By:Eileen Greco
From the seamlessly blended, hand-painted colors on the main wall to the fairies strung from the ceiling, the open, airy space invites browsing. Among the works displayed are mosaics from New Zealand, sculptures, pottery, jewelry and children's slippers from Berlin, as well as other eclectic international "artifacts."
The gallery celebrated its grand opening in September, and founder Claudia Bousraou said that she and her husband wanted to bring more art to the area. "I feel that this part of Long Island needs more art," said Bousraou. "We love to go to galleries in the city, but I think that it is also important to integrate art into our lives by bringing it in front of our doorsteps."
It was, in fact, during a stroll through Malverne that the couple discovered the perfect spot for a gallery. Claudia, originally from Berlin, was then devoting herself full-time to raising their two daughters. Art, always a big part of her life, had been relegated to a small studio in her basement.
Finding the space on Church Street, though, was the beginning of realizing Bousraou's dream of creating a hands-on gallery. It took two months to bring her dream to fruition, as she and Mo remodeled the space, opening it up to let in light and color.
"People are thirsty for color and works created by hand," said Mo. "There is a need for quality and liveliness that we can-t get from manufactured goods, television or riding around in a car. Our goal is to bring good quality art, make it accessible."
Last Sunday, the gallery held an opening reception for a new exhibit by Hofstra University for Continuing Education instructors called "Cycles." Marion Flomenhaft, director of arts, culture and leisure at Hofstra and also a Malverne resident, hopes LichtBlick will bring more people interested in art to Malverne. The village already draws people from other communities because of its independent movie theater, and the LichtBlick-s display window is right next to the theater.
The artwork in the current show combines photography, acrylics and watercolor and evokes feelings of changing light, brightness after darkness, and cycles of light from different angles, times of day and seasons. The artists exhibiting their work include Judy Cooperman, Stevenson Estime, Roger Hendricks, Janice Loecher, Franklin Hill Perrell, Alice Melzer, Jessica Robinson and Paula Westcott. The "Cycles" exhibit will run through March 14.
LichtBlick (which means "a ray of light piercing through the darkness" in German) also offers several classes for the community, such as Children-s Yoga and a free open pottery studio every Wednesday and Saturday. Schedules for several other classes are also available.
The next scheduled exhibit will be in May, featuring artwork by Una White, whose specialty includes "soul paintings," also known as aura paintings.
