“Journeying through the world.
To and fro to and fro
Cultivating a small field.”
Matsuo Basho
Eden Elizabeth Scoville Hart developed many of her visual impressions living across New York State as a student and painter. Moving to Brussels, Belgium and Port Townsend, Washington her travels in Europe and the United States expanded her experience. Since 2001, Eden calls The Catskills of New York home. Eden’s primary focus is outdoor painting (En Plein Air) in Greene County and the local Hudson River Valley. She finds the landscape magnificent and engaging and doesn’t seek extravagant far away settings. “I enjoy the local experience... painting locally, buying locally, eating locally grown food.”
Eden’s work is based on admiration of natural phenomena, especially color and the effects of atmosphere and light. Inspired by the warm brightness of dried grasses in the winter light or the sunlit face of a building draws her into her work. She loves outdoor painting in all seasons and begins the day assembling suitable equipment for painting outside. With a location and inspirational vision she observes and studies nature and elements within the modern landscape, organizing colors, textures, and light deliberately onto the painting surface. “A painting is successful when I feel the significance of the experience through the composition, color, spatial quality, atmosphere, light and shadow.” The challenge is comprehending and coordinating the complexity of nature in a meaningful way in oil paint while simultaneously braving the elements. “This is the work I love and want to share.”
Eden prefers to leave her paintings untouched from the field. Everything, consciously or unconsciously captured, while in the moment, is naturally integrated into the painting—including various unlucky insects— a wonderful collection of molecules preserved! In the studio, upon reflection, emphasis from memory, may be added. After all, enjoyable imagery is the point when you want viewers who understand and see what you saw.
While influenced by the work of many artists she especially admires the paintings by Charles E.Burchfield and sculpture by Andrew Goldsworthy. Eden earned a BFA and studied with James A. Allen, James K.Y. Kuo, Dennis Barraclough, Joan Jardine, Mark Boedges, and local landscape artist James Coe.
CURRENTLY…
UPCOMING
November 3- December 10, 2023 One Square Foot Athens Cultural Center Athens, NY Opening Reception November 3 from 5-7.
November 18- December 10, 2023 - 8th Annual Members Show Spencertown Academy Arts Center in Spencertown, NY Opening reception Friday, November 18 from 3-5.
PAST SHOWS
Summer 2023 Colonie Art League Summer Show at Guilderland, NY Public Library
Colonie Art League Spring Show at Pruyn House- Exhibit dates: March 27 – April 28, 2023. 207 Old Niskayuna Road,Newtonville, NY.
April 22 - May 21, 2023 Athens Cultural Center in Athens, NY : In This Moment, a member exhibition. Saturdays and Sundays: 11:30-2pm or by appointment. OPENING PARTY is Friday, May 5 from 5-7 PM.
Bethlehem Art Association - member show in May 2023 at the Bethlehem, NY Public Library.
December 1-30, 2022 Colonie Art League Holiday Show at William Sanford Library Colonie, NY. During library hours. Reception Sunday, December 4 from 2-4 pm. * Second Place Oil Painting for Waiting for Work.
November 4-December 18 2022 - One Square Foot at the Athens Cultural Center Athens, NY. Member show of artwork no larger than 12” in any direction. Open Saturdays and Sundays 12-4 pm.2022
Bethlehem Art Association - November 1 - 30 fall member show at the Bethlehem Public Library in Delmar during library hours. Juried by Gary Shankman. Opening reception: Thursday, November 17 at 6:45pm. *Second Place Oil Painting for Waiting for Work.
2022 The 7th Annual Spencertown Academy Annual Members' Show, Spencertown, New York July 9- August 7. Opening Reception Sunday July 9 from 3-5. Gallery open Saturdays and Sundays from 1-5, or by appointment.
2022 Bethlehem Arts Association Bethlehem, New York. Spring Member Show May 3-31 with reception May 19th at 6:45 pm. Judge Ed Ticson.
2022 Athens Cultural Center, Athens, New York. Spring Member Show April 9 - May 29. Opening reception April 9, 6-8:00pm. Regular gallery hours are Saturday 1-6, Sunday 11-2:00pm.
2022 Pruyn House Colonie, New York for the Colonie Art League Member Show April 4 - May 1. Opening Reception Sunday, April 3, 1-4:00 pm.
2022 Emma Treadwell Thacher Nature Center, Voorheesville, NY. 19th Annual Nature Art Show - Original works of nature based subjects, excluding people, buildings and anything man-made.
2021 Town of Austerlitz History Center, Spencetown, NY. Art exhibit as part of the 250th year celebration of the Church, its setting, and the community of Spencertown.
2018 Spencertown Academy, Spencertown, NY. Light and Shadow, 5th Annual Regional juried Show. Juror: Bruce Bergmann, owner of BCB Gallery in Hudson, NY. *Second Place Award
2018 SkyWalk Juried Arts Festival, Catskill, NY. Outdoor celebration of walkway created to honor Thomas Cole and Frederick Church.
2018 Columbia Greene Community College, Hudson, NY. Columbia County Plein Air Artists. Show featuring work by local Plein Air painters that meet regularly to paint the upper Hudson Valley area.
2018 North Country Arts, Glens Falls, NY. 3rd Annual Juried Show. Juror: Francine Nemer, Art Collector Gallery, Lake George, NY.
2017 SkyWalk Juried Arts Festival. Innagural outdoor art show to open the walkway created to connect the homes of Hudson River School painters Thomas Cole and Frederick Church.
1996-2010 This was family time. Creativity extended to painted floorcloths, needle felted wool sculptures, and hand-painted cloth turned into handbags. A huge period of reflection.
1995 Historical Society East Bloomfield, East Bloomfield, NY. Visions in Art by Ontario County Women. Contemporary Women Artists in Celebration of the Women's Rights Movement.
1994 Ontario County Historical Society Museum, Canandaigua, NY. Annual exhibition of area artists.
1994 Memorial Art Gallery, Rochester, NY. 38th Annual Clothesline Art Festival.
1993 Ontario County Historical Society Museum, Canandaigua, NY. Annual exhibition of local art. Curator: Sue Cooley.
1993 Memorial Art Gallery, Rochester, NY. 37th Annual Clothesline Art Festival.
1993 Sonnenberg Gardens, Canandaigua, NY. Ontario County Arts Council show of in the Carriage House gallery. Director: Sue Cooley.
1992 Memorial Art Gallery, Rochester, NY. 36th Annual Clothesline Art Festival.
1991 Chautauqua Institute, Chautauqua, NY. 34th Annual Chautauqua National Exhibition of American Art. Juror: Christopher Riopelle, Curator Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, PA.
1991 Corn Hill Neighborhood Association, Rochester, NY. 22nd Annual Corn Hill Arts Festival. Jurists: Carl Drybala, Parsons School of Design; Peter Gohringer, sculptor; Josephine Jacobsmeyer, RIT School of American Craftsmen. *First Place Painting & Drawing
1990 Ontario County Arts Council, Canandaigua, NY. Director: Zerbe Zodervick. Invitational exhibition at the Council's gallery.
1990 New York State Fair, Syracuse, NY. Jurists: Robert Thermer and Michael Sickler.
1989 Canandaigua National Bank and Trust Company, Canandaigua, NY. By the invitation of Steve Martin, Public Relations Director. Individual exhibition throughout the bank.
1988 Ontario County Historical Society Museum, Canandaigua, NY. Curator: Christopher Clarke-Hazlett. Annual exhibition of area artists.
1987 Burchfield Art Center, Buffalo, NY. Recent Acquisitions and Works from the Permanent Collection.
1987 SUNY Buffalo, Buffalo, New York. Visionary Art: An Exploration of the Subjective Unconscious curated by Nancy Weekly. Exhibition focusing on the subconscious imagery of art. Opening lecture by Tracy B. Jung.
1987 Norwich Fine Arts Guild, Norwich, New York. Art '87, Jurists: Judith Bush, Utica & Empire State Colleges; James Mullen, SUNY Oneonta; Deborah Oppenhimer, Munson-Williams-Proctor Institute of Art. *Best of Show
1986 Charles E. Burchfield Penney Art Center, Buffalo, New York. 6th Collegiate Drawing Competition. Juror: Robert C. Morgan, Professor Rochester Institute of Technology. *Purchase Award into the permanent collection.