This upcoming show–titled “Variation on a Theme”–is a retrospective tribute to the life’s work of Richard Pepitone at The Commons in Provincetown. The focus will be on the major artistic themes of his five plus decades as a Cape Cod artist and his unique ability to borrow the imagery of his past work and to mold it into something new.
On Exhibit: November 12 – November 24
Opening Reception: November 15 from 5 – 8 PM
The title originated with the artist, who over the years named several pieces “Variation on a Theme.” Pepitone did not like to waste anything, including ideas. This was in part due to his Depression-era childhood and in part due to his lifelong tendency to find beauty in the simple things and the potential for transformation in unlikely places.
Pepitone’s insatiable curiosity and innate drive to constantly create, led him back full circle to many of the visual themes and artistic concepts of his earlier days as an artist. Always looking at the world with the fresh eyes of discovery, Pepitone would inevitably see some new angle or element that previously went unnoticed. He would then borrow the principal concepts and core foundational images from this past work and incorporate it into a new concept, one that was both familiar and unique.
From Pepitone’s early beginnings in Provincetown as a Beachcomber, to his last months as an artist in his studio at The Commons, it makes perfect sense that this next retrospective would be held here, in conjunction with a show curated by Robert Longley and Stephen Wells which will feature an open themed show of several Beachcomber artists, all of whom were friends with Pepitone.
