Handwerker Gallery Features Work of Local Artist

Mixed media works by Ithaca-based artist David Estes will be on display beginning this month at the Handwerker Gallery of Art. Studies in History will feature a variety of images created with materials ranging from graphite and pigments to spray paint and grass stains.

An opening reception for the exhibit will be held from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. on Friday, January 22; the show runs through Sunday, February 21. Estes will also be giving a gallery talk at 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, January 28. All Handwerker Gallery events are free and open to the public. Located on the ground floor of the Caroline Werner Gannett Center, the gallery is open Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.; Thursday until 9:00 p.m.; Saturday, 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.; and Sunday, 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Estes, who lives and teaches in Ithaca, has been awarded artist fellowships by the Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts (New York City) and the Community Arts Partnership (Ithaca), as well as a grant by the National Endowment for the Arts/California Arts Council. His work has been exhibited at the Dowd Fine Arts Gallery in Cortland; the Whiton House Gallery and the Clinton House Artspace in Ithaca; Carreras in Emeryville, California; and Gallery Here, the Oliver Art Center, the Isabel Percy Gallery, and the One-Hour Gallery in Oakland, California. He holds a B.A. in history from Cornell University and an M.F.A. in sculpture from the California College of Arts and Crafts.

Studies in History is part of the Handwerker’s Contemporary Art Series, established by the gallery’s recently appointed director, Jelena Stojanovic. "In the late 1990s there has been a pervasive desire among artists and institutions to embrace issues of culture, race, and gender," says Stojanovic. "Work is measured now by the relevance of its content and message. This all too often results in bad work being justified in the name of a good cause. From an ever-mounting scrap heap of tendentious art, it is the Handwerker Gallery’s task to mine the precious nuggets of fresh ideas and emerging artists."

For more information call 274-3018 or 274-3548, or visit the gallery’s Web site.