New work by Benton Lutz at the Charles Street Gallery
From the opening reception on February 20th through March 14th, Benton Lutz will exhibit new work at the Charles Street Gallery. His work is distinctive as well as firmly part of the Lowcountry's Outsider Art traditions: "As an untrained painter, I basically paint like a child. I may have notions of something serious to say but it always comes out funny, like a child trying to express a complicated feeling with a limited vocabulary. So what happens in the studio is straightforward, childlike, and whimsical. It makes me laugh, it pleases me; it recovers the child that I am and perhaps the child in the viewer. I think this show will be like children meeting on the playground."
To spice up that playground, Lutz is going multi-media for this exhibition too, with a slideshow called 'The Beauty of Looking Down.' "For several years now I have been noticing the unintended beauty under our feet and have been “picking up” these objects and visuals with a simple digital camera."
Lutz has a great eye for noticing unintended beauty and playground moments. His painting "Two Fisted Drinker" is a chance encounter as well: "I saw this little girl last summer at one of the street dances in Port Royal put on by the Arts Council," he explained. Thank goodness he's taking the time to look and think about what he sees with such plain and colorful joy.
Charles Street Gallery is an established source for Lowcountry and international art, presented within a carefully renovated house surrounded by a lush garden in Beaufort's historic district. 914 Charles Street, 843-521-9054, thecharlesstreetgallery.com
