2015 Alexander Rutsch Award and Solo Exhibition for Painting: Lindy Chambers

By GALLERY AND PUBLIC PROGRAM MANAGER (Star Patcher)

Pelham Art Center is thrilled to announce Lindy Chambers as the winner of the 2015 Alexander Rutsch Award and Solo Exhibition for Painting. The jury selected Chambers from over 456 applicants from across the country. As the winner, she will receive a $5,000 cash prize and solo exhibition at Pelham Art Center, May 1 – June 13, 2015, with an opening reception and free hands-on all age workshop on Friday, May 1 from 6:30-8:00PM. This biennial juried painting award and exhibition is Pelham Art Center’s only solo exhibition – all others are group shows.

Lindy Chambers was one of five finalists in a field of exceptionally strong candidates. The finalists were: Noa Charuvi (New York, NY), Brett Eberhardt (Providence RI), Susan Klein (Charleston SC), and Sarah McKenzie (Boulder CO).

Lindy Chambers resides in Bellville, Texas. Never seen in Westchester before, Lindy’s large oil paintings are funny, ironic, tender hallucinations of the Texas rural life that surrounds her. Her work is contemporary and multi-dimensional combining abstracted landscapes with pop culture icons like Hello Kitty and backgrounds that transition from pixilation to camouflage. They’re a riot of colorful trailer homes, stray dogs, satellite dishes, cartoon characters, rebellious goats and chorus lines of alligators. Chambers currently has a solo show on view at D.M. Allison Gallery in Houston and is a finalist for the Hunting Art Prize.

About her work, Chambers writes:
“My work is inspired by things that I travel by daily. The small towns and countryside where I reside offer interesting landscapes, animals, and buildings all with a unique aesthetic. Well maintained lots and acreage yield to a plethora of trash and abandoned vehicles. I see intrigue and mystery in the poor stray dogs, and in the goats that are both a pet and a food supply.”

Chambers is the eighth winner of the biennial Rutsch Award. She joins the company of previous winners Frank Trankina (2001), Mitchell Marco (2003), Dorothy Robinson (2005), Liang Gao (2007), Tracy Miller (2009), and Nina Rizzo (2011), Siobhan McBride (2013).

This exhibition is part of ARTSEE 2015, a Festival of New Work in Westchester. From March through July 2015, Westchester comes alive with vibrant cultural events in celebration of ArtsWestchester’s 50th anniversary.

More information about the artist available at: http://lindychambers.com

About the Rutsch Award
Pelham Art Center is proud to sponsor the competition and award to honor the memory and artistic achievement of Alexander Rutsch (1916 – 1997), an artist who actively supported Pelham Art Center for more than 25 years. After his death, friends and supporters of Alexander Rutsch and his family established a generous and significant fund to support a biennial, open, juried competition in painting.

The Alexander Rutsch Award and Solo Exhibition program continues Rutsch’s belief that art, like a “stone in the water sending ripples throughout the universe,” transcends all of our humanity. His extraordinary work, rich in the celebration of life and our shared human experiences, is included in public and private collections throughout the U.S. and Europe.

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Pelham Art Center 155 Fifth Avenue Pelham, NY 10803 914-738-2525 info@pelhamartcenter.org
Hours: Tuesday–Friday, 10–5pm; Saturday, 10–4pm

Directions: Located 5 blocks from the Hutchinson Parkway exit 12 and 2 blocks from the Metro North Pelham stop

These events and programs are made possible, in part, by the ArtsWestchester with funds from Westchester County Government. Pelham Art Center also receives funding from: New York State Council on the Arts, A State Agency; Westchester Jewish Community Services; hibu; Nurses Network of America; Town of Pelham; New Rochelle Campership Fund; the Rutsch Family; Bistro Rollin; Robin’s Art+Giving; Nycon; Junior League of Pelham, Prospect Hill Lunchtime Enrichment; Strypemonde Foundation; Mark Link Insurance; Broadway Electric, Owen Berkowitz; Members; and Annual Fund Donors.