T
he eclectic home of Montclair artist Alyce Gottesman
and her husband, lawyer Eric Schwimmer, serves
as a three-dimensional palette for the painter’s
self-expression. Gottesman’s love of color and her
instinct for bold and seemingly disparate patterns
turn blank walls into delightful tableaux.
A KIND OF ALCHEMY
Alyce’s light-filled third-floor studio is strikingly well organized,
considering the variety of media she uses for her paintings. “Each area is
a different station for a different process,” says Gottesman. “When I’m
painting on a surface affixed to the wall, I use oil paints. When I’m
working with acrylics, which I use as a base for each painting, I use the
table where I keep water.” (See above left). Working on multiple
paintings at the same time, Gottesman uses a variety of surfaces
including canvas, pre-primed Gessoboard, aluminum and wood on
which she can pour, drip, draw and paint. The photos at left show some
of the materials she uses, including intensely pigmented inks, tubes of
Zinc white and Titanium white – each with its own distinct properties – rollers engraved with texturizing cylinders, and mysterious blue
bottles containing ingredients that alter paint texture. Behind
Gottesman is a strikingly beautiful painting called “Sea Change,” created
with charcoal, graphite, and oil paint over acrylic paint. “I get inspired
by color,” she says. “I begin painting, and images start to emerge.” At
right, old clothing forms rescued from an abandoned garment district
showroom huddle in a corner. The long hallway outside of the studio
serves as an impromptu gallery space for completed works. ➤
MAY 2016
MONTCLAIR MAGAZINE
47