Rocco Pisto Retrospective

Local artist Rocco Pisto will celebrate his 50-year retrospective painting exhibit opening on Friday, January 20, 2023. The newly restored Strand Theatre in Pontiac will play host to the exhibition and opening celebration, including a short Presentation and Show Opening at 5 p.m. Appetizers and a cash bar will be available until 7:30 p.m.

Exhibited works of art include over 50 pieces ranging from 1976-2022 and reflect the artist’s unique techniques in controlling and experimenting with the watercolor medium. Most of the works of art are for sale to the public unless otherwise marked.

Rocco Pisto earned a bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts from Eastern Michigan University in 1974 and has been painting for over five decades. He is the current President Emeritus of the Michigan Watercolor Society and holds both a Signature Member and Great Lakes Fellow designation in that group. He also holds membership in the National Watercolor Society, International Society of Experimental Artist (ISEA) and the Brighton Art Guild.

Rocco’s artist statement: “As a painter for over fifty years, I never tire of the experimental process of starting a piece and solving the design problems along the way to make it a finished work. Spontaneity, discovery, individuality, analysis, visual balance, contrast, and contradiction all summarize my thought process. I find that no two paintings are the same, and I cannot paint the same thing twice. My technique of painting abstractly by dripping, pouring, splashing, and brushing paint allows the work to evolve until it meets my criteria of what constitutes a successful piece of art. The adrenaline of marking pristine, white Arches Watercolor paper with paint is a euphoric process that never loses its newness or interest.”