For Immediate Release:
Contact: David Kuehn, Executive Director
Cotuit Center for the Arts
Phone: (508) 428-0669
Email: David@cotuitcenterforthearts.org
Website: ArtsOnTheCape.org
Works by Anne Leone and Hugh McGraw and “Figuratively Speaking” Juried Art Show at Cotuit
Center for the Arts
Three art exhibits, “Swimmers Under Water: Paintings by Anne Leone,” “Sculpture by Hugh
McGraw,” and “Figuratively Speaking: An Exploration of the Human Form” will be on display at Cotuit
Center for the Arts from April 4 through May 4. The opening reception for all three shows is
Saturday, April 4, from 5 to 7 PM, and an Artist Talk will begin at 5 PM the same day.
Graceful swimmers glide through sun-dappled, crystal-clear water in Anne Leone’s series of paintings, “Swimmers Under Water.” The paintings are large—typically 40X70 inches, vibrant, colorful, and the figures are highly realistic and expressive.
Leone, who lives in Brooklyn, NY, and Berkley, MA, began painting figures in water 22 years ago, as a means of “bringing together two of my favorite things: water and figurative painting.”
She considered every perspective before deciding on an underwater viewpoint. “Looking at the figure from underwater brought something personal to it,” she said. “When you’re in the water, there is a feeling of independence. Your attention is focused; your movements are deliberate. It’s a unique environment.”
Working this way has given her “an understanding of reading the language of the body, especially the uninhibited body floating in water,” she said. “It’s just very revealing of the intent of the person and their attitude.”
Initially, to focus attention on the expressiveness of the figure, Leone kept faces out of her paintings, showing the figure only below the neck, with the head above water, obscured by ripples on the surface.
More recently, she said, “I’ve been working with larger groups of people underwater, so there is a relationship between them. Sometimes I’ll have a face or two showing because it adds to the dynamics of the group.”
She continues to study the relationship of the figure and the water environment. “It keeps getting more and more interesting for me,” she said. “I don’t think I’ve tapped it totally yet.”

The setting for her recent works are the natural limestone cave ponds called “cenotes” found near
Tulum, Mexico, on the Yucatan Peninsula. “Though they are very deep and dark, the water is as clear as air, and the brilliant sunshine filters down from above. The colors are amazing,” Leone said.
“Swimming there, you have total freedom of movement.”
The paintings in the exhibit were made during the past four years. Leone is particularly pleased to have “Seven Swimmers” on display for the first time. The panoramic painting, which took her a year to complete, is 128 inches wide and 50 inches high, and was loaned by a private collector for the show. We see the swimmers from below, encircling a large expanse of sky—and a couple of small fish—as seen through the water.
Leone has been featured in over 100 exhibitions, including a concurrent exhibition, "Kunstessenzen
X,” at the Galerie Friedmann-Hahn in Berlin, Germany. She exhibits locally at the Dedee Shattuck
Gallery in Westport, MA. She was awarded a Massachusetts Cultural Council professional development grant, as well as residencies at Millay Colony in Austerlitz, NY, and Banff Center for the
Arts in Alberta, Canada. She is a Professor Emeritus of UMass Dartmouth, where she taught from
1987-2007.
Hugh McGraw is an assemblage artist who collects his materials from unlikely sources—the beach, the woods, or discarded trash. He has long had an interest in wood and lately has been working with bark.
Finding a piece of “junk driftwood” on the beach, McGraw envisioned it as an ancient fish. “Anyone else would have passed it by,” said McGraw, “but I saw something in it. The wood was half decayed and half tempered by the salt water and the sun. It had a beautiful texture and color to it.”
McGraw added fins that he cut from lead he had in his collection. “I also had a whole bunch of rusty nails, and they went on top to look like some sort of defense mechanism, like a rusty nail fence. Then
I used a couple of small pieces of driftwood to model the face. The eye is a piece of polished wood.”
His favorite pieces is a large totem called “Third Avenue Irish Bar,” which he made “mostly out of mahogany that came from a bar on Third Avenue in New York. They were remodeling the place, which was around the corner from where I lived at the time. They cut up the old bar, and there was a lot of trim from the new mahogany bar, so I salvaged it.”
“Neptune’s Baby” was made from a big wooden box. “It looks like some sort of an icon from the bottom of the ocean,” said McGraw. “Surf’s Up” resembles an old roll-top desk, a wave-like piece made of round wood, “like broomstick handles.”
Other pieces are more two-dimensional. “I found a nice metal frame with a wood background and thought, ‘I’m going to paint something on this, but I’m going to do it in wood,’” McGraw said. The result is a somewhat abstract beach scene made of pieces of wood in various shapes and colors.

“Figuratively Speaking: An Exploration of the Human Form” is a juried art show dedicated to the exploration of the human figure. Drop-off for jurying is Monday, March 30, from 10 AM to 4 PM.
Works in two and three dimensions and in any medium will be considered. Three-dimensional and large works are encouraged.
Artists are invited to submit up to two pieces. The entry fee for each piece is $10 for members and
$15 for nonmembers. Work must be delivered gallery-ready, with appropriate frame and wire, if hung.
“We were so inspired by the work of Anne Leone, that we decided to have a juried show dedicated to the figure,” said Mary Moquin, who is coordinating the show for the center.
“Anne was a professor of mine at UMass Dartmouth, and I always respected how strong her figurative work is. We are glad to be able to bring attention to figurative work through these exhibits” said Moquin. “Figure drawing is difficult and tends to get overlooked, but I believe that it is an integral part of any art training.”
Cotuit Center for the Arts also offers figurative drawing classes taught by Jackie Reeves, as well as other opportunities for figure drawing, such as open live model sessions and the recent Dr. Sketchy live model event.
The gallery is open 10 AM to 4 PM Monday through Saturday and may also be viewed during evening performances. Admission to the gallery exhibits, opening reception, and artist talks are free; no advance registration is required.
Cotuit Center for the Arts is at 4404 Route 28 in Cotuit. For more information, visit artsonthecape.org, or call 508-428-0669.
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What:
“Swimmers Under Water: Paintings by Anne Leone,” Sculpture by Hugh McGraw, and “Figuratively
Speaking: An Exploration of the Human Form”
Where:
Cotuit Center for the Arts, 4404 Route 28, Cotuit
When:
Exhibit: April 4 through May 4, Monday through Saturday, 10 AM to 4 PM and during events;
Opening Reception: Saturday, April 4, 5 to 7 PM, with Artist Talk at 5 PM
Admission:
Free
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