The public and public library staff members in Westchester and surrounding counties are invited to attend the opening reception on Sunday from 2-4 p.m. in the Little Gallery on the lower level.
Beginning in January 2014, two to eight Reilly League artists, working at the Reilly League Studio in White Plains, captured the images of Westchester Library System public librarians in a variety of mediums, including pencil, charcoal, acrylic and oil.
According to Michelle Burton, the show organizer and one of the participating artists, “it is infinitely complex and exciting to work with real people who don’t make a living posing for an artist.”
Sittings were three hours long, with multiple breaks, and most models returned to the studio twice. The FACES project reflects an appreciation the Reilly League of Artists has for public librarians.
In promotional information encouraging library staff members to pose, the artists describe libraries as a “source of nourishment for the artist” and how “they provide a tranquil atmosphere for quiet reflection and research; a necessity in today’s frenetic world”; and lastly, “libraries also provide a place where artists show their work.”
FACES of the Westchester Libraries will move to the Hendrick Hudson Library in Montrose for August.
During the planning process, Burton shared an illuminating quote from Miles Davis to describe the spirit of the show, “a collective portrait is better than a self- portrait."
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