You say you've never heard of Robert Hamilton or Gerald Immonen? Then, like me, you never attended the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) or took many art courses in your lifetime (to date). Art lovers visiting Studio 53 Fine Art in Boothbay Harbor will find themselves immersed in periods within the lifetimes of the late Robert Hamilton and (late) Gerald Immonen. Both men were teachers at RISD and several members of the Studio 53 Artist Collective were students of one or both men.

Gallery owners/artists Terry Seaman, at the college during Hamilton and Immonen's “reigns” and his wife Heidi Seidelhuber, a student of Immonen's, brought a huge RISD show to the gallery last September: the art of 40 RISD grads — many who attended the opening reception. The works of Hamilton and Immonen among them, thanks to the artists' wives, Nancy and Dee, respectively.

The show currently on exhibit is both retrospective and homage, with 50 works by each artist — yes, that's 100 paintings that will, I guarantee you, take hours to explore the images contained within the frames or, in the case of unframed works, the canvases.

Hamilton, a former student of RISD as well as faculty member, arrived there in 1935 “...firmly resolved to become the next Norman Rockwell,” as he wrote in his artist's statement (visit www.roberthamiltonpainter.com). Now I have long known about Rockwell and, I gotta say, there is a wide divide between the works of Rockwell and Hamilton. Where Rockwell's paintings stir up feelings of nostalgia for some or feelings of regret (or even longing) in those born too late to have lived in the world he captured; Hamilton's paintings (the ones at Studio 53, anyway) draw you in and challenge you. The paintings challenge your intellect and your imagination — the same is true of Immonen's works.

Hamilton's use of bold color, his ongoing imagery referencing his years as a P47 fighter bomber pilot in WWII, the inclusion of stage curtains being drawn back on his subjects allowing the viewer a peek at something he or she wasn't really meant to see … and the sheer underlying fantasy of it all is nothing short of brilliant. His foam core works from the fall show blew me away — but I digress …

Hamilton constructed his own frames — some are painted, have different types of wood or mouldings. The last decade or so of his life he concentrated more on the painting than framing. About three dozen of his works, selected by Seidelhuber, in the show were unframed. They've also never been in a show. Seaman asked Artist Collective member John Seitzer to frame the paintings. Seitzer and his wife Lynne (also a member of the collective) have a frame shop as well as a gallery.

“Heidi, John and I brainstormed for awhile on what the frames should be like,” Seaman said. “All Robert's frames were so individual … we could never reproduce them so they were done in his spirit. They came out beautifully. I think he would be pleased.”

His are the works that greet you as you walk into the gallery, its entire first floor, and wall on the stairway up to the second floor, is all Hamilton.

And the third floor is all Immonen. When eyes and mind set upon an abstract Gerald Immonen painting you embark on a trip to other dimensions. Through his use of color, geometric shapes, architectural lines … let's just say it's easy to lose your way, and to become distracted by the energy created by all of Immonen's elements.

Seidelhuber, who hung the show a few weeks back, wrote about the paintings in this retrospective and the periods she included: abstracts, buildings, landscapes, his smaller “lyrical abstractions” of which he “experimented with the medium like a fanatic.” Immonen's abstract brightly colored tree trunks, the influence of Asian art and techniques.

Wrote Seidelhuber, “After 2007 it is my view that Immonen achieved great authority and delicacy in a more monochromatic treatment of landscape elements, which bypassed abstraction and arrived at his personal invention evoking Chinese masterpieces … If only he had 20 more years.”

Immonen's show is grouped by periods while Hamilton's is grouped by recurring themes. Seidelhuber even displayed some of Immonen's works as he would have — floating flat on a table, under glass or on a tabletop easel.

The only works not for sale are those loaned from the private collections of Nancy Hamilton (including “Black Sailboat,” her engagement ring), Dee Immonen, Seaman and Seidelhuber, and Belfast-based artist David Estey and his wife Karen.

Both Nancy Hamilton and Dee Immonen will be at Studio 53 for this show's opening reception on Saturday, May 28 from 5-8. This show runs through late June although 15-18 pieces by Hamilton and Immonen will remain at the gallery for the season.

In addition to the retrospective, new works by the Artist Collective – Bob McKay, Lynne Seitzer, Paula Ragsdale (a former student of Immonen), Priscilla May Alden, John MT Seitzer, Dick Alden, Seidelhuber, Donna Denniston and Seaman.

Studio 53 Fine Art (207-633-2755) is located at 53 Townsend Avenue in Boothbay Harbor.