J. Cacciola Gallery W is pleased to announce the upcoming exhibition Nature is the Fountain’s Head, which includes paintings by Jessica Bottalico and Wes Sherman. The gallery will also be showcasing new sculpture by Jim Perry.

The selection of paintings by Wes Sherman and Jessica Bottalico is curated by art critic John Yau. Sherman’s work explores the contemporary landscape through abstraction, breaking down nature into its simplest forms, while Bottalico’s intimate compositions interpret domestic scenes and items by exploring texture and distorted space. The gallery will also be exhibiting the work of Jim Perry, which consists of graceful mahogany sculptures that echo the patterns found in nature. Wes Sherman is an accomplished landscape painter, curator, and instructor. He received his MFA from Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University in 2003. Sherman has been a visiting artist at many universities, among them Temple, Rutgers, and Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. In 2011 he also received a fellowship for painting from New Jersey Council of the Arts. His work is included in private collections across the US.

Jessica Bottalico completed her BFA at Maryland Institute College of Art and MFA in Painting at Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University. Her work has been included in exhibitions at venues such as Zurcher Gallery, Causey Contemporary, Proto Gallery, and Abrons Arts Center. She has completed residencies with the Vermont Studio Center, and the Alfred and Trafford Klots International Program for artists in Lehon, France. This is her first exhibition with the J. Cacciola Gallery W.

Jim Perry received his BFA in sculpture at Bard College, where he studied with sculptor Jake Grossberg and painters Murray Reich and Jim Sullivan. He began his sculpture career in the early 1970s in New York City where he exhibited extensively, and in 1975 was included in the Whitney Biennial. His work has been exhibited in numerous solo and group exhibitions across the US, in venues such as Princeton University, Annmarie Sculpture & Arts Center in Maryland, Gremillion & Co. Fine Art in Houston, and The Noyes Museum of Art.

John Yau is an acclaimed poet, critic and curator. He curated Ed Moses: A Retrospective of Paintings and Drawings, 1951-1996 for the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, Book Art, a group show for the Woodstock Art Association, and many group shows for galleries in New York City. He is the author of monographs on Jasper Johns, Catherine Murphy, Richard Artschwager, and Thomas Nozkowski. He teaches at Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University.