UP SO CLOSE paintings by Judy Gittelsohn at Dr. Martin Luther King Library in San Jose

At this point in time, as a painter, tooting my own horn is a must.  So hear me  toot, holler and sing.  

Currently on exhibition - through April 5, 2013 at the Martin Luther King Library in San Jose are paintings by moi.  The show is titled UP SO CLOSE and features over 30 acrylic figurative and abstract paintings. 

UP SO CLOSE  is a study into how close we can be.  How much of another being can we get into focus?  How can I be separate and together at the same time?  The paintings in this exhibition travel into the center of the room and rest you at the painting “WE”.  “WE” is a destination painting.  The “W” bounces and bounds off into the distance and the “E” is singing and spiraling round and round.  As I worked on these paintings and thought about this subject, I solved my riddle, - “what is the point?” and landed on an idea that one point of being is to be “WE”. In other words, the exchanges of this existence are where life, growth and creativity reside. 

The Library is worth a visit. The marvelous MLK Library is city library and San Jose State University Library as well.  There is art everywhere, a Beethoven room with old, and I mean old harpsichords, a Steinbeck room, a California room and the place is chock full of books and people.  My two favorite art installations are the Beehive - for holding dissertations and Beethoven's ear.  Those are both located on the 5th floor. 

At a recent event at the Bing Auditorium, the conducter spoke of the room as part of the instrument.  I love exhibiting at the MLK library.  Every time I have been in the gallery library patrons are viewing and inspecting the paintings.  It is an artists dream to have so many people looking and responding.  

I am a painter and a community artist. A typical day of mine has moments of painting in my studio encircled by my work in the community. I teach art in the juvenile hall, at low-income housing in Palo Alto, and I have a studio — ART FOR WELL BEINGS — where I teach people with special needs. I also work for Golden Acrylics — the top of the line artist paint — and present to painters in our area how to use all the many products Golden offers.  I present art exercises to a range of people and then I nestle in and transmit all the influences to my own art practice.  

I invite you to see this series of paintings and the MLK Library.

Judy is an effective cheerleader; a source of comfort, support and optimism.  Her methods allow the participants to relax, feel enlivened, creative, more intelligent and intuitive about themselves.    -  Patricia Foster, Founder and Director of Girls to Women, East Palo Alto