Cunneen-Hackett Arts Center reception

Cunneen-Hackett Arts Center

Two New Art Exhibits In November 2021

The Cunneen-Hackett Arts Center, located at 9 and 12 Vassar Street in Poughkeepsie, NY, proudly presents two new art exhibits in their three galleries beginning November 5 and running through December 30, 2021.  Featured will be Lori Farist in the Hallway Art Gallery at 9 Vassar Street and Phillip Harris in the Hancock Gallery and the Reception Room Gallery at 12 Vassar Street.  Public Art Opening Receptions for both artists will be held on Friday, November 5, 2021 from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm.

Lori Farist is a contemporary abstract and realist painter whose style is a juxtaposition of realism and abstraction that expresses the entirety of the human personality.  “My series is a representation of a timeline of women who have helped transformed our country,” she states. “I simplified the portraits into black and white so the colors and shapes speak of the persons abstract thoughts, ideas and actions.”  Ms. Farist earned her degree in Liberal Arts with a concentration in Fine Arts in 2002 and has furthered her education by taking classes and workshops to sharpen her skills. Her work has been displayed throughout Upstate New York with a recent piece entitled REDdress (portrait of Debra Haaland, US Secretary of the Interior) winning an Honorable Mention at the show “Portraits” at the Queen City 15 Gallery in Poughkeepsie.  She is a member of the Broome County Arts Council and enjoys teaching workshops to share her love of colors, shapes, and representational art which unfolds the many layers of personality that contributes to a person. Ms. Farist lives and works in Upstate New York.

Phillip Harris is a Poughkeepsie, NY-based painter whose current exhibit at the Cunneen-Hackett Arts Center is of landscapes with many of the pieces painted from the same location in the Hudson Valley. Working with diverse and complex techniques, Mr. Harris paints the textural ”spirit “ of the landscape – thick, heavy Impasto surfaces that resonate alongside deep translucent and fluid surfaces – whereby setting up a rich and dynamic contrast.  “With places that inspire me, I often spend months at that location,” he explains. ““The landscape mirrors the range of emotions I experience…for me, it is an extension of the Divine and therefore our connection to it. What seems random and out of control really has great order.”  Mr. Harris received his BFA from East Carolina University in 1976 and his MFA from Washington University, St Louis in 1981.  His work has been exhibited at the North Carolina Museum of Art (Raleigh, NC), The Steinberg Museum (Washington University, St. Louis), The Plains Museum of Art (Minnesota) and “Seven New Artists, Pittsburgh Today” Museum of Art Carnegie Institute, and is included in private collections throughout the country.

The Hallway Art Gallery at 9 Vassar Street is open Monday through Friday from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm.  The Hancock Gallery and Reception Room Gallery at 12 Vassar Street are open Monday through Friday from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm but visitors must call the Cunneen-Hackett Arts Center Office at (845) 486-4571 for access.  The 12 Vassar Street Galleries are also open during events at the VBI Theatre.  Visit cunneen-hackett.org to review the Visitation Safety Protocols.

The Cunneen-Hackett Arts Center is a non-profit organization celebrating its 40th anniversary in the fall of 2021. Its mission is to meet the artistic and educational needs of the Hudson Valley by showcasing professional and community artists in theatre, music, dance and the visual arts, and to provide a variety of performance, exhibition and office spaces. Located at 9 Vassar Street and 12 Vassar Street in the historic downtown district of Poughkeepsie, NY, this vibrant organization is also dedicated to preserving its two beautiful landmarked Victorian age buildings and their rich historic legacy. For more information visit cunneen-hackett.org or call (845) 486-4571.