“Object/Place: Works by Lee S. Brown and Art Martin” is now showing through Dec. 12 in the MCC Overbrook Art Gallery.
Overbrook Gallery hours are 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. Monday-Friday with special weekend and evening hours on Dec. 3-6 during performances of “A Civil War Christmas” in the adjacent Overbrook Theater. Call (231) 777-0324 for more information.
A free public reception will be held Thursday, Nov. 20, 6-7:30 p.m.. with a gallery talk by the artists at 6:30pm.
Sculptor Lee S. Brown and painter Art Martin are well-established artists in West Michigan whose work, at a glance, may not seem directly related. Martin’s paintings are familiar to viewers for their exquisite technique and refined composition within the tradition of realism. Brown typically works in a more abstract to nonobjective style exploring formalist arrangements of carved wood. However, when these seemingly opposed approaches to art-making comingle in collaborations the results are inventive, dynamic, and richly rewarding for the viewer.
Brown and Martin have exhibited throughout Michigan and out-of-state in various group and juried shows. Their collaborative work has been shown in two-person exhibits at the South Bend Museum of Art, the Rankin Art Gallery at Ferris State University, and the Baber Gallery at Central Michigan University. Art received his BFA from Drake University, Des Moines, IA and his MFA from Wichita State University, KS. Lee studied at Kendall College of Art and Design in Grand Rapids.
Both artists are also on the staff of the Muskegon Museum of Art. Brown is the Exhibits Preparator and Martin is the Associate Curator/Collections Manager.