Galloway, N.J. – The Stockton Art Gallery is set to open with two new exhibitions that will run from Sept. 5 to Nov. 12.

The Lower Gallery will feature “A World Lit Only By Fire” by artists Lewis Colburn and Taylor Baldwin.

The exhibition “combines outstanding craftsmanship with extraordinary sensitivity to material, which creates work that unsettles expectations of value and meaning,” said Jed Morfit, the curator and professor of Art.

Baldwin’s “Head of An Elder” includes curated objects found amongst things that people threw away or littered the sidewalk, which results in an interesting and imagined portrait of someone made out of the world. Conversely, Colburn’s “There Are No Miracles Here (Laocoon/Flamethrower)” is a work that explores hatred, fear and the implications of such emotions in art.

“There is something universal in this dissonant juxtaposition between careful craft and chaotic content,” Morfit said. “Confronted by chaos, surrounded by the flotsam and jetsam of a failed consumer culture, we have no choice but to compartmentalize — to pick up the pieces and do our best to arrange them into a coherent whole.”

Colburn and Baldwin will share more about their work at an Artist Panel & Reception at 2 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 19 in the Lower Gallery.

The Upper Gallery will host an exhibition that celebrates the 45th anniversary of the founding of the New Jersey Pinelands National Reserve.

Curated by Kate Ogden, professor of Art History, “A Pinelands Portrait: Art of the Pine Barrens” will include work from over 20 artists ranging from painters, photographers, printmakers and sculptors to video makers, fiber artists and botanical illustrators.

According to Ogden, the exhibition is meant to celebrate both the Pinelands and the diverse artists who engage with the Pinelands for their various projects.

“With the goal of exhibiting as wide a range of art as possible, (I) looked for artists working in a variety of styles and media,” Ogden said. “The works in the show range from the straightforward to the picturesque, the scientifically detailed to the romantically expressive.”

Some of the artists are slated to have their own Artist Panel & Reception at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 4 in the Upper Gallery.

Following the main exhibitions will be the ARTV – Bachelor of Fine Arts Senior Exhibition from Dec. 3 – 8, which will open with a Meet the Artists Reception at 1 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 3 in the Lower Gallery.

In addition to exhibitions, the Art Gallery will host an event open to the public and for artists of all abilities at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 18. In “Hand Painting from Nature,” host, author and artist Laura Bethmann will teach participants the history of nature-printing botanicals and demonstrate basic techniques. Materials and supplies will be provided.

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– Story by Loukaia Taylor

– Photos submitted