Near and Far
Artworks by Anne Diggory
November 15 - February 10, 2024
Anne Diggory Open Studio
On Saturday, February 3rd and 10th from 10am-4pm, Diggory invites the public to join her in her studio at 173 Circular Street, Saratoga Springs, NY. Spring Street Gallery (at 110 Spring Street) will also hold hours coinciding with the open studio from 11am-1pm.
Near and Far Gallery Hours:
Tuesdays and Thursdays 11am-1pm through February 8
Saturday, February 3rd 11am-1pm
Saturday, February 10th 11am-1pm
Otherwise, we will be open by appointment.
Opening Reception: December 1, 6:30 – 8 pm
The energy of Nature has always inspired me with its ever-shifting light and dramatic forms. I enjoy combining close observation with manipulations of the colors, shapes and relationships. – Anne Diggory
From Inspiration to Expression
Artist Talk
December 15, 7-8 pm
Diggory will talk about her work in the exhibition and the journey from initial strokes to finished work. She will talk about the theme of Near and Far, and the transitions between spaces that are sometimes clearly stated and at other times purposely obscured. She will show images of the working process in both the paintings and in the complex hybrid works that include fragments of photography. The focus of the discussion will be about how the approaches to detail, color and composition affect the expressive impact of the individual pieces.
Painting Plein Air in the Adirondacks and Southern France
Closing Reception and Discussion
February 4, 2-4 pm
Starting with a presentation about her working methods, Diggory will talk about her process of painting on site, including a large set from a three-week painting trip in the south of France. There are challenges as well as joys – choosing a segment of the landscape in both familiar and unfamiliar locations, dealing with changing light and limited time, and traveling with a narrow selection of materials. With photos of works in progress she will talk about the decisions to tweak the initial work back in the studio.
Meet the Artist
Anne Diggory has been painting out of her studio in Saratoga Springs for 45 years. Her extensive exhibition record – with over 35 solo exhibitions and 75 group exhibitions in the region and the Northeast – includes two recent museum shows at The Hyde Collection in Glens Falls and the Albany Institute of History and Art. Her work has been featured in the Adirondack Explorer, Saratoga Living, Adirondack Life and American Artist Magazine.
“The messy vitality of my visual artwork is often inspired by locations that include
moving water, dramatic spaces, changing skies and shifting light. I relish the process – with its inherent anxieties — of making the visual elements serve a larger idea or impulse. I start works as drawings or paintings on location and then continue in the studio, sometimes creating larger multilayered works that synthesize painted elements with fragments of photography and digital manipulation to better reveal the expressive possibilities of the scene.
The Adirondack region of New York inspires most of my work. It provides an amazing variety of motifs seen under constantly changing weather patterns – which has its own challenges. After painting in the area on and off over 40 years, the familiarity of the forms makes it easy to feel at home and make a personal statement with the work. I am currently working on a project, “Follow the Water,” that will present visual interpretations of the watershed of the Ausable River from the High Peaks region to Lake Champlain. I am also partial to the fascinating structures of cliff forms that can set up wonderful rhythmical structures with light or snow and reveal the forces of nature.”
Major commissions include an Adirondack scene for the Upstate Cancer Center in Syracuse and several large murals for the Adirondack Trust Company in Saratoga Springs. Public art works include a collaborative commission of art work for the Saratoga Springs Train Station and a large interactive artwork series for the Albany Institute of History and Art. Diggory researches historic painting locations for articles and lectures, including an article for the Metropolitan Museum Journal : “John Frederick Kensett’s Lake George, 1869: A Correction.” She occasionally writes an art history article for The Adirondack Almanac.
A portion of the proceeds from the sales of this exhibit will benefit the Saratoga Immigration Coalition Scholarship Fund. The Saratoga Immigration Coalition(SIC), a network of civic groups, faith communities and concerned individuals, seeks to foster, through support, education and advocacy, a community that is welcoming to all immigrants without regard to legal status.
SIC oversees a program for assisting DACA and first-generation immigrant students from Saratoga, Warren and Washington Counties in obtaining the counseling and financial support they need to apply for and/or stay in college. Students screened by a SIC working group, including service providers who work directly with the students and their families, are eligible for scholarships of up to $800 per student per semester. This does not cover full cost (about $2800 at a community college) but it meaningfully reduces the financial burden on each student while sharing available funds equitably over a greater number of students. Funds from SIC are paid directly to the student’s college or school, and come with the expectation that the student maintain a 2.5 GPA and a minimum number of credit hours (12 in most cases). Each year one student who shows exceptional promise in academic ability and career goals is honored with an Alfred Z. Solomon Immigrant Promise Scholarship, made possible by an endowment gift from the Alfred Z. Solomon Charitable Trust.
Press
518 Profiles Article: Click Here
Sanctuary for Independent Media Interview: Click Here
Near and Far is open to the public Feb. 3rd & 10th 11am-1 pm or by appointment. To set up an appointment, please contact Belinda Colón at springstreetgallerylist@gmail.com or via text at 518-290-0660. 24 hours notice is required.