News from the Studio of Ben Solowey
Posted in exhibition, Studio, Theater Portraits, Uncategorized on Aug 26th, 2015
The influence of Gilbert and Sullivan can be seen and heard all around us. Musicians and lyricists alike were influenced by the duo, including songwriters and composers from Irving Berlin to Andrew Lloyd Weber. Gilbert’s lyrics set the stage for the American musical to be born, with songs directly referencing the plot and addressing both […]
Posted in exhibition, Rae, Studio, Theater Portraits on May 28th, 2015
We have some good news and some bad news about our next show at the Studio of Ben Solowey. Let me start with the bad news. For only the second time in 23 years, we will not be opening a new show at the Studio in June. Unfortunately my work as a curator for museums […]
Posted in archive, Theater Portraits on May 15th, 2015
Here is a page Ben Solowey’s address book when he lived in New York between 1928 and 1942, before moving permanently to Bucks County, Pennsylvania. This single page provides a glimpse into Ben’s world from that time. The first entry on the page, obviously “K†in his address book, is playwright George Kelly. Ben had […]
Posted in exhibition, Theater Portraits on May 15th, 2015
James Barton was a song and dance man, famous for his drunk act. Early in his career, he frequently appeared in burlesques, and worked closely with African American dancers, eventually becoming a great eccentric dancer. The young Barton began his career at age 8, performing across the country with his parents who owned their own […]
Posted in Studio, Theater Portraits on May 12th, 2012
Artist Simon Mauer tells of his unique Ben Solowey experience: My wife Susan and I have had many pleasant and enriching visits to the studio of Ben Solowey, and as artists we particularly appreciate Ben’s skill in so many media. His work always has genuine beauty and often a poetic quality which charms the beholder. […]
Posted in exhibition, Studio, Theater Portraits, Uncategorized on Jun 17th, 2009
In my “2:30 talksâ€, what I don’t mention is frequently asked about by visitors. The “talks†are closer to conversations with people who are interested in Ben Solowey’s art. I call them the “poor man’s audio tour†because I talk about the paintings and drawings as people are looking at them. Spontaneous questions from visitors […]
Posted in exhibition, Theater Portraits on Nov 6th, 2008
This exhibition and its accompanying catalogue explores the often uneasy relationship between the art of easel painting and the art of illustration. It focuses on artists who were an important part of the history of the narrative tradition in American culture and who practiced both easel painting and illustration in the years between 1850 and […]
Posted in Theater Portraits on Apr 15th, 2007
Ben Solowey helped Noel Coward return to London in style when the Albery Theatre off on London’s Leicester Square was renamed the Noel Coward Theatre in the Fall of 2006. Built as the New Theatre in 1903 by Sir Charles Wyndham to house his acting company, a 20 year old Noel Coward had his first […]
Posted in Theater Portraits on Apr 12th, 2007
We just received an inquiry from Prof. Tokuichi Tanaka from Nihon University in Shizuoka, Japan regarding Ben’s portrait of Tokujiro Tsutsui, a Japanese actor/manager who came with his repertory company to America in January 1930 to present 16 Ken-Geki dramas in California and New York. Ken-Geki was a style of theater, a sword play that […]
Posted in exhibition, Theater Portraits on Sep 2nd, 2006
This spring the Metropolitan Opera unveiled the latest addition to their remarkable portrait collection on view at the Opera House at Lincoln Center: Ben’s stunning portrait of Lawrence Tibbett in the premiere of Peter Ibbetson in 1930. The drawing, autographed by the famed tenor, was seen last summer here at the studio as part […]
The Letter
News from the Studio of Ben Solowey
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