Late Summer's Song

PETER RAMON

August 8-September 4, 2011

Lorette Gaboury Massa continues through August 7

A native of Connecticut, Lorette spent summers living on Fairfield Beach and discovered very early her love for art and theater.  The human figure, the sky, and the ocean in particular are her favorite subject matter.  Quick gesture sketches using graphite, ink, acrylics, gouache, collage, mixed media, and photography comprise her media of choice.  Backgrounds in theater, fashion, and art are apparent in Lorette’s dramatic fashion illustrations and also in her passion for theatrical costume design.

     A student of the renowned Dean Keller, Lorette graduated Paier College of Art in 1982 with a Commercial Illustration major and a Graphic Design minor.  After her graduation, she moved to Greenwich Village in New York City and worked on Broadway as an on-staff artist.  Lorette’s wearable art was featured on MTV in 1983, in a Paris, France runway show, and even on Japanese MTV.

     Lorette also produced and directed fashion runway shows, in addition to being a make-up artist for Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s New York print ads.  Her make-up work at Bloomingdale’s involved styling for Vogue models (including Princess Stephanie of Monaco).  She worked as a make-up stylist for fashion and theater in key locations such as New York City and Boston, working at one point for the Boston Cabaret Company.  While in New York, Lorette designed logos and theatrical sets while spending a good deal of time in the Soho galleries.

     Inspiration drawn from islands and cities enables Lorette to express her fervor for theater, fashion, and her lifelong love of the ocean:  “I try to convey human emotion in my work whether I’m sketching a fashion figure or painting a seascape.”

     Lorette became a licensed interior designer upon returning to Fairfield, CT in 1986.  She presently continues to freelance as an ID consultant, art director, and photographer.  In 1993, she edited the photo documentary on runaway and exploited children on the streets of New York. This body of work was presented to the United States Congress in 1994.  Also in 1994, Lorette served as a stylist for CBS Television’s “Street Stories” and her work was featured on A&E television in 1998.

     Up until 2002, Lorette instructed children and adult workshops in life drawing, basic drawing, painting, fashion illustration, and jewelry design at her gallery and workshop, “The Studio.” As a member of the Board of Directors for The United Youths Arts Partnership, a non-profit organization, she helped inner city kids redirect their creative energies—particularly their graffiti art—into saleable fine art.  For four years Lorette also taught weekend art courses to inner city kids.