Ray Ciarrocchi Italian Summer oil on panel

May 6 – June 17, 2023

HARPER’S APARTMENT
51 East 74th Street, Buzzer 2X
New York, NY 10021
(917) 675-6124
Thurs – Sat, 12–6pm

“When I arrived on a cold winter day at Sandra Caplan and Ray Ciarrocchi’s studio at Westbeth, on Bethune Street in the West Village, I was not thinking about how artists measure success; Sandra had sent me images of her lush still lifes by email and I was simply curious to see them in person. I knew her husband Ray was also an artist of some renown, but I didn’t realize that they shared a studio. Nor did I know anything about Westbeth, where they had lived and worked since its inception as a subsidized artist colony in 1970.

I recognized one of Sandra’s paintings immediately, propped up against a window that looked out on the Hudson River. The studio was filled with art. As I walked to the window, I noticed Ray, seated at a table where dozens of his small landscape paintings were arrayed like a holiday feast. These were clearly no ordinary painters, and this was not your average studio.

Sandra began to display her paintings one by one in the small space. Ray commented from his chair. The colors of Sandra’s paintings radiated from the canvas. And when she brought out Downtown View, September (1989), painted from the spot where I stood, the twin towers hazy in autumnal light, I saw my own New York story flash before my eyes.

– Harper Levine 2023
More info at : https://www.harpersgallery.com/exhibitions/sandra-caplan-ray-ciarrocchi/press-release

Sandra Caplan (b. 1936, Winnipeg, MB) received a BFA from University of Manitoba in 1957, an MFA from Boston University in 1959, and an MFA from Yale University in 1960. Most recently, her work has been the subject of solo presentations at Kinescope Gallery, New York (2019); Westbeth Gallery, New York (2017 and 2003); New York Public Library, New York (2015); Thatcher, Proffitt & Wood, New York (2008); La Fortezza, Civitella del Tronto, IT (2005); and Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Brooklyn (1997). Caplan has participated in recent group exhibitions at Colm Rowan Fine Arts, East Hampton, NY (2021); Westbeth Gallery (2019, 2016, 2012, and 2003); First Street Gallery, New York (2010); and University of Manitoba, Winnipeg (2004). Her work is included in numerous public collections including Boston Mutual Life Insurance, Boston; Connor Clark Ltd, Toronto; Investors Group, Winnipeg; and The Winnipeg Art Gallery, Winnipeg. Caplan lives and works in New York City.

Ray Ciarrocchi (b. 1933, Chicago, IL) received a BFA from Washington University in 1959, and an MFA from Boston University in 1961. His work has been the subject of solo presentations at University of Richmond, VA (2015 and 1991); La Fortezza, Civitella del Tronto, IT (2004); Katharina Rich Perlow Gallery, New York (1996 and 1993); Fischbach Gallery, New York (1989 and 1987); and Tibor de Nagy Gallery, New York (1985, 1983, 1980, 1978, 1976, 1974, 1972 and 1971). Ciarrocchi’s work has been included in notable group exhibitions at University of Richmond, VA (2017); Rich Perlow Gallery, New York (2005); Gallery 53, Cooperstown, NY (1994 and 1988); Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art, Loretto, PA (1991 and 1988); Neuberger Museum, Purchase, NY (1977); and Headley-Whitney, Lexington, KY (1976). His work is held in the collections of numerous institutions, including Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC; Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore; Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn; Ciba-Geigy AG, Basel; and Columbus Museum of Art, Columbus. Ciarrocchi lives and works in New York City.

Home page image: Sandra Caplan Downtown View September 1989 oil on linen