In “What Makes the World Go Round: New Drawings by Sean Nixon,” the artist will debut new work from the war in Ukraine to gun safety and the lingering drama of COVID, visitors are invited to view his latest work using pen & ink to chronicle our ever-changing world.

Opening reception will be on Saturday, August 6th, from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM. in The Lace Mill West Gallery. After a brief artist talk, visitors can purchase signed prints. Sean will also be signing books and apparel.

In an interactive feature, attendees will be given art supplies and encouraged to respond to the exhibition either by drawing, and spoken, and or written word.

“These are hard times; people feel isolated, gob smacked by the headlines, disempowered, constantly subjected to injustice and I believe that art has the ability to mirror society so we can make some sense of what we are all going through,” said Nixon.

This exhibition will consist of two distinct bodies of work, Abstract paintings and variations on drawing and photography.

The Abstract Paintings are all from an ongoing series titled “Siblings”, named for the process by which they are made. They are groupings of two or three paintings that are created at the same time, using the same palette of colors. The completed works definitely have a family resemblance.

The rest of the show will contain combinations of Drawing, Photography, Digital Manipulation. The mixed media photo-montages are a compilation of drawings and photos merged and manipulated digitally. There will also be a variety of photographs, some hand colored, some black and white and possibility some panoramic distortions and portraits. The human figure is referenced in all these images.

Stuart Bigley is a New Paltz based artist who has been making and showing his artwork for over 50 years. During this time he also co-founded and was Executive Director of Unison Arts Center.