Two new exhibits will be on display at the Kings Art Center’s Marcellus and Members Galleries, located at 605 N. Douty Street in Hanford. Beginning on January 31, paintings by Dale Laitinen and drawings by Bridgette Cervantes, which can be viewed until March 21.
Featured in the Marcellus Gallery will be “WATER”–The Watermedia of Dale Laitinen. An active workshop instructor, Laitinen has presented widely in both the U.S. and abroad.
“My paintings tend to be highly designed,” Laitinen said, “from representational to abstract, but all based on my language of shape.” The timely theme of Laitinen’s upcoming exhibit will be water–both the natural structures that source and channel it, and the manmade constructs which feed and contain it. Laitinen continued:
“Water has become a precious commodity in this age of drought and plenty. California and the West have always been a land of extremes, with the highest mountains and lowest valleys; from the wettest climates to the driest, this environment continues to challenge us. In this collection of watermedia and oil paintings I have considered the theme of water. From its source to its use; the works, without prejudice, visually examine the effects of this life-sustaining liquid on the landscape. Subjects range from High Sierra rivers and reservoirs that feed California to the deserts of the West. Other images include the engineered works of dams that contain these waters.”
Laitinen will conduct a watercolor workshop at the Kings Art Center on Friday and Saturday Feb. 6 and 7. Please contact the Art Center at 559-584-1065 for details and registration.
The Members Gallery will host Drawings by Bridgette Cervantes. Accomplished in her signature charcoal and graphite, Cervantes–whose pictures, uncannily, seem to move–will primarily display drawings of ballet. As a young child Cervantes took classes at the Kings Art Center after she “fell in love with art.” Since then she has focused on her drawing skills.
“The theme for most of this work is the ballet,” Cervantes said. “Unfortunately, due to a high school injury in a dance class, I no longer dance so my involvement is now through drawing. I have found that I am most able to capture the images I want through the use of charcoal and graphite, as these materials allow me to manipulate the medium to achieve the expressive qualities I desire.”
There will be a reception for both exhibits on Friday, January 30 from 5:30 to 7:30pm. Admission is free, and tours are given by appointment. Gallery hours are Wednesday through Friday, 11am-4pm, and is open noon to 3pm on both Saturday and Sunday. For more information call 559-584-1065.