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Vietnam Waterways by Robert Tortorella.
Contributed photo / Wilton Library
The work of nine local artists will give visitors to Wilton Library a respite from the season’s bitter cold when its latest art exhibition, “Winter Interlude,” opens with a free reception on Friday, Jan. 10, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. More than 70 works, representing diverse styles and subject matter, will grace the library’s walls through Thursday, Jan. 30. The Wilton Bulletin is the media sponsor for the exhibition.
Many of the artists are from previous Summer Shows at the library and most are either current or former residents of Wilton. They are Dawn Dahl, Gini Fischer, Dorothy Hyde, Trish Nelson, Rama Ramaswami, Dick Rauh (now from Westport) and Robert Tortorella. Joining the group are Frank Bordonaro of Norwalk and Bobbi Eike Mullen of Weston.
“This is such a strong group of accomplished artists. They are among the community’s favorites who return year after year,” said the library’s art chair, Ed MacEwen. “The library is a perfect place to spend time in January and reflect on this beautiful exhibition.”
The artists have diverse backgrounds that bring them to this exhibition:
Frank Bordonaro is a social psychologist with experience as an academic, executive and consultant working for major corporations in training, talent development and executive learning. He took his first drawing lessons after retiring in 2002 and has continued a long relationship with Silvermine Art Center. A volunteer art coach at Silver Hill Hospital, he and his wife, Sally, live in the Silvermine section of Norwalk.
Dawn Dahl of Wilton spent her career in health and medical public relations. Upon retiring, she began to explore painting at Silvermine School of Art, developing a kindred spirit with Wilton artist and teacher Justin Wiest. She paints primarily classical oils of still life.
Wilton’s Gini Frank Fischer has always been an artist. As the seventh of nine children, she was born quite nearsighted and had to amuse herself when she misplaced her glasses, which was often. She would draw, making something look real, and discovered that she could create. Art became what she pursued, in many mediums, for all of her life.
Dorothy Hyde, also a Wilton resident, earned her BFA from Syracuse University and an MA from the College of New Rochelle. She worked as a designer of promotional material for such companies as Estée Lauder and Holt, Rinehart and Winston. She also enjoyed being a freelance photographer as well as a high school art teacher. Her artistic interest lies primarily in painting scenes from nature.
Bobbi Eike Mullen has been been of late working in Impressionism. She has worked for the National Park Service for 10 years and has exhibited throughout New England. She also is an innovation instructor at G&B Cultural Center. Her home and studio are in Georgetown.
Trish Nelson has owned four different businesses over the past 40 years but now her art is taking a front seat on her life’s journey. Although her background is in illustration and photography with degrees from University of Arizona in Tucson, she yearns to paint and draw landscapes and vignettes that tell a story or depict a mood. She most recently lived in Wilton.
Rama Ramaswami has been a business journalist for many years and has gained national recognition for using fine art and photography to enliven trade magazines. She began painting more than 30 years ago in her native India, and now works primarily in oils and acrylic, painting with a group of artists from the Rowayton Art Center. She lives in Wilton.
Dick Rauh came to botanical painting in retirement, after a career in motion picture special effects. In addition to earning a certificate in botanical illustration from The New York Botanical Garden, in 2001 he received his doctorate in plant sciences from the City University of New York. Rauh’s work won the Gold Medal and “Best in Show” awards at the 2006 Royal Horticultural Society Show in London. He has been an instructor at the New York Botanical Garden since 1994. Formerly a Wilton resident, he now lives in Westport.
Robert Tortorella is a 50-year resident of Wilton. From an early age, he had an interest in drawing and painting. After a long career as a CPA with Coopers & Lybrand, then Price Waterhouse, he retired in 2003 and continued painting as his avocation. He has worked in most mediums including oil, watercolor, pen and ink and charcoal, however, his preferred is acrylic.
Information: www.wiltonlibrary.org or 203-762-6334.