (or bike path).

For those lucky enough to already possess their own bike, perhaps the routes described will inspire a new way to spend a Sunday afternoon. For more, visit lakevillejournal.com/tag/bike-route to check out two ride-guides from local cyclists that will appeal to enthusiasts of many levels looking for a varied trip through the region’s stunning summer scenery.

Keep ReadingShow less