Salve Regina Exhibit by Catholic University Professor

Painting by: Stephen Lewis’ Mandala  (2015)

By Amanda McShane

Salve Regina Art Gallery currently has an exhibition titled Prints and Painting by artist Stephen Lewis. Lewis’ artwork incorporates different styles and commentary involving politics, surrealism, and naturalism. 

Lewis utilizes more than just one medium and his methods change depending on the artwork. He enjoys both painting and prints. Not just one in particular. 

“I’m generally, fascinated by oil paint, but enjoy cutting woodblocks too,” said Lewis. 

Lewis has a particularly strong connection to Catholic University because he taught Introduction to Painting here for two summer sessions. 

Lewis was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico but he mostly grew up in upstate New York, where he lives currently. His mother influenced him to become an artist and has now been painting for 33 years. 

“I started out as a sculptor and switched to painting thinking that I would save money on studio space,” said Lewis. He does not have a preference on what he wants to paint. “I guess it depends on the subject matter. I think the thing that unifies all the work is the idea of observation. All the paintings are observations of one kind or another.”

Lewis’s choice of subject matter typically reflects either current events or nature. 

“The narrative pieces just kind of comes to me as ways to describe the world or events that seem to defy words. The more objective stuff are observations of a different kind: examining things that are in front of me,” said Lewis.

“I’ve been painting political painting since the mid-90s, in a way, the political atmosphere of today and its inherent surrealism, render making political art harder because the situation is already so absurd that it defies artistic imagination,” said Lewis.   

Lewis’ showcase at Salve Regina began during the past year due to a conversation between him and John Figura, the Salve Regina Art Gallery director. 

“It just came up in our conversation. I have shown Stephen’s works several times before. This is my last year of teaching and I just offered” said Figura.

Lewis and Figura have known each other since 1997 and even ran an art gallery together in DC that was called Signal66. It was located on 926 N Street NW in Blagden Alley. They started the gallery with other artists, Pat Rogan, Eric Gravely and Tom Dodd after wanting to do something different in the local arts scene. The gallery was supposed to be a one-night event that ended up becoming a success. The gallery featured mostly paintings from local artists, however, they did show other works too. They also had bands perform live music for special events. 

Signal66 had a rebellious and aesthetic and attitude. It was open from 1999 to 2004. It closed due to the high rent of the building. Despite the closing, they all had a wonderful time and supported each other throughout the run of Signal66. 

As well as after Signal66, Figura and Lewis have had a long history together as artists and by Figura showing Lewis’s work. What Lewis wants from his works is to intrigue people and to make them think, reflect and observe for a moment.