Doug Ball (Exhibition)
An introductory note by Sylvanna VanderPark
In October 2023, I participated in the Great Falls Studio Tour through my Gallery, Wolfgang and Luke, and on the first, rainy day of the tour, Mr. Doug Ball came quietly through the magnetic screen door. As we discussed the children’s art that was on display (my 4-year old daughter paints here in the Gallery with me, and her works were showing), we talked about achieving as adults the uninhibited simplicity that little ones can access so easily, and striving for the same unfussiness. Doug shared his paintings from his phone’s picture app and we talked of the influences from Chagall and Picasso and so on. Upon seeing more pieces over email, I enjoyed seeing various influences in those different works. As he was in transition studio-wise from his place in Arlington, I invited Doug to display some pieces here to share with the Great Falls community, and here we are with a small collection from his inventory. His works in this exhibition capture serenity to dreaminess to playfulness. Upon learning of his theatre history and time in New York, and talking about his inspiration behind such works as his Bremerton Animals, I quickly valued this artist with a bigger story behind the soft spoken presence for adding some texture to the local landscape.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
I was born in Norfolk and raised in Northern Virginia. My work in the arts began in Washington, DC, as an actor and set designer at Arena Stage and at The Folger Theatre. After attending Drama School in London I moved to New York City where I acted in, designed, or produced plays off-Broadway and regionally. My most notable role was appearing at the Williamstown Theatre Festival opposite Olympia Dukakis in Tennessee Williams’ Orpheus Descending. In 1981, I won both an OBIE Award and the New York Theatre Wing’s Maharam Award for co-designing the set for Request Concert, directed by Joanne Akalaitis. In NYC I studied figure drawing at the Art Students League and maintained an art studio in Hoboken, NJ. In 1981 one of my artworks, “Rimbaud Record”, was selected for the seminal Times Square Show, which featured early works by Basquiat and Keith Herring. I also became involved in film production design and worked on several major motion pictures in Los Angeles and Manhattan. In the 1980s and 90s I was the production designer for the PBS Series, “From the Brothers Grimm”, American adaptations of traditional folktales, all filmed in Virginia. In the mid 1980s I studied painting with prominent DC artist, William Woodward. During that time I was a member of the Rappahanock Artists’ Co-op and showed my work in multiple exhibits at the Middle Street Gallery in Washington, VA. In 1985 I conceived and produced a regional art show, “The Artists of the Blue Ridge,” in Sperryville, VA.
More recently my work has been exhibited at the Arlington Arts Center, (New Visions/Vibrant Memories, 2022, Dia de los Muertos, 2016). In March 2020, I mounted a one-man exhibit of my paintings at the Falls Church Art & Frame Gallery. Since 2019, my paintings have been marketed locally in the Urban Farmhouse Store’s fine arts collection in Arlington, VA.
DESCRIPTION of Artwork: I work primarily in oil paint. My style and subject varies from abstract to figurative. I am mainly a studio artist but prefer plein air painting, especially in locations around the Shenandoah Valley. I paint landscapes, still lifes, cityscapes, and portraits. I characterize much of my artwork as “l’arte pour l’arte”, but I also paint to process and express my feelings about current social justice issues; my reactions to gun violence, facism, racism, and immigration. I am influenced by Giotto, Goya, and modern masters (Manet, Cezanne, Picasso) as well as by folkloric art from different cultures. Having grown up in Northern Virginia many of my works express my feelings about the changes that development and increased multiculturalism have brought.