Cape May may be small but it is
rich in culture. We are a
town of under 5,000 people with
three theaters –
Cape May Stage,
East Lynne Theater and a
cabaret – The Henry Sawyer Room
at the
Chalfonte Hotel. We have a
diversity of music offerings to
satisfy anyone’s taste from
classical to classic
rock-and-roll. In terms of the
visual arts, Cape May really
shines this summer.
CapeMay.com went in search of
local artists to profile and
discovered that all the artists
we contacted are exhibiting at
The Mad Batter this summer.
So, since all roads lead to the
lovely Jackson Street
restaurant, we followed along.
The first on our list of
people to visit is
Patricia Rainey. This
former fashion model and mother
of five, turned artist has combined her love
for landscapes and her love of
oil and watercolor to produce an
oeuvre which captures the beauty
and simplicity of Cape May.
A New Englander by birth,
Patricia was
as, Miss New Hampshire,
 a
contender in the Miss Universe
pageant. In 1976, she started
her own modeling agency in her
then home of Wyckoff, NJ. It was
when her twin daughter Susan
came into the agency to help
out, that Patricia started
thinking about her love of art.
She is “basically self-taught”
and, from what we can determine,
a natural.
Patricia just finished an
exhibition of her work at the
Mad Batter but you can take a
virtual tour on her website,
www.patriciaraineystudios.com.
If you want a more up close and
personal look, her work will be
represented at the 40th Annual
Cape May Promenade Art Show July
8,9,10 as well as the 27th
Annual Cape May Promenade Arts &
Crafts Show August 12-14. She
will also be showing her work at
the Cape May County Art League’s
juried show on the Washington
Street Mall September 10 & 11.
For other dates please check her
website. She is one busy lady.
 The
next artist to follow Patricia
Rainey at The Mad Batter is
Cyndie Burkhardt who has
“discovered life beyond the
beach” in this exhibition. Although Cyndie
has photographed Cape May
extensively, her recent
adventures to the South China
Sea are the focus of this
exhibition.
“Cao Dai beach in Vietnam is not
that much different from Cape
May
beach,” says Cyndie. “The water,
the sand and the people playing
beach ball are just like home. I
even rented a bike for a long
ride to the beach, same as I do
here. That was fun until I found
out it had no brakes!”
A Cape May native, Cyndie
currently lives in New York. She
travels and photographs
professionally – everything from
safaris in Africa to touring
with a rock band throughout
Ireland.
Cyndie’s photo diary of her solo
trek throughout Indochina is a
departure from depictions of
Cape May life and gives visitors
a look into how folks on the
other side of the world look at
a sunset. Her opening reception
was on July 3rd. The exhibit
continues through July 27th. Cyndie will be on hand to
discuss her work. And by the
way? She still considers Cape
May home.
 Egg
Harbor resident Marie Natale -
just finishing a show at The
Chalfonte Hotel – will be
doing a solo at the Mad Batter
beginning July 28th and
running through the end of
August. There will be an opening
reception July 31 from 3 to 4:30
p.m. Marie has been painting she
was 12. Watercolor is her
preferred medium and Cape May’s
Victorian homes are a favorite
subject for her.
Like Patricia Rainey, she has
lived many lives – an elementary
school art
teacher – a business woman – a
children’s clothing designer, an industrial gift designer.
Painting, however, is her first
love. When she gets a spare
moment, she and her art pals -
Cathy  Rodricks, and Ginny Ogden
Caroline Mangan, Bernice
Rappoport, and Maureen Gass-Brown
- “go on location” all over
South Jersey searching for the
perfect subject matter. Their
work led to the
Chalfonte Hotel exhibition
last summer “Women
and Their Art,” and
repeated this past month. For
more examples of her work, check
out her website at
www.MarieNatale.com.
The photography of Cape May’s
favorite couple Don Merwin and
Tina Giaimo will be on
exhibition at The Mad Batter
August 31 thru September 28th
with a reception Sunday,
September 11th from 3 to 4:30
p.m. The show is called “East
Meets West.” In this instance,
east is the Atlantic seaboard –
west as in “Go West Young Man.”
Tina and Don chronicled their
trip throughout the National
Parks and western states.
New York is also part of the
subject matter, Tina said. Since
the show’s reception on 9/11
and because Tina’s father was
part of the building crew when
The World Trade Center was being
constructed, she wanted to pay
homage to New York City with a
photograph entitled Silhouette
at Sunset. “My dad was on one
building looking at the other
while the tower was going up.”
Tina moved to Cape May 10 years
ago from northern New Jersey.
She met Don one night while
having dinner at the Cape May
restaurant 410 Bank Street. Don
was her waiter and fellow north
Jersey native. The two have been
taking photos together ever
since. Both share a love of
travel, and particularly love
the western part of the U.S.
Lucky for Cape May, both Tina
and Don are nature lovers, which
shows exquisitely in their
photography. If you happen to
miss their exhibition at The Mad
Batter, Tina and Don have opened
a shop called the Spirit Catcher
located in the Carpenter’s
Square Mall on Carpenter’s Lane.
So, that brings us up
September 28th when
Stan Sperlak rolls into
town. Pastel artist (and
landscape designer) Stan
 Sperlak
has been roaming Cape May County
for quite a few years now
looking for the next subject
matter for a painting. He
started out and continues to
be in the nursery business. He
owns Cape Shore Gardens in Cape
May Court House but like so many
other artists, the draw of
landscape painting proved too
hard to resist. His work has a
special quality about it – a
signature look which is
distinguished from anyone else’s
work.
His show runs from September
28th through November 2nd with a
reception on Sunday October 2nd
from 3 to 4:30 p.m.
And that‘s not all the news
in Cape May’s art world –
The Chalfonte Hotel changes
exhibitions once a month. “Women
and their Art” just left but
beginning  July 3rd New York
artist Penny Chiusana’s
watercolor exhibit opens with a
reception from
2-4pm. Chiusano's work is
unusual, playful, poignant and
uplifting. The self-guided
exhibit will be on display for
the entire month of July from
11am-4pm in The Magnolia Room.
For information, contact The
Chalfonte Hotel at 609-884-8409.
Following the Chiusano show is
Cape May’s favorite artist
Alice Steer Wilson. The
Chalfonte will feature the work
of the late award-winning
watercolorist as well as
additional works from local
artists. A reception will be
held Sunday, September 4 from
2-4 p.m. The exhibit will be on
display in The Magnolia Room
August 7 thru Labor Day from 11
a.m.- 4 p.m.
Finally, the watercolors of
Phyllis London will be on
exhibit beginning September 11
running thru mid-October. Her
paintings deal primarily with
the forces of nature, conveying
these potent symbols and themes
through exacting observations of
light, shadow, color, and
composition.
 Last
but certainly not least is the
Prickly Pear Cottage on
Washington Street, home to
The Cape May County Art League (CMCAL).
CMCAL is the oldest county art
league in the country. Open
Wednesday thru Sunday afternoons
and some evening, local artists
display their work at the
Prickly Pear. Additionally, the
art league sponsors poetry
readings, Shakespeare Lives
study sessions, and art
appreciation nights. For details
and dates visit their website at
www.capemaycountyartleague.com
So, ALL roads do not lead to
the
Mad Batter but it seemed
everyone we wanted to talk to
was heading in that direction.
Our advise? Stop in have a
cocktail or two and while you’re
having dinner, you’ll get an
artist’s view of the world. Many
artists if you are a frequent
visitor. |
