Japanese Influence : Layer & Line

JAPANESE INFLUENCE: LAYER AND LINE BRIDGES THE GAP BETWEEN EAST AND WEST

From September 7, 2012 to October 6, 2012, Albany Center Gallery presents Japanese Influence: Layer and Line, featuring the work of Laura Cannamela, Russell Serrianne, and Ruby Silvious. All three artists cite Japanese art as an inspiration for their paper-based work, from the delicate mark making of calligraphy to the flat, stylistic layering of Japanese illustrations. An opening reception will be held on September 7, 2012, from 5:00 pm to 9:00 pm at Albany Center Gallery, 39 Columbia Street, Downtown Albany.
About the Artists

Laura Cannamela lives in Valatie, New York. She received a BA from College of the Holy Cross and an MFA from Queens College of the City University of New York. Cannamela’s works, colorful depictions of architectural spaces, can be interpreted as either representational or abstract. She layers paper with different colors, textures, and patterns to create an abstractly beautiful work and an homage to her inspiration, Japanese illustrations from The Tale of Genji. Cannamela has received numerous awards, including a grant in 2010 for a Japan study tour, and special opportunity stipends from the New York Foundation for the Arts in 1996, 1994, and 1991.

Russell Serrianne lives in Glens Falls, New York. He narrowed in on his art after founding and running Seri-Graphics, a silk-screening and graphic design business, for 30 years. Serrianne received a New York State Decentralization grant to create a kinetic zoetrope installation at SUNY Adirondack in 2006. He then began his tendrils series, which requires quite an involved process – collecting vine tendrils, covering them with shellac, and attaching them to paper, in the process creating an organic blend of sculpture and drawing. Inspired by Japanese calligraphy and scrolls, his tendrils works have been displayed in many shows, including the Schweinfurth Memorial Art Center’s Made in New York 2012 exhibition. Serrianne also currently curates for the World Awareness Children’s Museum in Glens Falls.

Ruby Silvious is originally from the Phillippines and currently lives in Coxsackie, New York. She is a painter, printmaker, and origami artist who works as a full-time graphic designer. Silvious has studied both locally and internationally, from Siena College to the University of Santo Tomas in the Phillippines and Il Bisonte International School of Graphic Arts in Italy. She uses vintage and homemade paper to create one-of-a-kind collage cards and origami pieces. She first became interested in origami when her Japanese great grandmother taught her the art form’s intricate folding techniques, and her whimsical origami creations include bowls, animals, and cards.