KATHRYN EARNHART | The Butlers Artist exhibits Celtic influence

Opening today at The Butler Institute of American Art's Trumbull branch is a 10-year survey of the work of painter Brian Rutenberg.
The exhibition, which runs through May 6, will be highlighted by a meet-the-artist reception planned for April 21.
"It is gratifying to know that Brian Rutenberg's paintings are attracting national audiences," Dr. Louis Zona, Butler director, said.
"This exhibition is a demonstration of the extraordinary talent of this young artist."
Rutenberg was born in Myrtle Beach, S.C., and lives and works in New York City. He earned a bachelor of fine arts degree from the College of Charleston (South Carolina) in 1987, and a master of fine arts degree from New York City School of Visual Arts in 1989.
In 1991, Rutenberg was given a Basil Alkazzi award and the Ragdale Foundation Fellowship, and in 1993 received a Marie Walsh Sharpe Art Foundation grant. In 1997, Rutenberg was awarded a Fulbright scholarship to Ireland, studying there as part of the Irish Museum of Modern Art's Artist Studio Programme.
Culmination: Rutenberg's desire to visit Ireland was a lifelong dream. Once there, he immersed himself in the study of Celtic art, particularly the La Tene period (600-400 BC). These studies amid the the lush Irish countryside were to the young man "a well of ideas." That setting with the weather's changing light, changed Rutenberg's color palette to include earthen tones with the vibrant hues of his abstract canvases.
During this period, Rutenberg's paintings began to organize themselves around an eye-like oval shape that he derived from the image of "immersing my face in a pool of water, creating a line around the face below the dry outside world above and the liquid world of the imagination below." (The circular symbol is also a prominent feature of the Celtic art that the young artist was studying.)
According to William Corbet, author of the essay included in the exhibition catalog, "The liquid world of the imagination had flowed from the riverine landscape of his youth to merge with an art of stylized forms that Rutenberg exploited to realize his vision.
He unraveled the Celtic arabesques. Now they related to his earlier attraction to Italian Baroque ceilings and to his instinct for locating the focal point of his pictures, their well, in a garland or corona of sinuous forms."
Rutenberg's paintings are included in many prestigious collections including: the Butler, the Bank of America, South Carolina Arts Commission, Dow Jones & amp; Co., First National Bank of Chicago, Greenville County Museum of Art, Gibbes Museum of Art, College of Charleston Foundation, Federal Reserve Bank, Saks Fifth Avenue, Burrough's-Chapin Museum of Art, and St. John's Museum of Art.
Other items of interest: A series of gallery talks by Dr. Zona will take place at various Butler locations. Topics to be discussed are: The Post Impressionists (March 25, 2 p.m., Trumbull ); The Picasso Century (April 4, 2 p.m., Trumbull); Surrealism (April 29, 2 p.m., Salem ); American Art -- The 1950s & amp; 1960s (May 16, 2 p.m., Youngstown). These free programs are made possible by Mr. & amp; Mrs. William Clayman, Foundation Medici, The Salem Community Foundation and National City Bank.
The Butler's film series continues this week with "World Music 2" to be screened Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. The one-hour film "This is Reggae" features Sugar Minot from Kingston, Jamaica, and was filmed at the Sounds of Brazil nightclub in Manhattan. The film is courtesy of Cinemuse in New York City, which is one of the most experienced high-definition companies.
High-definition projection surpasses most film projection because it is free of flicker, shake, deterioration or fading.
Watch for more Cinemuse programming at the Butler the coming year.
XButler hours in Youngstown are Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Wednesday 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Sunday noon to 4 p.m. Trumbull branch hours are Wednesday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Salem hours are Wednesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission to all three facilities is free.