Art & Education at the Hoyt’s newest exhibitions present two differing views of America through the eyes of artists David Michael Salerno and Nelson Oestreich.
The first is touched by current events, and the second by the nostalgia of Lawrence County’s Amish and other small communities.
DAVID MICHAEL SALERNO: “TOGETHER, A PORTRAIT OF AMERICANS”
David Michael Salerno began painting portraits of his Chattanooga, Tennessee, neighbors as a personal response to the discord in our country several years ago. He said he worried that the widening divide within politics threatened the United States’ democracy. Through these portraits, he sought to illustrate the country’s shared humanity despite differences to encourage more civil and constructive interaction.
Salerno originally recruited individuals from ten different religious groups. Not to compare religions, but to show what all humans share as humans despite their personal beliefs. Each volunteer met with the artist for about three hours, conversing with him extensively as he captured their likenesses. All sitters shared Salerno’s desire to minimize the focus on race, gender, religion and identity to find common ground in the shared experience of life.
The resulting exhibit, which has since more than doubled in size, is called “Together, A Portrait of Americans” and will be on display Sept. 20-Oct. 17 in the Hoyt Galleries7.
Salerno was trained in classical realism, yet integrates more contemporary techniques into that tradition. While his secondary education led him into cardiology, Salerno continued to paint throughout his medical career. He said he obtained his foundation through Atelier Lack in Minneapolis, and later the Townsend Atelier in Chattanooga.
Since retiring from medical practice in 2015, Salerno has worked full-time on his passion for oil painting, securing a spot as a Signature Artist in the Naitonal Oil and Acrylic Painters Society in 2016. By 2021, he was admitted into the International Guild of Realism and by 2022 to the American Artists Professional League.
NELSON OESTREICH: “IN RETROSPECT: WOOD PRINTS (1975-1991)”
Many Lawrence County residents no doubt remember the work of Nelson Oestreich (1932-2014), who served as an art professor at Westminster College for many years.
A voracious creator, he generated a strong market for his folkish paintings, etchings, wood carvings and woodcut prints from his New Wilmington studio that depicted the American experience in general, and the Amish experience in particular.
Hoyt’ s Executive Director, Kimberly Koller-Jones, describes his work as “quiet reflections of the everyday that were captured with a reverence for hard work and honest living.” She feels the simplicity of the subject and materials used further connect our human nature to Mother Nature and the bigger experience of life itself.
Arts & Education at the Hoyt was fortunate enough to receive a collection of 42 woodblock prints by Oestreich last July from William and Janet Bodoh. William Bodoh retired as judge from the United States Bankruptcy Court in Youngstown in 2004. He began collecting Oestriech’s work in the 1970s after meeting the artist at the Butler Institute of American Art. While Bodoh hung on to a few favorites, the bulk of his collection was contributed to the Hoyt to chronicle the artist’s contributions to the Lawrence County art scene and the Hoyt itself.
Oestreich was among the first group of artists involved with the Hoyt in its early years. The collection dates from 1975-1991 and features popular themes of birds, Amish, lobster boats and the Crusades that were prominent throughout the artist’s career. “In Retrospect” will be exhibited in the Walkway Gallery, Sept. 20-Oct. 17.
A closing reception for both shows is scheduled for 6 p.m. Oct. 17. Salerno will appear in person. Oestreich will be there in spirit. Admission to the galleries is free.
