Art teacher paints ‘Best’ of Sea Cliff in new exhibit

The latest art on display at the Sea Cliff Village Library boasts illustrious scenes of cool water colors reminiscent of Claude Monet’s water lily motifs. Other scenes are darker in complexion, and hold outlines of shadowed figures absorbed by a central component; in one case, the flicker of rebellious flames.

“It’s much different when you take a step back and look,” one observer said.

True, since the Monet-like pieces were inspired by scenes in Sea Cliff, and the haunting black-and-white tapestry was derived from Miranda Best’s trip to Babcock Lake in upstate New York. The artist had painted her husband, Jim, hanging out by the campfire.

“I was the subject of this painting,” he joked at the opening reception of the Sea Cliff Arts Council’s exhibit on Sunday, which features Miranda’s work.

Best, a Virginia native, has lived in the village for 20 years and has worked as an art teacher at Paul D. Schreiber High School, in Port Washington, for 22 years. In between her days instructing students in both art and AP art, Best was busy raising her two children, Jackson, 15, and Maya, 13, and creating her own body of work. And while this is her third time solo exhibiting at the library, she admits that when she first moved to Sea Cliff she was slow to show off.

“For a number of years, I didn’t really participate or show work,” she said. “I was more of a newcomer. But now I feel much more connected and open to sharing my work with my neighbors and friends.”

Her work challenges observers to identify where exactly Best might have drawn her inspiration. Five pieces on the back wall magnify the beauty of Sea Cliff’s numerous parks: a Hydrangea plant in Plaza Park, a charming fountain in Pirie Park and three tree-studded scenes depicting Clifton Park, just steps from Best’s front door.

“To see our town depicted in some of these artworks makes me really happy,” said Heidi Hunt, co-chair of the Sea Cliff Arts Council. As a personal friend of Best for 15 years, she has seen Best develop her skills while living and working on the North Shore.

“She started on canvas painting, and this is a new medium for her where she’s doing pastel and charcoal on paper, and some paint and acrylics on paper,” Hunt explained, “So to see her develop has been really beautiful.”

Pointing to the “eerie” images on the sidewall, Best explained that the pieces demonstrate her more varied work. “There’s solarplate etchings, monoprints, and a mixed media piece,” she said. (See box.)

Best said her artistic process typically stems from recreating photographs, but she has since deviated from the method, as she’s now focused on creating pieces that exude the experience of being in a certain place, or utter the memory of that place.

“I’ve been trying to move away from just reproducing the photograph, and also letting myself respond to the materials that I’m using,” she said. “Whether it’s paint, pastel or charcoal, the qualities that are inherent in those materials become more apparent in the work itself.”

This innovation is something Best employs in the studio, as well as the classroom. “Finding that balance between classroom management and creating exciting lessons was definitely a challenge,” she said, “But now I get to focus on spending time with the students to help them make work that they love, and to give their ideas visual form.”

“Being out in nature is important to both of us, and you see that in Miranda’s paintings,” said Jim, a native of upstate New York. The two met during their youth on Shelter Island. After marriage they looked to make a move out of Manhattan and settled on Sea Cliff. It reminded them of the “Victorian vibe of Shelter Island Heights,” he said.

“It’s such a special village,” Best said, “And we love participating in the life of the community. It’s exciting to feel really involved, and to share with the people.”

Best’s exhibit is located at the Sea Cliff Village Library, 300 Sea Cliff Ave., Sea Cliff. For more information, call (516) 801-3402.