Kendra Baker photos
Longtime Weston resident James R. Pascucci’s paintings will adorn the main hall of the Gilbert & Bennett Cultural Center, 49 New Street, in a Visual Impressions retrospective exhibition until Wednesday, Sept. 30.
Inspired by his love for coastal New England and nature’s beauty and color, Pascucci’s paintings of gardens, barns, fences, flowers and beach and harbor scenes express the mood, color and light of Impressionism.
Pat Hegnauer, director for the G&B Cultural Center, said she and Pascucci’s wife made the decision to showcase his work.
“We showcase all local artists,” said Hegnauer, who has personally known Pascucci for 25 years. “There’s another show coming after this one of all local artists, many of whom are from all over the area.”
All the artworks in the G&B Cultural Center are for sale, said Hegnauer, including Pascucci’s. She said two of his pieces were sold during the opening reception of the Visual Impressions exhibition.
“He’s much sought after,” she said of the artist who now lives in Wilton. “He’s quite well known.”
More than 70 of Pascucci’s paintings are featured in the Visual Impressions retrospective exhibition, said Hegnauer, and all unsold pieces will remain in the G&B Cultural Center after the show.
Pascucci graduated from New Haven’s Whitney School of Art — now the Paier School of Design — and he was able to use his diverse artistic talents throughout his career — first as a General Electric Company draftsman-artist, then as an arts supervisor at the Perkin-Elmer Corporation, where he rendered technical drawings for projects like the Hubble telescope.
Hegnauer said Pascucci’s draftsmanship is more evident in his earlier paintings, and his later works become more Impressionistic.
While at Perkin-Elmer, Pascucci — who also designed sets with Bridgeport’s Polka Dot Playhouse — opened his own weekend art gallery, The Art Alcove, on Route 7 in Ridgefield.
Over the course of his 40-year career, Pascucci has exhibited in fund-raising art shows throughout Connecticut, including:
- The Dogwood Festival in Fairfield.
- The Junior League of Fairfield County in Fairfield.
- The Mark Twain Art Show in Redding.
- The Norfield Art Show in Weston.
- The Pequot Library Art Show in Weston.
He also exhibited competitively in art shows in New Canaan, Silvermine, New Haven, Guilford, Milford and Ridgefield, and has received awards throughout his career.
His paintings may also be found in private and corporate collections, including General Electric, Perkin-Elmer and Aetna.
For more information on the Visual Impressions exhibition, call the G&B Cultural Center at 203-544-0056.