The Bonfoey Gallery is pleased to present an exhibition of new paintings, Stephen Pentak: Persistent Image. Pentak’s oil  paintings on panel and paper will be on view in our street level gallery from October 12 through November 10, 2012. We  cordially invite you to join us for an opening reception with the artist, Friday, October 12, from 5–8 pm at the gallery.

Pentak’s serene landscapes radiate an inner light. Surfaces are built up of many thin layers of oil paint, pulled and  crosshatched, one over another. Brighter under-layers gleam through shadowy upper layers, acting as the sun on the  horizon, gliding over the edges of trees, lakes and mountains, on its way to the other side of the earth. We feel a slight  isorientation; is it dusk? Is it dawn?  There is something familiar yet dreamlike about these scenes. This questioning  arises through the blurred effect of his technique and the ambiguity of the places he imagines.

Pentak’s paintings are based on his maquettes; drawings inspired by nature but drafted with a conscious mind to the abstract. He is informed by his surroundings but holds fast to his freedom to create and invent space. The paintings have  changed subtly over Pentak’s expansive career as he determinedly works in an extended series. This persistent image is a  means to discovery; to exploring light and mastering the balance between representation and invention.

Stephen Pentak has a BA from Union College in Schenectady, NY, and a MFA from the Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia,  PA. Currently, Pentak is Professor Emeritus at Ohio State University. He has been involved in numerous solo and group  shows across the country and has exhibited in Canada and Israel. Pentak is also represented by galleries across the  country, including Karthryn Markel Fine Arts in New York City, Susan Street Fine Art in San Francisco, and Costello  Childs Contemporary in Scottsdale. A four-time Ohio Arts Council Individual Artist Fellowship Award Winner, he has  also received various Arts and Research Grants from Ohio State University.

For more information about Stephen Pentak – Persistent Image, or other upcoming exhibitions, please contact The  Bonfoey Gallery, 216.621.0178, or visit the company website at bonfoey.com.