Westport Book Shop announces May exhibit

Photo via Westport Book Shop

The Westport Book Shop is pleased to welcome local artist Clark Hanford as guest exhibitor for the month of May at the Book Shop’s Drew Friedman Art Place.  Clark is exhibiting a series of oil paintings of dogs, painted in a 19th century style, and presented in antique frames. 

Clark has been an artist for over five decades, working in a variety of mediums, including painting, clothing, and sculpture.  Before returning to Westport in 1985, Clark lived, worked and studied in London for 17 years, making and selling his work from his Notting Hill shop.  He is well known for his life-like sculptures of actors such as Marlene Dietrich, Lucille Ball, Katherine Hepburn, and Liz Taylor, dressed in period clothing made by Clark.  

Clark is a Westport/Weston native and a 1962 graduate of Staples High School. He studied art in England at Goldsmith College, and here at Silvermine College of Art.  Some of his notable clients over the years have included Burt Bacharach, Demi Moore, John Entwistle, Elton John, Debbie Reynolds, and David Bowie.  One of Clark’s sculptures of Marlene Dietrich was featured in the May 1983 Playboy magazine, and photographed by Helmut Newton.

The Westport Book Shop will hold a reception for Clark Hanford and his exhibit on Wednesday evening, May 15, 2024, from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.  Space is limited; please RSVP to the Book Shop at 203-349-5141 or by email to bookshop@westportbooksaleventures.org

Clark Hanford’s artwork will be on exhibit at the Book Shop through May 31, 2024.  All work on display is available for purchase.  

Westport Book Shop, a nonprofit independent used book store, is downtown Westport’s only source for gently used and antiquarian books, vintage vinyl records, CDs, DVDs and audio books.  It is located at 23 Jesup Road, right across Jesup Green from the Westport Library.

The Book Shop’s “Drew Friedman Art Place” is an area of the store dedicated to exhibiting the work of community artists year-round, on a rotating basis.  Miggs Burroughs, a Trustee of the Drew Friedman Community Arts Center, and a founding member of The Artists Collective of Westport, curates these exhibits, which change monthly.

The art exhibit is open to the public during the Book Shop’s regular business hours:  Mondays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sundays from Noon to 5 p.m.

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