(MONTCLAIR, NJ) --  Studio Montclair, Inc. presents “On the Surface,” a visual exploration of the intersections between and boundaries of two- and three- dimensional planes, on exhibit from October 28 to November 25 at Studio Montclair Gallery, 127 Bloomfield Avenue, Montclair, NJ. 

According to curator Shazzi Thomas, “Artists have stretched, manipulated, and morphed the surface of artworks in ways that challenge traditional ideas of what art can be. While surface articulation may range from flat to sculptural, there is a visual tension between the actuality of the object and the space that is simultaneously perceived. Using a variety of materials, artists are building up the plane and playing with dimensionality. They are also creating an illusion of three-dimensionality, which may require the viewer to become aware of his or her sense of form, mass, and space. Other artists allow the materials and process to create a surface that engages the sense of touch as well as sight, or they may use transparency to enable the viewer to penetrate the surface. From a limitless interiority to a built-out exterior space, the viewer experiences many aspects of spatial ambiguity as well as the intriguing interaction of medium, surface, and illusion.”

Participating Artists: Aspasia Anos, Bob Barnett, Amy Benfer, Nancy Blankenhorn, Steven Bleicher, Ritamarie Cimini, Sue Collier, Nancy Collings, Dennis Connors, David Derr, William Dooley, Margaret Jo Feldman, Andrea Geller, Suzan Globus, Judy Gould, Val Guevarra, Beth Heit, Linda Hollinger, Erin Karp, Erasto Curtis Matthews, Bud McNichol, Kathleen Migliore-Newton, Nick Milinazzo, Ann Marie Miller, Maria Morales, Leslie Nobler, Bill Sarnowski, Kenneth Schnall Schnall, Linda Steinhardt Majzner, Peter Tilgner, Loura Van Der Meule, Randi Wolfman, Susan Zimmerman

An opening reception will take place on Friday, October 28 from 7:00pm-8:30 pm.

About the Curator: Shazzi Thomas, Director of the Painting Center in Chelsea, New York for 17 years and Co-President of the Drawing Rooms in Jersey City, is also a prolific abstract painter, curator, and educator. Her work, addressing the interrelationship between design and chaos and the parallels between our external and internal environments, has been exhibited at Longwood Art Gallery, Broome Street Gallery, Eleven Ten Gallery, Brooklyn Artists Gym, and the Painting Center in NYC. Thomas has curated numerous exhibitions at Broome Street Gallery in Soho, NY.  In 2008, she gave a lecture at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on the artist Georgia O'Keefe in conjunction with the exhibition Through Our Eyes: Wuppertal/New York.

Most recently, Shazzi Thomas presented a lecture at The Maryland Institute College of Art addressing making your own luck in the art world and managing a non-profit organization. She has curated the exhibitions “Cultivate Your Own Garden,” “About Face,” “I Am My Best Work, “One in a Year at The Painting Center” and the NYAE 2020 Members Invitational at Equity Gallery. She has served as a juror for the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards and the Golden Educators Residency. In 2021, she was a guest juror for the 11th Biennial Alexander Rutsch Award and in 2022, she was offered the opportunity to nominate an artist for the prestigious Heinz Award. She also works as an assistant at Michelman Fine Art.

Studio Montclair is celebrating its 25th year as an inclusive, nationwide non-profit organization of exhibiting, professional, and emerging artists and others interested in the visual arts. The mission of the organization is to promote culture, education, equality, and tolerance through art. Studio Montclair is committed to diversity at every level. Founded in 1997, the organization includes over 500 members. Visit Studio Montclair’s flagship gallery (Studio Montclair Gallery), Leach Gallery, or virtual exhibit website (studiomontclair.online) to view and purchase contemporary art.  

IMAGES: (Top to Bottom) Aspasia Anos, "Across Boundaries"  Archival Fine Art Paper; Maria Morales, "Radiance"  Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas; Bob Barnett, "Bear Outside My Window on a Snowy night"  Encaustic Wax, cardboard, dye, ink and pigments; William Dooley, "Blue Stack"  oil and acrylic on canvas and wood;  Randi Wolfman, "Paper Bowls"  Pastel on handmade paper