the exhibits

past exhibit

Edie Wells Bristol - A Retrospective 1989 to 2009

Opening: Edie Wells Bristol – A Retrospective 1989 - 2009 Bucks Gallery of Fine Art 201 South State Street Newtown, PA 18938

Edie Wells Bristol, a selection of the last twenty years of painting, opens this weekend in Newtown at the Bucks Gallery of Fine Art. The “hidden treasure of Bucks County” is the description the best fits Edie and her work according to gallery director, Joan Perkes. Essentially self-taught her painting career, did not begin until her mid-fifties. “I first noticed her work at Bianco Gallery and Phillips Mill years ago. The level of sophistication was astounding and initially I was unsure if she were currently painting. Later, I found her to be well known among the more sophisticated collectors in the area.” Totally unafraid she approaches her canvas as she approaches life with intellect, joy and unabashed enthusiasm. The history of modern art is a companion and a master. She is able to both extract and synthesize creating paintings that are uniquely her own. “I don’t like to get all caught up in detail, neither subject nor technique is of great importance. My work is dominated by shape and feelings. Painting and music have fed my soul, heart and spirit. I paint what I feel and I sense. I don’t know how I paint, I just paint.”

Part of the current collection includes homage to sculptor, Richard Serra and Elegy I, a tribute to Anne d’Harnoncourt, the late director of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Bucks County overflows with impressionistic landscape painters. It is always exciting to have the opportunity to view a Bucks County “classic” one that doesn’t need to paint a scene to be known and cherished. Her works says Bucks County and way beyond.