Art at the New Deal Cafe

The New Deal Cafe provides a venue for local artists to exhibit and sell their work. We have two showrooms, and each month two new shows are launched. Join us the first Sunday of every month from 7pm to 9pm at our artists' reception to meet the creative talent behind the next exhibit. Refreshments are served.

The cafe's monthly art exhibits are mounted by the New Deal Cafe Art Committee and sponsored by the Friends of New Deal Cafe Arts with support from Prince George's County. Your tax-deductible donation to FONDCA supports art at the cafe.

July 2010

A reception will be held at the New Deal Cafe on Sunday, July 18 from 7-9pm for art exhibits by Denise Marie and Charles Reiher. Music will be provided by ASKVICKI! The exhibits will be on display from July 6th through September 6th.

Color and Contrast by Denise Marie

The exhibit features ten oil paintings of sunsets, reflections, and silhouettes from original photos taken by Denise. They are intense in color with a high contrast in black.

Now living in Bladensburg, Denise Marie, originally from Pennsylvania, is a graduate of Kutztown University with a BFA in Painting. She is a member of HCAA (Hyattsville Community Arts Alliance), MFA (Maryland Federation of Art) and CAL (Chestertown Arts League). Denise curates the art gallery at the Prince George's Plaza Community Center, (Parks and Planning) and has shown locally in Montpelier Arts Center in Laurel, Circle Gallery in Annapolis, Franklins and Design Studio Art Gallery in Hyattsville. She has also shown at the Chestertown Arts League in Chestertown, MD.

Color on the Move by Charles Reiher

Charles' exhibit, Color on the Move, contains abstract acrylic paintings on canvas ranging in size from 10X10" to 30 by 40".

Charles has previously been in two group shows at the New Deal Cafe and his piece, Bottom Fish, won an award at the 2009 Greenbelt Labor Day Festival. He has participated in quarterly changing group shows at Franklin's Restaurant and Laurel Regional Hospital for the past four years. He has had solo shows at Maryland-National Capitol Park and Planning Commission, Slayton House, Quiet Waters, Mattawoman Creek Arts Center, and the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission. He has been selected for a solo exhibit at Harmony Hall Regional Center from August 23 to October 23. He maintains a studio at the Gateway Arts Center in Brentwood. His website is www.charlesreiher.com.

March 2010

The cafe will host a reception for its March shows on Sunday, March 21, from 7pm to 9pm. Music will be provided by Mateo Monk, who performs reggae and bluegrass on flute and guitar.

Chairs and Fruit by Allison Smith

Allison's folk art paintings are all acrylic 8x10s of either fruit or chairs. The price of the paintings range from $30 to $400.

Abstract Paintings 2010 by Karen Van Allen

Karen Van Allen has been a resident of College Park for nearly twenty-five years, and of the Washington area for forty years. Her paintings on display at the Cafe reflect her interest in abstraction, which evolved out of a month of classical drawing in Florence, Italy. The specificity of that training led to a desire to open up to color, shape, and fluidity. Recently, she began to notice the ubiquity of intersections in nature, and our physical environment, as well as the daily intersections with others. Therefore, five of the works in the show are the beginnings of the interest in capturing those intersections in paintings. The balance of the works are experiments in color and shape.

Karen Van Allen has had two shows of paintings at the Yellow Barn in Glen Echo, Maryland, and recently participated in a group show of abstract artists at the Yellow Barn. In addition, she has participated in the annual Labor Day Art Show at Glen Echo, as well as in the Labor Day Festival Art Show in Greenbelt. In the past few months, she participated in several art shows sponsored by the Design Studio in Hyattsville. Professionally, Karen is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with a private practice in psychotherapy in Washington, DC, and facilitates groups for women over fifty titled "Retirement" or "What Next" in Washington and in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

January - February 2010

An Amsterdam Series

Recent Green Paintings by Barbara Stevens, on display January 5th through March 1st. Join us on Sunday, January 10th for the opening reception from 7pm to 9pm. For more information, call the cafe at 301-474-5642.

Artist's Statement

This new green-Amsterdam Series was inspired in many ways by Michael Pollan's book "Botany of Desire" (a program about that book was recently aired on PBS.) It was this book which set Ray and Barbara Stevens on an extended adventure in the Netherlands. In Jan. 2006 we cashed in savings,bought a canal boat and then spent April through October for the most part of 2006-2008 living on a canal in the north part of Amsterdam. This new set of Green paintings comes directly from that experience.

The Green Painting Series started when we came back to Maryland after 20 years in New Mexico and it included the merging of local - indigenous -designs like in the New Mexico desert Landscapes. In the Maryland series, the trees,etc. were merged with Colonial quilts designs.

In the Maryland Green Paintings, I first explored that universal phenomenon of being able to see changing faces and various creatures-as in the clouds- but in the trees, hedges. Actually all that is organic, it seems, can produce fractal-like gestalts. In this Series from Amsterdam I feel that there has been some progress toward making the pleasure of seeing this gestalt phenomenon more accessible.

Should you wish to contact Barbara about her work, she can be reached by email at stvns@greenbelt.com.

October 2009

July and August 2009

From July 14 through August 24, the cafe features art from two Greenbelters, Lori and John Martin.

Ms. Martin exhibits her work in the front room. Working out of the open studio at the Greenbelt Community Center, she explores primarily celestial themes, setting both heavenly bodies and spacecraft against a rich, inky backdrop.

In the cafe's back room, John displays a variety of paintings, featuring architectural and nautical motifs. Mr. Martin's other graphic works include photos of colorful fire hydrants, as well as some of Greenbelt's varied playground equipment.

Join us for the opening for this exhibit on August 23 from 7 to 9 pm. Music will be provided by harpist April Stace Vega. Ms. Vega plays classical, jazz, and original music, both as a solo artist and as a member of the group Harp 46. April and her band have been warmly received during past performances at the New Deal Cafe.

May and June 2009

Painting Robot

Though human creativity and artificial intelligence are related in a broad sense, there is currently little crossover between the two. Pindar's art deals with exploring each and trying to find the connections.

Pindar's primary tool in this endeavor is an artificially intelligent painting robot named Zanelle. This robot not only attempts to mimic human painting techniques by using a brush to apply paint to canvas, but it also attempts to interpret and compose artwork on its own. To achieve this it uses a number of artificial intelligence algorithms (neural-nets) including but not limited to k-means clustering, back propagation, and max-nets.

Their artwork together can be seen as a collaborative effort. In this collaboration, he supply's the inspiration for its paintings in the form of subject matter. The robot then takes my seed image, and using the algorithms that he has written for it, interprets the image and produces an original composition. With the original composition in memory, the robot then directs me to mix a paint palette for use in the painting. He sets the paint out, puts a brush in Zanelle�s robotic arm, and tells it to begin painting. 12-48 hours later a painting is complete. For more info check out Pindar's web site vanarman.com.

Greenbelt & Beyond

Ron Wilder has been honing his craft of photography for many years. Recently he decided to start presenting his work at arts and crafts fairs in the Maryland and Washington, DC area as well as submitting work to gallery shows. Ron has developed an affinity for nature photography and has focused on this aspect of his work in the last year. His "passion" for the medium actually grew out of moving to digital photography. He now works totally in the digital media. His subjects include landscapes, animals, flowers, sunsets, and various other topics. He recently started dabbling in infrared photography and this is proving to be a very exciting new aspect of photography for him. You can find Ron's work on his website at mcwilder.com.

March and April 2009

In the front room, teacher and local artist Tom Baker presents his show, �Project: Be Journey.� His presentation of collages is a collaborative endeavor of the whole community. Inspiration started with the idea of refrigerator magnets of letters and words, and people's creative urge to arrange them. Tom began collecting small pieces made by many different people that include a word surrounded by emotionally and intellectually significant images. He then arranges them in thoughtful ways, lending new meanings and ideas each time. This is a fascinating project that draws viewers to participate in the creation.

In the back room, quilter Cherlyn Monk presents an array of her beautiful art quilts. Starting with learning traditional quilting five years ago, Ms. Monk quickly moved into creating her own individual and expressive designs. Recurring themes in her work include women of color, symbols of life, Egypt, and the Caribbean. Her quilting has been shown in Texas and California. Ms. Monk quilts in her home in Bowie, where she has her own Longarm machine. She says the whole house is her studio! With deep emotion and vibrant color, these quilts will move and inspire you.

January and February 2009

In the cafe's front room, Bright Side Pictures, a collaboration of three artists, presents eye-popping, fine art photographs that will surprise and entertain you. Gary Jimerfield, Rob Grant and Scott Grant, all experienced artists in video and photography, use model set design, paint, and computer abstracts to create fun and intriguing pieces in their Greenbelt studio. Their work has been shown nationally, in galleries and museums from Florida to California. Several pieces are in the Smithsonian's permanent collection. Visitors will be rewarded along this creative journey with classic glamour, historic themes, and abstract art. For more information, visit brightsidepictures.com.

In the cafe's back room, Walker Babington displays a show entitled "Torch-raiture." He creates his striking work at his family's home in University Park. Using pyrography (many forms of wood-burning) and found objects like shutters and wooden panels, he lets the surfaces suggest and inspire the subject of the work. This technique results in larger than life, haunting portraits. Walker also finds inspiration in French Symbolism, especially the work of Redon and Moreau. For more information and commissions, send email to walkerbabington@gmail.com.

August 2008

Two for One

"2 for 1", an exhibit of drawings by Barbara McGee and photographs by her daughter, Nora Simon, runs through August 31.

Barbara McGee exhibits pencil drawings of figures, the main subjects since she attended art school. She illustrated children's books and designed greeting cards for her own company for many years, and has now returned to her first love, drawing.

Nora Simon exhibits recent color photographs of flowers and landscapes. In contrast, she is also showing black and white photographs of scenes of Savannah at night. Nora is currently a student at the Pennsylvania College of Art and Design in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, majoring in graphic design. Her interest in photography started two years ago with a beginners photography course, and she continues to explore photography in all its facets.

Watch a "Greenbelt in Focus" segment about Barbara and Nora (3.8 MB Quicktime movie).

June 2008

Dancing

Joseph Jackson lives in Prince Georges County Maryland. He has been an artist, illustrator and photographing since 1979. He enrolled in Commercial Art during vocational high school. After graduating high school he moved from southwest Pennsylvania to Maryland and began his career. He attended the University of District of Columbia and received an associates degree in Graphic Design. As an art student he studied several styles African cloth painting, rubber stamp art, Indian paper sculpture and screen printing.

After Jackson completed the training he volunteered to teach at senior citizens homes and after school programs. As a member of the Greenbelt Photography Club he has shown with the group. The Greenbelt Photography Club has invited him to demonstrate matting and framing procedures and techniques. Jackson enjoys art and has taken many art classes at the Greenbelt Community Center. He has hung his work in the Greenbelt Community Center and the Greenbelt Arts Center.

Jackson's artwork has been viewed throughout the Washington metro area and many foreign countries. Over the years he has exhibits in solo shows at Prince Georges Public libraries, the District of Columbia public libraries, the Prince Georges Artist Association, and Maryland National Capitol Parks Planning Commission. He is currently in a group show at Landover Dental Offices.

Jackson believes fun is the driving force of his profession. He is always seeking new ideas and techniques to add impact and interest to his work. Though he has no favorite art medium, he enjoys finding new ways to create interesting works.

This June at the cafe, Joseph Jackson will be exhibiting his work titled "Dancing". The art exhibit focuses on the beauty that dancing brings into our lives. These works will show several dance styles in various art mediums/techniques (oils, watercolors, mixed media, computer graphics, rubber stamps, photography). The exhibit runs from May 26 to June 29th.

United States Parks

Even as a child, Sarah Walker's perfectionist streak could cause her trouble. Her drawings were often discarded in irritation, condemned to the trashcan for failing to live up to the visions in her head. Years later, when her artistic energies turned to photography, the chance to endlessly manipulate an image was a large part of the appeal. "Photography allows me to start with something, to capture a reflection of the existing world, and share it with others," says Walker, whose show of nature photography debuts in the month of June at the New Deal Cafe.

While her portrait and wedding photography has helped to hone her eye and sustain her professional growth as a photographer, capturing and interpreting the natural world is Walker's passion. Many of the images in the New Deal series were shot while Walker took a cross-country journey with a friend, touring several national parks. The natural beauty of the American landscape served as the perfect inspiration, but capturing the texture and feel of these distinct locales was no easy task. "It's a challenge to transform a three-dimensional world into a two dimensional piece of art," says Walker. "The art is in capturing not just the scene, but the moment, and how that moment feels."

Shooting in more than a dozen national parks, Walker has hoofed many miles and logged more than a few backaches to get the shots she now calls "her babies." While shooting photos of Australian flying foxes for the National Aquarium in Baltimore, Walker actually climbed into an enclosure with these giant bats, whose wingspan is up to 5 feet in length. Part of her passion for nature photography, Walker says, is the chance to feel closer to the natural world.

One of Walker's husband Mike Walker's favorite images was shot while she was crossing a mountain range in Yosemite National Park. The image of mountains, grassland and sky combined is expansive. Pausing in that moment to set up the shot, Walker says, was a feeling that's hard to describe. "I couldn't believe how lucky I was," she said. "It's hard to talk about something like that without talking about a Higher Spirit."

Walkers' photos of Yosemite, and other moments in U.S. parks, are on display throughout the month of June at the New Deal Cafe, while her more commercial work exists online at www.sarahlanephotography.com.

March 2008

Student Exhibit

February 2008

Their Pretty Life

"Their Pretty Life" will feature mostly acrylic artworks ranging from subtle to bright and bold. Marshetta is a representational artist whose artwork reflects simple human enjoyment and beauty.

Painting is my joy as well as my release of emotion from within me. I started at the age of nine years old doing water colors after receiving a water color set from "Santa". But I later discovered that watercolor was just a door for me to eventually open to the world of acrylic. As I continue my love affair with acrylic I find that painting has allowed me to experiment with texture and bold color that bursts out from my soul. My art is bold, beautiful and free. My art represents love, life and me.

Marshetta was born in North Carolina and raised in Montgomery County, MD by loving parents who recognized her early love and talent for the fine arts. At the age of nine she received her first nice water color set for Christmas that added life and color to the sketches she had mostly been doing previously. This was just the tip of the iceberg because Marshetta later on discovered the wonderful world of acrylics and that was it. The love affair began. Marshetta is known for painting bright uplifting scenes of couples celebrating. Marshetta Davis is a self taught abstract representational artist who loves to depict happiness and beauty in her paintings.

November 2007

Artista Emergente

Corzo's exhibit, featuring between ten and fifteen mixed media pieces, will be displayed in the front room throughout next month with an open reception in early November.

This is not Corzo's first exhibit. Aside from participating in four student exhibits at Prince George�s Community College where he is a fine arts major, Corzo had a solo exhibit displayed at The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission and was their Cover Artist of the Month for October. His New Deal show will feature a variety of pictures using oil, acrylic, watercolor and graphite, as well as two sculptures, which will only be visible to the public during his reception.

A Laurel resident, Corzo is a native of Mexico City, having moved to the United States almost five years ago. He supports himself through the profits of his art sales, having sold artwork in New York, California, Mexico, and Iceland. Corzo experiments with a range of techniques in his art, including a three-dimensional series he is preparing for an upcoming show in Baltimore. He is ambidextrous, writing with both hands and can write backwards and forwards; he even signs his pieces backwards. Though his works feature a variety of subjects, his seven year old daughter is his favorite subject, he says, and unlike the rest of his pieces, pictures featuring her are not for sale.

Corzo's exhibit will be hung in the front room of the New Deal Cafe on Friday, October 26th. A reception will be held there on Sunday, November 5th from 7 to 9pm. All are welcome to attend and refreshments will be provided.

October 2007

Mysteries and Meditations

Kliman's "Mysteries and Meditations", a large body of works consisting of large black and white oil paintings, newer smaller Paintings on Paper, and Conte crayon/Charcoal Drawings, have most recently been seen at Harmony Hall Regional Center and the U.S. District Courthouse in Greenbelt. Many of the large works, representing 12 years of Kliman's dedication to this series, have been exhibited across the U.S. in various venues.

Kliman has often been asked, "What is your inspiration?" He replies, "I didn't set out to make these paintings, but as happens so often in art, things occur accidentally." As he began this series, Kliman said, "I realized that I was embarking on a difficult artistic path: the fusion of realism and conceptualism." Although the images were conceived in a sense of suffering, of affliction, provoked by the inconceivable horror of the Holocaust, Kliman says, "...grief and suffering are universal. I feel these paintings are symbolic and identifiable for people of all religions and cultures." Ori Soltes, professor of Art and Religion at Georgetown University has said that these paintings, "convey the emotional content of memory...they take on the contours of figures...which are eerily absent...these are texts without words, caught between the realms of the natural and the preternatural."

September 2007

A Little Ways Down the Path...

Yes, that's right, just past the garden, and down the path some. There you might find a branch in the path. Not just any branch. This one has a certain color, maybe a hint of silver or red. And, over there, some clay and a few small pebbles. Keep going and you'll see more of the gifts the forest path offers. As you leave the forest and enter the fields you may find grasses of various hues. Look out there and you just might see someone else � someone looking closely at roadside bushes, seemingly searching for a gem where others may pass by without a second glance. That would be local artist Paul Downs engaging with his medium.

Paul Downs' latest show at the New Deal Cafe displays his exquisite ability to bring nature to you. His work, in the medium of found natural materials, brings the viewer refreshing and enticing images of a life lived without the trappings of modern times. Down this path you may see a canoe paddling by, a serpent slithering through, a falcon in a steep dive, or, you may hear the lone whistle of a train passing in the night, the crackle of a storytime campfire, someone splashing into the water, maybe the voice of the "King" or ... the silence in the spaces between.

So, please, come a "little ways down the path" to the New Deal Cafe this month from August 26 to September 26. And make a point of coming by on Sunday, September 3rd, 2007 from 7-9pm for an artist reception to meet Paul Downs at the New Deal Cafe.

Photographs

Linda Siadys is a professional photographer based in Greenbelt, Maryland and her body of work focuses on Nature, Contemporary Art, and Photojournalism, especially Sports. Her show at the New Deal Cafe A la Carte exhibit showcases a sampling of all her work.

In 2001 Linda picked up a camera, and with no formal education in photography or art, but a desire to be a good photographer, decided with a free spirit to photograph whatever she wanted. This approach has led to a solid portfolio in three different styles. More importantly she discovered for the first time a realization of a connection to her calling and purpose in life.

Although a lot of her images are straight-forward, typical shots, many are more abstract and artistic. A common thread through all of her work is a particular focus on the symbolism or archetype nested an image. She has always been fascinated with symbolism, because she feels it invites and engages not just the mind, but the unconscious and senses to experience what lies beyond the visual. Her Contemporary art has been embraced by the Metropolitan Arts community and DC Art Bank has purchased her work and one of her pieces is showcased at the Department of Forestry in DC.

Linda is a participating artist in the annual Two Rivers Gala, an event that raises funds and awareness for Two Rivers School. This year she had a solo nature show at the Hollingsworth Gallery at Patuxent Wildlife Refuge and was part of an impressive group show at the US District Courthouse in Greenbelt. Currently Maryland National Capital Park and Planning Commission is showcasing her boxing photography in a solo show at 6600 Kenilworth Avenue in Riverdale Maryland. To view more of her work, please visit her website at http://www.lindasiadys.com or her collections at her online gallery: http://photodawg1.smugmug.com/.

August 2007

Oils

Oil paintings of flowers, and views of Greenbelt Lake and Scotland, the latter dating from her trip there last summer researching her ancestors.

Elizabeth studied music in Europe on a Fulbright Scholarship and has a doctorate in vocal music from the University of Maryland. She has taught at the University of Papua and New Guinea. In Greenbelt, she likes to paint local scenery, and she is an active singer with her church. She has just had a book published in England in which she matched Biblical passages and other sacred writings with the melodies of great musical masters.

The reception for the August show on Sunday, August 5, will be very special. Elizabeth will have her works on exhibit, but the reception will also reflect her musical talents and enthusiasm for world music! Not only is she planning to sing, but her sister will play the flute and a new neighbor of Elizabeth's, Yuli Wang, will play traditional Chinese music on the Chinese zither. Please join us from 7pm to 9pm!

Artwork

July 2007

Expressions of One in Tissue Paper Collage

This self-taught artist works in tissue paper collage to create painting-like results. Included in show are several pieces done with only recycled tissue paper from shoe boxes, stores, and gift bags�helping to reduce our landfill if only by a slight bit! Until July 29th.

See something you like? You can reach Jan at 301-351-8022 or janlaughs@att.net to purchase a piece!

Expressions in Stained Glass

Richard teaches stained glass and mosaic classes at the Greenbelt Community Center.

New Deal Cafe

Hours

Art on the Walls