Three artists create eclectic harmony at Gallery Neptune in the month of October.
For the past three years of his career, Joseph Barbaccia has been working with colorful, polystyrene and sequined constructions that speak to a more essential level of expression. Possessing a rich level of texture and color, the work radiates with energy similar to the bead encrusted figurative evening bags of Judith Leiber. Like curious, primitive life forms, the sculptures are invitingly playful while impressive in their execution using uncommon materials. Joseph Barbaccia studied art at Temple University's Tyler School of Fine Art in Philadelphia, PA in the 1970's. For the next eight years, he traveled through the United States and the South Pacific, concentrating on drawing and painting in a mostly representational style. In 1996, he began painting with encaustics over plaster which led to fully evolved free standing sculpture, creating pieces that employed the act of wrapping and winding materials over a mixed media framework. On view at Gallery Neptune, we see the latest in a series of polystyrene and sequined constructions that began in 2003. Joseph has had his work exhibited in numerous regional venues including the 2007 Washington Project for the Arts Annual Auction and Gala at the Corcoran Gallery of Art.
Another application of reflective, colorful material is found in the glitter art of Matthew Lawrence. Heavy layers of glitter are applied to shaped paintings on wood that express the artist's humor and sarcasm towards American consumerism. New to Matthew's portfolio are hand built, operable electric guitars shrouded in glitter, homage to the glamour and glitz of the rock and roll icon. Matthew Lawrence was born in York, England in 1965. In 1996 he became a citizen of the United States and he is currently residing in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He received his BFA degree from Brighton University in England in 1988 and his MFA in Printmaking from Tyler School of Art, Temple University in Philadelphia, PA in 1990. Matthew has exhibited extensively and received numerous grants for his work. His grant awards include two Pennsylvania State Arts Council Awards, a National Endowment for the Arts - Works on Paper Award, an Art Matters Fellowship Award, and a Maryland State Arts Council - Individual Artist Award. He has exhibited throughout the United States, most notably at The Print Center, Philadelphia, PA, The Lancaster Museum of Art, PA, and at Franklin Furnace, New York, NY.
The art of Manuela Holban creates a tactile and narrative contrast to the other art in this exhibit with a collection of small ink and pastel drawings. Skillfully drawn gestures and a dedicated understanding of color and composition pull you directly into these personal, hazy landscapes, a collection of strange and beautiful memories intermingled with symbols from art and history. Manuela was born in Bucharest, Romania where she attended the University of Bucharest and received a Masters Degree in Painting. She has lived and worked in the United States since 1987. Her work has been exhibited in numerous Mid Atlantic galleries since the late 1980's. The artist describes her work: "Since my early years I have been attracted by the power of images as a means of exploring the subjective perception of time and space. Memories intermingled with symbols from art and history are projected onto paper or canvas as from a magic lantern. They are sequences of a never-ending story.The little mechanical marionettes in my painting navigate on their wheels in a labyrinth where they meet with figures from the past: Casanova running around with his conquests, Saskia deciphering the enigma of Pascal's sphere, meninas playing with monkeys, wigged actors under arcades with chandeliers. Sometimes, the little marionettes are thrown together in what could be a fete galante; at other times, solitary, they run aimlessly on their useless, ill-fitting wheels. Are they really moving or just pretending? Are they on their own, or is somebody pulling the strings?"