New Perspectives at the East End Gallery
BY SHARON LORENZO INDEPENDENT CONTRIBUTOR
In place early this week at the East End Gallery is work by photographer Celia Pearson, whose masterful images of sea glass take the medium of contemporary photography and digital printing to a new dimension.

Left: One of Celia Pearson's sea glass photos, with resolutio so fine, you can almost count the grains of sand; Right: A still-life by Paul LaPaglia

The depth and clarity of the photos - printed from an IRIS system using a large format negative - magnify the intensity of gifts from the sea, namely glass shards, shells, sand and other detritus which she and others have collected for a lifetime from wanderings on beaches and coastlines all over the world.

A complete text on the history of glass, entitled "Pure Sea Glass," by Richard LaMotte features numerous works by Pearson who constructs her intimate photos of sea glass in lyrical small vignettes. LaMotte points out that the best specimens are often found on beaches four times a year when the moon is closest to the earth in a position known as "perigee," where tidal extremes make a low tide most profound for collectors. The sea shards which have been smoothed by abrasive tidal action are often flung onto the shores after storms and surges. Depending on the pH scale and salinity of the water, remains can be cloudy with cracks called "crizzling" or frosted from hydration of the sodium bicarbonate in the glass itself. Since the first evidence of glass in Mesopotamia in 2500 B.C., many reiterations have evolved with technological advances, which were shown this week on Nantucket by the Dane Gallery with glass blowing in situ. Pearson's work at the East End is evidence of what phenomenal detail one can see with the modern photographic eye that captures the color, line, balance and symmetry of these small remnants of man matched with the forces of nature at work in the timeless mystery of sea glass being formed right under our feet on the shores of Nantucket.

COURTESY PAUL LAPAGLIA

In contrast to these works, the next subjects on view at East End will be the work of Paul LaPaglia, a Nantucket resident who paints during the quieter months of the year in his home studio. A refreshingly modest personality, LaPaglia has deep formal art training from the New York High School of Music and Art as well as the Brooklyn Museum Art School. He sees himself as a tonal painter whose newest work in alkyd emulsions allows for the same color intensity as oil but with the quick drying effect of a water based product. Paul is most passionate about work from the 19th century, and his current works on view are fresh compositions in the genre of Pierre Bonnard and Odilon Redon. Magnificently framed by himself, they are intimate and resonant with the mature handling of paint with brush, rag and palette knife. The layering of colors invites a sophisticated art connoisseur whose discerning eye will find meaning in this work. Just as the Impressionists constructed intimate still life portraits, LaPaglia gives us a view of his quiet world where timeless beauty resides to capture

This untitled still life, by Paul LaPaglia, works in the genre of Pierre Bonnard and Odilon Redon

and soothe our imagination. I