June 7th – 30th
Etchings and screenprints by Easthampton artist Daniel Chiaccio.
The imagery in Daniel’s work draws upon what we call home, our inner desires to see the world, and the idea of working with what you have.
Daniel’s compositions urge us to place ourselves into his elaborately imagined scenes. Each setting has a story to tell and asks the viewer to wonder how life is lived there. This is an atemporal world with an emphasis on quiet stillness, while maintaining some sense of reality. Each piece is intended to draw us in and imagine ourselves immersed in an unknown yet somehow fully familiar world.
His work has a salvaged and arbitrary look, while simultaneously appearing complete. The idea of working with the materials one has, within one’s means, is very relevant in Daniel’s art and is meant to inspire fascination and inspiration, rather than a sense of struggle. He captures this mood with traditional printmaking techniques – scenes are etched on copper plates and hand-printed. The show also includes screenprints and a large outlandish sculpture.
Opening Reception on Thursday, June 7th, 5-8pm, during Amherst Arts Night Plus. There will be an Artist Reception on Saturday, June 9th, 4:30-6:30pm.
About Daniel Chiaccio:
Daniel is a printmaker currently residing in western Massachusetts. After receiving his BFA at the New Hampshire Institute of Art, Daniel came to the area for an internship at Zea Mays Printmaking where he researched green printmaking practices. Daniel’s preferred medium is copper plate intaglio, a process in which a copper plate is inscribed with an image, coated with ink, then transferred onto paper. Being a process-driven artist, Daniel was quickly drawn to printmaking for its tactile nature and emphasis on problem solving and experimentation.
Image: detail from “Easy Does It“, copper plate intaglio print, 2018, by Daniel Chiaccio