WASHINGTON TWP. –The culture of youthful romanticism, memory, and identity is captured in the works of artist Graham Preston, whose work is currently on exhibit at Warren County Community College’s art gallery.

The exhibit, located in the Second Floor Gallery on WCCC’s Washington campus, is free and open to the public during college hours through the end of September.

Preston, a former master surfboard shaper, seeks a particular reaction from those who see his work: “Metaphorically, I am attempting through painting to reach a gut reaction amongst my viewers that shares similarities to the first time a young man from New Jersey might stumble upon the Nebraska album by the Boss; it’s an indescribable anxiety surrounding the irreversible past, our unrequited loves, and neon lights in the salt air.”

His pieces are at times realism, other times whimsical and surreal. They depict the mundane and the fanciful. They encapsulate life, real and imaginary.

“The compositions within my work come in a mental visual form that is rather complete. It is after receiving this mental imagery that I discern whether mimetic observation from life, photo reference, painting straight from the imagination or all of these, which is most often the case, is best to employ the images power,” he says.

Graham Preston has been featured in exhibitions across the Northeast region, including New Jersey’s art hubs of Lambertville and Frenchtown, and the art scenes of Philadelphia, Harlem, and Brooklyn, among other locations.

Warren County Community College, located at 475 Route 57 West in Washington with additional courses in Phillipsburg, offers a full line of degree programs, including Fine Arts and Graphic and Web Design. Non-degree art classes are also available through the college’s Continuing Education program. For more about WCCC, visit www.warren.edu. You can learn more about Graham Preston at www.hasartenterprises.artspan.com.