High art meets high visibility in theater exhibit

As part of a new initiative at CM Performing Arts Center, artwork will be exhibited in the lobby of the theater as part of the artistic vision of the current Main Stage musical.

For the summer fun in spring musical, “Escape to Margaritaville,” the high-art and high-visibility art of Tony Lombardo was chosen to complement the island retreat.

Four oil paintings, “Wall Cower,” “Plasman,” “Le Grande Arcade,” and “On My Mark,” hang in the lobby of the Main Stage and the “Hamilton”-meets-“Lisa Frankenstein” aesthetic of Lombardo’s work belies exacting technique with an element of pop culture whimsy.

“As a realistic painter, I am drawn to the traditional, classic poses and scenes, but I wanted to insert some kind of personality,” said Lombardo.

“I grew up with video games in the ‘80s with early graphics that were colorful, bright, and fun,” said Lombardo.

The central piece of the quartet is actually an interpretation of a Pac Man as a libertine.

Hailing from East Islip but now based in Manhattan, Lombardo also has artwork being shown in a gallery in Chelsea as part of a group exhibit.

“Growing up with video games, it definitely influenced my aesthetic, but also living in a wooded area, there was much playtime outdoors where you had to use your imagination,” said Lombardo.

For the paintings at CMPAC, Lombardo dressed live figures in period costume and took original photographs to work from as a reference point. CM was actually able to step-in and help Lombardo find the costumes he wanted for the final painting.

“There was a lot of preparation; it was almost like a mini movie,” said Lombardo.

Lombardo estimates the largest piece, “Le Grande Arcade,” took over 350 hours to complete and the smaller pieces at least 200 hours.

“These are the longest, most intricate pieces I have ever worked on,” said Lombardo.

Brendan Noble, director of marketing  said of the LAPAA (Local Artists, Performers, Artisans & Authors) program at CMPAC founded by CEO Marc Hollid-Ausset, “Helping create LAPAA was a way to help those across mediums of art have an opportunity to have a moment in the spotlight. As we continue to grow our artist gallery series, patrons will eventually be able to read about each show’s featured artist directly on that show’s event page on the website and get familiar with their individual artist’s styles, which will sometimes tie in directly with the show we are doing.”

For this inaugural art installation, Hollid-Ausset said Lombardo was chosen “because we wanted to celebrate the success of an incredible local artist and inspire other local artists.  Though LAPAA features local artists on all different points in their creative journey, we felt that Tony’s high level of technical execution and creative vision would serve as an inspiration to newer local artists. We are honored that Tony’s incredible work is featured on our wall this month.”

For more of Lombardo’s work, please visit tonylombardoart.com or the Atlantic Gallery at 548 W 28th St. 540, New York, New York, for an exhibition, “Connections IX,” that runs until April 19.