ILLUMINATED LANDSCAPES

ILLUMINATED LANDSCAPES
THE PAINTINGS OF DON RESNICK
Front Cover: Coastal Path, oil on canvas, 47 x 60 in.
ILLUMINATED LANDSCAPES
THE PAINTINGS OF DON RESNICK
May 25 - June 16, 2007
172 Davenport Road, Toronto, ON M5R 1J2, Canada
T 416.962.0438 800.551.2465 F 416.962.1581 E [email protected] www.odonwagnergallery.com
Member of the Art Dealers Association of Canada
ILLUMINATED LANDSCAPES: THE PAINTINGS OF DON RESNICK
He who looks on nature with a ‘loving eye,’ cannot move from his dwelling without the salutation of
beauty; even in the city the deep blue sky and drifting clouds appeal to him. And if to escape its turmoil—if
only to obtain a free horizon, land and water in the play of light and shadow yields delight—let him be
transported to those favored regions, where the features of the earth are more varied, or yet add the sunset,
that wreath of glory daily bound around the world, and he, indeed, drinks from pleasure’s purest cup.

Excerpt from Thomas Cole, ‘Essay on American Scenery.’ 1836
The conceptualization of nature leads sometimes to paradoxical conclusions, yet the relationship
between man and his natural environment continues to be one that many artists strive to navigate. Don
Resnick is one such artist who explores the expressive possibilities of landscape, and his oeuvre, spanning fifty
years, reflects the very crux of the matter: that landscape is an ever-shifting, elusive construct. It has been the
object of contemplation for as long as humans have been able to articulate their own subjectivity, and Resnick
upholds the artistic tradition of granting the landscape aesthetic primacy. Landscape painting is a genre that
only the bravest still pursue, and Resnick makes a strong argument for the appropriateness of the medium in
conveying to the viewer the tactility, sensuousness, and dynamism of nature.
The works in this exhibition convey to the viewer Resnick’s ardent faith in the restorative qualities of
resting one’s eyes on a scene that demands very little in return. We are granted a glimpse of Resnick’s private
moments, where he shares his personal experience of the land from which he gains so much fulfillment. If we
acquire a new perspective on nature through nuances of light and space, or are even just reminded of its need
for future protection, then Resnick is pleased. Ultimately, Resnick speaks to the mythic tradition of landscape,
the idea that we are collectively defined by our environment; our habitus is rooted in this space; a notion that
many take for granted—we cannot see the forest for the trees. Resnick takes pause, engages in the simple
act of looking, and reminds us what we stand to miss in the lush, tranquil sublimity of the wilderness beyond
the city.
Light is a principal element in Resnick’s work, and the ephemeral qualities of the sun’s diluted rays
upon the contours of land guide the viewer though the composition. In Coastal Path, we are dwarfed in
comparison to the cluster of trees that stand before us. Patches of light illuminate the ground and create
a visual path up, around, and finally down to the waters that lie below. Instantly, we are reminded of the
Impressionists’ studies of light—its fluid, transient qualities—and their unprecedented technique of using a
multitude of pigments to record the atmospheric energy of their surroundings. Uniquely, Resnick’s painterly
strokes suggest his own presence in the scene—we get a sense of his reaction to what lay before him and
witness how that is translated into the vast expanse of colour and texture before us. His deft, masterful
brushwork creates a luminous transparency often achieved through watercolour techniques, and he works
‘alla prima’ to ensure that his canvases remain lucid and buoyant.
Resnick works largely from memory and trusts instinct over concrete details of place. His spontaneous
working methodology is what allows for such intensity of spirit in his painting. Resnick makes his preliminary
sketches en plein air and uses those sketches in his studio, where he works in oils to capture that moment
of inspiration from memory. Art historian Simon Schama comments that landscape can only be a human
construct—it is a product of our culture, and exists in tandem with us. He notes that landscape is essentially
a manifestation of the mind, and its scenery depends on our recollections of it as much as on geological
formation. Since the formation of the word ‘landschap,’ by the Dutch in the sixteenth century, landscape
came to reflect nature as mediated by human vision. With this in mind, it becomes clear that Resnick’s work
is in fact a response to nature, and not a utopian attempt to recreate nature.
Resnick’s practice recalls the Romantic tradition of understanding landscape as a vehicle for
exploring our own emotional depths, and Damariscotta Lake is one such example where we are reminded
of this fact. We survey a scene that extends magnificently into the distance, where the horizon meets the
sky and embraces the coral light offered by the retreating sun. This “wreath of glory” illuminates the fields
before us, and we cannot help but feel as if we have stumbled onto this vision at the most perfect moment.
The sky is reminiscent of Turner or Constable, but we are sharing a scene that only Resnick could provide
us with—we are allowed to meditate on a vision that is so personal yet speaks to something greater, more
universal. Resnick uses the intimacy of place to articulate the powers of space.
There is a tranquil solitude that connects Resnick’s works, and he refrains from placing any figures
within his compositions. Understanding that a figure immediately calls attention to itself, detracting from the
setting in which he or she is placed, Resnick chooses, for the present, to emphasize the abstract qualities of
the land over those who might inhabit it. We are given only traces of human presence, through a cabin in
the periphery or a cottage nestled into the shoreline—never do they encroach on the scenery. In Moonlight
Toward Pemaquid, one of Resnick’s arresting nightscapes, we take note of a light flickering across the bay, but
remain transfixed by the ethereal glow of the moon. To stand before this work is a mesmerizing experience.
One shudders in anticipation of the slight chill in the air as the waves gently lap against the rocks at our feet.
Falling into synch with our own breath, our own corporeality, we attempt to digest this visual feast.
This is what we do with Resnick’s paintings—we are drawn into his scenes, lulled by the path it
presents to us. Returning to Cole’s lofty prose that characterized the Hudson River School’s approach to
painting, we recognize that Resnick departs from this tradition. Cole and his contemporaries presented the
landscape with an idealized, formal, and spiritual reverence. The magnitude of these panoramas distance the
viewer as subservient to nature. Resnick, thankfully, does the opposite. He takes us with him as he paints the
most honest and unassuming landscapes—he uses his intimate knowledge of light’s idiosyncrasies to depict
the unique spaces in which he meanders. Robert Hughes once said that space liberates, and Resnick reminds
us of this every time we rest our gaze upon his illuminated scenes. Through Resnick’s paintings we exalt
nature’s healing properties, and walk away with vision restored.
- Jane Hutchison
1 American Art 1700-1960: Sources and Documents. Ed. John McCoubrey. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: PrenticeHall, 1965
1
Coastal Path
oil on canvas, 47 x 60 in.
2
Unexpected Snow
oil on canvas, 30 x 40 in.
3
Buoy
oil on canvas, 47 x 65 in.
4
Saffron Sky
oil on canvas, 47 x 65 in.
5
Looking West
oil on canvas, 30 x 42 in.
6
Regards to Asher-Bash Bish Falls
oil on canvas, 47 x 47 in.
7
A Mid-day Walk
oil on canvas, 40 x 30 in.
8
Lone Pine
oil on canvas, 28 x 36 in.
9
Through the Trees
oil on canvas, 22 x 28 in.
10
Quiet Water
oil on canvas, 45 x 55 in.
11
Islands Offshore
oil on canvas, 36 x 36 in.
12
Amber Light
oil on canvas, 28 x 36 in.
13
Harbour Island Builkhead
oil on canvas, 47 x 65 in.
14
Towards Cushing
oil on canvas, 47 x 60 in.
15
Moonlight - Towards Permaquid
oil on canvas, 48 x 48 in.
16
Low Tide
oil on canvas, 47 x 68 in.
17
Rivulet
oil on canvas, 47 x 47 in.
18
Damariscotta Lake
oil on canvas, 47 x 60”
19
Zero Degrees
oil on canvas, 20 x 20 in.
20
Across the Bay
oil on canvas, 47 x 66 in.
BIOGRAPHY
Don Resnick was born in New York City and currently lives and works on Long Island, NY
A student of Oskar Kokoschka, Raphael Soyer, Seymour Lipton and Julian Levi. He attended Hobart College, Geneva, NY, The New
School for Social Research, New York City, and the Internationale Akademie fur Bildende Kunst in Salzburg, Austria.
SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2005
2004
2002
2000
1999
1998
1997
1996
1995
1994
1991
1989
1988
1978
“Stillness + Solitude - The Light of Maine”, Round Top Center for the Arts, Damariscotta, ME
“Works on Paper”, River Gallery, Damariscotta, ME
“Inside/Outside”, Union college, Mandeville Gallery, Schenectady, NY
“Sense of Place”, Odon Wagner Gallery, Toronto, Canada
“Earth, Sea and Sky”, Odon Wagner Gallery, Toronto, Canada
“Toward the Light”, Odon Wagner Gallery, Toronto, Canada
“Overview”, Hobart College, Geneva, NY
“Landscapes”, Wright Gallery, New York, NY
“Heckscher Museum of Art at Bryant Library, Roslyn, NY
“Poetry of His Painting”, Odon Wagner Gallery, Toronto, Canada
“Remembered Light”, Andrea Marquit Fine Arts, Boston, MA
“Light of Africa”, Andrea Marquit Fine Arts, Boston. MA
“The Environment”, Elaine Benson Gallery, Bridgehampton, NY
Nassau County Museum of Fine Art, Roslyn, NY
“Sea, Sky and In-Between”, Elaine Benson Gallery, Bridgehampton, NY
Gallery North, Setauket, NY
Adelphi University, Garden City, NY
Hofstra University, Hempstead NY
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999
1998
1997
1996
1995
1994
1993
River Gallery, Damariscotta, ME
“Recent Acquisitions”, Molloy College, Rockville Centre, NY
“Local Color”, Gallery North, Setauket, NY
“The Nude”, juried exhibition, The Century Association, NY
“The Tradition Continues”, Hammer Galleries, New York, NY
“Christmas Annual”, Greenhut Galleries, Portland, ME
“The Little Continent of Long Island”, The Long Island Museum of American Art, Stony Brook, NY
Century Artists, The Century Association, New York, NY
Contemporary Artists, Hammer Galleries, New York, NY
“Landscape at 40”, Gallery North, Setauket, NY
Gallery Artists, Hammer Galleries, New York, NY
“A Century of Collecting”, Heckscher Museum, Huntington, NY
River Gallery Artists, Damariscotta, ME
“Centurions Paint Centurians”, The Century Association, New York, NY
“Recent Acquisitions”, Mint Museum of Art, Charlotte, NC
“Expanding the Legacy”, Kresge Museum of Art, Michigan State University, Lansing MI
“New England Art in Truman Hall”, U.S. Ambassador to NATO, Brussels, Belgium
“Art in U.S. Embassy”, Skopje, Macedonia
“New Work”, River Gallery, Damariscotta, ME
“12th Annual Group Show”, Flanders Gallery, Minneapolis, MN
Annual Group, Century Association, New York, NY
“New at F.A.N.”, F.A.N. Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
Annual Group, Century Association, New York, NY
River Gallery, Damariscotta, ME
“Local Color”, Gallery North, Setauket, NY
“The Pisano Collection”, Long Island Museum of Art, Stonybrook, NY
“The Landscape”, Flanders Gallery, Minneapolis, MN
River Gallery, Damariscotta, ME
“Local Color”, Gallery North, Setauket, NY
“Morning, Noon and Night”, Long Island Museum of Art, Stony Brook, NY
“Group Show 2000”, Wright Gallery, NY
“Gallery Artists”, Wright Gallery, NY
“Gallery Artists”, Wright Gallery, NY
“Three Friends”, Gallery North, Setauket, NY
“Poets and Artists: Collaborations and Connections”, Hutchins Gallery, C.W. Post University, Brookville, NY
“Island Light”, Gallery North, Setauket, NY
“In Good Company”, Hecksher Museum of Art, Huntington, NY
“L.I. Artists Paint Maine”, Hutchins Gallery, C.W. Post University
“Holiday Show”, Gallery North, Setauket, NY
“Country Pleasures: Views of Long Island”, Heckscher Museum of Art, Huntington, NY
“Out of Italy”, Gallery North, Setauket, NY
“Artists’ Vision”, Firehouse Gallery, Nassau Community College, Garden City, NY
“Five Over Five”, Hobart College, Geneva, NY
“Local Color”, Gallery North, Setauket, NY
“Local Color”, Gallery North, Setauket, NY
“The Environment”, Elaine Benson Gallery, Bridgehampton, NY
“The Environmentalists”, Gallery North, Setauket, NY
Rubiner Gallery, West Bloomfield, MI
1992
1990
1989
1988
1987
1985
1984
1983
1980
1966
1965
1961
1960
1959
1958
Cove Gallery, Wellfleet, MA
“Changing Landscapes”, Portland Museum of Art, Portland, ME
“Rotations”, Andrea Marquit Gallery, Boston, MA
“Local Color”, Gallery North, Setauket, NY
“New Artists”, Odon Wagner Gallery, Scottsdale, AZ
Rubiner Gallery, West Bloomfield, MI
“Land and Sea”, J.S.Ames Fine Art, Belfast, ME
Andrea Marquit Fine Arts, Boston, MA
Turtle Gallery, Deer Isle Village, ME
“Four Long Island Artists”, Martha Lincoln Gallery, Vero Beach, FL
“Agricultural Cathedrals, Long Island Barns”, Gallery North, Setauket, NY
Jayne Baum Gallery, New York, NY
“Figurative Abstraction”- Graves, Diebenkorn, Resnick, Morley, Vadia, Andrea Marquit Fine Arts, Boston, MA
Turtle Gallery, Deer Isle Village, ME
Jayne Baum Gallery, New York, NY
“Local Color”, Gallery North, Setauket, NY
“Three Artists”, Isis Gallery, Port Washington, NY
“Sunset”, David Findlay Jr. Gallery, New York, NY
“Land and Sea Revisited”, Isis Gallery, Port Washington, NY
“A Group Selection”, Country Gallery, Locust Valley, NY
Art Association of Newport Rhode Island, Newport, RI
Art Association of Newport Rhode Island, Newport, RI
Kraushaar Galleries, New York, NY
Corcoran Gallery, Lending Division, Washington, D.C.
Kraushaar Galleries, New York, NY
“New Talent”, Artists’ Gallery, New York, NY
Lenox Gallery, Lenox, MA, curator Claes Oldenberg
“New Talent”, Artist’s Gallery, New York, NY
MUSEUMS AND OTHER COLLECTIONS
Smith College Museum of Art, Northampton, MA
Nassau County Museum of Art, Roslyn, NY
Century Association, New York, NY
Mint Museum of Art, Charlotte, NC
The New York Public Library, New York, NY
Colby College Museum of Art, Waterville, ME
J.B.Speed Museum, Louisville, KY
Bowdoin College Museum of Art, Brunswick, ME
Currier Gallery of Art, Manchester, NH
Hood Museum, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH
Hillwood Art Gallery, C.W. Post College, Greenvale, NY
Hobart College Museum of Art, Geneva, NY
Portland Museum of Art, Portland, ME
Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE
Westmoreland Museum of Art, Greensburg, PA
Williams College Museum of Art, Williamstown, MA
Fred L. Emerson Gallery, Hamilton College, Clinton, NY
University of Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor, MI
National Museum of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC
The Farnsworth Art Museum, Rockland, ME
Museum of Art, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Rose Art Museum, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA
Heckscher Art Museum, Huntington, NY
Long Island Museum of Art, Stonybrook, NY
Bates College Museum of Art, Lewiston, ME
Kresge Art Museum, Michigan State University, Lansing, MI
National Archives of American Art
U.S. Department of State Purchase, Tashkent Embassy, Uzbekistan
Union College, Mandeville Gallery, Schenectady, NY
Telfair Museum of Art, Savannah, GA
N. Illinois University Art Museum, Dekalb, IL
Molloy College, Rockville Centre, NY
Art in Embassies Program, Dept. of State:
(Two paintings selected by Ambassador Dodd for the American Embassy in Uruguay)
Ambassador Mickey Kantor (painting on loan from the National Museum of American Art)
American Capital Resources Inc.
American Re-Insurance, New York, NY
Carter-Wallace, New York, NY
IBM, New York, NY
Avis Collection, World Headquarters, Westbury, NY
Klett Publishers, Stuttgart, Germany
Nippon Kodo, New York, NY
Nippon Kodo, Tokyo, Japan
Price-Waterhouse, New York, NY
Touche Ross, New York, NY
Fidelity Investments, Boston, MA
Harvest Management, New York, NY
Residence of Thomas J. Dodd, U.S. Ambassador to Costa Rica: (five works in exhibition, “Flora, Fauna, Landscape Art”)
Residence of NATO Ambassador Nicholas Burns, Brussels, Belgium
Residence of NATO Ambassador to Macedonia, Skopje; Gabarone, Botswana
Residence of U.S. Delegate to Havanna, Cuba
AWARDS, HONORS AND COMMISSIONS
Elected to membership: Century Association
“Creative Impulse” – Guest Artist – Symposium, Hobart College, Geneva, NY 2000
Hobart College Alumni Association, Medal of Excellence 1999
Long Island Art Teachers’ Association, First Prize, Watercolor
Millay Colony Foundation for the Arts
Elected Member, Artists Fellowship and New York Artists Equity
Visiting Artist, C.W. Post Print Dept.
Visiting Artist, Union College, Schenectady, NY
Nassau County Museum of Fine Art, Slide Talk
Stonybrook Museum, “Artists and Poets, Creative Forces Interpreting Long Island”, Panelist
Program Illustrations and Spot Drawings for the Waldorf Chamber Players
Drawings for Orion Magazine
Published Posters by:Graphique de France, Boston, MA
Modernart Editions, New York, NY
Color Q., Dayton, OH
CNN Television Interview, “Loaned Art” with Virginia Mecklenburg
American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters – Nominated for an Award, 1982 & 1986
REVIEWS, PUBLICATIONS AND REPRODUCTIONS
Currently collaborating with Louis Simpson, Pulitzer Prize winning poet, on a forthcoming book of poems, memoirs and
drawings.
2007
“Gallery Artists”, Catalogue, Hammer Galleries, NY
“Native Lands”, Catalogue for Permanent Collection of the Embassy of the U.S., Tashkent, Uzbekistan
2006
“The Tradition Continues”, Hammer Galleries Catalogue, New York, NY
2005
Contemporary Artists Catalogue, Hammer Galleries, New York, NY
“An Ecstasy of Place”, Orion Magazine, Mar/April
“Inside/Outside”, Catalogue, Union College, Schenectady, NY
“Stillness + Solitude - The Light of Maine”, The Lincoln County News – August 4, 2005, Damariscotta, ME
2004
Odon Wagner Catalogue, “A Sense of Place”, Essay: Peter Clothier
Multifaith Calendar, Cover and July; Cole’s Country
2003
Book Cover for “The Owner of the House – New Collected Poems, 1940-2001”, Louis Simpson, published by B.O.A. Editions
New England Art Catalogue U.S. Embassy Exhibition, NATO, Brussels
Catalogue for U.S. Embassy Exhibition, Skopje, Macedonia
2002
Archives of American Art Journal, Vol. 40 # 3 & 4, “Resnick Papers”, Avis Berman
Odon Wagner Catalogue, “Earth, Sea and Sky”, Essay by Peter Clothier
Long Island Museum of Art Bulletin, May, “Ron Pisano Collection”
2001
Hobart and William Smith Colleges, Spring Issue, Pulteney Street Survey
2000
Book cover for Louis Simpson’s “Francois Villon’s The Legacy and the Testament- (A Bilingual Edition)”, translated by Louis Simpson
Where Toronto Magazine: “Resnick at Odon Wagner”, By Betty Ann Jordan
Book Covers for Louis Simpson’s Memoirs “The King My Father’s Wreck” and a book of poems, “There You Are”, published by Story Line Press
“Donald Resnick - Drawings”, text by Louis Simpson, Grenfell Press, Printed by Trifolio, Verona, Italy. edition of 500, signed and numbered
“Poets and Artists – Collaborations and Combinations”, C.W. Post Library, Long Island, NY, Cynthia Jay, editor
1999
“The Eye of God, A Life of Oskar Kokoschka”, by Susanne Keegan, Bloomsbury Press
1998
“The Best of Drawing and Sketching”, Terry Sullivan, Rockport Publishers
N.Y. Times, Helen Harrison, June 9
Three Village Herald, Susan Bridson, May 27
1997
N.Y. Times, Phyllis Braff, January 12
“Country Pleasures, Views of Long Island”, Heckscher Museum of Art Newsletter
“In Good Company”, Heckscher Museum of Art Newsletter
1996
Odon Wagner Gallery Catalog, “The Poetry of Don Resnick”, Essays by Louis Simpson, Charles Parkhurst
Andrea Marquit Fine Arts Catalog, “Long Island Landscape, The Artist’s Vision”
American Artist, “From Eye, to Heart, to Hand”, Terry Sullivan, August
1995
N.Y. Times, “Local Color”, Helen Harrison, August 20
Andrea Marquit Fine Arts Catalog, “Remembered Light”, Essay by Louis Simpson
1994
Charles Parkhurst, Introductory Catalog Essay
The Boston Globe, “Light of Africa”, Nancy Stapin, February 3
1993
1992
1990
1989
1988
1987
1985
1983
1982
1961
1959
1958
The Boston Herald, “Artist Illuminates Africa”, Joanna Silver, February 6
Andrea Marquit Fine Arts Catalog, “Light of Africa”
Long Island Life, May
N.Y. Times, “Nature Based Landscapes”, Helen Harrison, January 23
Hobart and William Smith Colleges, “Landscape as Expression”, Pulteney Review, Winter
Orion Nature Quarterly, Winter
N.Y. Times, “A Venerable Gallery Keeps High Standards”, Helen Harrison, June 17
Graphique de France Catalog
Nassau Museum of Fine Arts Catalog, “Long Island Artists”
N.Y. Times, “A Broad Spectrum, Nassau County Museum”, Helen Harrison, February 19
East Hampton Star, “Landscapes at Elaine Benson”, Eric Ernst, July 6
Newsday, “Long Island Artists’ Exhibition” Karen Lipson, February 3
Modernart Editions Catalog
N.Y. Times, “More than a Scenery Show”, Helen Harrison, September 13
Newsday, “Island Landscapes”, Malcolm Preston, February 9
N.Y. Times, “Long Island Scene”, Phyllis Braff, January 27
Newsday, “Painting Reproduced”, Malcolm Preston, May 6
Newsday, “Six Artists Take A Look At Nature”, Malcolm Preston, June 7
N.Y. Times, “Celebrating Land And Sea”, Phyllis Braff, June 5
Raphael Soyer, Introduction to exhibition brochure
Arts, November
Art News, Natalie Edgar, November
The New Yorker, The Art Galleries, June 13
N.Y. Times, Artists’ Gallery Submissions, Dore Ashton
CREDITS
CURATORS
Odon Wagner
Rafael Wagner
Laura Peturson
INTRODUCTION
Jane Hutchison
GRAPHIC DESIGN
Angela Wagner
PHOTOGRAPHY
Odon Wagner
PRINTING
Caractera, Quebec
“Illuminated Landscapes: The Paintings of Don Resnick”
ISBN 978-0-9781635-5-6
National Library of Canada
Copyright: Odon Wagner Gallery
Note: This catalogue is also available on our website
172 Davenport Road, Toronto, ON M5R 1J2, Canada
T 416.962.0438 800.551.2465 F 416.962.1581 E [email protected]
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