Feb. 20, 2007 – Mango Tango Art Gallery presents the Art from the Heart Exhibition with a champagne reception to meet the artists from 5:30-8:30 p.m., on Friday, Feb. 23. The show presents oil-on-canvas paintings by Mel McCuddin and watercolor and oil-on-canvas paintings by Dana Wylder.
McCuddin pours paint on a canvas and then rubs out the paint with rags, brushes and his bare hands. He uses this technique to bring out hidden figures in the paint. The result is highly imaginative figurative art, enhanced by colorful abstract backdrops. There is a prevailing metaphysical presence that addresses the duality of man's nature.
He was educated at the Spokane Art Center and Fort Wright College. His solo exhibitions have been displayed in Spokane, Seattle, Portland, Idaho and Pago Pago (American Samoa). His work has been showcased at Mango Tango for the last three years.
Dana Wylder has been exhibiting at Mango Tango Art Gallery since the gallery opened. At that time she lived and painted aboard a sailboat. She spent over a decade discovering the ways of islanders, from the culture of the San Blas Islands' Cuna Indians to the changing ways of the market people, fishermen and farmers of the Virgin Islands. She excelled at capturing island life in watercolor. Known as a watercolorist, she began painting in oils at her current land base in Idaho.
"After a very extreme snowstorm, I like to take my memories of the shimmer of water, the clear blue sky, and the colorful foliage of the islands and paint unusual compositions. My sketches, photos, and memories help me create both oil and watercolors that pay homage to the tropics. It has never been my intent to paint reality. My paintings allow me to share my feelings about what I see," she said.
At the reception the gallery's co-owner Smokey Pratt of the band 2 Blue Shoes will play original tunes and interpretations of Tom Waits, Taj and Bob Dylan.
Viewers from St. John will be provided with a complimentary shuttle for the 9 and 10 o'clock Red Hook ferries.
The show continues for one month. For more information, call 777-3060.
