STEVE DATZ

Memory and imagination are constructs of the mind. Memory is born out of experience, imagination builds on it. Our perception is not objective. This gives each of us space to be unique regardless of originality . My art making starts with focused intention: To create an object of presence in the now. There is no past or future when I am working, only now. This is not particularly a meditative state as many practices strive for, but rather a sensory heightened arena where my mind is intensely at serious play. A time will come for completion. A time of reflection, analysis, adjustment. The conscious act of completion is what differentiates the art of the insane and children from that of the discrete artist. For the viewer, focused presence is of equal importance. Your perception is essential, especially if the work is ambiguous. To remain present with the work simply as it is; defying the urge to define, conclude, and most commonly, to judge prematurely. My art is a nonverbal experience. To stay present is to allow oneself to experience it as such. A common thread throughout my work is the intent to place the viewer in a self conscious relationship with the piece, taking in the work as it directly relates to them, mentally and physically. I invite the viewer to stay awhile. If you experience a hint of self examination the piece has presence. The stronger that exchange and its ability to hold the attention of the viewer is the strength of the work. 

DAN VANLANDINGHAM

Dan VanLandingham is an acrylic artist born and raised on Martha’s Vineyard. His timeless, landscape paintings focus primarily on traditional representations of bucolic island scenes.  Dan studied painting at The University of Aberystwyth in Wales, Green Mountain College and Savannah College of Art and Design, where he received an MA in 2011. While in graduate school, Dan began to explore a more conceptual style, incorporating elements of human encroachment and the relationship between humans and their natural surroundings. Inspired by Island painters such as Allen Whiting as well as the Hudson River School painters, Dan sets out to paint idealistic representations of beloved Island locations, stripping them down of all human interruptions. “The places I paint are places I experience, and places that I’ve grown up going to,” Dan says. “I want to see the most ideal version of that scene, not necessarily the most realistic.”  Dan’s process has evolved to incorporate textural elements. He sees himself as the “landscaper” of the scenes he creates, by physically manipulating dried acrylic on glass to build features onto a traditionally painted composition. Dan has exhibited work both nationally and internationally, including Art Expo New York and Art Hamptons. His work has been reviewed in American Art Collector, New American Painting, The New York Times and Art Business News, and he is often commissioned to do large scale projects, including a specific mural recently included in the Mercedes Benz Stadium Art Collection in Atlanta, Georgia. Represented on the Vineyard at the Granary Gallery, Dan lives and works in West Tisbury.