“AUBERGINE WAVES”: This watercolor by Susan DeConcini is featured in “Textured Waters: Paintings by Léni Paquet-Morante & Susan DeConcini,” on view at the Arts Council of Princeton’s Taplin Gallery March 13 through April 3. DeConcini’s works reflect her interest in the movement and textures of water surfaces.

The Arts Council of Princeton (ACP) presents “Textured Waters: Paintings by Léni Paquet-Morante & Susan DeConcini,” on view in the Taplin Gallery March 13 through April 3.

Artists Susan DeConcini and Léni Paquet-Morante share an interest in water as a subject matter. Susan’s watercolors on paper explore her interest in the movement and textures of ocean waves and other water surfaces in motion. Painted at a variety of water environments, Leni’s plein-air landscape interpretations inform her studio work. Together, these artists’ works provide a contemplation of water as both a familiar subject and intriguing metaphor.

“I paint landscapes that prompt a narrative about water as it engages its surrounding embankments, the detritus within it, and the bio-matter growing from it,” said Morante, who works in oil. “I am as interested in moving paint around as I am in these narratives and so use dynamic brushwork to drive a contemporary interpretation rather than a portrait of place. Working outdoors in a variety of settings over the last two years has inspired the work that I do in the studio, which tends to be more abstract. The landscape paintings in ‘Textured Waters’ reflect my commute through the world as I was drawn to vistas and intimate spaces alike.”

Watercolor artist Susan DeConcini usually tended to move through different subjects quickly, but has lingered on water for the better part of the past two years. Of her work included in Textured Water, DeConcini says that the paintings are “part of my continued pursuit to understand the endless forms and expressions that water can take, and to engage my delight in capturing the complexity of a single moment in the shape of a wave.” 

“MARSHLAND THAW”: This painting by Léni Paquet-Morante is featured in “Textured Waters: Paintings by Léni Paquet-Morante & Susan DeConcini,” on view at the Arts Council of Princeton’s Taplin Gallery March 13 through April 3. The artists are both interested in water as a subject matter.

Paquet-Morante was born in Canada, raised in Maryland, and moved to New Jersey in 1984. A full-time artist since 2018, her 550-square-foot studio is within the Grounds For Sculpture complex. Solo exhibitions of her work have been held at Mercer County Community College (2021), Johnson & Johnson Corporate Headquarters (1998 and 2019), Center for Gender Studies at Princeton University (1995 and 2017), and Passaic County Community College (1996). Her paintings and sculptures have been included in group shows since 1984. She is listed in the Women Artists of America National Directory and is registered with the Canada Arts Council.

DeConcini lives in Lambertville. She has primarily worked as a scenic artist, painting theatrical sets at McCarter Theatre. She has displayed her work at Small World Coffee in Princeton and the Boro Bean in Hopewell, as well as Cobblestone Creek Country Club. She has participated in Garden State Watercolor Society’s 2018 and 2019 juried shows, as well as the 2020 Member Show. Her waterscapes and
cloudscapes were most recently displayed at the Princeton Public Library over the winter of 2019-2020. In June, she joined the Arts Council of Princeton as a featured artist in their “In Conversation” virtual interviews, and also participated in the 2020 Sauce for the Goose Art Market and the Princeton Winter Village Artist Chalets. 

The Arts Council of Princeton is located at 102 Witherspoon Street. Gallery hours are Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 4pm and Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. For more information, visit artscouncilofprinceton.org.