PUTNEY — “Mist,” a collection of oil paintings and encaustics by Nina Salvatore, is on exhibit at the Putney Public Library, 55 Main St., through Aug. 26.
Salvatore's paintings reflect her love of the natural world around her, especially her deep love of Vermont. On her walks, she says, she focuses on light and the patterns in the earth and is fascinated by mist and fog, and how these elements obscure one's vision only to reveal later another aspect of the view.
“I have been known to get up before sunrise if I think there will be a blanket of fog across the landscape,” Salvatore said in a news release.
This fascination began when she lived in New York City. The allure of smoke and smog, which softened the ugliness and pollution, interested her. She said she painted on a small scale, inviting the viewer to look closely in order to understand her intent. In time, she began to paint larger to underscore her intent.
Salvatore grew up in Washington, D.C., raised by an artistic family and with access to the many art museums and institutions in the city. She attended University of the Arts in Philadelphia, studying photography and graphics, and then moved to Vermont where she fell in love with the environment.
She received her masters from the State University of New York at Stony Brook, and was an adjunct professor at SUNY-Stony Brook, Nassau Community College, and Suffolk Community College. Returning to Vermont, she received a degree in art education through a program offered at the University of Vermont and taught Advanced Placement art in high school for 16 years.
She now lives in Putney, where she has a studio both for painting and hand-built ceramics. She is a member of Wheelhouse Clay Center in Brattleboro, where she displays her ceramics.
This art show, like all library programs, is free and open to the public. Putney Public Library is open Monday through Friday, 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.