Past Exhibits

Take a look back at some of our previous exhibits!

CAC Board Member Show

January & February, 2024

Cortland Arts Connect Board Member Show

January & February 2024

This is a collection of work created by some of our board members! Participating artists include David Beale, Sherry Dans, Emily Gibbons and Jim Weiss. If interested in purchasing any of the work, please email us at firstfriday@cortlandartsconnect.org

Small Works

November & December 2023

Small Works is a collection of small originals by local artists.

Karen Atkins, David Beale, Kathie Beale, Marian Davie, Karen Dillon, Mary Elliot, Emily Gibbons, Jenna Harkins, Ella Holden, Denise Knight, Janet Johnson, Jill Lavetsky, Barbara Friedman McMechen, Betsy Palmer, Marilyn Palmer, Lisa Schaaf, Robert Sikora, Nines Solana, Tom Steger, Marian Strang, Linda Szmalc, Ralph Turturro, Meghan Vandeuson,

Danielle Wimbish

Pushing Boundaries

September & October, 2023

Cortland Arts Connect invites the community to enjoy a new exhibit sponsored by the Picture House called "Pushing Boundaries" in the first floor Art Gallery of the McNeil Building, 19 Main Street, Cortland, from September 8th through October. The McNeil Gallery is open to the public during regular business hours.

One of the defining characteristics of artists is their innate curiosity and eagerness to explore, to push their individual boundaries. The creator determines how far they wish to explore new territory. There is no right or wrong here, and no strict rules apply as to what is considered abstract art or digital art. Our hope is that participants and viewers alike gain new insights into these two genres!

Painters Painting Painters

March 21 - May 12

Painters Painting Painters is a group portrait exhibit.

There’s a long tradition in art history of artists creating portraits of other artists - Andrew Wyeth/Andy Warhol, Lucian Freud/Francis Bacon, Alfred Stieglitz/Georgia O’Keefe. The idea for this group project was for artists to get to know each other through portraits. Each artist in the show has created a portrait and each artist has had a portrait created of them.

Denise Knight says “This was a challenging, yet ultimately rewarding, project. In my painting of fellow classmate and artist Ron Ostman, I focused on capturing the "pre-painting" preparation--when the artist is studying his subject and generating a plan for the composition. There's a lot of thought that goes into a work before an artist picks up their brush to make the first stroke”.

June Sanders says “Tom seems to enjoy the whole artistic process, from chasing down the best view of his intended subject to patiently applying the finishing touches to make his painting more accurately reflect what he wants to portray. I chose to paint him with an unfinished barn scene because neglected barns are some of his favorite subjects”.

Naked Trees

Cortland Arts Connect invites the community to enjoy an exhibit by local artists in the first floor Art Gallery of the McNeil Building, 19 Main Street, Cortland, through March 20th. The show titled “'Naked Trees” showcases a group exhibit of over 30 local artists.

Picture House owner & artist David Beale said, "Artists throughout the ages have been fascinated with the skeletal shape of deciduous trees in winter, each with a unique and expressive design". The Picture House is sponsoring a group exhibit entitled “Naked Trees” at the McNeil Art Gallery featuring works of art on the theme of trees stripped of their foliage.