DELHI — Bushel will present a solo exhibit of paintings and drawings by Andes resident James Litaker from June 23 to July 21. An opening reception will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, June 23. Bushel is at 106 Main St. in Delhi.
According to a media release, the exhibit is the artist’s first solo show in the region, bringing together recent paintings and an array of drawings, sketches and studies from the past three decades. Subjects range from family members and neighbors to residents from the different communities where Litaker has lived and a host of historical figures, African Americans mostly, some celebrated, some invisibilized.
Raised in Harlem, Litaker’s eye and hand were trained in his native New York, both uptown and down, and Amsterdam, where he broke with the trends of his generation of artists by apprenticing in the tradition of the Dutch Masters. The result, once he returned to New York, was thousands of drawings of the neighborhood, the city, and its people— friends, family, neighbors, bars, musicians, street scenes. Daily urban life made the subject and the object of his vision, a way to capture fleeting glimmers of the stories that make up a community. In addition to focusing on the contemporary, Litaker has also been drawn to historical subjects and their stories, particularly to examples of African American survival and resistance. With his relocation to Delaware County two decades ago, he has deepened his engagement with historical figures, while also introducing new subject matter drawn from village life and new methods of painting from memory and images into his practice.
Bushel will also host a gallery walk with the artist from 6 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, July 10. Litaker will be joined by Luke Dougherty, an artist living in Bovina who introduced Litaker’s work to Bushel.
Visit bushelcollective.org for more information.