The Bowery Gallery in Chelsea is currently presenting a collection of work by Diane Drescher for an exhibition titled Urban Landscapes: Off the Grid. For her second solo show at the gallery, Drescher unveils several plein air paintings that capture scenes of the bridges and parks in northern Manhattan.
Nature is an important element in Drescher’s paintings which are filled with vivid colors, strong brushstrokes, and striking compositions. Several of these paintings come from Drescher’s Bridge series where she focuses on the overhead bridge beneath the Henry Hudson parkway. One of these pieces titled Bridge Early Morning, illustrates a bike path gradually descending from underneath the bridge. Drescher effectively shows the sunlight shining through while also showing reflections of shadows exuded by trees and surrounding land. A similar piece titled First Early Morning Bridge, the bike path seems a bit wider and a red, brick building sits at the edge, and Workers Finishing the Job shows us the same scene but with two men standing by orange construction cones.
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| Bridge Early Morning by Diane Drescher |
Many of Drescher’s paintings evoke an oasis of calm, such as Red Roof where she captures the calm flow of the Hudson River as the lush, green trees of New Jersey can be seen out in the distance. As the title suggests, two houses (one with a dark red roof and one with a rose-colored roof) can be seen by the western end of Manhattan at the foot of the river. Other notable images include Gingko Tree and Bridge depicting yellow-green grass and the George Washington Bridge out in the distance, and Urban Landscapes and Trees and Shadows, both of which depict tilted tree branches in a garden with a pink house in the background.
At the Bowery Gallery 530 W. 25th St., through Nov. 28. The gallery is open Tue.-Sat. from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m.
