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SUMMARY:2026 NBAS Oil\, Sculpture & Mixed Media Exhibition “Pigmented Perceptions”
DESCRIPTION:“Pigmented Perceptions”\n\n\n\nAlfa Art Gallery proudly presents the 2026 Oil and Mixed Media Exhibition\, “Exploring Pigmented Perceptions”. The Exhibition is open from September 1\, 2026 until October 24\, 2026.Exhibition Duration: September 1\, 2026 – October 24\, 2026In-Person Opening Reception: September 10\, 2026 from 6:30 – 9:30pmVirtual Opening Reception: September 11\, 2026 starting at 6:30pm– Virtual Opening Reception Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84141968117?pwd=3wJvDbamfigZ1qBKJGPd4QCLYeNvFG.1Location: Alfa Art Gallery\, 108 Church Street\, New Brunswick\, NJ 08901Featured Artists: Amy Putman\, Agnes Jackiewicz\, AnnaCarina Sinocchi\, Brian Keeler\, Erica Harney\, Karen Goldberg\, Kate Kern Mundie\, Keith Vogrin\, Robert Henne\, Santiago Cohen\, Shara Bailey\, and Ritu Bajaj.From September 1\, 2026\, to October 24\, 2026\, the community at Alfa Art Gallery in New Brunswick\, NJ will be presenting “Exploring Pigmented Perceptions”\, a New Brunswick Oil and Mixed Media Exhibition. This seven-week exhibition\, which will be available to the public both in-person and virtually\, presents a thoughtfully curated selection of oil and mixed media artworks that explore architecture\, landscapes\, emotions\, and identities through a range of mediums and techniques. Uniting the featured artists with distinct perspectives and approaches\, the exhibition celebrates both artistic expression and interpretation\, showcasing the many ways artists engage with their subjects and surroundings.Throughout the exhibition\, artists explore their subjects through both realist and abstract approaches\, offering works that range fromlandscapes and architectural scenes to portraiture and more expressive pieces. The diversity of techniques and artistic perspectives creates a dialogue between realism\, abstraction\, observation\, and personal interpretation. Together\, these works offer viewers a range of ways to experience subjects through differences in medium\, color\, form\, and artistic perspective.Alfa Art Gallery invites viewers to engage with these varied artistic perspectives and consider how each artist’s individual approach influences their interpretation of the world. Through the intersection of oil\, mixed media\, subject\, and technique\, “Exploring Pigmented Perceptions” offers an opportunity to experience the many different ways art can transform observation into personal expression.About the New Brunswick Art Salon Initiative:Alfa Art Gallery utilizes the New Brunswick Art Salons to unify the local art community and beyond. Since starting the program in 2010\, Alfa has made a point to include a salon dedicated to showcasing pieces in watercolor\, oil\, photography\, and various mixed media. Over the years\, the series has only exhibited works from both established and emerging artists\, but has made fruitful connections locally and internationally through its successful programs. As a non-profit\, Alfa Art Gallery maintains its mission to uplift artists by providing an open and innovative environment that is dedicated to fostering va ibrant and diverse cultural communityAbout Alfa Art Gallery:Founders and husband-wife team Vesselin and Galina Kourteva established Alfa Art Gallery with the vision of creating a cultural hub that fosters diversity\, allowing individuals from all backgrounds to connect and gain mutual understanding through art. New Brunswick is an ideal setting for this vision\, thanks to its vibrant ethnic heritage and diverse community\, enabling Alfa to engage artists and visitors from near and far. Since its inception in 2007\, the dedicated team at Alfa Art Gallery has consistently pursued this mission\, striving to provide enriching and meaningful experiences for everyone involved.2026 NBAS Oil\, Sculpture & Mixed Media Exhibition Featured Artists:Amy Putman is a mixed media and hand cut collage artist\, activist and a creative director based in Montclair\, New Jersey. Amy was raised outside of Boston\, and  pursued her BFA from the College of Visual and Performing Arts at Syracuse University. After graduating\, Amy moved to New York City\, there she spent 17 years as an award-winning Creative Director at CBS News. While working at CBS\, Amy became an activist helping to create and brand the Million Mom March for Common Sense Gun Laws which occurred at the National Mall of Washington DC\, on Mother’s Day of 2000. The march was considered one of the largest marches of its time where Amy used her own slogan\, “Looking for a Few Good Moms”. The slogan garnered extensive local and national media coverage inspiring Amy to continue to use her art as a deviceraise social awareness.In Amy’s life\, art and design have been a consistent source of comfort; after the 2008 market crash\, Amy spent the  year painting and collaging pieces together\, an undertaking that sowed the seeds for her current work. Motivated by issues of social justice\, the results of the 2016 election inspired her to combine her passions for activism and art. Her New Jersey exhibition opened a week before the 2020 election. It was not her first exhibition but was displayed on March 12th\,  The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey\, the New Jersey Council on Arts\, and Munich Airport NJ LLC (Operator of Newark Terminal A) announced the slate of 2026 Digital Artists at Newark Liberty Terminal A. The artworks selected were from artists across the state of New Jersey and were primarily based on the curatorial theme focused on the commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution\, and specifically sought artworks that frame\, highlight\, address the ideals that drove the American Revolution and implications of those ideals for today’s society. Her art installation combined brown baby dolls in a cage with a Trump “Make America Great Again” campaign sign; the juxtaposition drew local and national media attention including Newsweek Magazine and WNBC. Since then\, Amy has continued to exhibit her work both domestically and internationally in private collections.  Amy is a Trustee at Montclair Art Museum in New Jersey\,  the Trust for Trauma Journalism\, SKIP of New York\,  and a founding member of the New York Collage Ensemble. Amy has her studio in Manufacturer’s Village Artists\, East Orange\, New Jersey. She continues to look forward to connecting her ever-evolving art with social causes. Agnes Jackiewicz is an accomplished contemporary painter originally from Poland. She earned her Master of Fine Arts degree in painting and painting design in architecture and urban planning from the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Wroclaw\, Poland. After moving to the United States\, she settled in Connecticut\, where she lives and works today. Her practice focuses on vibrant abstract painting influenced by both fine art and architectural design\, often exploring color\, movement\, and spatial relationships through layered compositions. In recent years\, Jackiewicz has exhibited widely across the United States and Europe in solo and group shows\, juried exhibitions\, and competitions. Recent highlights include Digital Grace: FLEX:// at the Ely Center of Contemporary Art in New Haven (2025) and the Greenwich Art Society’s Reviving Inner Rhythms exhibition (2023). She has also participated in numerous exhibitions in Poland and the U.S.\, maintaining an active international presence. Her work is included in private collections and design projects.AnnaCarina Sinocchi is an esteemed\, New Jersey born and raised\, oil and mixed media artist. With a Bachelors and a Masters of Fine Arts from William Paterson University\, Sinocchi has refined her practice and developed a distinct style. Sinocchi emphasizes architecture in her work\, using oil and mixed media to explore both defined geometric forms as well as cloudy\, astral abstraction. Now a professor at her alma mater\, Sinocchi has been recognized both locally and globally\, in 2008 her work was recognized worldwide with Brad Hayne’s review in U.S.A Today\, The China Post\, and The International Herald Tribune. Her work takes an automatic approach to architectural forms\, which creates an interesting juxtaposition with her more otherworldly and curvilinear forms. Further\, in 2009 Sinocchi was an artist in residence with Peters Valley Craft Center\, with the Geraldine R. Dodge Grant. Sinocchi is prominent within the New Jersey art world\, with several solo exhibitions throughout the state including her 2023 exhibition\, ‘Architecture for Spaces Unknown‘ with Monmouth Museum. Sinocchi’s work can be seen in both public and private collections\, including The Paterson Museum and New Jersey Congressman\, Bill Pascrell’s collection. Brian Keeler is an American realist painter recognized for his atmospheric landscapes and figurative works. Born in 1953\, Keeler studied at Keystone College and the York Academy of Arts\, working primarily in oil\, pastel\, and watercolor. His paintings emphasize direct observation and atmosphere. His drawing inspirations came from the landscapes of Pennsylvania\, New York\, and Italy. Notable bodies of work focus on the Susquehanna developed through his plein air practice. Keeler’s work has received wide acclaim over the years\, appearing in feature articles such as American Artist Magazine and Pastelogram\, while his paintings have been collected by private\, corporate\, and museum collections. In addition to his studio practice\, Keeler is also an author\, educator\, and arts advocate\, publishing the instructional books Dramatic Color in the Landscapes and Light on the Figure\, while also founding arts initiatives including the Blue Heron Gallery and the Susquehanna Summer Solstice Fest. Erica Harney is a curator\, educator\, fine artist\, and scenic painter born in New York in 1984. Her acquired degrees (a BFA and MFA in Drawing and Painting) ground Harney’s work in technical intention and creation of scenery and atmosphere. In her landscape paintings\, a breadth of painting media alongside mixed media is used to create vast\, sometimes fantastical landscapes. Her day job is working in the entertainment and production industries\, painting murals and large-scale backdrops for television\, film\, museums\, and retail displays\, which inspired a current series of work that speaks on waste creation in the making behind the entertainment industry. By taking scrap material from her day job\, such as scrap lumber\, muslin\, and offcuts from CNC routers\, and leftover materials from her home studio\, Harney recontextualizes scenery to include waste in the final products of work\, directly countering the cycle of waste she encounters. She carries a wide resume of public mural commissions and philanthropic exhibitions across the tri-state area\, which speaks to her dedication to involvement in the community. She’s currently based in Lansdowne\, Pennsylvania\, where she has been since 2016\, and is a member of both the Lansdowne Art Board as Exhibition Coordinator and Philadelphia Mural Arts as Assistant Painter and Restoration Artist. Karen Goldberg is a realist oil painter and illustrator based in Bloomfield\, New Jersey. She is primarily self-taught and further developed her artistic practice by attending classes at the Montclair Art Museum. Goldberg is known for creating paintings that evoke peace\, warmth\, and nostalgia\, particularly through carefully observed landscapes\, domestic settings\, and figures. Her works are characterized by their attention to light\, reflection\, and the quiet beauty of everyday life. Before dedicating herself fully to art\, she worked in New York City in the banking industry and later focused on raising her three daughters. In addition to fine art\, Goldberg is the co-creator and illustrator of the award-winning Bumpy Books learn-to-read series\, which received the 2008 Moonbeam Children’s Book Award for Reading Skills and Literacy.In 2013\, she published Funny Side Up through Adams Media. Her paintings and illustrations have appeared on the covers of Suburban Essex Magazine\, Vicinity Publications\, and materials for the Montclair Art Museum.Her work has also been featured in numerous juried exhibitions throughout New Jersey. In 2025\, Alfa Art Gallery honored Goldberg with its “Master of Material” Award in Oil Painting\, recognizing her technical precision and emotional sensitivity as an artist.Kate Kern Mundie is a mid-career landscape artist and educator based in Philadelphia\, Pennsylvania. She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Pennsylvania\, as well as a certificate in printmaking and painting from the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. Her work focuses on interactions between humanity and nature\, with both urban cityscapes and natural environmental scenes being prominent subjects in her work. Her works are often plein air\, adding an additional level of authenticity to her outdoor subjects.Her focus on environmental realism can be seen reflected in her work with her use of vibrant colors as well as a portrayal of human made structures within nature. Despite living in Philadelphia\, Mundie often spends time on Deer Isle\, Maine\, the scenery of which often influences her work. She is active and prominent within both the Pennsylvania artist community and the Deer Isle artist community. She has won a variety of awards throughout her decades-long career\, including the Best In Show & Donald Meyer Medal at the 2025 Art of the Flower exhibition. Her current gallery affiliations are with the F.A.N. gallery in Philadelphia\, PA\, the Station Gallery in Greenville\, DE\, and the Carver Hill Gallery in Camden\, ME.Keith Vogrin is a Pennsylvania artist known for his strong skill and passion for oil painting. His neoromantic style is shown through landscapes inspired by the outdoors that shaped his early love of nature. He earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Pennsylvania State University\, where he developed formal techniques\, including expressive brushstrokes influenced by Impressionism\, which are now a key part of his work. Growing up in a small town\, Keith developed a deep appreciation for nature\, which gave him a unique point of view that he brings into his art. His style of realism turns everyday scenes into something more romantic by using contrast between dark and light\, and warm and cool tones. Through this approach\, he reflects on the world in a way that helps others see familiar places differently. Since beginning his career\, Keith Vogrin’s work has been shown in exhibitions across Pennsylvania\, New Jersey\, New York\, and Maryland. His hard work paid off in 2022 when Keith became a Lehigh Art Alliance Exhibition Award Winner in his hometown of Bethlehem\, Pennsylvania. Whether inspired by travel or familiar landscapes\, his home studio allows him to continue creating neoromantic realist paintings.Ritu Bajaj is a mixed media artist from New Jersey\, with mostly oil paintings on display. She focuses on realism and naturalism as a reference for her art. She began creating art in college and decided that she wanted to make a career of it with a passion and focus on realistic paintings. Her paintings are exquisitely crafted with a hyper-realistic touch to them. She has been a part of many exhibitions with honorable mentions in various galleries\, as well as\, receiving third place in an exhibition. She has created many landscape paintings\, including different views of landmarks and views of open bodies of water. She has also created floral paintings with a mix of other objects that make the paintings most delicate and ornate. In 2025\, Ritu was honored with the Alden Bryan Memorial Medal Award at the Allied Artists of America’s 112th Exhibition. This 2025 exhibition was one that recognized her Traditional Landscape art.Robert Henne is a New Jersey-based artist and writer specializing in unique\, colorful oil paintings\, both representational and abstract. He has several years of exhibition and art instruction experience\, and has recently released a book titled “The Perceptive Eye\,” a guide to seeing the world around oneself through an artistic lens. His paintings reflect the focus of his book\, often depicting decaying manmade structures through colors that revitalize the space and draw the viewer’s attention to parts of the world that may be overlooked in everyday interaction. His abstract art\, called “Visionary Works” by the artist\, contain organic\, undulating forms that create thought-provoking compositions and seek to engage the viewer in a similar way. By exploring the impact of color on his compositions\, Henne expresses his thoughts\, feelings\, and ideas in the oil medium. Robert Henne has recently had works selected for Special Recognition at LST Online Gallery\, has extensive exhibition experience in the New Jersey and Eastern Pennsylvania area\, and has had two past solo exhibitions in Princeton\, NJ titled “Illuminations” and “Impact Through Color”. Santiago Cohen is a New Jersey based artist\, animator\, illustrator\, and author whose work is distinguished by its ambitious storytelling and richly layered narratives. Through his oil paintings\, Cohen intertwines surrealist elements with the real world\, creating vivid and striking characters that blur the boundaries between memory\, myth\, and reality. As a Mexican American artist\, Cohen’s work explores themes of identity\, culture\, migration\, and social consciousness through immersive world building and striking imagery. His paintings are marked by bold contrasts and vibrant palettes\, presenting humanity in a deeply expressive and fantastical light. In addition to his fine art practice\, Cohen has built an extensive career as an illustrator and designer\, contributing to numerous children’s books and collaborating with distinguished animators at HBO\, Cartoon Network\, and Nickelodeon to create captivating characters and imaginative visual narratives. Beyond animation\, Cohen has worked as both an author and illustrator on several book publications\, most recently Secrets of a Lost Diary\, alongside his acclaimed trilogy Exvida: A Story of Migration. The project is an ambitious autobiographical work that reflects on his childhood growing up in post-World War II Mexico and his migration to New York City during the 1980s\, weaving together personal history with his oil painting practice. Cohen has exhibited his artwork throughout New Jersey\, Mexico\, and New York City. Most recently\, his work was featured at Art Fair 14C\, with additional works on display at The Grange and Oso Felipe. Across both his paintings and illustrations\, Cohen’s work functions as a unified exploration of the human experience\, demonstrating his unique ability to transform fragments of personal and collective history into vibrant\, imaginative worlds.Shara Bailey\, a Philadelphia native\, is a representational artist with a focus on vast natural landscapes as well as the often overlooked beauty found within the built environment. After a trip to New Mexico in the late 1980s\, Bailey discovered her love for the open skies and sprawling landscapes of the American West. Wishing to live in the area she felt so connected to\, Bailey went on to spend 10 years in Arizona\, earning her PhD in Anthropology from Arizona State University. Along with her anthropological studies\, Bailey has also earned a certificate from North Montco Vo-Tech in Commercial Art and trained at the NJ Visual Arts Center with artist Valeri Larko. Bailey is now a Professor at the prestigious New York University. After returning to the east coast\, she turned to painting as a means to connect with her love of the American West. Bailey merges and applies the lens of natural landscapes with and onto those of urban scenes\, reminding the viewer that beauty can be found everywhere. Her work is split between that of dramatic landscapes and isolated moments of the built space\, often showcasing the impact of light\, both natural and artificial\, in transforming the mundane into something magical. Bailey has been showcased in numerous New York and New Jersey exhibitions and solo shows\, most recently the 2022-25 SOMA Artists’ Studio Tour in Maplewood\, NJ\, and the 2025 Maplewood Artwalk & Music Festival.We would like to give a special thank you to our sponsors:Middlesex County Board of County Commissioners\, Amboy Bank\,  New Brunswick City Center\, GSK\, Magyar Bank\, The Bank of Princeton\, Daiichi-Sankyo\, Johnson&Johnson\, Pfizer\, and Merck. 
URL:https://www.alfaart.org/event/2026-nbas-oil-sculpture-mixed-media-exhibition-pigmented-perceptions/
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SUMMARY:2026 NBAS Watercolor & Mixed Media Exhibition “Liquid Layers”
DESCRIPTION:“Liquid Layers”\n \nNew Brunswick\, NJ – Alfa Art Gallery proudly presents the 2026 NBAS Watercolor and Mixed Media Exhibition: ‘Liquid Layers.’ The Exhibition is open from October 27\, 2026\, until January 9\, 2027. \nExhibition Duration: October 27\, 2026 – January 9\, 2027\nVirtual Opening Reception: Thursday\, November 12th\, 2026\, starting at 6:30pm\nIn-Person Opening Reception: Friday\, November 6th\, 2026 @6:30pm – 9:30pm \nLocation: Alfa Art Gallery\, 108 Church Street\, New Brunswick\, NJ 08901 \nFeatured Artists: Alexis Rodefer\, Manman Huang\, J. Jie Li\, Daniella Toscanini\, Denise Shaw\, Joel Popadics\, Michelle Vargas\, Neal Korn\, Sharon Pitts\, Gail Wood Miller\, Jeffrey Weiss/McCredie\, Hana Aviv\, Peggy Dressel \nIntroducing “Liquid Layers\,” A Watercolor and Mixed Media Exhibition: \nFrom October 27\, 2026\, until January 9\, 2027\, the community at Alfa Art Gallery in New Brunswick\, NJ will be presenting “Liquid Layers”\, a New Brunswick Watercolor and Mixed Media Exhibition. This ten-week exhibition\, which will be available to the public both in-person and virtually\, presents a thoughtfully curated selection of watercolor and mixed media artworks that explore architecture\, landscapes\, emotions\, and identities through a range of mediums and techniques. Uniting the featured artists with distinct perspectives and approaches\, the exhibition celebrates both artistic expression and interpretation\, showcasing the many ways artists engage with their subjects and surroundings. \nThroughout the exhibition\, artists explore their subjects through both realist and abstract approaches\, offering works that range from landscapes and architectural scenes to portraiture and more expressive pieces. The diversity of techniques and artistic perspectives creates a dialogue between realism\, abstraction\, observation\, and personal interpretation. Together\, these works offer viewers a range of ways to experience subjects through differences in medium\, color\, form\, and artistic perspective. \nAlfa Art Gallery invites viewers to engage with these varied artistic perspectives and consider how each artist’s individual approach influences their interpretation of the world. Through the intersection of watercolor\, mixed media\, subject\, and technique\, ‘Liquid Layers’ offers an opportunity to experience the many different ways art can transform observation into personal expression. \nAbout the New Brunswick Art Salon Initiative: \nAlfa Art Gallery utilizes the New Brunswick Art Salons to unify the local art community and beyond. Since starting the program in 2010\, Alfa has made a point to include a salon dedicated to showcasing pieces in watercolor\, oil\, photography\, and various mixed media. Over the years\, the series has only exhibited works from both established and emerging artists\, but has made fruitful connections locally and internationally through its successful programs. As a non-profit\, Alfa Art Gallery maintains its mission to uplift artists by providing an open and innovative environment that is dedicated to fostering va ibrant and diverse cultural community \nAbout Alfa Art Gallery: \nFounded in 2007\, Alfa Art Gallery has established itself as a cultural cornerstone in New Brunswick\, New Jersey. The gallery’s mission is to support both emerging and established artists by providing meaningful exposure and cultivating engagement within the broader art community. \nSince 2010\, the Alfa Art Gallery has organized the New Brunswick Art Salon (NBAS)\, a non-profit initiative dedicated to uniting the local art community and fostering connections both locally and internationally. The salon presents a diverse range of mediums\, including oil\, watercolor\, mixed media\, sculpture\, photography\, crafts\, and glasswork. Alfa Art Gallery remains committed to demonstrating how the study and practice of art can enrich and strengthen communities. \n2026 NBAS Featured Artists in Watercolor and Mixed Media: \nAlexis Rodefer is a watercolor artist who takes the visuals of the Northeast American ecosystem\, celebrates the wildlife that is housed within it\, and tells lively stories that help us realize that\, in reality\, we are not so different from animals. While earning her Bachelor’s of Fine Arts (BFA) from the Art Institute of Chicago\, Rodefer became familiar with the concept of scientific illustrations\, which influenced her to spend a lot of time researching the lifestyles\, histories\, and behaviors of the different species\, which play a distinctive role in the work she creates.  Her most recent series\, Domestic Absurdity\, is a delightful example of that\, where she “imagines native species through an anthropomorphic lens”. By using her titles to add context to a piece\, she creates scenes that make the animals feel more “human”\, forming a relationship between the works and the people who see them and can relate to those universal moments of the human experience. \nManman Huang (born in Chengdu\, China) is a New Jersey-based contemporary painter who has a focus of depicting everyday city life. She uses her degrees in sociology and history to influence her unique perspective of the world through her artwork. Her passion for painting comes from her studies in 19th-century Chinese-American trade\, in which she learned about the teaching of language and culture between nations. Huang came to the United States as an immigrant\, which sparked her search for belonging. She found this through her expressive brushwork\, vivid color palettes\, and her depiction of everyday town life in New Jersey. These themes are especially present in significant bodies of work such as her Maplewood Town and Gardens projects. Huang has exhibited her work at many different museums and events\, such as the Newark Museum of Art\, the NJ Arts Annual 2023\, Rutgers University\, and the Paper Mill Playhouse in New Jersey. She also involves herself in her community by teaching watercolor painting classes in Maplewood and by contributing artwork to the Lunar Fest of  New Jersey from 2023 to 2025. \nJ. Jie Li is a New York–based contemporary fine artist layering watercolor and mixed media. She has exhibited her works both within the United States and internationally. Her works deeply explore liminal landscapes of human existence\, focusing greatly on a reverence for the natural world. J. Li’s watercolor paintings offer immense feelings of desire\, loss\, resilience\, and spiritual awakening. Her work addresses the imperative that the destruction of the physical environment directly mirrors the quiet\, systemic decay of the human soul. The traditional lightness and delicacy associated with watercolor is remodeled in J. Jie Li’s structural vehicle. She combines layers of different mediums such as pigment\, soot\, slate\, and ink washes\, pulling juxtapositions against fluid tones. Her watercolor images transform landscapes into emotionally contemplative environments. J. Li has a Bachelor’s in Fine Art from Parsons School of Design. She transitioned from a career in fashion and dedicated herself entirely to the world of fine art. In her practice\, she is deeply catalyzed by Zen Buddhism\, Daoist thought\, and Schopenhauerian existential gravity. \nDaniella Toscanini is an artist working in watercolor\, gouache\, and acrylic\, based in Edison\, New Jersey\, with a love for landscapes\, nature\, and the serenity that comes from them. She discovered her passion for plein air painting after attending the Bermuda Plein Air Festival in 2015\, seeking to capture the vibrancy found in the natural world to share with those who view her works. Toscanini graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York and was trained in realism at The Art Academy in Hillsborough\, New Jersey\, shaping her understanding of the art world to what it has become now. Her works shown in the Liquid Layers exhibition focus on the stillness of the landscape\, and the beauty of the reflections on the glassy bodies of water taking on the colors of the ever-stretching sky. \nDenise Shaw is an artist inspired by a passion for human rights advocacy and ancient philosophy\, and her artworks seek to bridge collective consciousness with a deep compassion for the global condition\, forming what she describes as an “authentic habitat” for memory and resistance. Her interest in the complexity of the human psyche is expressed through tactile material choices\, combining layers of acrylic paint\, watercolor\, photo transfers\, and collage with pumice stone\, metal leaf\, and sand. Shaw uses irony and whimsy to draw viewers into her imagery\, prompting greater awareness and empathy for the global themes her work confronts. Working from her studios in Tribeca\, New York City\, and Connecticut\, Shaw has exhibited nationally and internationally since the 1980s. She earned her BFA from the School of Visual Arts and a postgraduate certificate in Film from New York University. Throughout her expansive career\, her work has been exhibited at venues including the Museum of Arts and Design in New York City\, the National Museum of American Art in Washington\, D.C.\, the Reece Museum in Tennessee\, and the Copelouzos Family Art Museum in Athens\, Greece. \nJoel Popadics is an internationally recognized watercolor artist whose practice primarily focuses on landscapes. Rather than simply documenting their visual appearance\, he seeks to capture the emotions\, memories\, and sensations that particular places evoke. His paintings demonstrate a mastery of the watercolor medium\, with luminosity and the transparency of light serving as central elements of his work. Popadics’ received formal training at the School of Visual Arts\, earning a B.F.A. in 1983. He has participated in numerous prestigious solo and group exhibitions\, including exhibitions at the National Academy of Design in New York City. An experienced educator\, he has lectured and taught extensively\, including at Parsons School of Design and The King’s College in New York City. Deeply committed to advancing the watercolor medium\, Popadics has served as President of the American Watercolor Society and previously on the Ridgewood Art Institute’s Board of Directors. \nMichelle Vargas is a Filipina watercolor artist based in New Jersey\, who depicts wildlife with grace and expression. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts with a major in Advertising\, and is driven by the powerful impact of storytelling through visuals. After discovering her passion for watercolor as a creative outlet\, she built her skills in the medium by embracing fluidity and delicacy\, utilizing this technique to give her pieces life\, grace\, and emotion. She appreciates nature and creates work to inspire people to stop and admire the beauty and elegance found in the natural world. Vargas explores themes of connection and growth\, while “blending realism with a sense of imagination and storytelling.” Her brush clearly comes from a place of admiration\, as her depiction of animals\, nature\, and people contains the required realism needed to bring the piece to life\, while still keeping the personality and identifying qualities. Vargas’ work has been included in juried exhibitions and given recognition\, including Second Place in the Associate Division of the New Jersey Watercolor Society’s 2026 Annual Juried Exhibition. \nNeal Korn is a New Jersey-based artist who seeks to incorporate the spontaneity and beauty of nature in his works. Starting with ink\, watercolor\, and graphite\, he places his renderings of figures into nature scenes. The final works combine lush\, vibrant backgrounds with stylized figures. The juxtaposition between backgrounds and figures invokes curiosity and contemplation\, reflecting Korn’s lifelong love of psychology and the many dimensions of the mind. He is an accomplished painter who was initially recognized for winning the ‘Shaw Award for Painting’ at Brooklyn College. Korn’s work has been recognized in prolific publications\, including the Best of Painting and The New York Times. In 2024\, Korn won the ‘New Jersey Fellowship’ from the New Jersey State Council of the Arts. Korn’s most recent exhibition was a one-person show at the Atrium Gallery\, showcasing his paintings about the natural world. \nSharon Pitts is a New Jersey-based watercolorist who focuses on creating scenes of nature. She has described her attraction to the medium because of its translucent color\, flowing movement\, and ability to create unexpected effects. Rather than forcing a predetermined outcome\, she approaches painting as a partnership with watercolor\, allowing pigments to merge\, layer\, and move naturally across the surface. This openness to chance gives her work a sense of discovery and allows her compositions to move beyond literal representations of the natural world.  Pitts is listed in ‘Who’s Who in American Art’ and was featured in Watercolor Artist Magazine.  She has taught watercolor workshops across the globe\, including in France\, Croatia\, and Italy.  Pitts has been teaching watercolor since 1995 at the Adult School of Montclair and the Montclair Art Museum\, and currently teaches at the Van Vleck Gardens in Montclair\, New Jersey.  She continues to maintain her own studio in Montclair.  Pitts has been exhibiting since 1975\, in both group and solo shows. \nGail Wood Miller is a third-generation artist and retired teacher whose practice brings together watercolor\, drawing\, ink\, and photography to explore observation\, imagination\, and the natural world. Influenced by her mother and grandfather\, Miller began drawing at a young age\, and has continued to connect art with storytelling throughout her life. She chooses nature\, landscapes\, and people as subjects\, and is concerned with conveying their movements and emotions\, though she enjoys allowing the viewer’s imagination to determine the story they perceive. Her work often involves translucent washes that emphasize organic form and subtle movement\, as well as a sense of lightness and contrast. Miller’s interest in plants and her preference for working between detailed observation and abstraction allows her work to become more than a simple botanical study\, encouraging viewers to notice the beauty within an everyday subject. Through her work\, Miller seeks understanding and hope\, inviting viewers to appreciate themselves\, others\, and the world around them. \nJeffrey Weiss/McCredie is a Pennsylvania-based artist whose lifelong passion for painting began in childhood after discovering Claude Monet’s work. Inspired by late nineteenth-century artists such as John Singer Sargent\, Winslow Homer\, and Pierre-Auguste Renoir\, McCredie embraces watercolor for its immediacy and portability\, often completing his paintings outdoors. His bright palette and expressive handling of color capture the warmth\, atmosphere\, and beauty of the landscapes he encounters. Rather than simply documenting a place\, his work conveys the experience of being within it: the shifting light\, surrounding color\, and quiet character of the natural environment. He studied art at Eastern University and later received a Fulbright Scholarship to study in Germany\, where he continued developing his artistic practice and exhibited throughout Europe. Following his time in Europe\, McCredie moved to Los Angeles to pursue his career as an actor and an artist\, where he painted and exhibited with groups such as the West Coast Artists\, The Agoura Group\, Old Town Gallery\, and the California Plein Air groups. He has sold over 800 paintings to movie executives\, actors\, diplomats\, government workers\, and completed over 350 portrait commissions. His studio is in Chester County\, PA. \nHana Aviv is a watercolorist based in New Jersey\, inspired by the peace found in nature. She uses natural landscapes to communicate her emotions\, and the dynamic movement of water across her canvas reflects her sense of awe. Aviv’s visual foundation was built through years of study at institutions\, including the Montclair Art Museum to train in oil\, pastel\, life study\, and watercolor theory; the Zimmerli Art Museum Drawing Society for Adults; and various outdoor plein air workshops. Her creative visual works have earned her significant recognition from regional and national art communities. Aviv holds juried Signature Memberships in the Garden State Watercolor Society\, the New Jersey Watercolor Society\, and the National Association of Women Artists (NAWA). Her engagement with historic arts institutions—including Associate Memberships in the Salmagundi Club\, the Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Art Club\, and the Northeast Watercolor Society—further grounds her practice within the broader tradition of American visual arts. Through vibrant color relationships and refined mark-making\, Aviv converts quiet encounters with nature and space into luminous\, evocative visual experiences. She has participated in both group and solo exhibitions across New Jersey and New York\, including a previous exhibition at Alfa Art Gallery. Aviv has received many awards\, including “Artist of the Week” from National Arts Program Magazine. \nPeggy Dressel is a watercolor painter from Oakland\, New Jersey. She studied at Pratt Institute\, The National Academy of Design\, and Moore College of Art. Dressel enjoys creating beautiful paintings using vibrant colors to create an illuminating glow in her works. She also values lighting in her works\, as it helps to determine the mood\, time\, and day. Her works focus on playfulness and lightheartedness\, evoking a sense of curiosity and happiness. There is also a sense of simplicity in her works\, giving her viewers a sense of tranquility and softness. Dressel has received many awards at juried exhibitions\, including the Lena Di Gangi Gallery\, Nathan’s Gallery\, the Dupre Gallery\, and many others. Dressel is also a member of the Degas Pastel Society\, the Oregon Pastel Society\, and the Southeastern Pastel Society. She has also illustrated several children’s books\, including Hoops! by Connie Turner and The Marble Jar by Sharon L. Young. \nWe would like to give a special thank you to our sponsors: \nMiddlesex County Board of County Commissioners\, Amboy Bank\, New Brunswick City Center\, GSK\, Magyar Bank\, The Bank of Princeton\, Daiichi-Sankyo\, Johnson&Johnson\, Pfizer\, and Merck. \nYour generous support plays a crucial part in our success\, and we are truly appreciative for your belief and commitment to our work. This support is what allows us to have an impact on and create positive experiences for our community.
URL:https://www.alfaart.org/event/2026-nbas-watercolor-mixed-media-exhibition-liquid-layers/
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20261106T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20261106T213000
DTSTAMP:20261002T163515Z
CREATED:20260918T160311Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20261002T163515Z
UID:29831-1793989800-1794000600@www.alfaart.org
SUMMARY:In-Person Opening Reception: 2026 NBAS Watercolor & Mixed Media Exhibition “Liquid Layers”
DESCRIPTION:New Brunswick\, NJ – Alfa Art Gallery proudly presents the 2026 NBAS Watercolor and Mixed Media Exhibition: ‘Liquid Layers.’ The Exhibition is open from October 27\, 2026\, until January 9\, 2027. \nIn-Person Opening Reception: Friday\, November 6th\, 2026 @6:30pm – 9:30pm \nLocation: Alfa Art Gallery\, 108 Church Street\, New Brunswick\, NJ 08901 \nFeatured Artists: Alexis Rodefer\, Manman Huang\, J. Jie Li\, Daniella Toscanini\, Denise Shaw\, Joel Popadics\, Michelle Vargas\, Neal Korn\, Sharon Pitts\, Gail Wood Miller\, Jeffrey Weiss/McCredie\, Hana Aviv\, Peggy Dressel \nFrom October 27\, 2026\, until January 9\, 2027\, the community at Alfa Art Gallery in New Brunswick\, NJ will be presenting “Liquid Layers”\, a New Brunswick Watercolor and Mixed Media Exhibition. This ten-week exhibition\, which will be available to the public both in-person and virtually\, presents a thoughtfully curated selection of watercolor and mixed media artworks that explore architecture\, landscapes\, emotions\, and identities through a range of mediums and techniques. Uniting the featured artists with distinct perspectives and approaches\, the exhibition celebrates both artistic expression and interpretation\, showcasing the many ways artists engage with their subjects and surroundings. \nThroughout the exhibition\, artists explore their subjects through both realist and abstract approaches\, offering works that range from landscapes and architectural scenes to portraiture and more expressive pieces. The diversity of techniques and artistic perspectives creates a dialogue between realism\, abstraction\, observation\, and personal interpretation. Together\, these works offer viewers a range of ways to experience subjects through differences in medium\, color\, form\, and artistic perspective. \nAlfa Art Gallery invites viewers to engage with these varied artistic perspectives and consider how each artist’s individual approach influences their interpretation of the world. Through the intersection of watercolor\, mixed media\, subject\, and technique\, ‘Liquid Layers’ offers an opportunity to experience the many different ways art can transform observation into personal expression. \n2026 NBAS Featured Artists in Watercolor and Mixed Media: \nAlexis Rodefer is a watercolor artist who takes the visuals of the Northeast American ecosystem\, celebrates the wildlife that is housed within it\, and tells lively stories that help us realize that\, in reality\, we are not so different from animals. While earning her Bachelor’s of Fine Arts (BFA) from the Art Institute of Chicago\, Rodefer became familiar with the concept of scientific illustrations\, which influenced her to spend a lot of time researching the lifestyles\, histories\, and behaviors of the different species\, which play a distinctive role in the work she creates.  Her most recent series\, Domestic Absurdity\, is a delightful example of that\, where she “imagines native species through an anthropomorphic lens”. By using her titles to add context to a piece\, she creates scenes that make the animals feel more “human”\, forming a relationship between the works and the people who see them and can relate to those universal moments of the human experience. \nManman Huang (born in Chengdu\, China) is a New Jersey-based contemporary painter who has a focus of depicting everyday city life. She uses her degrees in sociology and history to influence her unique perspective of the world through her artwork. Her passion for painting comes from her studies in 19th-century Chinese-American trade\, in which she learned about the teaching of language and culture between nations. Huang came to the United States as an immigrant\, which sparked her search for belonging. She found this through her expressive brushwork\, vivid color palettes\, and her depiction of everyday town life in New Jersey. These themes are especially present in significant bodies of work such as her Maplewood Town and Gardens projects. Huang has exhibited her work at many different museums and events\, such as the Newark Museum of Art\, the NJ Arts Annual 2023\, Rutgers University\, and the Paper Mill Playhouse in New Jersey. She also involves herself in her community by teaching watercolor painting classes in Maplewood and by contributing artwork to the Lunar Fest of  New Jersey from 2023 to 2025. \nJ. Jie Li is a New York–based contemporary fine artist layering watercolor and mixed media. She has exhibited her works both within the United States and internationally. Her works deeply explore liminal landscapes of human existence\, focusing greatly on a reverence for the natural world. J. Li’s watercolor paintings offer immense feelings of desire\, loss\, resilience\, and spiritual awakening. Her work addresses the imperative that the destruction of the physical environment directly mirrors the quiet\, systemic decay of the human soul. The traditional lightness and delicacy associated with watercolor is remodeled in J. Jie Li’s structural vehicle. She combines layers of different mediums such as pigment\, soot\, slate\, and ink washes\, pulling juxtapositions against fluid tones. Her watercolor images transform landscapes into emotionally contemplative environments. J. Li has a Bachelor’s in Fine Art from Parsons School of Design. She transitioned from a career in fashion and dedicated herself entirely to the world of fine art. In her practice\, she is deeply catalyzed by Zen Buddhism\, Daoist thought\, and Schopenhauerian existential gravity. \nDaniella Toscanini is an artist working in watercolor\, gouache\, and acrylic\, based in Edison\, New Jersey\, with a love for landscapes\, nature\, and the serenity that comes from them. She discovered her passion for plein air painting after attending the Bermuda Plein Air Festival in 2015\, seeking to capture the vibrancy found in the natural world to share with those who view her works. Toscanini graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York and was trained in realism at The Art Academy in Hillsborough\, New Jersey\, shaping her understanding of the art world to what it has become now. Her works shown in the Liquid Layers exhibition focus on the stillness of the landscape\, and the beauty of the reflections on the glassy bodies of water taking on the colors of the ever-stretching sky. \nDenise Shaw is an artist inspired by a passion for human rights advocacy and ancient philosophy\, and her artworks seek to bridge collective consciousness with a deep compassion for the global condition\, forming what she describes as an “authentic habitat” for memory and resistance. Her interest in the complexity of the human psyche is expressed through tactile material choices\, combining layers of acrylic paint\, watercolor\, photo transfers\, and collage with pumice stone\, metal leaf\, and sand. Shaw uses irony and whimsy to draw viewers into her imagery\, prompting greater awareness and empathy for the global themes her work confronts. Working from her studios in Tribeca\, New York City\, and Connecticut\, Shaw has exhibited nationally and internationally since the 1980s. She earned her BFA from the School of Visual Arts and a postgraduate certificate in Film from New York University. Throughout her expansive career\, her work has been exhibited at venues including the Museum of Arts and Design in New York City\, the National Museum of American Art in Washington\, D.C.\, the Reece Museum in Tennessee\, and the Copelouzos Family Art Museum in Athens\, Greece. \nJoel Popadics is an internationally recognized watercolor artist whose practice primarily focuses on landscapes. Rather than simply documenting their visual appearance\, he seeks to capture the emotions\, memories\, and sensations that particular places evoke. His paintings demonstrate a mastery of the watercolor medium\, with luminosity and the transparency of light serving as central elements of his work. Popadics’ received formal training at the School of Visual Arts\, earning a B.F.A. in 1983. He has participated in numerous prestigious solo and group exhibitions\, including exhibitions at the National Academy of Design in New York City. An experienced educator\, he has lectured and taught extensively\, including at Parsons School of Design and The King’s College in New York City. Deeply committed to advancing the watercolor medium\, Popadics has served as President of the American Watercolor Society and previously on the Ridgewood Art Institute’s Board of Directors. \nMichelle Vargas is a Filipina watercolor artist based in New Jersey\, who depicts wildlife with grace and expression. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts with a major in Advertising\, and is driven by the powerful impact of storytelling through visuals. After discovering her passion for watercolor as a creative outlet\, she built her skills in the medium by embracing fluidity and delicacy\, utilizing this technique to give her pieces life\, grace\, and emotion. She appreciates nature and creates work to inspire people to stop and admire the beauty and elegance found in the natural world. Vargas explores themes of connection and growth\, while “blending realism with a sense of imagination and storytelling.” Her brush clearly comes from a place of admiration\, as her depiction of animals\, nature\, and people contains the required realism needed to bring the piece to life\, while still keeping the personality and identifying qualities. Vargas’ work has been included in juried exhibitions and given recognition\, including Second Place in the Associate Division of the New Jersey Watercolor Society’s 2026 Annual Juried Exhibition. \nNeal Korn is a New Jersey-based artist who seeks to incorporate the spontaneity and beauty of nature in his works. Starting with ink\, watercolor\, and graphite\, he places his renderings of figures into nature scenes. The final works combine lush\, vibrant backgrounds with stylized figures. The juxtaposition between backgrounds and figures invokes curiosity and contemplation\, reflecting Korn’s lifelong love of psychology and the many dimensions of the mind. He is an accomplished painter who was initially recognized for winning the ‘Shaw Award for Painting’ at Brooklyn College. Korn’s work has been recognized in prolific publications\, including the Best of Painting and The New York Times. In 2024\, Korn won the ‘New Jersey Fellowship’ from the New Jersey State Council of the Arts. Korn’s most recent exhibition was a one-person show at the Atrium Gallery\, showcasing his paintings about the natural world. \nSharon Pitts is a New Jersey-based watercolorist who focuses on creating scenes of nature. She has described her attraction to the medium because of its translucent color\, flowing movement\, and ability to create unexpected effects. Rather than forcing a predetermined outcome\, she approaches painting as a partnership with watercolor\, allowing pigments to merge\, layer\, and move naturally across the surface. This openness to chance gives her work a sense of discovery and allows her compositions to move beyond literal representations of the natural world.  Pitts is listed in ‘Who’s Who in American Art’ and was featured in Watercolor Artist Magazine.  She has taught watercolor workshops across the globe\, including in France\, Croatia\, and Italy.  Pitts has been teaching watercolor since 1995 at the Adult School of Montclair and the Montclair Art Museum\, and currently teaches at the Van Vleck Gardens in Montclair\, New Jersey.  She continues to maintain her own studio in Montclair.  Pitts has been exhibiting since 1975\, in both group and solo shows. \nGail Wood Miller is a third-generation artist and retired teacher whose practice brings together watercolor\, drawing\, ink\, and photography to explore observation\, imagination\, and the natural world. Influenced by her mother and grandfather\, Miller began drawing at a young age\, and has continued to connect art with storytelling throughout her life. She chooses nature\, landscapes\, and people as subjects\, and is concerned with conveying their movements and emotions\, though she enjoys allowing the viewer’s imagination to determine the story they perceive. Her work often involves translucent washes that emphasize organic form and subtle movement\, as well as a sense of lightness and contrast. Miller’s interest in plants and her preference for working between detailed observation and abstraction allows her work to become more than a simple botanical study\, encouraging viewers to notice the beauty within an everyday subject. Through her work\, Miller seeks understanding and hope\, inviting viewers to appreciate themselves\, others\, and the world around them. \nJeffrey Weiss/McCredie is a Pennsylvania-based artist whose lifelong passion for painting began in childhood after discovering Claude Monet’s work. Inspired by late nineteenth-century artists such as John Singer Sargent\, Winslow Homer\, and Pierre-Auguste Renoir\, McCredie embraces watercolor for its immediacy and portability\, often completing his paintings outdoors. His bright palette and expressive handling of color capture the warmth\, atmosphere\, and beauty of the landscapes he encounters. Rather than simply documenting a place\, his work conveys the experience of being within it: the shifting light\, surrounding color\, and quiet character of the natural environment. He studied art at Eastern University and later received a Fulbright Scholarship to study in Germany\, where he continued developing his artistic practice and exhibited throughout Europe. Following his time in Europe\, McCredie moved to Los Angeles to pursue his career as an actor and an artist\, where he painted and exhibited with groups such as the West Coast Artists\, The Agoura Group\, Old Town Gallery\, and the California Plein Air groups. He has sold over 800 paintings to movie executives\, actors\, diplomats\, government workers\, and completed over 350 portrait commissions. His studio is in Chester County\, PA. \nHana Aviv is a watercolorist based in New Jersey\, inspired by the peace found in nature. She uses natural landscapes to communicate her emotions\, and the dynamic movement of water across her canvas reflects her sense of awe. Aviv’s visual foundation was built through years of study at institutions\, including the Montclair Art Museum to train in oil\, pastel\, life study\, and watercolor theory; the Zimmerli Art Museum Drawing Society for Adults; and various outdoor plein air workshops. Her creative visual works have earned her significant recognition from regional and national art communities. Aviv holds juried Signature Memberships in the Garden State Watercolor Society\, the New Jersey Watercolor Society\, and the National Association of Women Artists (NAWA). Her engagement with historic arts institutions—including Associate Memberships in the Salmagundi Club\, the Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Art Club\, and the Northeast Watercolor Society—further grounds her practice within the broader tradition of American visual arts. Through vibrant color relationships and refined mark-making\, Aviv converts quiet encounters with nature and space into luminous\, evocative visual experiences. She has participated in both group and solo exhibitions across New Jersey and New York\, including a previous exhibition at Alfa Art Gallery. Aviv has received many awards\, including “Artist of the Week” from National Arts Program Magazine. \nPeggy Dressel is a watercolor painter from Oakland\, New Jersey. She studied at Pratt Institute\, The National Academy of Design\, and Moore College of Art. Dressel enjoys creating beautiful paintings using vibrant colors to create an illuminating glow in her works. She also values lighting in her works\, as it helps to determine the mood\, time\, and day. Her works focus on playfulness and lightheartedness\, evoking a sense of curiosity and happiness. There is also a sense of simplicity in her works\, giving her viewers a sense of tranquility and softness. Dressel has received many awards at juried exhibitions\, including the Lena Di Gangi Gallery\, Nathan’s Gallery\, the Dupre Gallery\, and many others. Dressel is also a member of the Degas Pastel Society\, the Oregon Pastel Society\, and the Southeastern Pastel Society. She has also illustrated several children’s books\, including Hoops! by Connie Turner and The Marble Jar by Sharon L. Young. \nWe would like to give a special thank you to our sponsors: \nMiddlesex County Board of County Commissioners\, Amboy Bank\, New Brunswick City Center\, GSK\, Magyar Bank\, The Bank of Princeton\, Daiichi-Sankyo\, Johnson&Johnson\, Pfizer\, and Merck. \nYour generous support plays a crucial part in our success\, and we are truly appreciative for your belief and commitment to our work. This support is what allows us to have an impact on and create positive experiences for our community.
URL:https://www.alfaart.org/event/in-person-opening-reception-2026-nbas-watercolor-mixed-media-exhibition-liquid-layers/
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20261112T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20261112T183000
DTSTAMP:20260925T193757Z
CREATED:20260918T160146Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260925T193757Z
UID:29827-1794508200-1794508200@www.alfaart.org
SUMMARY:Virtual Opening Reception: 2026 NBAS Watercolor & Mixed Media Exhibition “Liquid Layers”
DESCRIPTION:New Brunswick\, NJ – Alfa Art Gallery proudly presents the 2026 NBAS Watercolor and Mixed Media Exhibition: ‘Liquid Layers.’ The Exhibition is open from October 27\, 2026\, until January 9\, 2027. \nVirtual Opening Reception: Thursday\, November 12th\, 2026\, starting at 6:30pm \nFeatured Artists: Alexis Rodefer\, Manman Huang\, J. Jie Li\, Daniella Toscanini\, Denise Shaw\, Joel Popadics\, Michelle Vargas\, Neal Korn\, Sharon Pitts\, Gail Wood Miller\, Jeffrey Weiss/McCredie\, Hana Aviv\, Peggy Dressel \nFrom October 27\, 2026\, until January 9\, 2027\, the community at Alfa Art Gallery in New Brunswick\, NJ will be presenting “Liquid Layers”\, a New Brunswick Watercolor and Mixed Media Exhibition. This ten-week exhibition\, which will be available to the public both in-person and virtually\, presents a thoughtfully curated selection of watercolor and mixed media artworks that explore architecture\, landscapes\, emotions\, and identities through a range of mediums and techniques. Uniting the featured artists with distinct perspectives and approaches\, the exhibition celebrates both artistic expression and interpretation\, showcasing the many ways artists engage with their subjects and surroundings.  \n \nThroughout the exhibition\, artists explore their subjects through both realist and abstract approaches\, offering works that range from landscapes and architectural scenes to portraiture and more expressive pieces. The diversity of techniques and artistic perspectives creates a dialogue between realism\, abstraction\, observation\, and personal interpretation. Together\, these works offer viewers a range of ways to experience subjects through differences in medium\, color\, form\, and artistic perspective. \nAlfa Art Gallery invites viewers to engage with these varied artistic perspectives and consider how each artist’s individual approach influences their interpretation of the world. Through the intersection of watercolor\, mixed media\, subject\, and technique\, ‘Liquid Layers’ offers an opportunity to experience the many different ways art can transform observation into personal expression. \n \nView the virtual exhibition here: \nhttps://us02web.zoom.us/j/85107937935?pwd=73TsNUofkClaqPrpsHESY53BFc8hgg.1 \n \n2026 NBAS Featured Artists in Watercolor and Mixed Media: \nAlexis Rodefer is a watercolor artist who takes the visuals of the Northeast American ecosystem\, celebrates the wildlife that is housed within it\, and tells lively stories that help us realize that\, in reality\, we are not so different from animals. While earning her Bachelor’s of Fine Arts (BFA) from the Art Institute of Chicago\, Rodefer became familiar with the concept of scientific illustrations\, which influenced her to spend a lot of time researching the lifestyles\, histories\, and behaviors of the different species\, which play a distinctive role in the work she creates.  Her most recent series\, Domestic Absurdity\, is a delightful example of that\, where she “imagines native species through an anthropomorphic lens”. By using her titles to add context to a piece\, she creates scenes that make the animals feel more “human”\, forming a relationship between the works and the people who see them and can relate to those universal moments of the human experience. \nManman Huang (born in Chengdu\, China) is a New Jersey-based contemporary painter who has a focus of depicting everyday city life. She uses her degrees in sociology and history to influence her unique perspective of the world through her artwork. Her passion for painting comes from her studies in 19th-century Chinese-American trade\, in which she learned about the teaching of language and culture between nations. Huang came to the United States as an immigrant\, which sparked her search for belonging. She found this through her expressive brushwork\, vivid color palettes\, and her depiction of everyday town life in New Jersey. These themes are especially present in significant bodies of work such as her Maplewood Town and Gardens projects. Huang has exhibited her work at many different museums and events\, such as the Newark Museum of Art\, the NJ Arts Annual 2023\, Rutgers University\, and the Paper Mill Playhouse in New Jersey. She also involves herself in her community by teaching watercolor painting classes in Maplewood and by contributing artwork to the Lunar Fest of  New Jersey from 2023 to 2025. \nJ. Jie Li is a New York–based contemporary fine artist layering watercolor and mixed media. She has exhibited her works both within the United States and internationally. Her works deeply explore liminal landscapes of human existence\, focusing greatly on a reverence for the natural world. J. Li’s watercolor paintings offer immense feelings of desire\, loss\, resilience\, and spiritual awakening. Her work addresses the imperative that the destruction of the physical environment directly mirrors the quiet\, systemic decay of the human soul. The traditional lightness and delicacy associated with watercolor is remodeled in J. Jie Li’s structural vehicle. She combines layers of different mediums such as pigment\, soot\, slate\, and ink washes\, pulling juxtapositions against fluid tones. Her watercolor images transform landscapes into emotionally contemplative environments. J. Li has a Bachelor’s in Fine Art from Parsons School of Design. She transitioned from a career in fashion and dedicated herself entirely to the world of fine art. In her practice\, she is deeply catalyzed by Zen Buddhism\, Daoist thought\, and Schopenhauerian existential gravity. \nDaniella Toscanini is an artist working in watercolor\, gouache\, and acrylic\, based in Edison\, New Jersey\, with a love for landscapes\, nature\, and the serenity that comes from them. She discovered her passion for plein air painting after attending the Bermuda Plein Air Festival in 2015\, seeking to capture the vibrancy found in the natural world to share with those who view her works. Toscanini graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York and was trained in realism at The Art Academy in Hillsborough\, New Jersey\, shaping her understanding of the art world to what it has become now. Her works shown in the Liquid Layers exhibition focus on the stillness of the landscape\, and the beauty of the reflections on the glassy bodies of water taking on the colors of the ever-stretching sky. \nDenise Shaw is an artist inspired by a passion for human rights advocacy and ancient philosophy\, and her artworks seek to bridge collective consciousness with a deep compassion for the global condition\, forming what she describes as an “authentic habitat” for memory and resistance. Her interest in the complexity of the human psyche is expressed through tactile material choices\, combining layers of acrylic paint\, watercolor\, photo transfers\, and collage with pumice stone\, metal leaf\, and sand. Shaw uses irony and whimsy to draw viewers into her imagery\, prompting greater awareness and empathy for the global themes her work confronts. Working from her studios in Tribeca\, New York City\, and Connecticut\, Shaw has exhibited nationally and internationally since the 1980s. She earned her BFA from the School of Visual Arts and a postgraduate certificate in Film from New York University. Throughout her expansive career\, her work has been exhibited at venues including the Museum of Arts and Design in New York City\, the National Museum of American Art in Washington\, D.C.\, the Reece Museum in Tennessee\, and the Copelouzos Family Art Museum in Athens\, Greece. \nJoel Popadics is an internationally recognized watercolor artist whose practice primarily focuses on landscapes. Rather than simply documenting their visual appearance\, he seeks to capture the emotions\, memories\, and sensations that particular places evoke. His paintings demonstrate a mastery of the watercolor medium\, with luminosity and the transparency of light serving as central elements of his work. Popadics’ received formal training at the School of Visual Arts\, earning a B.F.A. in 1983. He has participated in numerous prestigious solo and group exhibitions\, including exhibitions at the National Academy of Design in New York City. An experienced educator\, he has lectured and taught extensively\, including at Parsons School of Design and The King’s College in New York City. Deeply committed to advancing the watercolor medium\, Popadics has served as President of the American Watercolor Society and previously on the Ridgewood Art Institute’s Board of Directors. \nMichelle Vargas is a Filipina watercolor artist based in New Jersey\, who depicts wildlife with grace and expression. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts with a major in Advertising\, and is driven by the powerful impact of storytelling through visuals. After discovering her passion for watercolor as a creative outlet\, she built her skills in the medium by embracing fluidity and delicacy\, utilizing this technique to give her pieces life\, grace\, and emotion. She appreciates nature and creates work to inspire people to stop and admire the beauty and elegance found in the natural world. Vargas explores themes of connection and growth\, while “blending realism with a sense of imagination and storytelling.” Her brush clearly comes from a place of admiration\, as her depiction of animals\, nature\, and people contains the required realism needed to bring the piece to life\, while still keeping the personality and identifying qualities. Vargas’ work has been included in juried exhibitions and given recognition\, including Second Place in the Associate Division of the New Jersey Watercolor Society’s 2026 Annual Juried Exhibition. \nNeal Korn is a New Jersey-based artist who seeks to incorporate the spontaneity and beauty of nature in his works. Starting with ink\, watercolor\, and graphite\, he places his renderings of figures into nature scenes. The final works combine lush\, vibrant backgrounds with stylized figures. The juxtaposition between backgrounds and figures invokes curiosity and contemplation\, reflecting Korn’s lifelong love of psychology and the many dimensions of the mind. He is an accomplished painter who was initially recognized for winning the ‘Shaw Award for Painting’ at Brooklyn College. Korn’s work has been recognized in prolific publications\, including the Best of Painting and The New York Times. In 2024\, Korn won the ‘New Jersey Fellowship’ from the New Jersey State Council of the Arts. Korn’s most recent exhibition was a one-person show at the Atrium Gallery\, showcasing his paintings about the natural world. \nSharon Pitts is a New Jersey-based watercolorist who focuses on creating scenes of nature. She has described her attraction to the medium because of its translucent color\, flowing movement\, and ability to create unexpected effects. Rather than forcing a predetermined outcome\, she approaches painting as a partnership with watercolor\, allowing pigments to merge\, layer\, and move naturally across the surface. This openness to chance gives her work a sense of discovery and allows her compositions to move beyond literal representations of the natural world.  Pitts is listed in ‘Who’s Who in American Art’ and was featured in Watercolor Artist Magazine.  She has taught watercolor workshops across the globe\, including in France\, Croatia\, and Italy.  Pitts has been teaching watercolor since 1995 at the Adult School of Montclair and the Montclair Art Museum\, and currently teaches at the Van Vleck Gardens in Montclair\, New Jersey.  She continues to maintain her own studio in Montclair.  Pitts has been exhibiting since 1975\, in both group and solo shows. \nGail Wood Miller is a third-generation artist and retired teacher whose practice brings together watercolor\, drawing\, ink\, and photography to explore observation\, imagination\, and the natural world. Influenced by her mother and grandfather\, Miller began drawing at a young age\, and has continued to connect art with storytelling throughout her life. She chooses nature\, landscapes\, and people as subjects\, and is concerned with conveying their movements and emotions\, though she enjoys allowing the viewer’s imagination to determine the story they perceive. Her work often involves translucent washes that emphasize organic form and subtle movement\, as well as a sense of lightness and contrast. Miller’s interest in plants and her preference for working between detailed observation and abstraction allows her work to become more than a simple botanical study\, encouraging viewers to notice the beauty within an everyday subject. Through her work\, Miller seeks understanding and hope\, inviting viewers to appreciate themselves\, others\, and the world around them. \nJeffrey Weiss/McCredie is a Pennsylvania-based artist whose lifelong passion for painting began in childhood after discovering Claude Monet’s work. Inspired by late nineteenth-century artists such as John Singer Sargent\, Winslow Homer\, and Pierre-Auguste Renoir\, McCredie embraces watercolor for its immediacy and portability\, often completing his paintings outdoors. His bright palette and expressive handling of color capture the warmth\, atmosphere\, and beauty of the landscapes he encounters. Rather than simply documenting a place\, his work conveys the experience of being within it: the shifting light\, surrounding color\, and quiet character of the natural environment. He studied art at Eastern University and later received a Fulbright Scholarship to study in Germany\, where he continued developing his artistic practice and exhibited throughout Europe. Following his time in Europe\, McCredie moved to Los Angeles to pursue his career as an actor and an artist\, where he painted and exhibited with groups such as the West Coast Artists\, The Agoura Group\, Old Town Gallery\, and the California Plein Air groups. He has sold over 800 paintings to movie executives\, actors\, diplomats\, government workers\, and completed over 350 portrait commissions. His studio is in Chester County\, PA. \nHana Aviv is a watercolorist based in New Jersey\, inspired by the peace found in nature. She uses natural landscapes to communicate her emotions\, and the dynamic movement of water across her canvas reflects her sense of awe. Aviv’s visual foundation was built through years of study at institutions\, including the Montclair Art Museum to train in oil\, pastel\, life study\, and watercolor theory; the Zimmerli Art Museum Drawing Society for Adults; and various outdoor plein air workshops. Her creative visual works have earned her significant recognition from regional and national art communities. Aviv holds juried Signature Memberships in the Garden State Watercolor Society\, the New Jersey Watercolor Society\, and the National Association of Women Artists (NAWA). Her engagement with historic arts institutions—including Associate Memberships in the Salmagundi Club\, the Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Art Club\, and the Northeast Watercolor Society—further grounds her practice within the broader tradition of American visual arts. Through vibrant color relationships and refined mark-making\, Aviv converts quiet encounters with nature and space into luminous\, evocative visual experiences. She has participated in both group and solo exhibitions across New Jersey and New York\, including a previous exhibition at Alfa Art Gallery. Aviv has received many awards\, including “Artist of the Week” from National Arts Program Magazine. \nPeggy Dressel is a watercolor painter from Oakland\, New Jersey. She studied at Pratt Institute\, The National Academy of Design\, and Moore College of Art. Dressel enjoys creating beautiful paintings using vibrant colors to create an illuminating glow in her works. She also values lighting in her works\, as it helps to determine the mood\, time\, and day. Her works focus on playfulness and lightheartedness\, evoking a sense of curiosity and happiness. There is also a sense of simplicity in her works\, giving her viewers a sense of tranquility and softness. Dressel has received many awards at juried exhibitions\, including the Lena Di Gangi Gallery\, Nathan’s Gallery\, the Dupre Gallery\, and many others. Dressel is also a member of the Degas Pastel Society\, the Oregon Pastel Society\, and the Southeastern Pastel Society. She has also illustrated several children’s books\, including Hoops! by Connie Turner and The Marble Jar by Sharon L. Young. \nWe would like to give a special thank you to our sponsors: \nMiddlesex County Board of County Commissioners\, Amboy Bank\, New Brunswick City Center\, GSK\, Magyar Bank\, The Bank of Princeton\, Daiichi-Sankyo\, Johnson&Johnson\, Pfizer\, and Merck. \nYour generous support plays a crucial part in our success\, and we are truly appreciative for your belief and commitment to our work. This support is what allows us to have an impact on and create positive experiences for our community.
URL:https://www.alfaart.org/event/virtual-opening-reception-2026-nbas-watercolor-mixed-media-exhibition-liquid-layers/
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