Gerry Tuten

      EDUCATION:

• MFA Tyler School of Art, Philadelphia, PA, 1973
• BFA University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA 1971, Art Education Teaching Certificate
• BFA Parsons School of Design, NYC 1964, Certificate in Design

     AWARDS/HONORS:

• Wayne Art Center, Wayne, PA February 2016 Expressions of Radnor – Best of Show; Juror Teresa DeSeve

• Wayne Art Center, Wayne, PA March 2011 Expressions of Radnor, Bryn Mawr Trust Company Award – Best of Show ; Juror Dan Shipley

• Main Line Art Center, Bryn Mawr, PA October 2008; Betsy Meyer Memorial Juried Exhibition Award; Juror William Pym, director Fleisher / Ollman Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

• Woodmere Art Museum, Philadelphia, PA 66th Juried Show, Feb 2006; Elizabeth Coyne Memorial Prize – Juror John Shipman, Corcoran Gallery

• Wayne Art Center, Wayne, PA March 2006 Expressions of Radnor; Newman Award – Juror Richard Cannuli, Villanova Art Gallery

• Abington Art Center, Jenkintown, PA 2005, Annual Juried Show; Chairman’s Award – Juror G. Roger Denson, Independent Art Critic

     SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS:

• Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, Chicago, IL; July – November 2020

• Carspecken Scott Gallery, Wilmington, DE; April – June 2020

• “Paintings”, Christopher’s, Wayne, PA; September – October 2019

• “Small Works”, Osterville Village Library, Osterville, MA; May 20, 2016 – June 30, 2016

• “Natural Flow”, Wayne Art Center, Wayne PA; Feb 2016 – March 2016

• “Encounters with Nature”, Founders Hall Art Gallery, SOKA University of America, Aliso Viejo, CA; May – August 2015

• “Waterworks”, Art Gallery – Connelly Center, Villanova University, Villanova, PA; August – October 2014

• “New Paintings”, Gallery 919 Market, Rodney Square, Wilmington, DE; March – May 2014

• “Ebb and Flow”, GoggleWorks Center for the Arts, Reading, PA; June – July 2012

• “Small Paintings”, Little Beach Gallery, Hyannis, MA; July 2011;

• “Recent Work”, Lawrence Gallery, Rosemont College, Rosemont, PA; May 2011

• “Wildlife Happenings”, Speer Gallery, The Shipley School, Bryn Mawr, PA; Feb – Mar 2010

• “Air + Water”, Atlantic Gallery, NYC March 2009; Solo Exhibition, Gryphon Café, Wayne PA; Mar 2009, Aug 2007

• “New Work”, Pagus Gallery, Norristown, PA; May 2008

• “Reflections in Nature”, Waverly Heights Gallery, Gladwyne, PA; Nov – Jan 2008

• “Recent Works”, Miss Porter’s School, Farmington, CT; October 2007

• “Living in Color”, Commerce Square, Philadelphia, PA; Jan 2007

• ”FLOW”, Pagus Gallery, Norristown PA; May – June 2007

• “Reflections”, Carspecken Scott Gallery, Wilmington, DE;  2006

     SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS:

• Group Show – Creative Hands Gallery, Osterville, MA; September 2019

• “Soujourns in Nature” – Cerulean Arts, Philadelphia, PA; May 22 – June 16, 2019

• “New Now II” – InLiquid Gallery, Philadelphia, PA; January 2 – January 19, 2019

• “Resonance and Memory; The Essence of Landscape” – University of Southern Maine Art Gallery, Gorham, ME; October 5 – December 8, 2017

• “Rolling Rock Exhibition” – Lignoier, PA; June 2017

• “Resonance and Memory; The Essence of Landscape” – The Irving Arts Center Galleries and Sculpture Garden, Irving, TX; April 22 – July 9, 2017

• “Resonance and Memory; The Essence of Landscape” – Missouri State University, Brick City Gallery, Springfield, MO; January 25 – March 4, 2017

• “Fluid Lucidity” – Cerulean Arts Gallery, Philadelphia, PA; November 2 – 26, 2016

• “Small Paintings” –  Osterville Village Library, Osterville, MA – May 20 – July 30, 2016

• “Spring Gala Exhibition” – Main Line Art Center, Bryn Mawr, PA;  April 30 – June 5 2016

• 72nd Annual Juried Painting Show, “Art in Bloom” – Cheltenham Center for the Arts, Cheltenham, PA; June 2014/15

• “Resonance and Memory: The Essence of Landscape” – Elga Wimmer Gallery, NYC, December 2014 – January 2015

• “2nd Juried Show” – Cerulean Arts Gallery, Philadelphia, PA; June/July 2014

• “Generations IX; the Red/Pink show” – A.I.R. Gallery, Brooklyn, NY;  January 2014

• “Annual Juried Show” – Cheltenham Art Center, Chestnut Hill, PA;  May 2013

• “Group Community Art Show” – Pagus Gallery, Norristown, PA; Nov – Dec 2012 – 2016

• “Woodmere Art Museum – 71st Annual Juried Exhibition” –  Philadelphia, PA; July 2012, Juried by artist Alex Kanevsky

• “Expressions of Radnor” – Wayne Art Center, PA; February 2012 – 2015;

• Group Show – Commerce Square, Philadelphia, PA; January – March 2012

• “Bounty of Farms” – Wayne Art Center, PA; October 2011

• “Juried Group Exhibition” – Wayne Art Center, Wayne, PA;  March 2011

• “Landscape Into Abstraction” – Yellow Springs Gallery, Yellow Springs, PA;  June 2011

• “Small Works Invitational” – Pagus Gallery, Norristown, PA;  December 2007 – 2011

• Group Show – Miss Porter’s School, Farmington CT;  October 2009

• “Hyannisport Invitational” – Hyannis Port MA;  July 2005, 2007, 2009

• “Sic Transit Gloria” – Atlantic Gallery, NYC;  June 2009

• “‘Dear Fleisher’, Invitational Exhibition of Original Art” – Samuel S. Fleisher Art Memorial, Philadelphia, PA; 2006 – 2014 [biannual];

• “Betsy Meyer Memorial Juried Exhibition” – Main Line Art Center, Bryn Mawr, PA;  October, 2008

• “Catastrophe”, Juried Group Exhibition – Atlantic Gallery, NYC;  June – July 2008

• ”Expressions of Radnor” – Wayne Art Center, Wayne, PA;  March 2006

• “66th Juried Show” – Woodmere Art Museum, Philadelphia, PA;  Feb 2006

• “Paper ‘06” – The Philadelphia Sketch Club, Philadelphia, PA; January 2006

• “Spirited Women Artists” – Main Line Unitarian Church, Devon, PA;  October 2005

• Annual Juried Show – Abington Art Center, Jenkintown,  PA;  March 2005

• Juried Art Exhibition – William Penn Charter School, Germantown, PA;  November 2003

• Faculty and Juried Exhibitions – Wayne Art Center, PA;  2001 – 2005

     RESIDENCIES:

• Nantucket Island School of Design and Art (NISDA), June 2005

• Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, VT, January 2006, November 2013

• “Artist-in-Residence”, Red Gate Studio, Beijing, China; March 2007

     SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY:

• Main Line Media News; Three Art Shows to Open at Wayne Art Center by Linda Stein February 14, 2016

• City Suburban News, Philadelphia, PA; Solo Show, “Natural Flow” by Gerry Tuten, Wayne Art Center; January 27 – February 2, 2016

• Blouin Gallery Guide,NYC – October 2014, pp.#92

• Examiner.com; CA; August 2015, ‘Encounters With Nature’ review by Suzanne Chun

• Orange County Register;Orange County, CA; May 20, 2015, Things to do this Week by Sara Gold, “Encounters With Nature”

• Reading Eagle; Ebb & Flow exhibit by Ron Schira, July 2012

• Studio “Economic life imitates Art” Gov. Deval Patrick visits FAWC, Provincetown, MA, Cape Cod Standard Times, August 2009

• Sic Transit Gloria Exhibit Glorifies Biking in a Crowded City by Julia Dunn, The INDYPENDENT [email newspaper, New York, NY] July 10, 2009

• Announcement & Photo image of Atlantic Gallery Exhibition, NYC; “Air + Water”, ARTnews January 2009

• Betsy Meyer Memorial Exhibit at Main Line Art Center, Haverford, PA, City Suburban News December 10, 2008

• Victoria Donohue, Art Review Solo Exhibit at Pagus Gallery, Philadelphia Inquirer PA June 15, 2008

• Jan Feighner, Small Wonder, Norristown PA, Art Matters, Philadelphia PA, December 2007

• Marie Fowler, “The female perspective”, Main Line Times, PA – October 20 2006

• Betsy Meyer Exhibition Lay of the Land, Main Line Times, Arts & Antiques Mainly Art March 16, 2006

• Victoria Donohue, City Suburban News, Betsy Meyer Exhibition, Haverford, PA March 12, 2006

• Donohue, Victoria, “Abington annual is rich and varied show,” The Philadelphia Inquirer, January 15, 2006

     ARTICLES/PRESS:

• Main Line Ticket; October 20, 2006, Arts & Antiques, Mainly Art by Marie Fowler The female perspective  Main Line Unitarian Church exhibit, Radnor, PA
“Gerry Tuten delights in the sheer exuberance of her brushwork and agitated surfaces. Her blending of color directly on the canvas is nothing short of marvelous.”

• The Philadelphia Inquirer; Sunday, January 15,  2006, Galleries and Museums, Art review by Victoria Donohoe  Abington annual is rich and varied show  Abington Art Center, Jenkintown, PA  pp L10: “Gerry Tuten of Villanova . .  . awakened by the present moment, even if the theme is traditional.  This is a distinctly personal and rewarding show of mostly new talent.

• The Philadelphia Inquirer;   Sunday, March 12, 2006, galleries and Museums Art review by Victoria Donohue A photo array of people, places – Betsy Meyer Exhibition, Haverford, PA  pp L10: “. . . the show is peppered with interesting pieces . . . “

• Main Line Ticket;   March 16, 2006, Arts & Antiques Mainly Art by Marie Fowler Lay of the Land – Betsy Meyer Exhibition, Haverford,  PA.

• Art Matters; December 2007, Small Wonder by Jan Feighner  Small Works Show at, Pagus, Norristown, PA  Page 18: “Gerry Tuten of Villanova looks to her residency in Beijing, China in 2007, where she learned the art of calligraphy and how to conjure her inner strength  before setting brush to paint.  She connects with spirit using yoga breath control exercises, meditation, and self-awareness until the energy inside bursts forth and spills onto her canvas.” “’It depends on where I am,’ said Tuten, who enjoys art’s spontaneity.  ‘If I’m there with the water, I’m observing, being part of the landscape; I’m concerned with the earth.  If I’m in my studio, it’s coming from another place.’ Tuten received her Master’s of Fine Arts degrees from Temple University at Tyler School of Art.  She earned a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts from the University of the Arts and took classes at New York City ’s School of Visual Arts and Parsons School of Design. Currently, the abstract impressionist teaches at the Wayne Art Center, where her students receive the benefit of her unique vision.   Bold strokes thick with oil, or acrylic paint, or various media take hold of her canvas with finality and names like ‘Crows,’ ‘Woods and Water,’ and ‘Night Space.’  She lines her NAB studio of eight years with others such as ‘Grit,’ ‘Mandalas,’ and ‘Exuberance,’ some of which have brilliant colors, while others are more subdued, as evident on her website, [www.gerrytuten.com.]”

• The Philadelphia Inquirer; Sunday, June 15, 2008, Galleries and Museums, Art Review by Victoria Donohue  Local collections tapped for show, Pagus Gallery, 619 West Washington Street, Norristown, PA.  pp. L12: “Gerry Tuten in her solo show at Pagus has an engagement with paint that is so physical, she seems to have revived ‘action painting.’  Three of this Villanova artist’s paintings are large enough to be seen as murals.  And basically all her paper works are abstract, yet emblems and images from nature are woven through. With each painting a balanced jumble of marks, Tuten is at her best when her distinct color tonality in keeping with a mood or theme, as in ‘Flood and Flying.’”

• City Suburban News; December 10, – December 16, 2008; Betsy Meyer Memorial Exhibit at Main Line Art Center , Haverford , PA ; Page 2: “ Main Line Art Center presented a 1000 prize to recognize a single artist who embodies the experimental spirit that Betsy encouraged to all artists.  This prize was presented to Gerry Tuten by the Meyer family.”

• ARTnews;  January 2009, image reproduction of “Sea,” announcement of Atlantic Gallery Exhibition Air + Water, pp 133. The Indypendent Sic Transit Gloria Exhibit Glorifies Biking in a Crowded City by Judy Dunn, July 10, 2009, online re: Atlantic Gallery Exhibition. “Many of the works focused on bikes as well such as the large scroll painting entitled “Bicycle Wheels” by Gerry Tuten. The simplistic model of the bike is outlined in black with dabs of outstanding yellows to seemingly emphasize the spirit of the cyclists gathered in the room to talk about change in New York City and celebrate biking.”

• Main Line Suburban Life; February 19, 2011, The Bryn Mawr Trust Company Award, $300 to Gerry Tuten for “September Reflection,” acrylic on canvas. Studio Guide  ~  Volume 14 2011;  pp. 186 & 18, Gallery Guide; May 2011,  pp.93

• The Philadelphia Inquirer; May 20, 2011, Galleries and Museums, Art Review by Victoria Donohue, Gerry Tuten at Rosemont College’s Lawrence Gallery -” the kind of art that makes the never-ending debate about style seem tiresome, even trivial.  Good and original work like this isn’t bound by stylish labels – the art’s important, not the category.  These aren’t trend shows, nor do they represent eccentric, out-of-the-mainstream perspectives.  Gerry has become very serious as an abstract painter.  As she learned to work less intentionally, and with greater freedom she became eager to share the intense sense of freedom and joy she feels in the physical action and mark-making that go energetically into putting acrylic paint on canvas.  She does all of her paintings in response to nature around her, places, seasons, insects, animals and flowers capturing a sense of motion.  Tuten’s attitude towards art is poetic, even mystical.  With this agile, fresh and vital approach, she has given her art a fresh face, more intensely human and spontaneous.  Art like this is about human experience; paintings speak, and this artist seeks to have hers tap into deeper feelings while avoiding sentimentality.  Such art can be powerfully evocative.”

• International Contemporary Artists, Volume IV, pp. 268

• Main Line Suburban, Art Matters, Openings that matter – Goggleworks, July 2012

• Reading Eagle, June 24, 2012 – Art Review Goggleworks exhibit – Water as a metaphor in Gerry Tuten’s paintings – the power of nature is the overriding theme in ‘Ebb & Flow’ Exhibit, written by Ron Schira

• Reading Eagle, “Ebb & Flow” exhibit is one of Ron Schira’s picks for a “must see” this week in Reading, July 8, 2012

• City Suburban News, Paintings by Gerry Tuten at Villanova University Art Gallery, August 27 – September 9, 2014

• Huffington Post; 12/19/2014, Resonance and Memory: The Essence of Landscape, by D. Dominick Lombardi, “Gerry Tuten finds gesture and movement to be a pivotal component of landscape painting. Like Claude Monet before her, Tuten finds the sky mirrored in water as it plays against the reflected trees and fallen leaves and grasses. What is most enjoyable about these works is the elusive energy she captures in paint. Tuten has a way with her medium that is immediate yet controlled leaving us with passages that are quite satisfying to the eye.”

• Art Quips; December 20, 2014, Review of Resonance and Memory: The Essence of Landscape, by David Gibson; “There is an allover quality to her paintings that engenders a natural ambivalence: they could be either natural scenes or memories or dreams of the same.”

• Art Beat; December 31, 2014 and ARTES Magazine; January 7, 2015; Elga Wimmer CC “Resonance and Memory: The Essence of Landscape” by Mary Hrbacek; “For Gerry Tuten paint rules. In this respect she can be referred to as a pure painter. Her elemental works seethe with the power of paint in motion. Tuten’s instinctual drive for mark making supplies an extra impassioned edge. The hybrid blend of subject and material recall the art of J.M. W. Turner. Tuten’s work is akin to abstract impressionism; colored strokes, drips and smudges melt and merge in emotionally charged visual poetry in which direct light symbolizes spiritual enlightenment. Accident and control vie for ascendency to create a sense of surface tension that forges a link with transformative processes that animate the natural world.”

• Orange County Register; May 20, 2015, Things to do this Week by Sara Gold, Encounters with Nature – Paintings by artist Gerry Tuten of Villanova, Pa., are on display from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, through Aug. 28, in the Founders Hall Art Gallery, second floor, at Soka University, 1 University Drive, in Aliso Viejo. Tuten’s paintings over the last two decades reflect encounters with the world and “reflect the joy of being in nature.

• Examiner.com; August 2015, ‘Encounters With Nature’ review by Suzanne Chun, The exuberance of brightly-colored flowers, the wrath of a stormy sea and the tranquility of a snowy path through the forest are just a few scenes from Encounters with Nature, on display at Soka University through August 28.In this enchanting exhibition of abstract paintings, artist Gerry Tuten captures the joy she experiences in the natural world. “I always remember being peaceful and connected to nature,” Tuten says. “That connection to beauty has been life-giving.”Tuten received a certificate of art from Parsons School of Design in New York in 1964 and a Bachelor of Arts from The University of the Arts in Philadelphia in 1971. She also earned a Master of Fine Arts degree from the Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia in 1973.In the early 1990’s, Tuten studied intuitive process painting, a practice in which the artist accesses thoughts and feelings and paints without agenda. “This work helps me to be in the present without judgment and realize that the paintings are just a piece of paper or canvas,” Tuten says. “I am the product. This attitude gives permission and freedom to my work.”
The manner in which Tuten paints is gestural painting with broad, calligraphic, energetic brush strokes, sometimes dripping, dabbing or smearing the paint.
“My paintings are a gift.” Tuten says.“The best paintings come when I surrender [and] get my mind out of the way and stay with my process. They come quickly. When I insist and have a story, things don’t come. To play and have fun brings joy and excitement both in the process and the paintings. This is transferred to the viewer when they look at the paintings.” *Encounters with Nature will be displayed in Founder’s Hall Art Gallery at Soka University in Aliso Viejo through August 28. The gallery is open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free.

• City SuburbanNews; January 27 – February 2, 2016, Solo Exhibition “Natural Flow” by Painter Gerry Tuten – Feb 15 through March 12 at Wayne Art Center; The colorful and exuberant paintings by artist Gerry Tuten will be on display in The Wayne Art Center, Davenport Gallery with opening reception February 21 from 3 p.m. – 5 p.m. The galleries are open from 10 a..m. – 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday.  Gerry Tuten, born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, now resides outside Philadelphia with he husband and dog.  She has a BFA from University of the Arts and an MFA from Tyler.  Gerry teaches yoga and paints in her studio in Norristown, PA and summers in MA.  She has exhibited in PA, DE, NYC, MA & CA and thrives in nature creating a meditative often dreamlike state of mind. Tuten’s bright, vigorous paintings refer to abstracted plants, flowers, insects, birds and landscapes but are far from literal.  The artist’s energy and connection to spirit distill the natural world and provide us with a sense of mystery and wonder.   Gerry, a certified Kripalu and TriYoga Instructor will teach two restorative multi-level classes on Thursday, February 25 and Thursday, March 3 from 5:30 – 6:30 p.m.  You may bring your own mat and other props will be provided.  The cost is $15 for one class or $20 for both classes.  A family gallery talk and activity will be led on Saturday, March 8 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.  All materials will be provided: the workshop  is $15 for one adult and child and $5 for each additional child.  Visit: www.wayneart.org or call: 610.688.3553 to register for these special events.

• Main Line Media News; by Linda Stein, -Radnor, The talents and history of Radnor Township residents will be in full bloom beginning Feb. 15 at the Wayne Art Center.The center plans three simultaneous shows of “Expressions of Radnor,” “Treasures from the Rosemont Collection” and a solo show, “Natural Flow,” of works by Villanova artist Gerry Tuten.Tuten, who works with acrylic and other media, will have more than 25 paintings displayed in the Davenport Gallery through March 12. All forms of nature, beauty, decay, polarities, tension, dreams, joyful things and freshness are some of what inspires Tuten, she said. “I teach yoga so there’s an inspiration there,” she said. “And the elements are an inspiration: water, earth, fire and space.” Tuten will also instruct two all-level yoga flow classes on Feb. 25 and March 3 in the gallery, amidst her art work.“Yoga and painting connect me to my inner strength and wisdom and bring out my authentic voice into a magical well of energy,” Tuten said. And she’s inspired by spiritual people like Nelson Mandela and Wangari Muathai, a Kenyan woman arrested for planting trees. After traveling to Indonesia last year, Tuten became very concerned about the plight of orangutans, which are losing their forest habitat to palm oil plantations. She plans to donate 40 percent of the proceeds from each picture she sells in the exhibit to an organization that helps orphaned orangutans, The Orangutan Foundation International (https://orangutan.org). Tuten includes Helen Frankenthaler and Willen deKooning among her artistic heroes. Tuten grew up in Pittsburgh and obtained degrees from the University of the Arts and Tyler. She and her husband, John Tuten, a magistrate judge, have three grown children and four grandchildren and live with their standard poodle. Nancy Campbell, the director of the Wayne Art Center, said the center began its Expressions of Radnor Exhibits in 2001 for its centenary and eventually they decided to have it every February as a showcase for talented Radnor residents’ creations. Juror Teresa DeSeve, an artist and WAC instructor, will present awards that are sponsored by Wayne businesses at the Feb. 21 opening.