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Bowery Gallery The Bowery Gallery is a co-operative art gallery in New York City founded in 1969. The juror for 2011 was Stanley Lewis.

Its mission is to exhibit work of the highest quality from independent artists. The gallery is incorporated as a non-profit organization of representational and non-representational artists. A national competition, sponsored by the gallery in August, has been juried by such notable artists as Nell Blaine, Louis Finkelstein, Lois Dodd, Rosemary Beck, Natalie Charkow, Jane Freilicher, Gabriel Laderman, Joan Snyder, Janet Fish, Wilbur Niewald, William Bailey, Bill Jensen, John Walker, Paul Resika, Rackstraw Downes, and renowned art critic Jed Perl.

Part of what reads as invention is from being caught up in the process and reflecting back an energy that comes from wor...
10/19/2026

Part of what reads as invention is from being caught up in the process and reflecting back an energy that comes from working. There is also some memory of place involved. But yes, I’m not tied to the shapes of nature though I think it’s important for me to feel a real place or memory of a place to make it substantial. That would be a starting point. I interpret what I see in this other language.

Iris Osterman: Selected Works is on view now through October 31.

“Rock Face”, Oil on Canvas, 54” x 42”, 2020

Continuing this week at Bowery Gallery—Iris Osterman: Selected WorkExhibition Dates: October 6 – October 31, 2026Iris Os...
10/18/2026

Continuing this week at Bowery Gallery—

Iris Osterman: Selected Work

Exhibition Dates: October 6 – October 31, 2026

Iris Osterman’s latest show at the Bowery Gallery, featuring work spanning a five-year period, returns to a favorite subject, the shoreline of New England. Taken from nature, yet transformed in the studio from sketch notes and photographs, the images evoke strong memories of the granite-edged landscape.

Using oils, with an emphasis on line, motion and shape, the work takes on an animate presence. There is a logic to the scenes of ocean and rocky borders, a puzzle of overlying shapes, evoking a feeling of harmony.

Osterman has shown her work in numerous one-person and group exhibitions in Massachusetts and nationally. Most recently she has exhibited at the Fitchburg Art
Museum, Fitchburg, MA and the Art Complex Museum, Duxbury, MA.



“Reflection”, Oil on Canvas, 42” x 32”, 2022

Iris Osterman: Selected WorkOctober 6 – October 31, 2026In Neap Tide I see a sort of dance between the rocks and the wat...
10/17/2026

Iris Osterman: Selected Work
October 6 – October 31, 2026

In Neap Tide I see a sort of dance between the rocks and the water. Thinking of it that way gives the forms a personality. And in the same sense I see Looking Out as almost an expression of longing. I see the heaviness of the bottom portion giving way to an airy space.   
This is really part of the pleasure of working, that being we have the freedom to invent. There is no wrong answer.



“Neap Tide”, Oil on Canvas, 32” x 42”, 2024

Iris Osterman: Selected WorkOctober 6 – October 31, 2026This was done in 2023, and I’ve gone back to the same view many ...
10/16/2026

Iris Osterman: Selected Work
October 6 – October 31, 2026

This was done in 2023, and I’ve gone back to the same view many times since then. There’s something about the flat shapes fitting together so well that seems calming and inevitable. I usually begin by drawing, then piecing together and proportioning in the space. There are many things happening at once. But most of all I would say I depend very much on drawing. I’m not afraid of using black lines if I need to. Also, looking at this today I would say the blue breathes air into the work and I need that in this kind of painting. There is another thing about the flatness of the shapes. It suggests a kind of playfulness which I like. I was looking at some of Milton Avery’s landscapes and he seemed to also bring a sense of fun into his work, while being quite spare and direct. I love that.



From Mt. Cadillac”, Oil on Canvas, 44” x 54”, 2023

Iris Osterman: Selected WorkExhibition Dates: October 6 – October 31, 2026Opening Reception: Saturday, October 10, 2026 ...
10/15/2026

Iris Osterman: Selected Work

Exhibition Dates: October 6 – October 31, 2026
Opening Reception: Saturday, October 10, 2026 3-6 pm

Iris Osterman’s latest show at the Bowery Gallery, featuring work spanning a five-year period, returns to a favorite subject, the shoreline of New England. Taken from nature, yet transformed in the studio from sketch notes and photographs, the images evoke strong memories of the granite-edged landscape.

Using oils, with an emphasis on line, motion and shape, the work takes on an animate presence. There is a logic to the scenes of ocean and rocky borders, a puzzle of overlying shapes, evoking a feeling of harmony.

Osterman has shown her work in numerous one-person and group exhibitions in Massachusetts and nationally. Most recently she has exhibited at the Fitchburg Art
Museum, Fitchburg, MA and the Art Complex Museum, Duxbury, MA.



“In Maine”, Oil on Canvas, 32” x 42”, 2024

“I really rely on the physical world to get me going. Sometimes this is less obvious than others. I can think of painter...
10/14/2026

“I really rely on the physical world to get me going. Sometimes this is less obvious than others. I can think of painters (de Kooning comes to mind) who relied on this as well at some point and came out completely abstract. I suppose the elements that attract me to the subject are the same as in pure abstraction.”— Iris Osterman

Iris Osterman: Selected Work@is on view through October 31. Visit Bowery.org to read more about Osterman’s process.



“East View”, Oil on Canvas, 32” x 48”, 2025

Iris Osterman: Selected WorkOctober 6 – October 31, 2026 “The tension between representational painting and a more react...
10/14/2026

Iris Osterman: Selected Work
October 6 – October 31, 2026

“The tension between representational painting and a more reactive narration of the observed has been a constant underlying theme in my work.”



"Acadia View", Oil on Canvas, 24" x 36", 2026

10/11/2026

“I suppose the things about landscape that stick with me are not the particular forms - this rock, that sky - but the emotional resonance of the scene. It’s a very difficult thing to translate onto the canvas…. there’s a bit of movement and attention to color, but mainly I am shutting off the rational part of my brain and trying to tune in to what I am taking from the place at the moment. A mentor of mine once told me that when a painting is successful, you won’t remember how you painted it. It’s odd but it’s been true for me. “ — Iris Osterman

Iris Osterman: Selected Work is on view at Bowery Gallery through October 31. Don’t miss this beautiful show!

Iris Osterman: Selected WorkExhibition Dates: October 6 – October 31, 2026Opening Reception: Saturday, October 10, 2026 ...
10/10/2026

Iris Osterman: Selected Work

Exhibition Dates: October 6 – October 31, 2026
Opening Reception: Saturday, October 10, 2026 3-6 pm

Iris Osterman’s latest show at the Bowery Gallery, featuring work spanning a five-year period, returns to a favorite subject, the shoreline of New England. Taken from nature, yet transformed in the studio from sketch notes and photographs, the images evoke strong memories of the granite-edged landscape.

Using oils, with an emphasis on line, motion and shape, the work takes on an animate presence. There is a logic to the scenes of ocean and rocky borders, a puzzle of overlying shapes, evoking a feeling of harmony.

Osterman has shown her work in numerous one-person and group exhibitions in Massachusetts and nationally. Most recently she has exhibited at the Fitchburg Art
Museum, Fitchburg, MA and the Art Complex Museum, Duxbury, MA.



"By Penobscot Bay", Oil on Canvas, 42" x 60", 2024

Iris Osterman: Selected WorkExhibition Dates: October 6 – October 31, 2026Opening Reception: Saturday, October 10, 2026 ...
10/09/2026

Iris Osterman: Selected Work

Exhibition Dates: October 6 – October 31, 2026
Opening Reception: Saturday, October 10, 2026 3-6 pm

Iris Osterman’s latest show at the Bowery Gallery, featuring work spanning a five-year period, returns to a favorite subject, the shoreline of New England. Taken from nature, yet transformed in the studio from sketch notes and photographs, the images evoke strong memories of the granite-edged landscape.

Using oils, with an emphasis on line, motion and shape, the work takes on an animate presence. There is a logic to the scenes of ocean and rocky borders, a puzzle of overlying shapes, evoking a feeling of harmony.

Osterman has shown her work in numerous one-person and group exhibitions in Massachusetts and nationally. Most recently she has exhibited at the Fitchburg Art
Museum, Fitchburg, MA and the Art Complex Museum, Duxbury, MA.



"Ocean Ledge", Oil on Canvas, 42" x 54", 2025

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