> by jack foran

What’s to say about a perfect Christmas dinosaur? Such as the feature character in the Starlight Studio and Art Gallery holidays show and sale, a work by Starlight artist Chace Lobley. Brontosaurus—possibly—in a Santa hat and peacefulness of the season mood. A look on his Jurassic reptilian face of goodwill to all—even pesky raptors—and hope for the future, despite the disheartening record of the past.

The Christmas dinosaur is not an actual exhibit item but is reproduced on the Starlight holiday cards on sale singly or in packs. But hundreds of other art and handicraft items on exhibit by numerous Starlight artists. Not all up to the standard of the Christmas dinosaur certainly, but much to appreciate and admire.

Such as several colorful wool yarn embroidery on burlap items by John Budney. Inspired by church windows. One called Stained Glass allows for several interpretations. Two kneeling figures, lower left and right, that could be the Virgin Mary and Joseph, and a dove, the Holy Spirit, above. A traditional birth of Jesus in the stable scene, except for no baby Jesus. Perhaps a betrothal scene, Mary and Joseph. Or the Visitation—in which case the supposed Joseph figure is not Joseph but Elizabeth, Mary’s cousin—when Mary was pregnant with Jesus, Elizabeth pregnant with John the Baptist. (The visit that inspired the prayer called the Magnificat. The truly hopeful Christmas message. “He has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty.”)

An abstract work by the same artist in the same embroidery stained glass vein is called Wonderful World of Color. And in a completely different vein, he has two white-on-black mixed media paintings/drawings of mounted samurai warriors.

Whereas artist Josh Wagner specializes in double portraits of heir to the British throne Prince William and Kate Middleton. One is called The Happy Couple and shows them at their wedding. Another is called The Whole Family and shows William and Kate and kids George and Charlotte.

Debbie Wicks has a number of round and fluted-edged knitted sculptural works in larger and smaller dimensions that she calls Chickens and Hen. Also, a coil-technique pot—or pot-like vessel—only not pottery, ceramic, but constructed of coils of fabric tie-sewn into the vessel form. Also, several works consisting of little drawn and cut-out paper dolls decorated with odds and ends such as yarn, feathers, string, buttons, beads, and hung on a long string, one above the other, maybe a dozen little dolls to a string. She calls these Pecking Order.

Mary Ann Nowak has a wall-mounted embroidery work called Flowers. John Montedoro several abstract paintings/drawings with scribble effects and some half-recognizable forms and faces half-hidden amid the color barrage. Andy Calderon has an oil pastels work consisting of commercial candy brand words in logo type styles and colors, Reese’s in black letters on orange, Crunch in red letters on white with a blue border, and Milk Duds, and M&Ms. It’s called I Want Candy. Jeremy Pratt has two mixed-media works with minimalist truncated human or semi-human figures, one called Yellow Warning, the other Eye of the Storm. David Feickert has some uniform-textured-surface abstract paintings. And Chase Lobley more dinosaurs. Some drawings of a T. Rex under attack by a small gang of raptors. The T. Rex in serious trouble.

The Starlight show and sale runs more or less through the end of the year.