5 Artists to Exhibit in Group Show

Beginning December 3rd, The Gallery at the Scotch Plains Public Library will present 5 Perspectives, a group exhibition featuring the artwork of five New Jersey women artists, each exploring her own path in the visual arts. 5 Perspectives will run from December 3, 2013–December 28, 2013, with an opening reception given by the artists on Saturday, December 7th from 2:00-4:00 p.m. 

 The five talented artists who will be featured in the show are Adrian Giuliani of Scotch Plains, Olya Powzaniuk of Basking Ridge, Judy Lanfredi of Scotch Plains, Sandra Gelman Wolf of Short Hills and Rosalia Tignini Verdun of Roselle Park. Each artist’s work offers a glimpse of her perspective of the world, capturing a thought, a mood or scene, through the use of pastel, painting, en plein air and collage.

Adrian Giuliani was introduced to soft pastels by Flora Giffuni, the founder of the Pastel Society of America. As a teen she had the good fortune of studying with Flora. Her love for pastels continued at the Rhode Island School of Design, where she graduated with a BFA in Illustration. Today, Adrian is passionately enjoying her pastel work, accepting children’s portrait commissions and frequently exhibiting. Her goal is always to capture an honest moment in time, creating portraits with energy, spirit and life. Children are her favorite subjects because of their expressive nature. Adrian is an active member in many pastel societies and has won numerous awards for her work. She was highly honored to have her piece, Jami Swimming II, juried into the Pastel Society of America 41st Annual Exhibition, “Enduring Brilliance”. Her pastel paintings were recently honored and recognized, winning Best of Show in the juried Alabama Pastel Society show and First Place in the Portrait/Figurative Category of the Pastel Society of New Jersey Member’s exhibition. Adrian is available for portrait commissions and can be contacted for inquiries at adrianpastelportraits@gmail.com. You can see more of her art on her website at: www.adrianpastelportraits.com. and  www.facebook.com/adrianpastelportraits.

Judy Lanfredi graduated from Rhode Island School of Design with a BFA in Illustration. Since studying in Rome with RISD’s European Honors Program, Italy continues to inspire and inform her paintings and collages. As a designer and illustrator of children's books including Sheep Dreams, Rhino & Mouse, Bono & Nonno, and the popular The Year You Were Born series, Judy's work received accolades from Publisher's Weekly, The Horn Book, and Parents Magazine.  She has also illustrated adult book jackets, and received an award of excellence from the Art Director's Club of New York for her jacket illustration of Chuck Palahniuk's Lullaby. She currently devotes herself to her family, teaching art, painting and collage. She is the owner of Miss Judy's Art Class, an art enrichment program in the Scotch Plains/Westfield area. Judy’s work can be viewed at www.judylanfredi.com. You can learn more about her art classes at http://missjudysartclass.blogspot.com and at https://www.facebook.com/MissJudysArtClass

Olya Z. Powzaniuk was born  in New York City and raised in Philadelphia in a bi-cultural setting. Olya's adventures in art started at the Ukrainian Art Institute which was the artistic space for Ukrainian artists in diaspora. Here she had her first workshops in drawing, wood-carving, watercolor, lithography and making Pysanky (Ukrainian Easter eggs).  Olya continued to explore these mediums during college, and also discovered sculpture classes at Temple University, Tyler School of Art and PAFA—the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. After teaching and getting her MBA, Olya came to New Jersey to work for AT&T.  She has embraced retirement and dove into pastels a couple of years ago, explaining "I wanted to explore dense color down to the fingertips, and it seemed less complicated than oil painting!"

Olya devotes her time to pastels and en plein air painting. She has earned early recognition and awards for her pastels.  She is currently a member of the Pastel Society of New Jersey (PSNJ) and the Pastel Society of America and is the Events Director for the NJSPAP—the NJ Society of Plein Air Painters. Always looking for new ways to apply her business acumen, Olya is currently on the Board of the PSNJ, as Publicity Chair.

Sandra Gelman Wolf earned a BA from the University of Pennsylvania and a JD from the University of Chicago Law School. She practiced securities law at two major New York City law firms before becoming a stay-at-home mom and an active community volunteer. Following in her mother's footsteps, Sandi paints landscapes, seascapes and still lifes in oil, pastel, and watercolor. She has been painting since 2008 and exhibiting her work since 2009. Sandi works in a somewhat impressionistic style. She prefers "...subtlety over detail, suggestion rather than an exact depiction, and a hint instead of an overworked statement." Her art has been featured in numerous shows, including a solo showing of her oil paintings: "First Show" at the Summit Public Library, the "Gaelen Juried Art Show and Sale" in Whippany, "The Mentor Program" exhibition at the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, "Pastel and Painting Students of Anne Kullaf" at the Visual Arts Center of New Jersey, and on the cover of "The Showcase" magazine.

Rosalia Tignini Verdun is a versatile artist, art instructor, former fashion designer and owner of Rosalia Bridals Boutique N.Y. The contemporary realistic artist works in oil, pastel, acrylic and charcoal. Brush strokes created with motion and energy reveal her romantic, native Italian cultural roots—her true voice—on the canvas. Rosalia's studies began in Italy and continued when she came to the U.S. with studies in New York, and then at The New Jersey Visual Art Summit, NJ. Her teaching credits include assistant to instructor Enrique Flores-Galbis, Studio Incamminati, Philadelphia, and more. Rosalia was inspired to visit museums and learn the techniques of the Old Masters, which led her to become a copyist at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in N.Y. She copied the painting "Boy Blowing Bubbles" by European artist John Simeon Chardin. Rosalia is a recipient of many awards, residencies and scholarships. This fall, Rosalia demonstrated an acrylic landscape presentation at the well know Villa Roma Resort in Callicoon, N.Y., and had a solo exhibit at the Springfield Public Library, Springfield N.J. She has also participated in many group shows. For more information on Rosalia Tignini Verdun's artwork and events, please visit her web site at: ROSALIART.COM and at youtube.com. She is available for paintings and portrait commissions by contacting her at rosav1017@yahoo.com. 

The Gallery at SPPL is open during regular library hours. . Scotch Plains Public Library programs are free and open to the public. The Scotch Plains Library is located at 1927 Bartle Avenue, one block from Park Avenue in the center of town.