Art Reception for "Poetic Expressions"

The public is invited to attend the reception at the Bruce S. Kershner Gallery for “Poetic Expressions”.  The latest show features  the art of Richard Gene Barbera, Michael Patterson, and Merrill Steiger. The artists will speak at 6 pm. The show runs from December 4, 2021 to January 29, 2022.

Richard Gene Barbera  did drawing and painting at the University of Southern Maine before finishing his degree in graphic design at the University of Hartford,  He moved to Fairfield County after college, and designed large-scale branding identities for large international companies.  In his artwork, Gene draws most of his inspiration from recognizable images from the coastal images and especially the Portland, Maine area where he grew up. There at the Portland School of Art, he learned to practice art under visiting artists. 

Merrill Steiger is a mid-career artist living and working in Westport, Connecticut. Her work has been exhibited extensively in both solo and group exhibitions at museums, university galleries, art fairs, and in private collections and galleries nationwide.  She studied at the Art Student’s League in New York City and has a BFA in painting from Lehman College, City University of New York.  

Michael Patterson was born in Hudson, NY in 1953 into a family of painters. Howard Ashman Patterson, his grandfather, was an established American painter. Michael graduated from Suny Purchase with honors in painting, printmaking, and sculpture. He has been painting for thirty-five years or so, doing extensive traveling for inspiration. He lives and works in Roxbury, Connecticut.  Michael uses acrylics, oils, and watercolors, as well as carved stone and welded metal sculpture as his mediums of expression. His work is featured in many regional galleries and is in over 700 private and corporate collections in the United States and Europe.