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Printed From Acorn-Online.com Ridgefield Press
It is reasonably safe to assume that when Ridgefield was founded back in 1708 life was hard, and courageous, tireless women did what they could to bring some measure of beauty into their homes when they could find the time.
Today in the 300th anniversary year of Ridgefield, Noelle Carr, a young Ridgefield resident with the soul of an artist, has spent this special year commemorating the gardens and flowers of the town and it can be called “high art.” Her style, reminiscent of Georgia O’Keeffe, produces paintings of flowers with a bold, steady hand, and a sureness of stroke and color. A show of Ms. Carr’s works open today, Sunday from 2 to 4 at the Ridgefield Library, and the public is invited. The show runs through May 9.
Appropriate It does seem most appropriate that this young woman, a descendent of the first English settlers (with just a touch of Native American blood) should have become part of the Ridgefield 300th Anniversary Celebration of Events.
Ms. Carr photographs local gardens (public and private), finds the flower that beckons to her artistry and takes the picture of it home, tacks it to her “inspiration board,” then mixes her oils and creates a unique personal statement. “Sometimes I would drive by a home, spot something fabulous in their garden and leave a little note in their mailbox. Before I knew what was happening people were telling other people, people were calling me, and over the year I’ve developed enough material for a one-woman show. I wanted one cohesive body of work and I’m doing it — a dream come true.” The mother of Evelyn (five years old in pre-K at Jesse Lee) and Vince (two and one half), finds it’s not always easy to fulfill her need to express herself, but husband Richard is supportive and frequently will get up late at night while she’s in her studio area painting and tend to the kids’ needs.
Ideal job A graduate in art history at SUNY Purchase, Ms. Carr moved on to what she calls the “ideal job” for a young artist and art history major, working at the Museum of Modern Art. “Every day I walked into that building I felt like the luckiest person in the world to be working there and to be surrounded by the greatest works of modern art in the world!” From there she went on to be the director of photo archives at PaceWildenstein Gallery in New York. She was at Pace during some of its more historic exhibits including Picasso and Drawing and Bonnard-Rothko: Color and Light. But her eyes sparkle when she talks of working with gallery artist Chuck Close’s exhibition at MoMA in 1998. She spent several days with the artist in his studio selecting images for the exhibition catalogue. During that time she was also witness to the artist at work with his brushes strapped to his hands and the special “easel” that moves in rotation to be in full reach of Close in his wheelchair. Says she with admiration, “He paints every stroke!”
Fulfilling a dream After marriage, she decided that what she wanted to do most was stay home with her husband and her children and, if possible, finally develop her own style and paint as much as possible. She is fulfilling that dream now in Ridgefield. “I never wanted art to be my job — rather it is my personal form of expression, something I must do,” she said. “Ridgefield is amazing in its acceptance of artists and its encouragement to us all. There are so many opportunities.
“When I read about the 300th Anniversary of Ridgefield, I wanted to participate and so I contacted the committee and they were delighted to have my show on board.” © Copyright 2008 by Hersam Acorn Newspapers |
