Date: Mon 26-Jun-1995

Publication: Bee

Author: JUDIR

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JAMES COX GALLERY SHOWS LEIGH PALMER PAINTING W/2CUTS

WOODSTOCK, N.Y. -- A Leigh Palmer landscape is a theater evoking the hushed

atmosphere of a stage where light is as much a player as any actor. Palmer's

rooms, his landscapes, his still lifes, have a constant air of expectancy.

Emptied of people, the paintings seem to have just been vacated. The narrative

dynamic has been replaced by the watcher/viewer, the voyeur, whose act of

watching becomes the dialogue.

Mr Palmer has exhibited widely including the Sherry French Gallery, New York;

National Museum of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.;

The Basle Art Fair, Switzerland; The Bayly Art Museum, Charlottesville, Va.;

South Alleghenies Museum, Penn.; and the Nabisco Brands Gallery, E. Hanover,

N.J.

The 37 paintings in this exhibition range from "The Three Windows," a subtlely

ordered composition of afternoon light streaming through paned windows, and

the radiant yellow sunshine of "West Sun Porch," to landscapes as stilled and

mysterious as the tarns and trees of Poe country.

His work is included in collections such as the National Museum of American

Art, Washington, D.C.; The Bank of New York, New York City; Hallmark Cards,

Kansas City, Mo.; the Gund Collection, Cambridge, Mass.; and American National

Bank & Trust, Chattanooga, Tenn.

Leigh Palmer lives and works in Hudson, N.Y., and is presently participating

in a residency fellowship at the MacDowell Colony.

The exhibition continues through August 6 at the James Cox Gallery, 26 Elwyn

Lane. Hours are 11 am-6 pm, Wednesday to Sunday. For information,

914/679-7608.

FLOREN ION FIRIMITA WORKS W/1CUT

LITCHFIELD, CONN. -- An exhibit of major paintings by Romanian artist Florin

Ion Firimita will be on display from July 15 through September 3 at Pat Steier

Gallery, 41 West Street (on the Green). Hours are Monday through Sunday, 11 am

to 4 pm, or by appointment.

Florin Ion Firimita was born in 1965 in Romania, where he started painting at

the age of five under the influence of his mother, a fashion designer and a

decorative arts teacher. He worked for many years as an assistant and

apprentice to renowned artist Constantin Ciocarlie, then studied studio and

mural painting with Romanian artists such as Adrian Benea, Eheorghe I. Anghel

and Mihai Horea.

In December 1989 he escaped death during the Romanian Revolution which ended

with the fall of the last bastion of the Iron Curtain in Eastern Europe. In

the summer of 1990 he emigrated to the United States.

Today he lectures at colleges and writes art-related essays and stories about

his experiences. His work is widely collected and requested in numerous

exhibits in the U.S.

FIREBIRD PLAQUE AT DOYLES LALIQUE AUCTION W/3CUTS

NEW YORK CITY - A standing room only crowd on June 14 at William Doyle

Galleries' auction of Lalique bid competitively for a selection of over 300

stunning works designed by three generations of the Lalique family.

The highpoint centered around the sale of a "Oiseau de Feu" clear and frosted

glass plaque. Dramatically patterned with an intaglio image of the mythical

firebird, the plaque was designed by Rene Lalique, circa 1922. A Texas

collector secured the piece for a final price of $28,750, landing it squarely

within its estimate of $25/35,000.

Early Rene Lalique vases were also much in demand. "Perrucha," a circa 1919

opalescent glass vase with blue/green patina patterned with parakeets, brought

$8,337 from an Illinois collector ($4/5,000), while "Bacchantes," a circa 1927

clear and frosted glass vase patterned with a frieze of female nudes in high

relief also went above the estimate at $7,187 ($4/6,000).

Sculptural glass statuettes designed during the 1920s by Rene Lalique also

inspired strong prices. "Suzanne," a yellow opalescent glass statuette of a

woman, sold for $17,250 ($15/25,000), while "Cote d'Azur," a clear and frosted

glass statuette of a running woman, reached $6,037 ($5/6,000).

Other collectible Lalique items were "Merles et Raisins," a clear and frosted

mirrored plaque, $6,900 to an Idaho collector ($5/7,000), and "Douze Figurines

avec Boucon Figurine," a clear and frosted glass bottle and stopper patterned

with figurines in relief, which sold for $4,370 ($3,5/4,500).

An original Rene Lalique design drawing for a gold and enamel ring brought a

price of $4,025 from a Japanese buyer ($4/6,000). Dating from 1899 when it was

illustrated in an article in "Art et Decoration," the ink and watercolor study

was considered lost until discovered in Paris three years ago. Designed as a

band of swans on water, the actual ring has not bee located.

All prices include a 15 percent buyer's premium. For information 212/427-2730.

NEW YORK CITY -- The Elizabeth Harris Gallery, at 524 Broadway, will hold a

group show with works by James Bohary, Paul Chaleff, Elisa D'Arrigo, Julian

Hatton, Tracey Jones, Ying Li, Michalene Parker, Pat Passlof, Victor Pesce and

Robert Yasuda, until July 28. Hours are Tuesday to Friday, 11 am-5 pm. The

gallery will be closed through August.

HOUSTON, TEX. - Peter C. Marzio, director of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston,

has announced that the museum was awarded four citations in the Texas

Association of Museums' 1995 Mitchell A. Wilder Awards Competition for

Excellence in Publication Design. The museum received two of 16 gold citations

for Learning Through Art, an innovative curriculum resource kit, and "Quest

for the Moon and Other Stories: Three Decades of Astronauts in Space," an

exhibition catalogue. Merit citations for the 1995 annual fund drive package,

A Ninety-Five Year Legacy, and for the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, visitor

brochure were also awarded. In all, 34 Texas museums received citations.