A graduate of RISD, Garrow Throop brings over 40 years of design experience to this series of mixed media works inspired by the natural beauty of Cape Cod. His illusionistic landscapes feature soft, loose brush strokes depicting idyllic scenes of the beach and nearby locales, but upon closer inspection the use of photographs becomes apparent even as the two mediums blend seamlessly. The resulting works are colorful and wistful, evoking the movement of cool sea breezes as well as the stillness of a quiet day.

Garrow Throop: Imagination: The Beauty of Light is on view from January 7 through March 2, 2022, with an artist meet-and-greet to be held on Thursday, January 20 from 5:30-7:30 PM. The library is open Monday-Wednesday 10-6, Thursday 12-8, and Friday 9-5 (closed Saturday & Sunday. The exhibition space is located on the lower level.

This exhibition is proudly sponsored by The Friends of the Jamaica Plain Branch Library.

With a steady hand and an incredible eye for detail, Marnie Jain is known for her delightful collage compositions featuring all manner of flora and fauna, with rabbits, frogs, birds, and snakes hidden among flowers and forest greenery.

Marnie Jain: In Close Proximity is on view from March 6 through April 30, 2020. The library is open Monday-Wednesday 10-6, Thursday 12-8, and Friday-Saturday 9-5 (closed Sundays). The exhibition space is located on the lower level.

This exhibition is proudly sponsored by The Friends of the Jamaica Plain Branch Library.

An established photographer, Radin has exhibited throughout the United States since the 1980s. In the work on view, she stays close to home for inspiration, capturing portraits of Jamaica Plain residents. Rendered in stark black and white, her figures often confront the camera directly, though others are pictured more casually, spending time outdoors in the parks, streets, train stations, and other public spaces of the historic neighborhood.

Robin Radin - The Nearness of Us: Photographs from the Neighborhoods of Jamaica Plain is on view from January 10 through February 28, 2020, with a public reception to be held on Thursday, January 16 , 5:30 - 7:30 PM. The library is open Monday-Wednesday 10-6, Thursday 12-8, and Friday-Saturday 9-5 (closed Sundays). The exhibition space is located on the lower level. 

With a BFA in Printmaking and History of Art from MassArt, Andrew Stearns explores the continuously shifting narratives of time and space through the investigation of historical moment, with a particular interest in how history is recorded, or simply fades away.

Andrew Stearns: Always on the Camino is on view from November 8 through December 31, 2019, with a public reception to be held on Thursday, November 14, 5:30 - 7:30 PM. The library is open Monday-Wednesday 10-6, Thursday 12-8, and Friday-Saturday 9-5 (closed Sundays). The exhibition space is located on the lower level. 

First learning quilting techniques from her aunt, Annie Cardinaux has turned her longstanding passion for textile crafts into a series of vivid wall hangings. She employs traditional sewing and quilting techniques to create contemporary patchwork landscapes of rolling hills, expansive fields, quiet lakes, and stately tree groves, pulling inspiration from the natural world while working with uniquely saturated fabric color palettes.

On Softer Ground: Patchwork Landscapes by Annie Cardinaux is on view from September 6 through October 31, 2019, with a public reception to be held on Thursday, September 12, 5:30 - 7:30 PM. The library is open Monday-Wednesday 10-6, Thursday 12-8, and Friday-Saturday 9-5 (closed Sundays). The exhibition space is located on the lower level.

The works on view in Summertime include a mixture of subjects and styles - from color to black and white, from still life to portrait, capturing locations like Old Orchard Beach, the Franklin Park Zoo, the Lynch Family Skate Park in Cambridge, and Narragansett, RI. Many reflect the vivacity of contemporary life in the city, while others focus on quiet, reflective moments. The young artists range in age from 11 to 15 years old, hailing from Brookline, Jamaica Plain, Roslindale, Newton, and other Boston-area towns.

Exhibiting artists: Emily Ball (15), Newton; Mini Burell (14), Dorchester; Kayleigh Clancy (14), Dorchester; Claudia Cortell (15), Boston; Jesse Eliot (14), Jamaica Plain; Mia Finnan (12), Brookline; Karianna Franklin (12), Chelsea; Vera Judkins (13), Matunuck, RI; Jamie Leslie (12), Brookline; Mary Matero (13), West Roxbury; Jaire May (12), Roslindale; Celia Meranus (14), Brookline; Gabriel Nigrovic (12), Brookline; Anna Parisi (14), Nahant; Argi Protopapadakis (11), Brookline; Isobel Salemo (13), Roslindale; Annabella Valle (15), Braintree; Tandin Ward (14), Jamaica Plain; and Sofie Wise (15), Braintree.

Summertime: A Youth Photo Exhibition is on view from July 5 through August 31, 2019, with a public reception to be held on Thursday, July 11, 5:30 - 7:30 PM. The library is open Monday-Wednesday 10-6, Thursday 12-8, and Friday-Saturday 9-5 (closed Sundays). The exhibition space is located on the lower level.

A graduate of Mass Art, Stacy Friedman merges a variety of printmaking techniques for a layered, textured style that incorporates photographs and family history to explore lineage, memory, and identity. Rendered in antique browns and faded greys, her silhouetted figures are both anonymous and familiar. They blend and fade into one another, hinting at complex relationships and curious connections. Speaking about her medium, Friedman says, “Printmaking’s inherent capability to preserve traces of previous images, and the ability to print ghosts of a matrix, make it an ideal medium to explore both the parallel and interwoven realms of past and present.”

Stacy Friedman: Repeated Remembrance is on view from March 8 through April 30, 2019, with a public open house to be held by the Friends of the Jamaica Plain Library on Saturday, April 6, 2:30-4:30 PM. The library is open Monday-Wednesday 10-6, Thursday 12-8, and Friday-Saturday 9-5 (closed Sundays). The exhibition space is located on the lower level.

A resident of Jamaica Plain for over 30 years, Kevin Gillespie paints serene, closely studied scenes of his neighborhood’s many natural wonders, including Jamaica Pond and the Arnold Arboretum. His work, often done en plein air, captures the shadows of tree branches, the ripples of water, and the changes of the season observed along the well-trod paths of the region’s parks. The medium of watercolor allows for subtle gradations in color and texture along with small details like fallen leaves and footprints in the snow.

Kevin Gillespie: Local Scenes is on view from January 4 through February 28, 2019, with a public open house to be held by the Friends of the Jamaica Plain Library on Thursday, January 10, 5:30-7:30 PM. The library is open Monday-Wednesday 10-6, Thursday 12-8, and Friday-Saturday 9-5 (closed Sundays). The exhibition space is located on the lower level.

A graduate of both RISD and the University of Kansas, Myles Dunigan combines different printmaking styles with photography and other media to produce layered, textured landscapes that straddle the line between abstraction and realism, equally reminiscent of the black and white photographs of Ansel Adams and the mixed media experiments of Anselm Kiefer.

Myles Dunigan: Is the Dark Going to Catch Us is on view from November 2 through December 31, 2018, with a public open house to be held by the Friends of the Jamaica Plain Library on Thursday, November 8, 5:30-7:30 PM. The library is open Monday-Wednesday 10-6, Thursday 12-8, and Friday-Saturday 9-5 (closed Sundays). The exhibition space is located on the lower level.

A graduate of RISD, Kristen Gossler creates complex layered works built up from a variety of materials, including water-based pigment, screen printing ink, sumi ink, and acrylic paint. Each of her expressive abstract paintings poses a question, seeking to engage the viewer in an interactive experience. She pulls from a mental inventory of repeated forms found in both the natural and manmade worlds, provoking a familiarity and comfort in the viewer through subliminal means, as well as encouraging personal connection with the work.

Kristen Gossler: Confluence is on view from September 7 through October 31, 2018, with a public reception to be held on Thursday, September 13, 5:30-7:30 PM. The library is open Monday-Wednesday 10-6, Thursday 12-8, and Friday-Saturday 9-5 (closed Sundays). The exhibition space is located on the lower level.

For 50 years, Lohr has been turning her camera towards the world around her, capturing the energy of live musical performances, the camaraderie between friends, the ghosts of abandoned buildings, and the spontaneity of urban life. For her, art is about storytelling, and she uses photography to communicate infinite narratives for viewers to interpret.

Joni Lohr: Unfinished Stories - A Social Documentary is on view from July 6 through August 31, 2018, with a public reception to be held on Thursday, July 12, 5:30-7:30 PM. The library is open Monday-Wednesday 10-6, Thursday 12-8, and Friday-Saturday 9-5 (closed Sundays). The exhibition space is located on the lower level.

Raised in New Hampshire, Klos studied art and psychology at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts. Her projects focus on manipulating the validity of photography and creating dual realities that breathe life into situations where visual manifestations may not be available.

Cassandra Klos: Mars on Earth is on view from March 2 through April 30, 2018, with a public reception to be held on Thursday, March 8, 5:30-7:30 PM. The library is open Monday-Wednesday 10-6, Thursday 12-8, and Friday-Saturday 9-5 (closed Sundays). The exhibition space is located on the lower level.

Born and raised in Caracas, Venezuela, Liliana Marquez has always been part of a creative, multicultural environment. She has dedicated her artistic practice to the concept of reclamation, relying on found and recycled materials--often taken from construction sites--to create sculptural wall-hanging abstractions.

Liliana Marquez: RePOPART is on view from January 5 - February 25, 2018, with a public reception to be held on Thursday, January 11, 5:30-7:30 PM. The library is open Monday-Wednesday 10-6, Thursday 12-8, and Friday-Saturday 9-5 (closed Sundays). The exhibition space is located on the lower level.

This exhibition is proudly sponsored by The Friends of the Jamaica Plain Branch Library.

Juan Murray has been working in local real estate since 1994. As with many working artists, his day job shines through in his artistic practice, which takes the form of black and white urban photography. His architectural images are bold and poetic, steeped in chiaroscuro in his effort to “chase the light” as it interacts with different forms. The extreme contrast of light and dark at times abstracts his subjects, allowing the viewer to take in new details and formal elements of everyday buildings and streets. His figures are generally cast in shadow, dwarfed by their surroundings, signifying a kind of awe for man-made structures while also reflecting the anonymity of urban living. Together the series stands as a visual commentary of the contemporary city experience, with glass-and-concrete architecture towering over residents, allowing equal parts sunshine and darkness to fall.

Juan Murray: Interplay is on view from November 3 through December 30, 2017, with a public reception to be held on Thursday, November 9, 5:30-7:30 PM. The library is open Monday-Wednesday 10-6, Thursday 12-8, and Friday-Saturday 9-5 (closed Sundays). The exhibition space is located on the lower level.

This exhibition is proudly sponsored by Optical Designs, Inc., a family-owned and operated business located in the heart of Jamaica Plain.