Artist Spotlight: Julia Fernandez-Pol's Paintings Inspired by Science, Beauty and the Grotesque

Bethesda's "Fair Focus" Art Exhibition artist discusses the inspirations behind her work and what her life would be like without paint.

As part of Bethesda’s Art Walk festivities, the “Fair Focus” Art Exhibition was an event for the community to enjoy unique masterpieces by reputable artists from all over the world, including Julia Fernandez-Pol. The Argentinian-American artist grew up looking either under a microscope or through a telescope. Over time, Fernandez-Pol used those same observation techniques to create her paintings. After moving across the country to Los Angeles, Fernandez-Pol is establishing herself on a new coast and her work is just getting started. Bethesda-Chevy Chase Patch: Who is Julia Fernandez-Pol? Julia Fernandez-Pol: I think Julia the artist is allowing my eccentricity to be my important feature. One of the things for me is that I love the …

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Gallery B to Showcase Local Artists in May Exhibit

Bethesda’s Gallery B’s May exhibition features work by local artists, as well as a collaborative piece to be sold for charity.

Gallery B’s May exhibition includes pieces from seven local artists who, in addition to their individual works, will contribute to a group piece to be auctioned off during the month. The exhibition, called “Seven Variations and a Conversation,” features seven artists from Dupont Circle’s Foundry Gallery: Fran Abrams, Nancy Donnelly, Naomi Taitz Duffy, Judy Gilbert Levey, Donna K. McGee, Robert Wiener and Patricia Zannie. Several of the contributors are from the area; Levey is an oil painter from Bethesda, Abrams works on polymer clay out of Rockville and Wiener is a Washington, DC, native who owns a private art glass studio. As part of the exhibition at Gallery B (7700 Wisconsin Ave., Suite E, Bethesda), the artists collaborated on a group…

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Chevy Chase Sculptor Unveils New Work, 'Vortex'

Barton Rubenstein's newest large-scale sculpture, "Vortex," is located in the courtyard of a Gaithersburg apartment building.

Chevy Chase sculptor Barton Rubenstein's latest large-scale sculpture, Vortex, recently was installed in the courtyard of Gaithersburg's Hidden Creek apartment home complex, at 559 Girard Ave., according to a statement from Barton Rubenstein Studios. Vortex was inspired by the many wind farms that Rubenstein and his family saw during a road trip across the country, the statement added. Last year, Rubenstein brought one of his sculptures—Skybound—to the 265-acre Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park in southwestern Ohio. The 30-foot-tall sculpture's destination at a public sculpture park was a milestone in Rubenstein's career, Patch reported.  And, Rubenstein—who lives in the Town of Somerset, Chevy Chase—recently announced a new commission—Botero …

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Bethesda Art Walk Popular Despite Rainy Weather

The Art Walk still drew a crowd, especially at the “Tunnel Vision” exhibition at the Bethesda Metro Station.

Despite the questionable weather and occasional rain, Bethesda Art Walk still drew a crowd on April 12, particularly at the exhibition near the Bethesda Metro Station. “Tunnel Vision: Art Under the Avenue,” an exhibition featuring the work of 12 regional artists, lines the walls of the pedestrian tunnel that runs under Wisconsin Avenue. The exhibition was part of the Bethesda Art Walk this month. The Bethesda Urban Partnership created the event in 2012 with the help of the Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District, and they received a Downtown Merit Award for improving the public space. “Tunnel Vision is a shining example of excellent downtown management that delivers real results,” said David Downey, president and CEO of the International …

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Chevy Chase Artist's Fused Glass Chosen for Sugarloaf Crafts Festival

Chevy Chase glass artist Kathie Perry Lynch will be one of the more than 250 artisans to show work at the Sugarloaf Crafts Festival this month.

Chevy Chase glass artist Kathie Perry Lynch is one of the more than 250 artisans chosen by jury to show work at the Sugarloaf Crafts Festival this month. Lynch's speciality is creating hand-crafted fused glass artworks.  "Fused glass is cutting layers of glass, assembling and then firing in a kiln at between 1,250 to 1,500 degrees," she explained to Patch. Lynch began her glass career 20 years ago at Glen Echo Park. "I was interested in fiber arts but stumbled into a fused glass class instead and never looked back," she said. She was a founding member of the Glen Echo Glass Art Consortium, she explains at her online shop.  Lynch makes both sculptural and functional glass, bowls, platters, jewelry and more. "I have taken many classes from …

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Chevy Chase Artist's Work Featured in NYC Gallery

Works by Chevy Chase artist Betty Pomarede will be featured next month in a show at New York City's Agora Gallery.

Works by Chevy Chase artist Betty Pomarede will be featured next month in a show—Interpretive Realms—at New York City's Agora Gallery, according to a gallery statement. "Pomarede’s beautifully understated abstractions reveal the world of possibility that resides in a single color or shape. With oil paint and pastel, Pomarede transforms both outdoor vistas and small-scale objects into expanses of tone," the statement described her work. "Though her colors are divided into bold, angular forms, their hue and shade undulate with the utmost subtlety. In this tension between rigidity and flexibility, she finds the life of her work. There is no discernible representation of realist proportion or depth, but the artist’s chosen colors nonetheless …

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Exhibit Features Local Artists from Somerset

Works by the "Somerset Artists" include oil, watercolor, acrylic, mixed media, charcoal, prints, photography, wire sculpture and jewelry.

Looking for art to view a little closer to home than the National Mall? Check out the "Somerset Artists' " exhibit at the Friendship Heights Village Center. The exhibit features the art of artists from the Town of Somerset, and runs through Jan. 2, 2013. Works include oil, watercolor, acrylic, mixed media, charcoal, prints, photography, wire sculpture and jewelry. An opening reception takes place on Sunday, Dec. 9, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Friendship Heights Village Center. Artists exhibiting work in the exhibition include: Cathy Abramson (oil painting), Iris Amdur (acrylic and mixed media), Judy Baldinger (abstract acrylic), Makarind Dehejia (watercolor), Ursula Dehejia (water color collage), Josiane Faubert (oil painting), …

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Chevy Chase Musician Records Bethesda-Inspired Album

Chevy Chase artist Parthenon Huxley hopes his new album will be the "soundtrack" for Bethesda.

Bethesda might not be known for having a great music scene, but one local musician thinks that might change soon. Chevy Chase musician Parthenon Huxley has recently finished recording an album entitled “Thank You Bethesda,” a musical shout-out to the community he’s called home since moving here seven years ago from Los Angeles. And with the help of a successful online fundraising campaign, the record is on its way to being mixed, mastered and released. “I don’t expect my album to put Bethesda on the map, because Bethesda is already on the map,” said Huxley. “But I’d love it to be the soundtrack.” Huxley, a recording artist with a career spanning 30 years, plays with The Orchestra, a band comprised of former members of ELO. He started …

Chevy Chase Quilt Artist Donna Radner's Work Featured in Exhibit

Check out Radner's colorful, nature-inspired artwork in a quilt show running through Friday, Oct. 26, at the Johns Hopkins University Montgomery County campus.

Chevy Chase quilt artist Donna Radner is one of three artists exhibiting work in a quilt show at the Johns Hopkins Montgomery County Campus in Rockville through Oct. 26. After working for the federal government in Washington, DC, in the 1970s, "I began making quilts in 1981, at first working by hand using traditional patterns. Starting to work by machine allowed me to work more spontaneously, letting my quilts evolve on the design wall from pieced units which combined to create the design," Radner stated in her website. "My recent work is inspired by my response to nature, particularly my love of the ocean and rocky coasts of New England and the spectacular mountain ranges and canyons found in Utah, Colorado and Arizona. My landscape …

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Somerset Sculptor Ohio Bound with 'Skybound' Art

Barton Rubenstein, who designed the stainless-steel sculpture outside Somerset Elementary School, will be taking a 30-foot-high sculpture to a sculpture park in Ohio next month.

When Somerset residents Barton Rubenstein and his daughter head to Ohio next month, they'll be taking more than just a little luggage with them. In the U-Haul that Rubenstein is renting for the trip will be the giant, gleaming pieces of a 30-foot-high sculpture weighing 2,000 to 2,500 pounds. It's Rubenstein's latest artwork, and it's headed to the 265-acre Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park in southwestern Ohio. Rubenstein is a sculptor nationally known for his stainless-steel pieces, which he designs and fabricates in his home studio in the Town of Somerset, in Chevy Chase. Many of his most well-known pieces are water sculptures, although he is also known for kinetic sculptures (with parts that move in the wind or in conjunction with a water …

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