Smithtown Township Arts Council is pleased to announce Winners Showcase 2019, an exhibition featuring the work of five award-winning artists from 2018 juried exhibitions, to be held January 19 – February 24 at Mills Pond Gallery in St. James. Regular Gallery hours are Wed. –Fri., 10 am-4pm; Sat. and Sun., 12-4pm. Visit millspondgallery.org or call 631-862-6575 for directions or information. Admission to the gallery is free. Please use our rear parking lot off Mills Pond Road, directly across from the two white stone pillars at Flowerfield, 199 Mills Pond Rd.

Four Member Showcase 2017 Winners (Shain Bard, Margaret Minardi, Robert Roehrig, Rosemary Wilson Sloggatt) were selected by juror Pam Brown. Brown taught sculpture and was the director and curator of The Anthony Giordano Gallery at Dowling College in Oakdale for 16 years. Juried Fine Art 2018 First Place Winner Jeanette Martone was selected by American art historian and author Carol Strickland.

Huntington artist Shain Bard’s paintings evoke a sense of a moment captured in time that people can all subconsciously relate to, in the way the light filters through the leaves of a small forest, the driver’s view of dappled sun shining through the trees on a Sunday drive, or of a snowy sunset on a suburban street. “It is those moments when we most fully connect to our surroundings, those held-breath moments that I am interested in. I also see the idiosyncratic forms of nature as instruments in an orchestra, and light as the conductor. I am a conduit of that light as I create my compositions. People often point to my paintings and say they know that place. Then I know that I have struck a chord in them.”

A majority of Bay Shore artist Jeanette Martone’s intricate graphite and ink drawings have evolved from her volunteer trips to the developing world, specifically the Dominican Republic, whose people have captured her heart during her volunteer stints there Her drawings capture the emotions, environment, struggles and beauty of those living on the edge of life. For Martone, bringing her talents and art supplies to the Dominican Republic was another way to give back to the people who had so generously welcomed her to their country. “My subjects are captured in a moment of time, revealing their inner grace and the beauty in the infinite details of their environment”

Northport artist Margaret Minardi’s mixed media paintings juxtapose realism and expressionism. Combining years of classical training with a pure gestural mark making, she is inspired by the Expressionists of the 1950’s collage. “I am constantly in search of new mediums and processes that can be synthesized into my works. Important to me is serendipity. Mistakes keep me interested, intellectually challenged, and excited. Within Margaret’s works the viewer is constantly challenged to interpret and reinterpret what they see. There is a narrative beneath the surface of all her works. “Each brushstroke is a voice for my inner world. I strive to provoke an uplifting emotional connection in the observer of my work.”

The inspiration for many of East Setauket artist Rob Roehrig’s paintings comes from early evening walks along sandy Long Island beaches, parks or meadows. He loves the challenge of capturing subtle color shades within the woods, reflections in the creeks, and shadows cast by Long Island sunsets. “My interest in painting and drawing began when I was a child. I retired in 2002, I decided to pursue oil painting, something I hadn’t done since high school. I soon found the versatility and rich colors of the oil medium to my liking. I tend toward realism in my paintings and I often choose subjects that highlight the contrast between sunlight and shadow.”

Bay Shore artist Rosemary Wilson Sloggatt grew up in Asheville, North Carolina. The city’s thriving arts community offered inspiration as she began to draw and paint the world around her. One of a family of avid readers, the stories and illustrations she found in the books they read provided inspiration throughout her career. Rosemary joined the Great Neck Public Schools in 1995 and has taught art there for more than 20 years. Ms. Sloggatt’s most recent work expands on that theme reflecting her experiences, personal and professional with young children. Using traditional painting techniques to interpret family images, her paintings reflect both the photographic processes prevalent at the time the photos were taken and the subsequent aging of the pictures, complete with fingerprints, creases and stains.