Gretchen Fuss solo exhibition in Syosset
"Contentment," by Gretchen Fuss, 2010 (acrylic on canvas, 60 inches by 48 inches) Credit: Gretchen Fuss
Feel transported from this slushy landscape to semi-abstract fields of poppies at Gretchen Fuss’ solo exhibition this weekend in Syosset.
The exhibit, which opens Saturday at the Syosset Public Library and remains on view through Feb. 25, features 17 acrylic paintings mostly of poppies and other floral landscapes with intensely bright hues.
A serious fine arts painter since 2006, Fuss has had her work shown at Chase Edwards Fine Art in Oyster Bay and Northport Tasting Room & Wine Cellar, among other venues. Fuss, a Huntington resident, draws on her background as an illustrator, graphic artist, textile and greeting card designer to create patterns in her work.
“I never want to do traditional landscape patterns,” she says, adding that she doesn’t follow any specific art genre or technique.
“I end up starting out one way and it kind of finds its own way by the end of the painting. I do a lot of building up of paint, and I create sculptural shapes and let that dry. Then I come back and put washes of paint to create a certain feeling of depth and texture,” Fuss says.
And she frequently sands the work. “It’s amazing what happens because you’ll see shapes that I created at the beginning and whispers and surprises,” Fuss says.
So why the poppies?
“I try not to limit myself, but the poppies just seem to be a subject I can’t pull away from,” she says. “They’re so easy that it’s almost mindless, but pleasurable to work with them. It’s just kind of relaxing.”
Above: Photo detail of "Contentment," by Gretchen Fuss, 2010 (acrylic on canvas, 60 inches by 48 inches)
WHAT: Gretchen Fuss solo exhibition
WHEN/WHERE: 9 a.m.–9 p.m. Monday–Thursday, 10 a.m.–9 p.m. Friday, 9 a.m.–5 p.m. Saturday, noon–5 p.m. Sunday, at the Syosset Public Library, 225 S. Oyster Bay Rd., Syosset.
COST: Free
INFO: 516-921-7161, ext. 228, syossetpubliclibrary.org
