ANIMATED ART Jerry Suh’s current studio is in Burbank, Calif. But it wasn’t all that long ago that Belmont was home for the budding animator and visual development artist. As a 2010 graduate of Belmont High School, Suh is delighted to have some of her favorite works gracing the exhibit space of the Belmont Gallery of Art in the Town Hall complex this summer.
Suh has been drawing for as long as she can remember, but she credits one particular mentor, Belmont High School art teacher Mark Milowsky, with helping her make the leap from an art enthusiast to a professional. It was Milowsky, she said, who encouraged her to go to art school after high school.
Suh attended the Savannah College of Art and Design, which led to a number of prestigious opportunities in animation: She did an internship at Pixar Animation Studios, freelanced for JibJab Media, and currently works as a background painter at the Nickolodeon Animation Studio.
The challenge with animation, Suh says, is that every single image has to add to the narrative. “The artwork can’t be just pretty but should be interesting,’’ she explained. “And what makes pieces interesting is the story behind the artwork. I try my best to be a visual storyteller.’’
Suh’s work is being shown along with those of painter Richard Hill, who creates images from familiar media including magazine covers, coins, sculpture, photographs, and comic books and arranges the images onto what he calls collective iconographies. Both exhibits are up through Aug. 26. Gallery hours are Monday through Thursday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Friday 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The gallery is on the third floor of the Homer Building in the Town Hall Complex, Belmont Center. For more information, go to www.belmontgallery.org.
JAPANESE WORKSHOP Artist Cristina Hajosy will lead a workshop exploring the art of Japanese puncture binding, a method popular for handmade journals, print collections, photo albums, signature books, and scrapbooking, at Fruitlands Museum on Saturday, Aug. 13. The workshop will cover six different decorative stitch patterns on both soft and hard covers. Decorative papers, book cloths, ribbons, and embellishments will enable each participant to create something unique. All supplies will be provided. The fee for the workshop, which begins at 10 a.m. and runs to 3 p.m., is $100 for members and $125 for nonmembers, with a $5 materials fee. Register at www.fruitlands.org or by calling 978-456-3924, ext. 292. Fruitlands Museum is at 102 Prospect Hill Road, Harvard.
PICNIC IN THE PARK Enjoy Newton’s newly renovated Auburndale Cove playground and stop by the Historic Newton booth to view a stereoscope and play historic games on Thursday, Aug. 11, at 6 p.m. at Picnic and Play in the Park, part of the Newton Parks and Recreation summer series. Bring a picnic and pick up a scoop of Wally’s Wicked Good Ice Cream for dessert. For more information, call 617-796-1450.
PAST AND PRESENT This summer’s production by Opera del West, Donizetti’s comedy “Don Pasquale,’’ is specially designed to emphasize similarities between Commedia dell’Arte of the 16th century and reality television characters of today: Old men believe they should marry young, naïve women, doctors manipulate their patients, and sad clowns need their smart girlfriends to save the day. Sung in Italian with English subtitles, the show is stage-directed by Brenda Huggins and music-directed by Eve Budnick. Performances are Friday, Aug. 12, at 8 p.m. and Sunday, Aug. 14, at 2 p.m. Due to construction at Opera del West’s home venue in Natick, the performance will take place at Amazing Things Arts Center, 160 Hollis St., Framingham. Tickets are $20 for Amazing Things members; $25 nonmembers; $24 students and seniors 65+. For tickets or more information, call 508-405-2787 or go to www.amazingthings.org.
CREATIVE PICTURES Through Aug. 14, The Umbrella Arts in Concord presents “Mark Makers: Cameraless Images,’’ an exhibition of works that are not photography but are meant to evoke photography, by former Umbrella artist-in-residence Nina Earley as well as Cynthia Katz and Carol Krauss. All three artists are trained in traditional photography, but diverged from the traditional along three different paths. Earley creates place-based abstract images; Katz uses 19th-century cyanotype techniques; Krauss uses silver gelatin materials. The gallery is open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 1 to 5 p.m. Admission is free. The Umbrella is at 40 Stow St., Concord. For more information, go to www.theumbrellaarts.org.
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