Through Seven Lenses—respecting the ordinary, imagining the intangible”

Watercolors by Larry Vanderburgh

Tipping boats, rusty trains, winding meadow streams, water rushing through rocks formations…landscapes both familiar as well as hidden gems…. Larry Vanderburgh’s interplay with matter and energy, at times bold, sometimes delicate, always vibrant, and his use and juxtaposition of color combine to express an eager, wide-eyed reflection and response to the world around him. Larry Vanderburgh (Schroon Lake, NY) grew up in a musical and artistic family in Westchester County, New York. He studied architecture at Rhode Island School of Design and practiced and taught architecture, space planning, and facility management for 40 years in New Jersey, Maryland, and nationwide before moving to Schroon Lake, NY. His painting interests have centered on honoring forgotten or unsung objects, such as machinery, locomotives, old ships, urban buildings, and rock formations. Watercolor remains his medium of choice. This major exhibit presents the broad range of Vanderburgh’s “view” and includes works created between 2014-2023. Some of the most recent paintings are part of his Hidden Gems project, begun in 2017, and supported by a Sunburst Award from the Essex County Arts Council.

The idea of hidden gems arose out of a desire to bring attention, in paint and on paper, to capture those special “paintworthy” places” residents and visitors have discovered, glimpsed, and hold in their memories. Vanderburgh says, “Painting requires me to look carefully at what I’m seeing; I look for the structure and ingenuity behind the beauty in an intricate or unnoticed object, enabling me to learn more about it. Painting reinforces my self-confidence and challenges me to address my shortcomings.