October 16 - November 8, 2025

Abstracting Color: Dana Gordon, Mary Rieser Heintjes, Mitch Lewis, and Susan Tunick

Dare to Dream: Helen Iranyi

On The Wall: Observatory Redux: Ann Kronenberg

Abstracting Color

Abstracting Color brings together the distinct practices of Dana Gordon, Mary Rieser Heintjes, Mitch Lewis, and Susan Tunick, each exploring abstraction through distinctive approaches to color, form, and material. From vivid oil paintings and sculptural combinations of glass and steel to mixed media works infused with rhythmic gesture and ceramic tiles patterned by architectural influence, the exhibition highlights the multiple ways artists harness hue, pattern, and texture to transform visual experience. Together, their works form an energetic dialogue that underscores the expansive possibilities of abstraction.

Dana Gordon, in his first exhibition with the gallery, presents large-scale oil paintings that are kaleidoscopic in nature. His canvases are a visual conversation between colors, shapes, and lines, where playful forms and vivid hues animate the surface with striking energy.

Mary Rieser Heintjes contributes dynamic abstract sculptures created with steel and glass through the technique of oxyacetylene welding and kiln fusion. Her works eloquently unite the luminosity, liquidity, and fragility of glass with the solidity and strength of steel, reflecting her deep interest in light, color, and the natural world.

Mitchell Lewis showcases his current series of mixed media Squiggle paintings, where indecipherable hieroglyphs emerge as undulating lines scrawled across deep backgrounds. The brilliant linear forms roll, tumble, and spiral with playful intensity, glowing like neon against a shadowy window.

Susan Tunick presents ceramic tiles animated by her strong interest in color, pattern, and geometry. Drawing on her background in painting and her deep engagement with architecture, Tunick layers vibrant hues and inventive patterns that highlight repetition, variation, and the structural rhythm of building units.

Dare to Dream

Dare to Dream features Helen Iranyi’s lifelong devotion to color as both subject and spirit. Her vibrant acrylic paintings unfold through luminous overlays of pigment, where twisting and turning layers create a radiant interplay of light and form. Her small mixed media works, built from disparate materials and beads, create an almost three-dimensional world of texture, evoking the richness of ancient treasure. Commenting on her "exploitation of sheer, luminous color," The New York Times reported, "Helen Iranyi... shows a distinct gift... She is at her strongest in pictures that adhere to brilliant colors with their brilliance unveiled by elaborate overlays of pigment." Iranyi transforms the canvas into a sanctuary, an arena of energy, serenity, and imagination, that invites viewers to share in her vision of art as both expressive freedom and refuge.

Helen Iranyi was born in 1937. As a teenager, she attended the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. She received a B.S. in Computer Science at the N.Y. Institute of Technology/SUNY (NY) in 1990. Highlights of Helen Iranyi's career include her participation in numerous solo and group exhibitions including Pittsburgh Corporations Collect at the Heinz Galleries at the Carnegie Institute. She has been represented by Kingpitcher Gallery (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), MJS International (Fort Worth, Texas), Gallery Reese Paley (New Jersey), West Broadway Gallery, Barney Weinger Gallery, and the Multi Media Arts Gallery, (New York City). Her works are in numerous private and corporate collections. Iranyi is also a published author. Her artist files are included in the Smithsonian Institution Libraries Collection, Yale University Library collection, the Museum of Modern Art DADABASE, and in the Artist Files at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum Archives in New York. Her personal letters are included in Columbia University Library collection. In 2022, Iranyi’s work was selected for The Flag Project at Rockefeller Center in collaboration with the United Nations Environment Program and the Climate Museum; then again in 2023 with City Harvest. After both exhibits, her artwork was added to the Archives of Rockefeller Center. Helen Iranyi is currently writing an historical account of her formative experience being a part of the artistic and publishing scene of the early ’60’s, and her friendship with Andy Warhol.

Helen Iranyi will be holding a Meet the Artist on Saturday October 25th and November 1st from 1 to 3PM, and on Saturday, November 8th from 11AM - 3PM.

Observatory Redux

Observatory Redux by Ann Kronenberg encompasses many interpretations relating to using art, science, and religion to create order, unity, and comfort with the disorderly and vast reality of space, and internal psyche. This eighteen foot installation in CBG’s On the Wall space is built from polychromed wood, electrical wiring, bulbs, and bookwork. The first interpretation, an observatory, is meant to display the stars in anthropomorphized constellations as they have been throughout history to give a more concrete connection between space and humanity. By displaying the stars in this way, Observatory Redux conveys a sense of cosmic connectedness that is attainable through art. Much like art, religion also aims to connect humanity to abstract ideas. Because of this, the piece resembles an altar that demonstrates the kinship of religion and art. Thirdly, Observatory Redux can be interpreted as a rocket ship to demonstrate that humanity aims to control the vastness of space to avoid seeking solutions to problems on Earth. The mythologic stories conveyed in Observatory Redux are used to parallel Kronenberg’s own conflicts and life. Finally, the connection of individuality and the stars demonstrates the complementary principles expressed in the Yin-Yang of Chinese philosophy. Observatory Redux is meant to express numerous ideas relating to the need of humanity to understand and control abstract ideas.

Ann Kronenberg is a versatile artist and writer whose creative endeavors span a wide array of mediums, including sculptural objects, installations, book works, works on paper, handmade paper works, wearables, and performance art. Beyond her visual creations, Kronenberg also delves into literature, crafting memoirs and texts for her book works, adding depth and narrative to her artistic expressions. Her work has been exhibited in galleries and exhibition spaces in New York City and across the nation. With a rich background in education, Kronenberg has shared her passion for art with students of all ages, teaching adult education courses, children and adolescents, and facilitating continuing professional education. Her extensive experience extends beyond the classroom, encompassing roles in arts and non-profit administration, editorial work for artists' newsletters, published art criticism, clothing design for retail markets, and costume design for performances. Additionally, her illustrations have been featured in national magazines, showcasing her multifaceted talents. She studied art and art history extensively, earning her MFA in sculpture from Hunter College.  However, her academic journey began with her undergraduate major in biological sciences, receiving an AB from Cornell University, and continued with years of teaching science and working in laboratories. This unique background infuses her art with a distinctive perspective, as her scientific training informs both her subject matter and analytical approach to artistic creation.

Observatory Redux is on view until November 8, 2025.