D.R.A.W. at MAD Gallery
The D.R.A.W. at MAD Gallery is our Midtown Kingston exhibition space located at 24 Iwo Jima Lane, Kingston, NY 1240.
Our exhibitions feature work by Kingston High School and PUGG alumni, D.R.A.W. teaching artists, Community Partners and student work from our classes.
Exhibits are illuminated at night and visible 24/7 from Cedar Street.
Current Exhibition
SOLO SHOW - Ash work, Robert Ferguson, Nov. 2-Nov. 30
Robert Ferguson’s work is a direct response to nature and the landscape immediately surrounding his home in rural Ulster County, New York. The materials for this group of sculptures have been sourced from nearby woods where he was drawn to the infinite variations in color, markings, and textures of fallen and damaged trees that needed to be removed. His approach is similar to collage in that he gathers hand-sawed pieces of different shapes and textures. He then assembled the works and enhanced the visual play by adding rough pieces of bark and occasionally polishing some of the surfaces.
The drawings in this group are a further exploration of the tactile beauty of those trees. Using a process that makes direct contact with damaged ash trees, he employs rubbings, repetition, and shading to capture wood grain, bark patterns, and internal grooves left by the larvae of Emerald Beetles as they bore through the wood, and unfortunately kill the trees. The resulting images are formed by layering these intricate markings to create texture and dynamic spatial relationships.
While each drawing relates to a specific tree, he exploits compositional elements from multiple drawings to design each painting. He refines the calligraphy of the drawn marks and add color and texture as compositional elements to create the painted image. These efforts have resulted in a body of work that sits on the cusp of art and the environment. Working with reclaimed wood and damaged trees highlights environmental concerns while giving the source of his inspiration a new expression of beauty. You can see more of Robert’s work at www.robertfergusonstudio.com.
Past Exhibits
Fervonova Pugg Curated Show: June 1-July 15
Fervornova. Curated by MAD’s youth workforce training program PUGG, this exhibition is located at the D.R.A.W. Gallery at Energy Square, 24 Iwo Jima Ln, Kingston, NY. This exhibition showcases the work of local artists Jacinta Brunnell, Kristen Schiele, Craig Wood, Micah Fornari, Nick Carroll, Meryl Bennett, Phlegm, and Amy Cote. The PUGG program offers paid internships in the arts and arts management for youth ages 14 to 24. The D.R.A.W. Gallery serves as a training ground for the PUGG program interns to gain hands-on experience in all aspects of the curatorial process – from planning, hanging, and promoting an exhibition.
The exhibition, Fervornova, is an experiential phenomenon that results from an explosion of the bold and colorful; its energy creates a visceral reaction within us. PUGG’s Fervornova exemplifies color as both power and play, teeming with the passionate spirits of our handpicked artists. We present you with sensations to mix you into this vortex and let the Fervornova reach back into you. Held at the D.R.A.W. Gallery at MAD, we aim to highlight the instinctual appeal and the versatility of bright and bold aesthetics to explore themes of identity, humor, pain, joy, and more.
Eureka! Presents: A Celebration of Collaboration, Apr. 6-May 11
Eureka! and D.R.A.W. at MAD are thrilled to invite you to an exhibition showcasing the work of over 50 artists who have been in residence and collaboration with Eureka! over the last three years. The show is a testament to the power of collaboration and the magic that unfolds when people are provided space, rest, and resources. From ceramic sculptures, to cyanotype prints, to abstract toilet paper holders, immerse yourself in a tapestry of artistic expression, play, and activism.
Eureka! is a small press and a residency centering non-binary, women, queer, Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) artists, healers, and culture-bearers in Kingston, NY and nationally who imagine and enact futures of justice, care, and joy.
Soy Vago ¿Y Qué? by Kai Navarrete. Jan 6-27, 2024
Soy Vago ¿Y Qué? a solo exhibition by Kai Navarrete opens at the D.R.A.W Gallery on Saturday January 6th, 2023. This exhibition showcases the work of Kai Navarrete, a Kingston-based painter. He is a native of Guerrero, Mexico, paying homage to his homeland with his art by continuing to use traditional techniques to create pigments and paint from organic earth materials. Kai’s work focuses on the idea of visualizing the cosmos and the human body through the exploration of sacred geometry. Kai earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Cooper Union in 2014. His work has been shown in Mexico and the U.S., including at the Arts Society of Kingston, the Woodstock Artists Association and Museum, and the 41 Cooper Gallery.
“Saturn Walk” by China Blue, Nov. 9- Dec. 2, 2023
Listen to the Cosmos with China Blue, combining art, sound, and science, this exhibit will find you following an interactive maze whilst listening to the continuous low pitch hum of the far-off planet Saturn.
The Annual Teaching Artists Show, Sept. 16-Oct. 28, 2023
Artist including Wayne Montecalvo, Tatana Kellner, Natalie Renganeschi, Ana O’Keefe, Lara Giordano, Beth Humphrey, Chris O’Neal, Laura Moriarty, Carol Struve, Judith Hoyt, Josh Kramb and Maxine Leu.
The Great Jello Jamboree, 2023
On February 18, 2023, DRAW. - the art education program of the Kingston Midtown Arts District successfully hosted their inaugural fundraiser, The Great Jell-o Jamboree to support D.R.A.W. Arts classes for all ages and the PUGG Youth Workforce Training program. Imagine a Jell-o sculpture competition featuring 12 artists with music, dancing, art, food, and lots and lots of wobbly community fun. Guest enjoyed boozy Jell-O cocktails while getting jiggly with DJ Mikey Palms. This unique event included a Jell-O cake walk, photo ops in our photo booth, Jell-O prints made by local artist and samplings of colorful and sometimes Jello-O-filled food and drink creations were on display. It was a one-of-a-kind evening to mingle in a gorgeous space and honor our PUGG interns, Jell-O artists, and the teaching artists and students that make up the D.R.A.W. community.
View Album: www.drawkingston.org/jello-jamboree
“When Gnomes Need to Clean Their Homes” by Maxine Leu, Eco Arts Week, April 1-May 14, 2023
When Gnomes Need to Clean Their Homes is a nomadic installation that reminds people of the environmental problem of pollution caused by overconsumption and disregard for the environment. The mysterious litter-picking garden gnomes that I’ve created from repurposed materials pop-up randomly in public areas to clean up the streets and then they disappear. While each has a unique personality and posture, they are all activists, janitors, volunteers, and immigrants. No one knows where these mini-environmentalists come from and go to, but they leave the land clean for us.
About Eco Arts Week: www.drawkingston.org/special-event-ecoartsweek2023
For more info: www.maxineleu.com
“Pieces of B” by Ben Eichert, Feb. 2023
Pieces of B shows a selection of Ben Eichert's photography from 2015 to 2019 and a handful of acrylic paintings from 2022 when he was going through a photographic drought and decided to try something new.
Material Heritage, Ben Wigfall project show, 2023
Over the course of 3 months PUGG has worked with numerous collaborators to explore the legacy of Benjamin Wigfall, a local artist/visionary whose life and work as a printmaker, educator, and community activist served as a model for bringing people together in a shared creative community.
PUGG presents Material Heritage; a multi-hyphenate exploration into community storytelling through material, layered processes, and collective record. Inspired by the abounding legacy of Communications Village, this group exhibition is a culmination of studio visits, workshops, and discussions on art as a tool for survival. In what ways may practice, process, and community care give way to sustenance? How can records of past and present lend themselves to nurtured futures? What is possible with the materials at hand? Perhaps we already have everything we need. Having seen through to survival, is there potential now to flourish?
For more info: https://www.pugg.space/ben-wigfall-project
“Todd Samara: A Lifetime of Art” Aug.15- Sept.17, 2022
Todd Samara (1944-2020) lived and painted in Kingston’s Rondout neighborhood for many years. He captured the life of the neighborhood in vividly colored landscapes, streetscapes, interior scenes and portraits of area residents. This exhibit consists of paintings, mostly landscapes of Rondout, with a few inventive studio views and figure studies and works on paper of various subjects. Several large panoramas of the creek are also on display. All works are for sale and the proceeds will go to the Todd Samara Art Fund in which an award is given out every year open to artists working in a variety of disciplines.
For more info: www.ToddSamara.com/news
"Kerry Madison: recent works" Jul. 2 - Aug. 15, 2022
Kerry Madison is an interdisciplinary artist living in making in upstate NY. Her work investigates ideas of time, intimacy, narrative, place, and identity. Hands-on processes including drawing, painting, printmaking, ceramics, and fibers are used to tell stories that move between specificity and ubiquity.
"RETHINKING" Interactive Exhibit, April 9 - 22, 2022
“Rethinking” is part of the Eco Arts Week hosted by D.R.A.W. from April 9 -16th, 2022. The community was invited to participate in this collaborative art installation made by Maxine Leu. Participants drew and wrote their own Do’s and Don'ts for a healthier environment on cardboard puzzle pieces. For example, "Do reuse a dedicated water bottle. This will reduce the amount of single-use plastics that are polluting our planet!" or "Don’t waste food. Save your leftovers for a second meal!"
Check out the full story: Eco Arts Week at D.R.A.W 2022
Listening With Pauline, Mar. 5 - 27, 2022
A Sampling of Text Scores & Deep Listening Prompts by composer, educator and humanitarian Pauline Oliveros, in honor of Women’s History Month.
Pauline Oliveros' life as a composer, performer and humanitarian was about opening her own and others' sensibilities to the universe and facets of sounds. Her career spanned fifty years of boundary dissolving music making. In the '50s she was part of a circle of iconoclastic composers, artists and poets gathered together in San Francisco. In the 1960's she influenced American music profoundly through her work with improvisation, meditation, electronic music, myth and ritual. She was the recipient of four Honorary Doctorates and among her many recent awards were the William Schuman Award for Lifetime Achievement, Columbia University, New York, NY, The Giga-Hertz-Award for Lifetime Achievement in Electronic Music from ZKM, Center for Art and Media, Karlsruhe, Germany and The John Cage award from the Foundation of Contemporary Arts.
STILL LISTENING IN KINGSTON PROJECT: An initiative to continue the work and teachings of composer and Kingston resident Pauline Oliveros. Deep Listening is a listening practice that heightens awareness of sound and sounding, distinguishing the difference between listening and hearing. 'Deep Listening is my life practice," Oliveros explained, simply. Her creative work is currently disseminated through The Pauline Oliveros Trust and the Ministry of Maåt, Inc. of Kingston, NY.
For More Info: www.ministryofmaat.org
