Experience A Peaceful Interlude

Stop by and celebrate the new year surrounded by art created by some of the Arts Center’s most talented local artists! 

For several years the first show of the year features the work of some of our most familiar exhibiting artists.  This year we’re proud to highlight the work of painters Beverly Oben, Lana Grauer and Eric Happ and potter Faith Benedict. 

Beverly Oben lives in Bluff Point and has been making art since she was a child.  As an elementary school teacher she delighted in incorporating art into her curriculum, but it was after retiring that she really began pursuing her own artistic desires.  After “dabbling in watercolor” she took some lessons in palette knife oil painting which became her favorite medium.  A member of the Penn Yan Art Guild, Bev also taught children’s art classes at the Arts Center for many years. 

Lana Grauer lived for many years in California but spent summers on Keuka Lake and eventually moved to the area after her husband retired.  She says “As a landscape painter I am amazed and in awe of nature in the Finger Lakes Region of Upstate New York.  The changing seasons and rapidly evolving weather patterns provide an immense palette of hues and values.”  Lana paints exclusively with pastel, although she often starts her piece with a watercolor or pure pigment underpainting.  She loves painting “en plein air” (outside). 

Eric Happ grew up outside of Rochester and has lived on the shores of Seneca Lake for more than 20 years.  Like Bev Oben, Eric began his artistic career after retiring from the NYS Health Department.  He prefers to work in watercolors and acrylics.  Eric says “I enjoy putting as much depth into a painting as I can with the use of perspective, lights and darks, and paying close attention to shadows.”  Eric seems to be most drawn to nautical subjects due to a lifelong attraction to water, sailing, and scuba diving.

More than four decades ago, Faith Benedict “retired” as a professional potter and began a new career as a local art teacher, working in the Penn Yan elementary, middle and high schools for more than 30 years.  Upon her second retirement (from teaching), she turned back to her pottery and is once again producing graceful bowls, vases, teapots and more, often adorned with gently curving leafy shapes in the glaze.  Still a popular ceramics teacher, Faith also serves on the Arts Center’s Board of Directors. 

A selection of work from each of these local featured artists, along with work from many of the Arts Center’s other exhibiting artists, can be seen at the Arts Center starting on Wednesday, January 6.  Stop by and enjoy a moment of artistic Zen!  The Arts Center, located at 127 Main Street in Penn Yan, is open Monday – Friday from 10 am to 4 pm and on Saturdays from 10 am to 2 pm.  Admission is free.

What: Interlude exhibit opening
When: Wednesday, January 6. 2021
Where: Arts Center of Yates County  127 Main Street Penn Yan, NY
Who: featuring artwork by Eric Happ, Lana Grauer, Beverly Oben and Faith Benedict

For more information, contact the Arts Center at 315-536-8226 or artscenteryates@gmail.com