“Cornwall Landscapes,” Paintings by Robert Adzema

In his upcoming show at The Cornwall Library, artist Robert Adzema presents energetic watercolors that capture his love of the Cornwall landscape. Since moving to Cornwall in 2019, Adzema has been exploring the local terrain through his varied and beautiful paintings. He is a familiar sight working at his easel on Jewell Street overlooking Coltsfoot Valley, or wandering the fields with his painter’s kit, looking for inspiration. The resulting work captures the joy and energy he finds here in Cornwall, from images of the iconic covered bridge in West Cornwall to more personal paintings of his own home and gardens.

All of his landscapes are painted outdoors— plein air —and in watercolor. Adzema says “I favor this medium because it is easily transportable and so encourages one to deal with the subject directly and spontaneously, and to welcome chance and accident. In general, I choose sculpturally interesting subjects with strong and often unexpected compositional points of view. I try to capture a time of day and the quality of light of the location, such as the reflective and transparent light on a stream, lily pond or marsh, or the modulated light captured in fracturing on the rock face of a quarry.”

He continues: “My technique reflects a passion for and use of color along with expressive brushwork to further the emotional dimension of the paintings.”

All of the watercolors in the show will be available for purchase.

Robert Adzema is a painter and a sculptor who studied industrial design at Pratt Institute and received an MFA from Indiana University. His paintings are in public and private collections. He coauthored The Great Sundial Cutout Book and is well known for his sundial sculptures, which include large public works for Connecticut and New York State, as well as garden-style sundials. Cornwall locals may have seen his charming sundial that stands outside the entrance to Cornwall Consolidated School.

He lives with his wife, potter Jane Herold, in West Cornwall.