Catch the last gallery walk of the winter and view the meticulous encaustic works of Matt Duffin and the realist book portraits of Paul Béliveau!

Paul Béliveau’s Morandi is inspired by the often pastel-toned works of Italian painter Giorgio Morandi. While Béliveau has treated book spines as subject matter before, in the Morandi series the books themselves, rather than the text that decorates their covers, are treated as the aesthetic quality. Outside reference to author, subject, and image is missing and instead, Béliveau revels in the shape and volume of the books responding and building upon each other as a methodical convergence of color and form.

Matt Duffin’s encaustic paintings use primarily black and white tones with selected pops of color to bring attention to his irreverent subjects. Employing simplicity within the imagery allows the painstaking qualities of his methodology to shine. Encaustic works are made using wax to which pigment has been added. The wax is heated, applied to a prepared wood surface, and shaped using special brushes and tools. To achieve this level of detail requires exactitude and skill. Considering the rigorous amount of time it takes to complete each piece, it is no surprise that Duffin’s themes tend to explore nostalgia, solitude and irony.