(Vineyard Haven): Gray Park’s bright, crisp oil landscapes and Howard Park’s striking, colorful oil seascapes will be featured in the Louisa Gould Gallery beginning on August 9th as part of the Mystic Visions Show.

With sweeping New England landscapes and brilliant, colorful scenes reminiscent of Edward Hopper and Fairfield Porter, Gray Park’s ability to see and capture the New England coastline is undisputed. A native of Connecticut, Gray began painting at a young age and went on to major in Fine Arts at the Norwich Free Academy before receiving his BFA in painting from The Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore.

Rich, ample greens capture the foliage and ambiance of marshes, while airy blues and pure emeralds make up Gray Park’s ocean scenes. His canvases range in size from the small, paintings too much larger works of art. The majority of Gray’s paintings are done “en plein air,” where Gray strives to capture “the essence of the changing relationship between land and sea...my favorite time to paint is on a crisp, clear September day.” – Gray Park.

Since 1989 Gray has participated in fourteen group exhibitions, eight one-man shows, and won several major awards, including the “Stobart Foundation Award” in 2004. As a young emerging artist Gray has already become a popular force among collectors. “I think that Martha’s Vineyard is a really wonderful place to paint; it's very diverse in it's landscapes – a very compact Island with so many options.” –Gray Park

Years ago, the lure of the sea led a young Howard Park to Noank, Connecticut to manage a boatyard and raise his family. Ultimately, he realized his dream to sail the world and paint, and his love of the sea and maritime culture is evident in his latest oil paintings. Having recently completed a circumnavigation of the globe in his restored 1946 Sparkman & Stephens yawl, Comet, it’s easy to see where Howard gets the inspiration for his work.

Wave is one of Howard’s larger works on display (27 x 51). With an active ocean that takes up over half of the canvas, it’s easy to get caught up in the bold strokes of the bottle green and jade wave as it sweeps toward the viewer, threatening to escape out of the frame and onto the floor in a hiss of salty air.

Howard attended The School of The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and received his MFA from Tufts University. He continued his studies in France at L’Ecole d’Art Decoratif de Nice, where he won a National prize in photography. He currently resides in Stonington, Connecticut.