Gallery 66 NY opens The Web of Life
Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it,” said Chief Seattle in 1855. “Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves. All things are bound together. All things connect.”
For an artist with a discerning eye, there is no lack of suitable subjects in the natural world. Anita Jacobson and Jane Soodalter share a sense of purpose and unique, creative avenues for its expression. In their exhibition, The Web of Life, opening at Gallery 66 NY in Cold Spring on Dec. 4, their purpose lies in making their viewers aware of the need for greater commitment to the preservation and proliferation of the myriad forms of life.
Jacobson, a collage artist, incorporates into her work the unexpected and pleasing presence of animals. After earning a degree in art history from New York University, she began her career as a graphic designer and photo researcher. In 1982 she co-founded New York City’s Lower East Side Tenement Museum. Her work was most recently seen in a group exhibit, The Grass Menagerie, in Summit, New Jersey.
Soodalter, a photographer, could be said to “speak for the trees,” in the words of Dr. Seuss’s Lorax. Recently, she has been exploring the anthropomorphic images found in the world around her — in trees, rocks and sand — and interpreting them through her lens. Soodalter’s work waves on one of the Beekman Street banners in Beacon.
Galleries B and C will feature small gifts, including ornaments, paintings, collage, ceramics, glass, photography and sculptures. A few of the selections are fantastical fiber animals by Marta Gutierrez and Maria Simonsson; glass bug paperweights by Linda Banks; and architectural blown glass vases by Michael Mikula.
The exhibits will be on view through Dec. 27. The gallery is open Thursdays – Sundays 12-6 p.m. An artists’ reception is scheduled for 6 to 9 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 4. For more information go to gallery66ny.com or call 845-809-5838.
