City Wide Open Studios (CWOS) in New Haven

CWOS is a month-long art festival in New Haven. This past weekend I saw a lot of art and met with many artists and friends, some new and some old. It was a good time and if you have the chance you should check it out. I wanted to talk about a few of my favorite pieces this week.  

This is by Claudia Cron.  I love the color yellow. That is one reason why this artwork resonates with me.  Another is that it is a very high contrast image, there are basically only two values.  A very dark black, and a very light yellow.  I also like the way the background "gradiates" around the dragon head.  

This is by Thomas Stavovy. The first thing that arrests me about this piece is the wonderful shade of blue that conjures up underwater images in my mind. The variation of value, color, saturation, and size is very pleasing to my eye, too.  It creates a sense of depth that allows my eye to wander from circle to circle without wanting to stop long enough to distract me.  

Where else are you going to be able to find three selfies at the same time. That's why I love looking at art, it changes my perspective of my surroundings.  This particular sculpture was an installation in one room of the Artspace gallery, where one piece from each artist participating is on display. I like the use of saturated colors and mirror surfaces on organic objects that really adds a sense of whimsy. WE NEED WHIMSY IN OUR LIVES! There's too much death, politics, and taxes not to have it.