Amalgamation of Voices

2023 Group Exhibition

Diana Soorikian - Untitled, 66 x 54 inches

Riverside Gallery presents a group exhibition titled, “Amalgamation of Voices,” which will run from September 2nd (opening reception from 5 to 7 pm) to 23rd, 2023. The exhibition will feature works involving a diverse range of media by several eclectic group of artists: Diana Soorikian (contemporary figuration), Paula Schiller (contemporary abstraction), Ruth Bauer Neustadter (abstract painting and assemblage/collage), and Rich Keller (photography of cityscapes and landmarks). The exhibition celebrates New York City and the greater tri-state area as the home of contemporary art and abstract art, including abstract expressionist painting, neo expressionist paintings, and other contemporary approaches in collage and assemblage. In contrast to the painters, the photographer Keller provides his interpretation of NYC as an exciting and iconic playground where experimental pioneers and avant-garde artists pursue new projects and visions.

Artists such as Robert Rauschenberg and Basquiat called New York their home, which became the center of the art world and the global capital of arts and culture after World War II. In this exhibition, Soorikian pursue contemporary figuration with semi-abstracted figures that resolve anatomical structures with the emotional content of bodily and facial expressions. Schiller then takes the baton to push the limitation of abstraction with the lessons of abstract expressionism, describing what are primarily landscapes in a lyrical or poetic fashion. Then Neustadter showcases her works in mixed media collage and assemblage techniques to construct abstract and spiritual imagery, based in her background experiences in dancing.

Diana Soorikian

Diana Soorikian received her BFA from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia and her MFA from Columbia University. Soorikian has been an active member of the art scene in the tri-state area; for example, she exhibited and won an award at the Silvermine in Connecticut in 1972, and she also received the Purchase Prize from the New Jersey State Museum in 1974. She regularly exhibited at the Viridian Artists in NYC until 2014. Since 1985, Soorikian was an adjunct professor of cultural history at the Fairleigh Dickinson University.

Soorikian’s style and language are reminiscent of the British painter Francis Bacon, and some of her works could also be mistaken for Alice Neel’s, in terms of the color palette and the abstract application of colors and brush strokes. Chalky white often predominates her figures, giving them clown-like auras of a cynical circus or a phantasmagoria. The forms of the figure or the face float in or occupy an abstract space of color, which are usually deeply saturated and forces the viewer’s eye to shift focus to the figures which usually are made of white or neutral colors. The overall result is a fantastical feeling that the figures, often of babies and children, are wearing a mask-like layer of makeup and acting as if in a circus or a movie set.

Diana Soorikian - Untitled, 60 x 48 inches

Diana Soorikian - Untitled, 66 x 54 inches

Paula Schiller

Having received her BA in English, Paula Schiller began taking art classes at the Brooklyn Museum Art School and continued her studies at the National Academy of Design, The Art Students League of NY, and the Art Center of Northern NJ. She went onto win awards such as the First Prize at the ACNNJ Juried Show in 2016 and the First Prize at the Bergen County Juried Show in 2013. Schiller abstracts the landscape in a lyrical or poetic way, with nature and water being a repeated theme that connects the artist to her early experiences and memories. Schiller’s styles range from complete abstraction to impressionistic representations of the world, as she seeks to evoke a mood or the essential character of the place rather than a literal depiction.

Some of Schiller’s abstract paintings appear to follow a mathematical or logical pattern that dictates the distribution and the variation of the marks. Other paintings are the result of the buildup of colors that are used to convey emotions and psychological expressions. Gesture is an important aspect of her painting process, which allows her to simultaneously apply form and color and maintain kinetic energy and method to the madness or the process.

Paula Schiller - Electric Hospcotch, Oil on canvas, 18 x 24 inches

Paula Schiller - Falling Water, oil on canvas, 30 x 24 inches

Paula Schiller - For Bruce, oil on canvas, 36 x 48 inches

Paula Schiller - Hopscotch, oil on paper, 30 x 23 inches

Paula Schiller - Memories of Childhood, oil on canvas, 40 x 30 inches

Paula Schiller - Nostalgic Hopscotch, oil on canvas, 18 x 24 inches

Paula Schiller - Redlined Hopscotch, oil on canvas, 18 x 24 inches

Paula Schiller - Rooster's Dance, oil on canvas, 30 x 40 inches

Paula Schiller - The Secret Garden, oil on canvas, 30 x 40 inches

Paula Schiller - Autumn, oil on canvas, 30 x 40 inches

Ruth Bauer Neustadter

Ruth Bauer Neustadter makes a wide range of works from portraits to compositions via assemblage - all unified by her abstract style and vision. Delving into her spirituality and the world of abstract ideas and emotions, Neustadter utilizes raw, expressive colors and experimental, aggressive juxtaposition of forms and (found object) materials to create spaces on the canvas, where new meanings and interpretations are forged by the viewer.

Neustadter’s paintings often carry the raw primitive and the folk-like qualities and energies that somehow approach the Neo-Expressionist style. There must be a performative aspect to her painting process that is hidden from view or the obvious, as dance has been an important part of Neustadter’s life and career contributes to the necessity of reading her paintings in this light.

Ruth Bauer Nuestadter - Windswept in Brooklyn, acrylic and objects on canvas, 36 x 24 inches

Ruth Bauer Nuestadter - Welcome into My World, acrylic and found objects, 24 x 24 inches

Ruth Bauer Nuestadter - A Helping Hand, acrylic and found objects, 48 x 48 inches

Ruth Bauer Nuestadter - African Drummer, acrylic and found objects, 18 x 18 inches

Ruth Bauer Nuestadter - Bridges, acrylic and found objects, 36 x 48 inches

Ruth Bauer Nuestadter - Floating Barges, acrylic and found objects, 24 x 36 inches

Ruth Bauer Nuestadter - From Simplicity to Complexity, acrylic and mixed media, 28 x 14 inches

Ruth Bauer Nuestadter - Getting Centered, acrylic, 30 x 40 inches

Ruth Bauer Nuestadter - Kissing, acrylic, 24 x 30 inches

Ruth Bauer Nuestadter - Master of the Garden, acrylic and found objects, 55 x 30 inches

Ruth Bauer Nuestadter - Raven, acrylic, 24 x 24 inches

Rich Keller

Rich Keller is a well known audio engineer who does photography for the love of the craft. In his musical career, he has been able to elevate his vision to the next level with his understanding of both recording and mixing audio. Widely working with renowned rap and hip-hop artists including DMX, Swizz Beatz, De La Soul, PDiddy, Nas, Alicia Keys, Lil Wayne, Mariah Carey, Snoop Dogg, Chris Brown, Rick Ross, Ja Rule and many others, Rich has earned himself the official “OG” status.

In his love for photography, he takes a wide variety of photos. Countless cityscapes, landscapes, portraits, and street photography. His photographs of New York City’s iconic landmarks and night scenes celebrate the city as the center of the world and the art world. Keller’s most experimental photographs play with long exposure and shaking of the camera to create abstract compositions of the cityscape bathing in its brilliant lights.

Rich Keller - Tappanzee Br, 20 x 13 inches

Rich Keller - Bronze Fireworks, 32.5 x 15 inches

Rich Keller - Midtown Panorama 4th of July, 32.5 x 18.5 inches

Rich Keller - Midtown Light Shaken, 19 x 14.5 inches

Rich Keller - Manhattan from Uptown, 32.5 x 13.5 inches

Rich Keller - Lady in the Bay, 10 x 21 inches

Rich Keller - Lady Liberty, 12 x 18.5 inches

Press Links:

https://www.newjerseystage.com/articles/getarticle2.php?titlelink=riverside-gallery-presents-amalgamation-of-voices082023