Starlight Studio and Art Gallery (SSAG) is pleased to announce a new partnership with Eleven Twenty Projects. This collaborative effort will showcase Starlight’s numerous talented artists both in exhibitions at the Main Street gallery as well as in online exclusive shows on artsy.net. 

The Starlight Summer Group Show, with an opening reception to be held Thursday, August 3, 2017, 6-9 PM at Eleven Twenty Projects, 1120 Main Street, Buffalo, NY 14209, marks the launch of the collaboration, with works by artists Ray Barret, John Budney, Saeed Dubaishi, David Feickert, Janet Harrison, Eric Johnson, Sonya Lewis, Chace Lobley, John Montedoro, Larell Potter, John Price, Ronald Steele, and Josh Wagner.

In collaborating with SSAG, Eleven Twenty Projects seeks to help shed the overused categorization “Outsider Art”. Renowned art critic Jerry Saltz once wrote about this exact problem in a 2013 issue of Vulture, stating that “Millions of viewers and thousands of nascent artists are being denied the chance to see some of the best work made in the last 100 years simply because it was once decided that to be an artist meant having had preapproved training.” To move away from this historical practice, one of the goals of this affiliation is to broaden the audience for Starlight artists.

Upon visiting SSAG, one is immediately struck by the expressive, emotional work being made in all varieties of media. The nurturing environment provided by the teaching artists clearly sparks inspiration in the Starlight artists to create beautiful pieces of artwork. Starlight’s Director, Carrie Marcotte, is optimistic about this partnership and the new opportunities it would bring for the Starlight artists. In her words, “The work is being interpreted by someone who has not been so close to the process, which makes for interesting results. The prospect of this upcoming exhibition and ongoing relationship injects the artists at Starlight with a new bit of inspiration and enthusiasm.”

The exhibit will be on view at the Eleven Twenty Gallery from August 3rd – September 2, 2017. The exhibit is free and open to the public. Exhibition Hours are Friday - Saturday 11am-4 PM, or by appointment. The closing reception is Thursday, August 31, 2017 from 5:30-7:30 PM. For more information about any of the events, or Starlight Art Gallery, please contact Katharine Cassens at kcassens@ldaofwny.org or (716) 874-7200, ext. 137, or visit the Starlight website at www.starlightstudio.org.