What do you get when you have two pairs of husbands and wives, a brother and a sister, paint, photographs, fabrics and digital images? You get the “Mix X Six” art show!
The “Mix X Six” is the Moorestown Library’s first art exhibition in its new facility. The exhibition features the art of husband and wife pairings Geoff and Sky McClain of Moorestown and Vickie and Paul Mathas of Mt. Laurel, and sister and brother duo Linda Burns and Bob Minnick of Moorestown. Each artist has his or her own artistic style and art medium that, what may seem like an odd combination, ends up creating a beautiful mix.
“I was really excited because this is the first art show at the new library, and I felt honored to be chosen for the first show,” Sky said.
The idea for the show first began when Burns, knowing that many libraries have a gallery and like to display local artists, approached library director Joseph Galbraith with the idea to display artwork in the new gallery at the new library. Galbraith, intending to do an art gallery display for the fall, gave them the first slot.
“It makes the library a more interesting place to visit. It’s not just a literary source, but an art source,” Burns said about having a gallery at a public library.
Burns then got her brother and other local artists she knew together to create the art show.
“My brother Bob is an accomplished artist and, since I have retired teaching art, I have gotten to know local artists. I know Vickie and Sky and their husbands. It was through networking and friendships that got us together. The interesting thing is they are very diverse artists in their medium,” Burns said.
Burns, along with her brother Minnick, are mainly oil painters. Burns’ work in the show is predominately oil paintings, except one portrait in pastel and one painting of a barn in watercolor. A couple of pictures are giclee prints, which is a sophisticated way of printing so many pixels and colors can be captured almost as an exact copy of the original painting.
Sky’s work is mainly in watercolor, pen and ink. Growing up on an island, near the beach in New Jersey, she is inspired by nature, specifically sea-themed nature. Some of her paintings include seashells and sandy beaches in detailed watercolor.
The fiber artist of the group, Vickie, is a quilter. Art quilts have become the medium of her artistic expression. She uses a mixed medium approach that incorporates a variety of materials and techniques for each piece. The stitching is the most important element in her fiber art pieces. It is the unifying connection for all of her works. Vicki is also one of the artists of the Nipper dogs that were around Moorestown a few years back.
Like his sister Burns, Minnick’s work is mostly of paintings. Geoff and Paul both use digital photography but in different ways. Geoff, like his wife, uses nature as inspiration. He has pictures of flowers, ferns and vines. Paul uses digital photography driven by the “what if” factor, according to Galbraith. His pictures are visual puzzles, and he creates different kinds of environments for those pictures. He also collaborates with his wife Vickie, taking photographs of her work or her taking her husband’s and sewing it into a quilt.
“I think it is so cool. It’s like a family affair; how unusual is it that the show is husbands and wives and brothers and sisters?” Vickie asked.
All these unique types of work and mediums end up blending and working well together at the “Mix X Six” art show.
“Soft mediums against the glass frames and canvases is a really nice mixture of textures,” Vickie said.
“I hope that when someone views the artwork that they can somehow form a connection with the piece and an appreciation for it. I hope all of the people can feel connected to the pieces and emit some kind of emotional response within the viewer,” Burns said.
Much of the artwork at the library is for sale. Three pieces have already sold, but shall still be on display until the end of the exhibition, which is Nov. 20. On Nov. 11 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., there will be a reception with light refreshments where viewers can talk to the artists and ask them questions about their work.
“Come over. It is a beautiful venue and there’s something for everyone because of the mix of styles of media. I hope that people will come to the reception so we can meet them and talk to them,” Sky said.
Also at the library is a display of Andy Warhol artwork and signed ephemera from the collection of Gregory McCoy, a Moorestown resident. They had the reception on Oct. 25 where James Warhola, children’s book author and illustrator, as well as Andy’s nephew, came to sign books. The artists as well as the library director recommends you come to the library to see the art shows available.
