Cranbury Gallery to Glass It Up

The assignment was intentionally broad, inviting experimentation and different interpretations: create a watercolor piece that somehow incorporates glass within the painting.

“Touch of Glass,” the latest exhibit in the Gourgaud Gallery of , will feature the responses of Watercolorists Unlimited, a group of 18 local artists. The group has been meeting for over 25 years, according to Lisa Walsh of Cranbury, who is a member of the Gourgaud Gallery Committee and has been a member of Watercolorists Unlimited for approximately ten years.

The group convenes every month to critique each other’s watercolor works —which center on a subject chosen at the previous meeting — and to decide upon a new topic for the next gathering. 

For Walsh, who is still working on her pieces for the exhibit, the critiquing process is particularly valuable, as it provides an opportunity to see how other members expressed the topic.

“Everyone paints so differently…you can see how they solved the problem,” Walsh said.

Longtime Cranbury resident, Wilma Schimer, who’s been a member of the group since its advent, said her interpretation of the exhibit’s subject sprung from her love of antiques. One of her pieces, “Vintage Glassware,” depicts different types of glasses Schimer spotted around town, such as a clown glass, milk bottles and glass telephone pole insulators.

Her second painting for the month, “Crystal with Red Peppers,” fittingly features two glass goblets, one of which contains red peppers. Schimer said that she practices what she characterizes as “traditional” watercolor and works largely from photographs and that she began painting when her two sons went away to school. Her favorite aspect of painting, she said, is the release it provides.

“I’ve always enjoyed painting,” she said. “When you have a piece of watercolor in front of you, you have to think about that; you don’t have to think about anything else in the world.”   

Each member of Watercolors Unlimited will contribute one or two paintings to the show, which will be available to purchase, according to Schimer. Twenty percent of each sale will be dedicated to the Cranbury Arts Council and its programs.

The reception for “Touch of Glass” will run from 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday, during which time artists will be available to discuss their work. The Gourgaud Gallery, located in , is open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and 1 to 3 p.m. every first, third and last Sunday of the month. The exhibit will run until June 26.