Spotlight Exhibit: "Radiance of Nature" - Paintings by Jean Lightman

The Guild of Boston Artists is proud to present "Radiance of Nature," a spotlight exhibition of paintings by Jean Lightman, at its Newbury Street Gallery from June 14 - July 5. The show will feature the Boston School artist's signature flower paintings alongside a recent series of sun-drenched landscapes. To accompany the show, Jean will host a Gallery Talk on Saturday, June 14th at 4pm.

Guild President Jean Lightman is best known for her floral still-life paintings, which she shows at galleries throughout the region, and for which she has won numerous awards. Much like the Boston School painters before her, she is particularly drawn to peonies, which she lovingly refers to as "drama queens." These petalled prima donnas fascinate the artist with their ever-changing form and endless subtleties of color. Reflecting on the thrill and challenge of painting such temperamental subjects, she explains "The fresh flowers I paint last only a few days—a week if I’m lucky. Peonies are at their most spectacular a day or two before their petals fall. Their fleeting beauty—the way the colors shift and eventually fade—is a constant reminder of life’s impermanence. Perhaps my drive to paint is also a response to this transience, an effort to preserve something that cannot be held."

Lightman defines herself as an "impressionist" and is always seeking to better observe and capture the nuanced effects of light in her work, whether working in the studio or outdoors. Embodying the Guild's commitment to continuing education and the pursuit of artistic excellence, Lightman has embarked on a recent journey to grow as a plein-air painter, taking workshops, enrolling in online courses, and seeking out the advice of the Guild's own exceptional landscape painters. As a result, alongside her renowned still life paintings, the exhibit will include a half dozen small pieces that reflect this broader journey—scenes from the artist's garden, the James Kelleher Rose Garden in Boston’s Fenway, and vistas from her travels to Tuscany and Capri.

There is in fact no distinction between her still-life and landscape work. Each informs the other and both are unified by a common goal that has characterized her lifelong artistic vocation. No matter the subject, Jean is always responding to an overwhelming desire to capture on canvas the colors and light that take her breath away; a deep need to uncover, often through trial and error, the secrets that make these scenes so magical. More than anything, she says, "when I paint a flower or a place, I am uncovering its deeper story—and in doing so, making a connection with nature that I can offer the viewer."

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