Published Thursday, November 21, 2002
for miniatures
By Joe Pinchot
When Judy Waid goes into someone's house, she scans the walls looking for artworks.
Not a photographic copy of a Monet or van Gogh, but an original work.
"It makes me feel good," the Howland, Ohio, artist said of spying a one-of-a-kind piece.
Ellie Steines hopes that a show she has assembled at Sharon Jewelry and Art will help prompt people to buy original works.
"We're trying to bring some affordable art into the homes," the Shenango Township woman said. "People don't think about spending $40 on a print when you can have an original piece of art."
The show features what Ms. Steines calls "miniature art," which she defines as paintings and unique prints that measure 16 inches by 20 inches and smaller. Most of the works, which feature subjects from landscapes and portraits to abstracts and florals, are about 8 inches by 10 inches, but get as small as 3 inches by 4 inches.
"People may not have room for a large piece of art, but everyone has room for a small piece of art," Ms. Waid said.
The prices also are in miniature: as low as $22.
In this area, art has to be affordable, Ms. Steines said.
"They come in and look but if it's over $100, they just walk away," she said of work displayed at the gallery, which is owned by her brother, James Broscoe.
"The market for something larger is corporate: hospitals, businesses, doctor's offices, banks," Ms. Waid explained.
Ms. Steines, a Farrell native, said she finds it a challenge to paint small, while still keeping her signature "loose" style, but follows the preaching of a teacher who advised her to use the biggest brush possible.
"I try to do everything with a half-inch brush," she said. "When I do bigger paintings, my brushes get bigger."
Ms. Waid said keeping things small keeps down an ancillary cost: the frame.
"The biggest expense beside the time is the frame," Ms. Steines added. "A lot of these have custom-made frames."
The show, which also features pieces by Shirley Wolanzyk, Judy Griffiths, Elaine Green, Marie Dippolito and Beth Ensign, runs through Dec. 31.
You can e-mail Herald Staff Writer Joe Pinchot at
jpinchot@sharonherald.com