In Philip’s New Works show at Maine Art Shows in Kennebunk, there are a few pieces featuring children at play that connect to each other. Inspired by time at the dock on Cranberry Island a few years ago, In the Moment, Double Cannon ball, Diver and Tandem celebrate summer the way Maine children have for decades… by simply playing outside.
We have all seen them – these ‘free-range’ children. Some of us were even lucky enough to have been one. They are the children who head out the door with bathing suits on underneath their clothes on a bicycle that used to belong to someone else. They are the children who, when the first light of day breaks, “go play” until summoned home for a meal, or more likely, bed-time. They are the children of Maine.
Philip was able to spend countless hours watching this phenomenon during his Heliker-LaHotan Foundation Residency. No iPads, no cell phones, no PlayStations. Just sunshine and summer. Capturing these moments on film, as well as in small studies, Frey found the magic. Working en plein air is difficult. “There is an immediacy when painting outside,” says Frey. “My paintings sometimes begin with drawings, plein air oil sketches or photographs that become the basis of larger studio works. Exploring different subjects through a series of work allows me to investigate various color palettes, compositions and paint handling within those parameters.”
These pieces will be on display until July 16th at Maine Art Shows, 10 Chase Hill Road in Kennebunk. As in all things, being there is the best way to take in the wonder that this work holds. However, they can be viewed in the on-line show at Philip Frey, New Works, or on his Artist Page on Maine Art Paintings and Sculpture’s website.
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