People & Places: Artist Marco Sassone's traveling exhibit opens at Price Tower Arts Center
BY DANNA SUE WALKER World Staff Writer
Tuesday, November 06, 2012
11/06/12 at 6:51 AM
Artist Marco Sassone got a great introduction to the Frank Lloyd Wright style during a recent trip to Bartlesville.
Not only did his traveling exhibit "Architecture and Nature" open at the Wright-designed Price Tower Arts Center, but he was also treated to an evening at the Wright-designed Harold Price home, which is owned by the Tulsa Lenhart family.
Following the opening reception of the exhibit, which will run through Dec. 2, art center trustee Cat Lenhart and her husband, Brad, hosted the dinner with Sassone as chef.
Sassone prepared his favorite pasta recipe, Spaghetti with Vodka, which is featured in his book "Sassone," along with details of his early life and work. During the evening, Sassone presented Lenhart with a signed copy of the book.
Lenhart commented: "PTAC was fortunate to have someone such as Marco Sassone exhibit, and I hope that as many people see the show while they have the chance. His art is truly spectacular and not to be missed. It was an added treat for him to prepare his special pasta dish, and we and our guests enjoyed the opportunity to spend the evening getting to know him."
Sassone's distinctive perspective is characterized by converging lines, which visually draw the eye in on a voyage. The works project the energy of city life at night, glowing in the dark with artificial illumination and rain reflections.
In a review for Art News, art critic Peter Clothier described the collection by saying, "These dark paintings are, after all, not primarily about the darkness that pervades them but about the light that manages to shine through."
The artist was widely recognized for his work focused on the homeless in San Francisco before he moved to Toronto in 2005. As a young man, Sassone was also profoundly influenced by the 1966 flood that devastated his city of Florence, Italy, and which continues to inform his style and subjects today.
After settling in California in 1967, he started exhibiting extensively in the U.S. and soon built an international reputation with his bold and vibrant paintings of California and urban landscapes, capturing alternate feelings of longing and belonging.
The first major retrospective of the artist's work appeared at the Laguna Art Museum in 1979 in concurrence with the publication of "Sassone," a monograph written by art historian Donelson Hoopes.
In the years since, his work has been presented in numerous exhibitions around the world. In addition to other distinguished honors and awards, Sassone was knighted into the Order to the Merit of the Italian Republic by President Sandro Pertini in 1982. Sassone lives and works in Toronto.
Among those attending the evening were Tim Boruff, executive director of Price Tower Arts Center; C.J. "Pete" Silas, chairman of the board of trustees, Price Tower Arts Center; Silas' wife, Theo, chairwoman of the collections and exhibitions committee; and trustees Sheryl Kaufman and Ford Drummond, who was there with his wife, Vanessa.
Also, Brian Hughes; Jason Glass; Maria Swindell, director of the Bartlesville Convention and Visitors Bureau; former Tulsan Karin Olsen; Martha and Scott Ambler; Carol Creel; Glen Cox and his wife, Ronnie, a member of the collections and exhibitions committee; Chris Oldroyd, publisher of Bartlesville Monthly magazine; and Jemme Hennessey, Bartlesville Monthly.
Original Print Headline: Artist's exhibit opens at Price Tower Center
MARCO SASSONE'S SPAGHETTI WITH VODKA
Serves 4
1 can (1 pound, 12 ounces) peeled pear-shaped tomatoes (use fresh tomatoes if available)
4 tablespoons olive oil
3/4 pound spaghetti
2 cloves of garlic
Basil, fresh
Hot chili pepper
1/3 cup vodka
Salt and pepper
1. If using fresh tomatoes, place them in boiling water for 3 minutes, and remove the skins and core. Cut tomatoes in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds.
2. Chop and place tomatoes in a pan with olive oil, garlic, basil and hot chili pepper; cook gently for 20 minutes, stirring from time to time. Add salt and pepper to taste.
3. After cooking the spaghetti in plenty of boiling salted water (al dente), drain and place noodles in a large bowl. Add tomato sauce and vodka. Stir, and serve immediately.
Associated Images:
Artist Marco Sassone signs his book "Sassone" for Price Tower Arts Center trustee Cat Lenhart at the Harold Price Jr. house in Bartlesville. Courtesy
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