The featured piece of the month is by Mary Morant titled, "Crimson Sunset." It is 30in x 40in, oil on canvas and priced at $3,800.

Click here to see this amazing piece!

Featured Artist: Murray Smith

Murray Smith is a graduate of The High School of Art and Design and attended both The Art Students League and the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan. Known for his still life oil paintings, he is enamored with the effect of northern light on his still life subjects.

Smith says, "There is nothing equal to the silvery beauty and atmosphere of north light. Simple objects like a vase, a flower or a bunch of grapes have their moment here under these magical conditions. My work is about painting that light. This is why I love painting still life."

Smith has won multiple open juried awards, including a top landscape award for Ice Flows, The Kuhn Oil Painting Award for Floral, The 29th Annual Ridgewood Art Institute Regional Open Juried Show 2009, The Ruth Beekman Award for Floral, The 27th Annual Ridgewood Art Institute Regional Open Juried Show 2007, and Top Floral Award at The 26th Annual Ridgewood Art Institute Regional Open Juried Show in 2006. In 2005, he captured the top prizes for still life with The Jane Peterson Still Life Award from The Hudson Valley Art Association and the Salmagundi Club Award from the Regional Open Juried Show in Ridgewood, New Jersey.

His work has been displayed in The Lycian Galleries in Sugar Loaf, New York and his first prize landscape graced the cover of The Warwick Valley Phone book in 1999. He won the distinguished Art Director's Gold Medal for the poster, I Want Out which has been in London's Victoria and Albert Museum's poster and print collection for the past 30 years.

An award winning art director, Murray Smith has enjoyed a distinguished career in advertising for more than 25 years. He's most proud of the 12 years he spent as a designer in an entertainment advertising company he helped form. Among his many achievements, he is credited with creating campaigns and posters for more than 200 films including Star Wars, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Apocalypse Now, Taxi Driver, Superman and All the President's Men.

Today, Smith teaches a still life oil painting class at The Ridgewood Art Institute in Ridgewood, New Jersey and resides with his wife, Rochelle in upstate New York.

To view Murray Smith's work, visit our online gallery.

The Murray Smith exhibit runs March 1 - 31, and his paintings are available for acquisition. All are welcome, and admission is free. Geary Gallery is open to the public Tuesday through Saturday, 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and is located at 576 Boston Post Road, Darien, CT 06820. For more information, call (203) 655-6633.

Capture a moment, a special memory for a lifetime in a beautifully made custom frame. Made by hand in our Darien gallery, Accent Picture Framing & Restoration are the area experts when it comes to framing everything from important certificates, photos and paintings, to 3D objects. Items from special life milestones such as weddings, graduations, first holy communions, or important items that hold special memories such as sports jerseys, preserved corsages, baby clothes, toys - just about anything that holds special meaning to you - can be framed. Bring your treasured pieces to us for framing and learn why our custom handmade frames stand the test of time. Click here to see more custom framing.

To help parents with babies and small children who are unable to easily leave their car, we have Curbside Pick-up service. Just call from your car when you're in the gallery parking lot to pick up your work, and a gallery employee will bring it to you. Call (203) 655-6633.