Danby Gathery Art Works

"I create representational paintings that focus on the poetry in the everyday–a trodden pasture, a crooked tree, or a sunlit power line. I'm particularly interested in the properties of light, both natural and artificial, and often explore scenes where the two are in competition with–or compliment–each other.

After a hiatus of nearly twenty-five years, musician and poet Austin MacRae picked up the brush again in 2022 and has since become a daily oil painter. 

His work has been shown in such regional venues as the Memorial Art Gallery in Rochester and Small Works 2025 in Clifton Springs.  He is the recipient of a Sunny Point Residency from the Arts Council of Yates County and also a member of the State of the Art Gallery.  

Lightbox is an ongoing series of interiors that oscillates between representation and abstraction.  Repurposed industrial sites commingle with silo rooms, studio corners, and historic homes.  Even a humble culvert takes center-stage in “Door into the Dark.” 

Just as a lightbox illuminates (and interrogates) through high contrast, these paintings use strong light sources and robust chromatic darks to explore the true nature of everyday interiors.   

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