Best in Show: ‘On the Way to Grandma’s House’

Jeffrey Wolfson, a Livingston realtor and well-known area commercial and event photographer, was awarded Best in Show for his evocative, crepuscular pastel, “On the Way to Grandma’s House,” in the 12th annual Audrey and Norbert Gaelen Juried Art Show & Sale.

Wolfson and his wife Valerie live in Verona and are members of the Caldwell photography club, but their artistic ties are also deep in Livingston.

Wolfson, who holds a 1965 Bachelor of Fine Arts from Pratt Institute, was a top New York City advertising agency art director before relocating to this area 19 years ago. He is a member of the Livingston Arts Council and credits art instructor Alex Piccirillo of the Senior Community Center on Hillside Avenue for reawakening his practice of the fine arts.

“Alex gave me the vision and encouragement to expand my passion for my creative expression,” Wolfson said.

The awards were presented on May 22 at the JCC MetroWest Aidekman campus.

“Each of the 53 artists represented here are winners,” said juror Andy Foster, the noted photographer, instructor and owner of Gallery51 in Montclair.

Foster, his fellow judges Marjorie Frankel Nathanson, the executive director of the Hunterdon Museum of Art in Clinton, Walter Zimmerman, crafts and glass producer at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, and art collector Audrey Gaelen of Short Hills were among the presenters of cash awards to winners in six categories at the Gaelen juried show.

The Audrey and Norbert Gaelens endowment sponsors the annual event and the couple also commissioned a presentation glass piece for each honoree.

Foster was referring to the preliminary selection process earlier this spring when the three jurors chose the art on exhibition from a far larger field of entrants. The show, with more than 100 paintings, drawings, mixed media works, photographs and an unusually large selection of sculpture, is on view everyday at the JCC MetroWest Aidekman campus, 901 Route 10 East, Whippany through June 26.

It all had a strong gemütlich feeling as hundreds of artist and art lovers filled the gallery at the by invitation only reception. “Who’s your fabricator?” honorable mention sculptor Myra Grosinger was asking winner Philip Drill of West Orange. Drill’s splendid entries, “Halic” and “Playa,” were attracting admirers throughout the afternoon. Gemma Keremedjian of Denville spoke with Millburn portraitist Oscar Peterson about his predella-like images of stages in the creation of his subject in the winning “Beachcomber.”

 “It give is a whole new dimension, as if she is emerging emotionally and spiritually as she become the whole picture,” Keremedjian said.

Gaelen committee members Gary Denburg, Lois Dyer (who is also on the Livingston Arts Council), Simon Leventhal, artist Julie Levine, Doris Ann Markowitz, Fred Markowitz, and Bernard Morcheles greeted everyone. Also lending support was Carol Berman of Livingston, the manager of the Gaelen Center of the Arts. West Orange artist Lisa Suss, the visual arts manager of the Gaelen Galleries at both the Aidekman campus and the Cooperman campus in West Orange, co-coordinated the event. 

“Lisa is a gem,” Audrey Gaelen said.

Suss later commented on Wolfson’s top honor work: “Wolfson’s piece shows a masterful use of darks which is difficult in pastels,” Suss said.

Suss curates the exhibits at the Gaelen galleries on the The work of Maplewood’s Florence Wint and Millburn’s Victoria Plummer, two recent Gaelen juried art show winners and entrants this year, are currently attracting ooh’s and ah’s there. 

As to Wolfson, he’s worked extensively in oils and water color, but during a wide ranging conversation expressed his love for pastels: “Degas is my spiritual father; he used pastels extensively, especially in his theater pieces,” Wolfson said. “Pastels resonate with how I feel about color; They have a painterly quality but fresher—It’s pigment in a very pure and beautiful form—You can blend it, cross hatch it-- I can capture the light, the mood of the moment.”

The Gaelens, who are devoted to encouraging area artists and giving them platforms for their work, would be happy with Wolfson’s message. “Everyone who has put art on the back burner should enjoy the expression that art can give,” Wolfson said.

The complete list of winners is:

Photography: Miron Abramovici, “Low Tide Abstract.” Honorable Mention-Lynn Manshell, “Reflection.”

Watercolor: Susan Philips, “Take the Cake”

Drawing/Pastels: Joan Lamensdorf, “Storm Clouds Gathering. Honorable mention- Sandy Grossman, “Spring.”

Oils/Acrylic: Millburn’s Oscar Peterson, “Beachcomber.” Honorable Mention- Maplewood’s Jane Dell, “Mid-night Party.”

Mixed Media:  Peter David Harris, “Some Secret Symmetry. Honorable Mention-Jessica Kale, “Morning Light.”

Sculpture: West Orange’s Phillip Drill, “Playa.” Honorable Mention- Myra Grossinger, “Middle ‘C’”

IF YOU GO: School and community groups are welcome and a docent led tour and or lecture can be arranged by calling Lisa Suss at (973) 530-3413 or lsuss@jccmetrowest.org The exhibition is free and on view May 22 through June 26, Monday-Thursday, 7:30 a.m.-7:30 p.m.; Friday, 7:30 p.m. - 4 p.m. and Sunday, call for hours. An artist resource book is available, and most of the works are for sale.