All Souls UU Church is hosting an exhibit of more than a decade of paintings by Jeremy Aldridge, many focused on Ukraine.
Organizers of the show describe the first series, "Processing the World," as "a group of intuitive acrylic paintings on canvas from the decade leading up to the Russian invasion of Ukraine." The second series, "Witnessing Ukraine," features paintings inspired by media photos of the ongoing war in Ukraine.
Aldridge grew up in Brattleboro and is a graduate of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts.
"Painting, for me, is evolution, an experience of artistic materials and daily emotional painterly conversation," Aldridge said in a news release. "Painting is curiosity of 'what if's.'
"The conversation starts, evolves, sometimes long, sometimes shorter. As long as the painting's conversation is always open to continued exploration and curiosity then it will hold life for others to find.
"The breadth of painted conversations is evident in the contrasts between the 'Witnessing Ukraine' paintings and 'Processing the World' paintings through changes in color, energy, and mood and focus on realism," Aldridge continued.
He described the paintings from the decade before the Ukraine invasion as "more immediate, intimate, and local conversations."
"The invasion of Ukraine on my birthday made the event more personal to me, and also a bigger, more global discussion," he continued.
Inspiration and support
Aldridge has been creating art from an early age.
"When I was 5 years old or so, I remember painting with my grandmother under the lilac in the side yard at her home on Cedar Street," he said.
His grandmother, Lanice P. Dana, "was a graduate of Pratt Institute, and an early art teacher in the Brattleboro school system. She inspired me."
He also cites "good support" from high school teachers at Keene High School and Amherst Regional High School.
"The art corridor of Amherst High is where I met my love, Sue. Eventually, we both attended the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, encouraged by summer Ames Hill neighbor Homer Johnson, who was a painting instructor there."
The Aldridge exhibit will be on view through the end of March at All Souls Church, West Village Meeting House, 29 South St., West Brattleboro, up the hill from the West Brattleboro fire station. Regular viewing time is Sunday, 11 a.m. to noon, and by appointment. For more information, visit ascvt.org.
This Arts item was submitted to The Commons.