Stephen Fieser "Juxtapose" May 17 - July 3, 2011

The Yellow Wall Gallery at the Midtown Scholar Bookstore is pleased to present Juxtapose, an exhibit of drawings by Stephen Fieser, painter of the Midtown Scholar Bookstore's mural. The exhibit features sketchbook pages of figure observations from public life and nude figure compositions drawn or engraved without models. The exhibition will be at the gallery May 17 through July 3, 2011. A reception for the artist will occur on Friday, May 20, 2011 from 6-10pm at the gallery. Light refreshments will be served. An "Artist Talk" with Stephen Fieser will happen on Friday, June 17, 2011 at 7pm as part of the Third in the Burg festivities from 6-10pm at the Midtown Scholar Bookstore.

Juxtapose begins with several dozen pages from Fieser's pocket sketchbooks. Here, brief impressions were caught on the fly, as people acted and interacted in public spaces. The park offers the artist a place where he can observe and draw without feeling intrusive, although he must be inconspicuous to be productive.

The bulk of the drawings and prints of nude figures in this exhibit are constructed mostly without models. This is an approach to figure drawing that is less practiced than the typical method of drawing with live, posed models. The resulting drawings and prints are influenced by Fieser's admiration for calligraphy, with his use of flowing, changing and directly executed lines, and for sculpture, with his attention to the subtleties of complex structures of real bodies and his consideration of intersecting forms within those bodies.

Stephen Fieser grew up in western Pennsylvania. While still in high school, he began working as an artist for a television station. Later he designed and illustrated for the publishing industry, eventually concentrating on children’s books and magazines. He has illustrated 6 books for HarperCollins and Henry Holt publishers, and many pieces for the Cricket magazine group.

Fieser has been an adjunct instructor of drawing and illustration for Messiah College, Marywood University, and elsewhere. He also has collaborated with Fathom Studio and others on advertising and design projects.

In 2003, Fieser was commissioned to create an 8’ x 66’ mural for The Midtown Scholar Bookstore. Scores of figures in the mural describe the present and past of Harrisburg’s Riverfront Park.

Fieser earned an MFA in illustration from Syracuse University. His most important mentor in art was the late sculptor, Richard Koontz, of Camp Hill. Stephen and his wife, Cherie, have lived in their Harrisburg home for almost 30 years.

To draw the human figure was Fieser’s early and lasting motivation. His study of anatomy, figure invention and drawing from life has been an ongoing background pursuit, as well as the foundation of his illustration work. In 2010, Fieser’s art took a new direction as he concentrated on the production of figure drawings and original prints for exhibition and sale. Juxtapose is the first such exhibition.