Peck on Schwartzberg

DMV artist Judith Peck reviews Deanna Schwartzberg at the gorgeous Art Museum of the Americas:

 

It was my pleasure to attend the opening reception of “Primal Connections” a one-person show by local artist, Deanna Schwartzberg, at the Art Museum of the Americas F Street Gallery.  

 

It is a deceptively simple, long, and brightly lit grand hall.  Deanna's intensely jewel colored palette and assured brush strokes lit up the space. 

  

As curator of the exhibition, “Primal Connections”, Ana Maria Ascano tells us; “Viewing the art of Deanna Schwartzberg is like reading a favorite poem.”  This thought stayed with me as I viewed an array of paintings beautifully composed, with the artist’s unique understanding of color and light.  These works spoke to me in an indirect manner, the way poetry does, igniting the mind and senses and making the artist’s subject matter all the more intense and powerful.

 

For many years, Deanna has been working with the interconnection of humanity and the world of nature. She gave an intriguing talk about how she went from nonobjective painting to finding her voice in paintings that invite us, the viewer, to discover with her the fluid relationship between body and nature.  In her larger works a powerful figure merges with an abstracted landscape. The subject matter resonates, and her color choices are so inventive that we feel we are discovering places we have been, perhaps only in a dream.

 

Along with eight large figurative pieces, the artist has an installation of 28 small painted faces.  The poem by the artist, Primal Connections, is the source of inspiration for these works. The faces, each have a feminine name for one of the elements: earth, fire and air. Each one is different and expressive in its own way.  Neither happy, sad, scared nor surprised, they appear to be centered in their own thoughts and feelings and part of the drama and wonder of the world that surrounds them.

 

You can contact the museum or the artist directly at schwartzbergart@verizon.net to find out when tours are available. Hours are by appointment only.

 

“Primal Connections”

Paintings by Deanna Schwartzberg

Art Museum of the Americas F Street Gallery, 

1889 F St NW,

Washington, DC
Opening Reception  Jan 28    Jan28 through March 6, 2015.

Contact; Art Museum of the Americas, 202- 370- 0151, for appointments and tours.