3 minute read

Colorful personalities

IAN SWABY STAFF WRITER

For Carolann Garafola, painting hasn’t been a way to make a living, so much as it is has been an escape from the issues and concerns of daily life.

“What it does for me is it removes me from the real world,” she said. “Everything else around me just sort of drops out. It’s almost akin to meditation. When I walk into my studio, it’s just like I’m in another world.”

During her 24 years on the town council in Warren, New Jersey, she didn’t have time to paint.

On Feb. 13-19, her art work received exposure for the first time during the annual Art Show by the Palm Aire Art Association. Previously, she had displayed her art through the Artists’ Guild of Anna Maria Island.

Ellise Elmore, co-president of the Palm Aire Art Association, said the event was in its 40th year, and has been an opportunity that benefits both artists and nonartists.

“We have a lot of artists, and it gives them an opportunity to show their work,” she said. “We have people who are not artists, and they enjoy seeing what their friends do.”

For Garafola, painting is highly personal, as it’s a chance for her to carry on the legacy of her late husband, Ralph Garafola, who died in 2019. For more than 65 years, until his retirement in 1990, he had been a commercial illustrator and artist.

Ralph Garafola began teaching Carolann Garafola how to paint in 2004. She said he showed her that she could apply her compositional skills to painting, as she had loved photography from the time she was a child.

“He left a legacy with me,” she said. “When I’m painting, he’s sitting on my shoulder, telling me to put more paint on the brush — don’t be stingy.”

He taught her that if an artist paints too lightly with acrylics, the canvas will show through.

He also taught her how to shade subjects properly. She said a combi- nation of light and dark is where the sense of three dimensions is created.

As she travels about the community, Carolann Garafola brings a camera with her. Sometimes, She tries to snap a photo whenever she sees something interesting.

She will then create a painting based on the photograph.

Sometimes the photographs and paintings will be still life scenes featuring objects in store windows, and other times they will depict living objects, such as birds. As a birdwatcher who reports on the website eBird, she is often on the lookout for different species.

She enjoys seeing blue herons, egrets, and tricolored herons. She said paintings of roseate spoonbills, which have a pink hue, sell exceptionally well.

She noted that color is one quality she seeks as she travels about.

Her display at the Art Show included still life and nature scenes. She said the art show was important for showcasing the talents of many members of the community.

“I think there’s a lot of hidden talent,” she said.

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Brian Roy Mahoney Palfrey, 88, died Monday, February 13, 2023. Born in Swansea, South Wales on July 21, 1934, Brian moved to the US in 1977 and spent several years in Florida. A coal miner in his early years, he later began working in Tamworth, UK at Foseco. At Foseco, Brian then became a director of engineering for the company, moving to Strongsville, OH. He had a quiet, but distinguished, presence and striking blue eyes. A hard worker, Brian always tried to improve himself and he never complained. Brian loved to read, was a fan of Formula 1 racing and Aston Villa FC. On Fridays, he enjoyed pizza and every Saturday was a picnic with cheese (stilton being a favorite) and a baguette. One of his favorite pastimes was sitting with his wife, Margaret, watching Wheel of Fortune and holding hands.

Brian is survived by his beloved wife of 67 years, Margaret (nee Titmus) Palfrey; children, Michele (Huw) Morgan, of Wales, Deborah (Mark) Lansman, of Wellington, Gary (Jamie) Palfrey, of Seattle, and Lisa (Ken) Hall, of Olmsted Falls; 13 grandchildren, Melissa, Thomas, Kenny, Drew, Austin, Kyden, Sam, Sammy Jo, Nevaeh, Alysia, Brandon, Liam and Gabby and 4 great grandchildren, Brooklyn, Elizabeth, Dominic and Liam. He was preceded in death by his parents, Hubert and Iris (nee Marney) Palfrey and brother, Terry.

A private family service will be held. Expressions of sympathy may be given to his family at: www.nortoneastmanfuneralhome.com.

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