"Stargazer" hosted by doubting thomas Art Gallery

     There are many places to eat in Tremont, but there is only one place where you can really feast your eyes on art. Located at 856 Jefferson St., is doubting thomas Art Gallery.  Its most recent exhibition “Stargazer” featured painters Maria Winiarski and James Jenkins.  Both artists had lived in NYC and were unknown to each other until recently.  Born in Poland, Maria still carries a rich accent.  James is African –American and hails from Connecticut.  Now they reside and create here on the West side of Cleveland, Ohio.

    An excellent draftsman, Maria, employs the narrative, not only in her images, but also in the titles she assigns to them.  Confined within a small corner is a round café table. Seated there is a blonde with cropped hair who is wearing an equestrian outfit.  “The Traveler”, suit case at her feet, drinking a full glass of wine and appears to be waiting on finishing the bottle.  A window is behind her. The viewer can see an enlarged female head floating on a pedestal.  Is it a dream or is there more to the story?

     One’s psyche and soul are grabbed by the use of paint in James Jenkins’ canvases.  His exploration  predominantly uses  female figures and heads.  Most of the women’s gazes turn right at a three-quarter profile.  His color choices, the blending, the movement, and surface treatments continue to evolve.  He demonstrated various palletes.  In some, the black paint’s character contrasts the light colored bodies which contain rich bronze and gold surfaces.

     In his latest works, James employs a pastel pallet along with juggled literary content.   The soft blues and greens of “Sunk” contain a magnified surreal self-portrait.   The effervescent bubbles and water do by no means drown the artist, but demonstrate an idealized masterpiece.

    The "Stargazer" show is now complete, but you can view new exhibitions at doubting thomas Art Gallery on Fridays from 6:00 PM - 11:00 PM.