Art Exhibitions

Love Letters from the Front

Mixed Media Collages by Judith Stein

May 3 - June 29, 2023 in the Meeting Room Gallery

Mixed media collages by Judith Stein will be on exhibit in the library's Meeting Room Gallery during the months of May and June 2023.

 

The artist says of her work:

For years I have been interested in creating some work which honors my dad's service in the army during WWII and conveys the love in the letters that he wrote to my mom during the war. I inherited a collection of about 100 of my dad's letters as well as many photographs and memorabilia from the two years he spent overseas (1943-1945). I have been intrigued by the sharp contrast between the loving words my father wrote and the horrors that he endured in difficult battles in Italy, France, and Germany as a 1st Lieutenant in command of a tank destroyer platoon in the 601st Tank Destroyer Battalion. Near the end of the war, his battalion liberated the Dachau concentration camp in the spring of 1945, and my father rescued a distant cousin from that camp.

This series of work aims to highlight the strength and resilience of my parents' loving relationship as well as the painful disruption of family life during the war. Incorporated into my collages are also snippets of documents, letters, and photographs from my husband's parents and grandparents as they struggled to survive in Germany and Hungary. Although they tragically lost many family members and their homes in the Holocaust, these individuals survived due to their immense courage, resourcefulness, and good luck.

I hope my work will be a worthy tribute to our parents and grandparents and remind all of us how important it is to remember and learn from the past.
 

Judith Stein is a painter and mixed media artist from Needham, Massachusetts. Although her work has often been inspired by her deep connection to nature, her most recent body of work has focused on her family history, especially their experiences during WWII. Judith’s recent work also represents her first serious exploration of collage and the unlimited ways of integrating paper and paint. The pieces in this series range from pure collage to multi-layered oil paintings that incorporate fragments of the WWII love letters and family photos, many hidden or only partially revealed.

Judith paints primarily in her home studio in Needham, Massachusetts. Her work has been shown in numerous exhibits throughout the Metropolitan Boston area. She is a member of 6 Bridges Gallery in Maynard and is a Board Member of Arts Wayland and the W Gallery. Judith is also a member of Concord Art, Sudbury Art Association, Needham Art Association and Needham Open Studios.

 

For more information on Judith Stein's art, visit: www.judithsteinart.com.

 

Exhibitions are free and handicapped accessible. Exhibitions in the library Meeting Room are available for viewing whenever the library is open and the room is not in use for a meeting. Please check the library Events Calendar for availability.