Taryn Tollman's Art Exhibition
I met Taryn Tollman for the first time during Mount Vernon's first Relay for Life walk in June. Taryn mentioned to me that she was going to have an art exhibition. A month later, she extended an invitation for me to see it at Mount Vernon Hospital.
Tayrn is a social worker, and an employee of the hospital for 15 years. In her very first show, she displayed 17 of her magnificent oil paintings in the hospital’s lobby.
The artwork was for sale by silent auction, with proceeds, benefiting various mental health programs of the Department of Psychiatry. Dr. Esther Langer, currently serves as the department’s Chair.
The idea for the exhibition came from Sheila Skinner, a nurse administrator for the inpatient mental health unit. Sheila had received one of Taryn’s paintings as a gift, and was so impressed by her artistic talent, that she suggested her work be showcased at the hospital.
Taryn became an artist, largely as a recreational outlet. “I feel very free when I paint. I find the inner-self and space. It is very relaxing.”
Her inspiration comes from a variety of sources, including her native South Africa. Many of the phenomenal paintings were created, by using photographs from safari excursions to Botswana and Zimbabwe. Vivid images of a lion, elephants, and horses within their native habitats, are the subjects of several paintings. Taryn also pays homage to the beauty of nature, with tranquil scenes of the ocean, and brightly colored flowers, which she calls “the love of my life.”
Taryn works exclusively with oil paints, a medium that requires a degree of meticulous attention to keep each color distinctive. She said, “Oils move very beautifully and that is the excitement of it. All of the paintings that I do have movement, and freedom, which is very significant in my artwork.”
The effort has been successful, as seven of the paintings have been sold to date. The first piece, bought by a hospital employee, is called “Stepping from the Soul.” Taryn commented that the abstract painting, which features a spinning ballerina, is based “on the Serenity Prayer, which is one of my mantras. As an artist, it felt so good to show my work, and then to see how it really connected to people.”
“Mount Vernon Hospital is like an extended family to me.” She credits her colleagues with being, “warm and supportive individuals who work hard for the patients. ” Her co-workers, and the hospital’s clients have been the impetus for fundraising efforts for the department. “It is truly a wonderful service that we provide to the community.”
