Mar 13, 2008 11:44 AM
The UFT Mezzanine Gallery was launched on Feb. 28 with 27 full-color lithographed posters created by Thomas F. Naegele, a retired art teacher and UFT member.
More than 100,000 copies of the artist’s works have been distributed to New York City public schools over the last quarter-century. The exhibition on the second floor at the union’s 52 Broadway building in lower Manhattan — sponsored by the New York City Art Teachers Association/UFT, under the leadership of Chairperson Joan Davidson and UFT Director of Professional Committees George Altomare — was part of NYCATA’s ongoing efforts to raise consciousness, honor advocacy, inspire and support artist-teachers, and recognize art as an integral part of the learning process.
In conjunction with a reception for him, Naegele treated the visitors to a PowerPoint presentation in which he documented, from rough drafts to finish, a series of concepts and executions.
“The poster is the most common visual form to catch the attention of a non-captive audience, arouse interest, and deliver its message in silence,” Naegele said. “Too often designers integrate an abundance of reading matter to the detriment of the poster’s eye appeal.
“Unlike the brief, elusive television spot, the poster stays put and can deliver its message many times over at a fraction of the cost per viewer.”
Before turning to teaching at The New York School of Industrial Art, Naegele had been a magazine illustrator and art director for television. He successfully lobbied to change the school’s name to The High School of Art and Design, where he taught cartooning, animation, art history and advertising art.
As the school’s yearbook adviser he produced 18 consecutive award-winning editions of “Portfolio,” an enduring testimony to his work with nearly 10,000 graduating seniors over the years.
Naegele fears that although today’s students are as capable and teachable as ever, they appreciate computer graphics and related art more than they do traditional manual drawing, painting and calligraphy. But art is art, he says.
“All art, whatever the form, owes its effectiveness to the imagination and skill of an artist who translates an abstract concept into a concrete composition,” he explained. “Every worthwhile piece of art is a true metaphor that can be readily understood. It is a manifestation of the artist’s insight, discovery and wisdom, and will resonate with a discriminating audience that has learned to differentiate degrees of originality.”
The UFT Mezzanine Gallery exhibition was one of many ongoing NYCATA activities, among them being annual shows at the Cork Gallery in Lincoln Center and at the Broome Street Gallery in Soho.