Seacoast Artist Association presents Tom Glover: 'The Three Paths to Abstraction'
EXETER — The Seacoast Artist Association welcomes artist and teacher Tom Glover to their monthly Second Sunday art presentation and demo on April 14, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. A New Hampshire native, Glover has been painting on the New Hampshire and Maine seacoast his entire adult life. His mentor artist John Laurent taught him to work both abstractly and more realistically. He teaches at Sanctuary Arts in Eliot, Maine and has taught at the University of New Hampshire. He is also an oil painting restorer and works as picture framer and art restorer at Riverstones Custom Framing in Rochester, N.H.
For this demonstration Glover takes us on a journey from realism toward abstraction using examples of his own work and demonstrating his approach. “As I am concentrating on putting paint on a canvas, I also want to be aware of injecting the painting with that character that I sense while observing the rhythms of the ocean, sunlight, birds, fish and people who live, work, and die by the edge of the sea,” he says. He will outline the process of starting with an existing painting and adding elements of abstraction; re-purposing an existing painting by moving forward abstractly and painting abstract from the outset. He will demo each approach while discussing starting with acrylics and finishing in oils as well as the steps he uses to get from a blank canvas, finished painting, or an unfinished work to a completed abstract.
About his new oil on panel “Two Fish, Portland Pier” now showing through April 27 at Portland’s Greenhut Galleries in their 12th Biennial Portland Show, Glover says, "Three photos, all initially taken around the Commercial Street/Seaport area, were used to create this 'combinatory' painting. I am drawn to the waterfront and the activity therein, but this painting was not coming together until I 'rolled' the two fish into the foreground. They come from a fourth photo that I took about 50 years ago, when I was 12 or so, at a Hampton fish pier in New Hampshire.” Glover also has a solo show “Docks Reconstructed” at Cove Street Arts in Portland through May 11.
See how he does this at the Seacoast Artist Association. The event is free but donations are appreciated. The SAA is an all-volunteer non-profit completely supported by donations, exhibition fees and sales commissions. For the last 35 years, their scholarship committee has worked with local public high school teachers and guidance counselors who choose talented seniors continuing with their art studies in college or university. Last year they awarded 10 art scholarships to high school students. Donations can be made in person or online at seacoastartist.org.
On May 12 the gallery will host popular artist and teacher Bill Paarlberg with his talk and demo “The Many-Splendored Life of the Working Artist.” The gallery is located at 130 Water St., in historic downtown Exeter and is open Wednesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sunday, 1 to 4 p.m. Parking is free. See more at seacoastartist.org and follow them on Facebook and Instagram.