Beyond wine, Dan McCarthy's other great interest is painting.
“Ever since I was a child I liked the idea of animation,” he said.
In fact, McCarthy, who is the co-founder of McCarthy and Schiering Wine Merchants, which has shops on Queen Anne and in Ravenna, still sketches and enjoys other creative artwork as a pastime.
“I’m not a golfer or a sports nut. I’d rather spend hours painting a piece,” McCarthy said. “I love impressionism and modern art and try to keep the art that I do within that arena. I’m not really a realist at all and my goal is different: I want artwork to be cheerful and friendly and not scary and intensely aggressive, and many modern artworks tend to be on the edgy side.”
Lauren Formicola, who is a long-time friend and customer of McCarthy’s, recently opened a Queen Anne gift shop and gallery, called Charley + May, in honor of her grandparents, at 2225 Queen Anne Ave. N. She asked McCarthy if he would show some of his paintings in her shop, which is focused on modern design and accessories for men & women. She describes her shop’s focus as being about “form, plus function, plus fun.”
McCarthy agreed and the result is the first public showing his artwork.
“I’ve gotten great comments from people," McCarthy said. "They like the style and it seems to make people happy that there is something new they didn’t know about me.”
While the works are not officially for sale, Formicola said that she has had many inquiries from people asking about a price.
Formicola says that the feedback on McCarthy’s art has been overwhelmingly positive; everyone is surprised to learn that McCarthy is a painter. “They love the colors and complexity and movement. His energy and creativity comes through. You see his movement in the brush.”
Anyone interested is encouraged to come by Charley + May and view McCarthy’s artwork. For more information, call Lauren Formicola at 206-281-5555.
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