Artist Don Keene Of Madison Featured Exhibitor For October

MADISON, CT — Exhibiting artist Don Keene of Madison is the featured artist for October at Willoughby’s Coffee & Tea. A free and open-to-the-public 'Meet the Artist' reception is set for Sunday, Oct. 20 from 3 to 6 p.m.

Three large landscapes are the focus of the exhibition.

Keene’s idea for the series was to approach the traditional genre of landscape painting with a directness and lack of sentiment informed as much by 1950s abstract expressionism, as by William Glackens and his Ashcan School compatriots.

Inspired by Edward Hopper’s under-populated scenes of American life, these paintings lack human presence, while bringing out the abstract qualities and stark simplicity of the scenes Keene is motivated to depict.

Shape, color and texture are paramount concerns as he breaks the landscapes down to their essential elements, revealing not nostalgia, but rather the power and force of the sometimes stark vistas.

Don Keene is a 1984 graduate of Pasadena’s Art Center College of Design, and holds a Master’s Degree in Studio Art from the College of New Rochelle in New Rochelle, New York. He has been teaching art, publicly and privately, since 1987. His studio is at 4 New Road in Madison. To view his work in this exhibit, go to www.donkeene.com and click on the “Genre” section.

Willoughby’s Coffee & Tea is located at 752 Boston Post Road, Madison.