Summer means baseball. Whether you are a baseball fan or prefer art over baseball, there is a not-to-be-missed opportunity this summer to experience baseball at the Springfield Art Association (SAA). Springfield artist Rod Buffington has teamed up with nationally renowned sports illustrator James Fiorentino to take you out to the ballpark while also seeing some famous baseball players up close. Buffington is well-known for his involvement with the arts as well as his love of baseball. These interests coincide with his quilting-inspired watercolor paintings depicting major league baseball stadiums. Fiorentino creates realistic watercolor paintings of sports icons. These remarkable watercolor paintings of baseball stadiums juxtaposed with heroes of the game are on exhibit now through Aug. 2 in the M.G. Nelson Family Gallery at the SAA.
Buffington and Fiorentino have forged a friendship that began 11 years ago when Buffington curated a baseball-themed exhibit at the SAA featuring work by numerous artists, along with baseball memorabilia. Fiorentino responded to Buffington's nationwide call for artists and was part of that exhibition. Buffington and Fiorentino have remained in contact over the years, each donating a piece of their art to the other. Buffington hit a home run when he proposed the joint exhibition of their watercolor paintings at the SAA which are now on display. "It's an honor to be a part of this show with my friend Rod, who I also admire as a talented artist," said Fiorentino. "Our mutual love of the game of baseball and art is being allowed to shine in this exhibition. I am very excited to have the work in Springfield."
Fiorentino resides in Hunterdon County, New Jersey. At age 15, he was the youngest artist ever featured in the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum for his likeness of Reggie Jackson. When he was 17, he was commissioned by the Ted Williams Museum to paint a collage of the 20 best hitters of all time. In 1998 he became the youngest artist to be inducted into the prestigious New York Society of Illustrators, along with artists such as Norman Rockwell and Andrew Wyeth. Fiorentino is a graduate of Drew University, where he was the starting shortstop during his college career. His body of work includes not only sports icons, but also wildlife, nature and famous people. He has painted and illustrated some of the most recognized faces in the world. View his work at https://www.jamesfiorentino.com/.
Buffington has had a long career in the arts, beginning as a high school art teacher and later gallery director at Eastern Illinois University. There he started a show, "Watercolor Illinois." After 23 years of teaching art education, Buffington began creating his own distinctive style of art. Watching his grandmother quilt for many years inspired him to paint quilt patterns with watercolor and collaged fabric on paper. After moving to Springfield in 1983, Buffington started the Mid-Central Illinois Scholastic Art Region for high school and junior high students. From 1985-1995 he was director of the Springfield Art Association, where he initiated the Edwards Place Fine Art Fair.
Being a Rotarian has been an important part of Buffington's life for over 50 years. He combined his love of baseball and Rotary, initiating the annual Rotary Day at the Ballpark, featuring a game between the Cubs and Cardinals. The event has raised nearly $600,000 for literacy over the past 20 years.
Betsy Dollar, SAA executive director, is enthusiastic about this baseball exhibit. "James is considered the premier baseball artist in the country," says Dollar. "His watercolors invoke intense realism, appear almost photographic in detail and some are black and white watercolor, which is very hard to do. Rod's work is completely unique; his paintings are assembled like a quilt, applying mixed media, fabric and paper over a watercolor painting."
The contrast between these two artists' styles, both working in watercolor, makes for an engaging exhibition for both sports fans and art aficionados. The exhibit is open Mon.-Fri. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. and Sat. 10 a.m.-3 p.m. at 700 N. 4th Street. Admission is free.
Karen Ackerman Witter is a frequent contributor to Illinois Times. She and Rod Buffington are both Rotarians and Cubs fans.
