by Elizabeth Monks Hack,
The month of May is a celebration of spring, whether or not we dance around the Maypole or leave flowers at a neighbor’s door. Everywhere the flowers emerge, and soon we’ll see crops begin to sprout and mustard festoon the hillsides. It’s a time for the human spirit to dance with joy. The Cypress Gallery welcomes you to a joyful dance in paint with artist Chris Jeszeck. Her May exhibit “Pigments of My Imagination” is a celebration of all the colors of the rainbow, and of life’s abundance.
Jeszeck specializes in the technique of “acrylic pours,” which she often embellishes with an array of realistically painted animals, people, insects, flowers and fruit – whatever the poured paint inspires – although she often plans the pour around a realistic theme. A favorite of mine is the delirious “Oops,” a tumbling wine glass whose burgundy contents swirl around it.
The unfettered use of color is a hallmark of Jeszeck’s work. Her pure abstractions demonstrate its expressive power. Coupled with the elaborate movement of cascading and coagulating paint, these works effect strong emotional statements. We feel the disturbed chaos of “Displacement,” and the prideful beauty of “Peacock Panache.” Some works are light and airy, in which veils of paint unfurl and float. Others are dense works, full of “accidental” detail and intrigue. Rich monochromes sing of biochemical origins; a synergy of animal, vegetable, mineral, and paint, and the artist of course.
“Ice Cave” is another favorite, in which Jeszeck uses the “cloud pour” technique with satin enamel paint, mixed into an undisclosed medium. The frosty effect is lovely. One original technique the artist developed, combining a “ring pour” with a “ribbon pour” over it, produces works of visual and psychological depth, evident in “Enigma.” Jeszeck has also produced a YouTube channel in which she demonstrates a variety of methods, as well as a clothing line embellished with her artistry. Enjoy the work of this imaginative and skillful artist, through May 29.
Our main gallery offers even more visual delights. The sunsets and silhouettes of summer are on display in Susanne Schenks’s photographs and Claudette Carlton’s watercolors. The setting sun shines atop car hoods is Schenk’s gorgeous “Sunset Reflections,” and on wet sand in Carlton’s “Paddle Board Sunset,” depicting a young couple walking towards the ocean at the end of day. In “Heron on the Rocks” photographer Tom Chrones has captured a heron hiding behind rocks at the ocean’s door, leaving the viewer to imagine just what the stalked creature is stalking.
If I’ve said it before I have to repeat it – a Monet will set you back more than most of us can make in a lifetime, but at the Cypress Gallery you will find Impressionism at affordable prices. Impressionism, Expressionism, Surrealism, Abstraction, Realism, Fantasy – we have contemporary versions of it all. Neil Andersson and Deborah Breedon are showing small, glorious plein-air landscapes this month; Diane Atturio a beautiful array of watercolor calla lilies; and Linda Gooch’s “Petite Syrah,” in which a confident blue jay looks out over vineyards, is a Santa Rita Hills keepsake.
The Cypress Gallery specializes in gifts that are also original art. New to the gallery is Joe Goetz, who has created marvelous gemstone refrigerator magnets mounted on a painted wood backgrounds. We offer handmade and unique jewelry, works in fused glass, hats, bags, cards and more. It’s May. Make art a part of your life this month. Dance for joy!
The Cypress Gallery is operated by the members of the Lompoc Valley Art Association, a 501c(3) non-profit organization, committed to expanding and supporting access to the arts in the Lompoc and Santa Ynez Valleys. 119 East Cypress Avenue, Lompoc. Thursday – Sunday, 11:00 am – 4:00 pm, or call for an appointment (805) 737-1129 lompocart.org facebook.com/CypressGallery