“Light on Water” Now Open at Galletly Gallery

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A new school year began at New Hampton School this week, and a new gallery exhibit has launched in Galletly Gallery. Light on Water is now on display through October 12, 2021. The exhibit features oil paintings and wet cyanotypes created by Director of Visual & Performing Arts, gallery director, and resident artist Amy Wilson. The public is cordially invited to a reception for the artist on Friday, September 24, from 5:30 – 7:00 pm.

A Look Inside the Art

Wilson’s works are infused in nature, taking inspiration from her surroundings and excursions. She shares, “Time spent in nature is essential to me. It is my source of energy. It sustains me. I am extremely grateful for the beautiful, wild places where I am able to spend time. I paint and photograph moments of light in the landscape in order to re-realize, to elaborate, to share what I see and feel. I distill the light, color, and details, simplifying them to where they are efficient yet expressive, not just of the specific landscape but of my own interpretation of the energy of the moment.”

With a contrast between plein air oil paintings and wet cyanotypes, the collection evokes compelling variations on familiar aspects of the natural world. Painting en plein air offers the opportunity to “paint more than a singular moment in time, to express the feeling of being in a place long enough to experience the energy of the ebb and flow, the glint and the fog.” The cyanotypes seemingly present a singular moment while taking forethought and hours to complete. Wilson shares, “Ultraviolet light is essential to the cyanotype printmaking process. I use a process known as ‘wet’ cyanotype that combines water with the photographic chemistry. The additional water during the printing adds variety of color, marks, and depth. Throughout the hours of exposure, the botanicals react to the water and chemistry. They cook and shimmer and shrink, leaving interesting outlines that add a three-dimensionality, tracing their change, archiving the passage of time. I find the process of creating a wet cyanotype magical. While I can choose and compose the imagery, the water and light react in their own fluid way to create the final image. There is anticipation and a ‘letting go’ in the processes and a joyful celebration in the result.”

About the Artist

Amy Wilson and her family have been a part of the New Hampton School community for over 20 years. She holds degrees from the University of Maine in Orono and has studied photography extensively under the instruction of masters such as Arno Minkkinen, Christopher James, Tillman Crane, Connie Imboden,  Elizabeth Opalenik, and John Paul Caponigro, among others. Her painting and printmaking mentors include Annette Mitchell and Kathi Smith.

See the exhibit

The exhibit is free and open to the public; masks are required for all campus visitors. The Galletly Gallery is located on the second floor of New Hampton School’s Moore Center. The gallery is open Monday through Friday, 8 am to 4 pm; Saturdays from 9 am to noon.

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