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Community Corner

Les Beaux Arts Shines "Spotlight on Nature"

Greenwich artist, Maria Friscia, will open her new exhibit, “Spotlight on Nature,” a collection of landscape paintings, at Les Beaux Arts Gallery, on Sunday, February 16.  The exhibit will run through Thursday, March 20, 2014.
 
Friscia’s artwork invites reflection, as light glances off the surface of her trees and rocks, hills and fields, to places where you might get lost in a daydream. Her style is realistic but her interest and strategy veer toward abstraction. Whether the spaces are wide-open or confined, she depicts them as flattened areas and sometimes the whole is reduced to pattern. "I sacrifice details in order to improve the overall effect of the composition. It is the effect of nature that is important," she explains. Her colors are strong and stark and well suited for the sharp angles in her lines.
 
Friscia is deeply enchanted and touched by nature, "Nature frees me from all onuses of life," she explains. "Through observing nature and creating a landscape I am in constant touch with my inner feelings. The woods, the hills, the cliffs, the water - these are all motifs for inspiration and reflection of a particular experience. My art is an expression of my concept of nature."
 
Friscia attributes her love of art and music to her wonderful memories growing up in a small mountain village in Italy admiring the picturesque countryside. Her medium has been mostly acrylic but she has recently discovered oil as well. Although landscapes have been her primary interest she has explored different subjects and multi-media including experimenting with digital art. Over the past year she has been working extensively on developing her technique and exploring new themes.
 
Friscia immigrated to the U.S. at the age of twelve and lived in New York City. Despite taking art classes in college, she worked in the finance industry. After moving to Greenwich with her family, she returned to her art studies and got her M.F.A. in 1997. She participates in many exhibitions and has received several awards from the Stamford Art Association and the Greenwich Art Society.
 
Les Beaux Arts Gallery is located in the Round Hill Community Church, 395 Round Hill Road, Greenwich. The Gallery hours are: Sunday, 11a.m. – Noon; Monday – Friday, 9 a.m. – 3 p.m.; closed Saturday. The Gallery will also be closed on Monday, February 17, for Presidents’ Day. For more information, visit roundhillcommunitychurch.org or call 203/869-1091.


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