Exhibition Features Paintings by Ray Kleinlein

Ray Kleinlein, Gold and Blue (Cologne Bottle and Box), 20” x 24”, oil on canvas, 2010.

Paintings by Ray Kleinlein is the title of an exhibition by artist Ray Kleinlein at The 1912 Gallery of Emory & Henry College from Wednesday, April 13 through Friday, May 6. 

Kleinlein will speak about his work during an Artalk Tuesday, April 12 at 7:30 pm in the Board of Visitors Lounge of Van Dyke Center.  The gallery, located at the Emory Train Depot, will open at 6:30 p.m. for viewing and after the Artalk for a reception with the artist.

In this exhibition the viewer will encounter seductively realistic oil paintings of common, everyday objects. Each still life Kleinlein creates is composed of a single item or two that are so common to daily life that they are considered mundane.

The artist has elevated each object’s importance simply by choosing it to be the subject of his painting. Kleinlein said, “My hope is that the work allows the viewer to take a look at the overlooked and appreciate the ordinary experiences of everyday life, which can be quite beautiful.”

Although the perfume bottle, the roll of toilet paper, the coiled hose are immediately and easily recognizable because they are rendered as exactly as possible by the artist, the brush strokes take on an abstract life of their own as one approaches each painting. Kleinlein lays down paint in a way that is at once both luscious and exacting.

Kleinlein holds a bachelor’s degree in fine arts from The Columbus College of Art and Design and The Ohio State University and a master of fine arts degree in both painting and art history from The Ohio University.  He has taught throughout the southeast at the college level and has twice been awarded the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Professional Fellowship.

Kleinlein’s paintings have been widely exhibited and published in national journals and he is currently represented by private galleries in San Francisco, New York City, Columbus, Ohio and Charlotte, NC. 

Both the exhibit and the Artalk are free of charge.  The 1912 Gallery is open to the public Tuesday through Saturday, noon – 5 pm or by appointment.  Call 276-944-6866 for additional information or to make an appointment.