More nature-prompted art at the ARTery

The ARTery Gallery’s September exhibit is titled “Picking Up the Pieces,” bringing together the works of three artists: creative designer Bill Rabsey, painter and collage artist Liza J. Smith-Simpson, and printmaker Carol M. Mainardi.

Rabsey enjoys working with various metals in all types of conditions and shapes. Often his creations contain “found objects” that he’s discovered during his travels. Even rusting and weathered objects catch Rabsey’s eye because he’s drawn to their texture, color, and shapes. These elements or “pieces” form the raw material for Rabsey’s structural designs which he turns into wall art or free-standing creative statements. Rabsey watched his grandfather paint and draw as a commercial artist. Now Rabsey says his home is filled with artwork.

Smith-Simpson sold her first painting while in grammar school. From the beginning she created landscapes as well as abstracts and has matured to a versatile multimedia artist of watercolor, oil, collage and acrylic paintings. Liza has taken workshops with abstract artist Robert Burridge, based in California, and with collage artist and poet Joan Hall, a resident of Westbeth Artist Community in Manhattan’s West Village.

When Smith-Simpson begins a new work, her choice of colors, scenes, collage items, and acrylic skins are the “pieces” she uses to express joy, sorrow, remembrances, and new expectations. Her recent accolades include being featured artist at the New Jersey State Fair in August of 2022 and in May 2022 a first place award from the Art Association in Roxbury, for “Autumn Mood”, an acrylic landscape. In this show Smith-Simpson will be introducing her new series titled “Pieces”, in which she uses collage pieces and acrylic skins.

Mainardi views art as a healing medium. She interprets “Picking up the Pieces” as shifting or transitioning through the challenging circumstances of life. Mainardi illustrates this with her series of original drawings called “Time,” using drawings of Celtic mandalas (geometric configurations). Each mandala serves as an account of a moment in time. Essentially, these are monotypes or monoprints. No two prints are alike. This medium combines printing, painting, and drawing.

You can meet Bill Rabsey, Liza Smith-Simpson, and Carol Mainardi at their opening reception on Saturday, September 10, from 6-9 p.m. Refreshments will be served. The ARTery welcomes the public to this free cultural event.