by Audrey Anderson
Hometown Weekly Reporter
The Friends of the Sherborn Library’s Welcome Committee hosted a lovely Winter Social and art show, “Ode to the Sea,” on Saturday evening, January 20, in the library’s cozy Community Room. The evening was snowy and cold, but once inside, attendees warmed up and enjoyed good conversation and lovely artwork, while sipping wine and sampling cheese, charcuterie, and fruit.
For those new to town, the Welcome Committee provided an informative pamphlet and a book with information on town departments, social media connections and resources available in Sherborn for education, places of worship, local businesses, and activities.
The art exhibit, “Ode to the Sea,” was organized by Marney Howes of the Friends. The show featured artists Bonnie Mineo, Lisa Knox, and Tracy Maroni.
Mineo showed brightly colored relief prints of elements on the shore of an ocean. She explained that she hikes along the shore of beaches “with her head down,” studying the various shapes and lines of seaweed. Her relief prints featured seaweed forms. A sweet small octopus that Mineo observed in a shallow pool was the subject of two of her prints.
Each element in Mineo’s work was printed by hand in a separate pass through the press. Her color choices are those that appeal to her, rather than the natural colors of the subjects. She starts with one color for an element, and then chooses coordinating colors for the other elements of each composition.
Lisa Knox showed oil paintings on canvas of ocean waves. She explained that she combined elements from several of her own photographs of the ocean into each oil painting. She worked on a grid to create her compositions, and she even left the grid showing in the background of some of her paintings. This feature emphasized that the painting is an artificial construct of the natural world, as interpreted by Knox on a two-dimensional surface.
Tracy Maroni showed abstract mixed media works inspired by the light that hits the ocean at various times of the day and in various places. Her works glowed with light and evoked peaceful, serene feelings.
Attendee Brenda Goldman shared that she teaches drawing and watercolors at several local Councils on Aging. She has received grants from the local Cultural Councils to support the classes she offers and also for a show of her students’ work that will be held at the Westwood Public Library in May.
“Ode to the Sea” is the third art show that Marny Howes has produced since the stunning renovation of the library was completed. Howes invites those interested in exhibiting artwork to submit the form provided at the News and Events/Exhibits link of the Sherborn Library’s web site, https://sherbornlibrary.org/. Howes explained that she works with local artists, those who specialize in different types of art media, and artists whose work fits within the themes chosen for upcoming shows.
