Jim Rimi
September 1-October 2, 2010
Opening Reception: TBD
Jim Rimi’s work entails a multi-media event including original recordings of street musicians and interviews of people photo-graphed. All photographs were taken between 1983 and 1994 in homeless shelters and the subway systems of NYC. Copies of his book, New York City Underground, will be on sale; a portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Salvation Army to help restore the lives of men, women and children in New York City.

Jim Rimi

Blair Academy Faculty Show
October 4-30, 2010
Opening Reception: TBD

Larry Steele
November 2-December 4, 2010
Opening Reception: TBD
The convention Larry Steele most frequently uses in creating sculpture is that of making work to be seen in the round. He has found that explaining the value of this is most easily achieved by comparing it to another convention: the nude. Both tend to reveal the empirical world, as well as the universe of personified forces of nature, history and the psyche. They are conventions that engender a sense of exposure of content to the vicissitudes of time and the elements. And, even at their most bombastic extremes, they inevitably refer to our vulnerabilities and self-consciousness.

Douglas Graupe
December 6, 2010-January 8, 2011
Opening Reception: TBD
This show brings together two veins of local artist/alumnus Douglas Graupe’s work – black and white stippled landscape drawings and a selection of his abstract oil paintings. In each of these two styles, Graupe builds up compositions by manipulating light and shadow to create visual environments. Proceeds from print sales will go to Wrapsody of Hope to benefit children with Neurofibromatosis and their families.

Tara Whitaker
January 10-February 3, 2011
Opening Reception: TBD
Tara, an alumnus, fell in love with children’s books from visits to the local library as a child. Her passion for illustration led her to animation as well. Her education in art began early, from classes at Pratt to more formal training at RISD and Cal Arts where she earned her BFA in character animation in 2002. She has designed and animated for such companies as Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, Fox Animation, PBS, CBS, and most recently, Disney. In her work, she hopes to foster a sense of wonder for the small things in the world that are sometimes overlooked.

Naomi Nemtzow / Peter Casanave
February 7-March 5, 2011
Opening Reception: TBD
These two artists are both close observers of the urban landscape who delight in the visual surprises of shape, color and light. Naomi will exhibit both “plein air” paintings and a series of abstract collages. She uses her paintings as studies in order to create collages in which shapes become more geometric and colors more playful. Peter will exhibit photographs taken during his constant explorations of the city – traffic on city streets, pedestrians passing shop windows, musicians playing in subway stations.

Monica Bernier
March 28-April 23, 2011
Opening Reception: TBD
Bernier’s work over the last 12 years has been an exploration of invented form and shape. The content is both idiosyncratic and universal. Two dimensional structure and rhythm are accomplished through repetition, variation and echoing. She has deliberately opted for shape as a kind of iconic handwriting. In seeking the objective from the abstract, a pure emotional content can be revealed.

Annual Student Art Exhibition
April 27-May 14, 2011
Opening Reception: TBD

Alumni show: Contemporary artists
May 16-June 11, 2011
Opening Reception: TBD
This group exhibition features the art of Blair alumni from their formative years to their present work. Moving from their common Blair experience, each has pursued a professional career in the contemporary art world. In so doing, each expresses a different personal vision through a variety of medium, from traditional to experimental. Each contemporary artist contributes uniquely to the genre – some work abstractly, others figuratively; some create provocative art, others art for aesthetic enjoyment; and, some provoke dialog about social issues. All are committed to exploring their individuality and connection to the world around them.