The White Elephant

A society gala in washed greens and golds: a blonde in a gown reaching upward, a man bearing a small white elephant on a platter, a seated woman in front, a nude couple at the edge. The white elephant is the gift no one can use and no one can refuse, "a possession out of proportion to its use," the king of Siam's revenge on a courtier he disliked. Generosity as a weapon, served at a party. The oil behind this print won the 2025 Blick Art Materials Award.

James Formichella is a Gloucester painter who works by association. Each of these canvases has a companion in An Alphabetical Caprice, a notebook he compiled from his working notes and source clippings: an A to Z in which every letter spirals off into art history, etymology, money, madness, and mortality. He came to Gloucester from Denver in 1978 for the plein-air light, trained in oil under John C. Terelak, and is an associate member of the North Shore Arts Association.

One of a kind. Giclée on stretched canvas, a flat $180 regardless of size. Fish City Studios, 39 Main St, Gloucester. Leaves the gallery ready to hang.