Touchstone showcases Steve Alderton and Leslie Johnston@reception Oct7, 6pm

Steve’s two series of expressionistic paintings in this exhibition are generally referenced as “scapes.” They revolve around classic subjects; landscapes and figurescapes. In line with the standard definition of expressionism, the paintings did not stem from a complex, intellectual perspective, but rather are based in subjective emotional states.

His work is recognized by strong brushstrokes, color and a sense of geometric shapes. He strives to reduce the object to the essence of its representational self. Alderton regularly exhibits at Touchstone Gallery. His work is in both private and corporate collections.

 

Leslie Johnston dedicates this show to Dr. JoGayle Howard who died earlier this year after a courageous fight against malignant melanoma. 50% of sale proceeds will go to the Smithsonian’s Thailand Clouded Leopard Field Project.

 

“Clouded Leopard Labyrinth" is a mixed media installation where aach painting is composed of multiple layers of acrylic paint, capturing a sense of the denseness of the rainforest. The Labyrinth section of the installation invites guests to experience walking through a Southeast Asia rainforest to seek the elusive clouded leopard. Paintings primarily in greens with splashes of color become the rain forest as they enclose the space with color. Abstract representations of the clouded leopards become an additional element in this installation.

The clouded leopard (Neofelis nebulosa) is one of the most charismatic of the forest-dwelling cats. Fewer than 10,000 of these marvelous animals remain in the wild. Intense poaching and rampant habitat loss and fragmentation throughout its natural environs are making this unique species highly vulnerable to extinction.

Dr. JoGayle Howard dedicated her life and work to the survival of endangered species. Although JoGayle worked with a number of endangered species, she was most interested in the secretive and beautiful clouded leopard of Southeast Asia. As part of her efforts to conserve the clouded leopard, she established a research program in the range country of Thailand: the Thailand Clouded Leopard Field Project is an ongoing field survey monitoring efforts to better understand their distribution, habitat needs and survival threats in order to help conserve the species in the wild.