ANIMALIA     Janet Hammond     Robert Shiner     Jeremy Friedly

“Animalia”, a look at nature and it's many faces, from the mystical and spiritual to the whimsical and fun
Featuring Janet Hammond’s “Faces of Nature Series”, Robert Shiner’s woodcut prints, and Jeremy Friedly’s colorful glass.
Premiering Saturday, July 24, 2010, the exhibition will remain on display through the month of September.

     
left to right: JANET HAMMOND "The Peony Speaks" 15 1/4" x 23 1/4" pastel, ROBERT SHINER "Havin' a Ball" edition number 71/85, 6 1/2" x 8" woodcut,
JEREMY FRIEDLY Green Vase with Zebra Print, 18 1/8"h x 4 3/4"d hand-blown glass

JANET HAMMOND was first lured to the idea of capturing the animate within the inanimate on a journey that began with a stand of sycamore trees. Drawn by the texture and play of light at the side of the road, she pulled over and began to photograph the trees, close up and intimate. On developing the film she found to her surprise, a face of a baby in the bark of one. “So clear,” she states with awe and wonderment still fresh. “Thus began my desire to more deliberately look and capture these faces in nature in my work.”

A GRADUATE OF CORCORAN SCHOOL OF ART in Washington DC, Hammond’s career as a painter began in equine portraiture. A jockey herself, she had an intimate knowledge of horses to inform her work, and was quickly sought out by owners world wide. Though she has since moved on to explore other subject matter – interiors, musicians and still life – she remains enamored by nature’s creatures. A visit to her home recently brought me face to face with a wild turkey who had nested in her yard, approaching the door daily with a gentle call answered by Janet in like tone. “The birds,” she says, “seem to whisper and respond like the trees” nodding in time to the music emanating from her grand piano – another love, and another adventure.

ROBERT SHINER began a series of woodcuts in the 1980’s while teaching Art in the Elizabethtown Area School District. Recently retired – he first taught this young gallery owner at the age of 12 – Bob spent 30 years teaching. Sandwiched between his years at Elizabethtown and York Suburban High School, with 15 years each, Shiner operated his own gallery and frame shop, taking time to explore and sell his own work from 1977 to 1986. He holds a masters degree in Art Education from Kutztown University, Kutztown, Pennsylvania.

SHINER’S WORK ILLUSTRATES HIS MASTERY of the woodcut process, his primary medium, in images are fanciful, yet serious. Animals being central to this series, they wear titles like “Skategoat”, “Pidgeon Power”, “Rhinobird” and “Tankoceros”. Having built his reputation as a fine graphic artist and printmaker, he hopes to leave the viewer “with a smile, a respect for his insights, and a deeper contemplation”. He recently moved to Carolina Shores, North Carolina where he contentedly spends his days fishing, swimming and going to the beach.

JEREMY FRIEDLY and his partner in glass, BEN AHLGRIM established Through the Fire Studios in 2009. The studio affords them the opportunity to explore their voices through the medium of glass - blowing, slumping and casting within an old iron-works building. A recent piece, commissioned by designer Sarah Mussleman was shown in the Heller Gallery, New York City and is now in the Corning Museum of Glass in Corning, New York. Friedly studied with Terry Longenecker in Alaska the summer of 2008, and both he and Ben interned for Ryan Blythe from 2004 to 2006.

ALEX ESBENSHADE, a 2010 graduate of Elizabethtown Area High School received the Third Annual Lynden Gallery KALEIDOSCOPE AWARD for excellence in the visual arts through his photography. “Since I was little I was always trying to build a secret fort, draw some strange animal, invent a new gadget, or write a story in pictures.” The camera, not necessarily his favorite medium, seems to be an efficient way to capture the world around him in still pictures, though sketching and note-taking have become habitual as well.

LYNDEN GALLERY CELEBRATES TEN YEARS in 2010, opening their doors at 117 S. Market Street, Downtown Elizabethtown for the first time in 2000. The KALEIDOSCOPE AWARD was created by the gallery to recognize the work of a graduating senior at Elizabethtown Area High School, excelling in the visual arts and planning further study in the field of Fine Art. Lisa Clemens, proprietor of Lynden Gallery was raised in Elizabethtown and was a graduate of the high school. “The award”, she says, “is a way of celebrating the arts and giving back to the community.” Kevin Goss, head of the EAHS Art Department, presented this year’s qualifying seniors’ portfolios, the award winner selected by Linda Mylin Ross, Art Professor recently retired from the Penn State Harrisburg campus.

LYNDEN GALLERY features central Pennsylvania’s largest Fine Original Art Gallery, offering Custom Framing, Art and Interior Design Consultation to a discerning clientele. Located at 117 South Market Street, in Downtown Elizabethtown’s original Fire Hall, the gallery is open Tuesday thru Saturday 9:00 to 5:00. Evening hours are available by appointment. Directions can be found on the gallery website, www.lyndengallery.com, or by calling 717-367-9236. The gallery is handicap accessible and offers convenient parking.