"Joe Whalen has been a leading figure in the local art scene for decades," says Joseph Buczkowski, Director of the Art Center, "he is the President of the Art Center and has been a great supporter of us since the beginning. We've exhibited his work many times but most of the time this has been older works. This is our first show with entirely new work of his."

Whalen, who works mostly (but not exclusively) in watercolor was born in Lockport in 1927. He is a graduate of the Rochester Institute of Technology, the Albright Art School and Buffalo State College. He has worked as a medical illustrator for Roswell Park Hospital, as a technical illustrator for Cornell Lab and as a free lance commercial artist for local companies including Harrison Radiator (now Delphi).

A forty-five year member of the Buffalo Society of Artists, Whalen is also a founding member of the Niagara Frontier Watercolor Society. His work adorns walls on public buildings, hotels, restaurants, businesses and homes throughout Western New York and has been purchased by people from around the world. "We've had people from Europe and South America buy his paintings," says Bonni Haney of the Market Street Art Center.

"The Pony Drinker" by Joseph Whalen

Whalen's paintings have won many awards (including the prestigious Gold Medal of the Buffalo Society of Artists) and have been exhibited in numerous venues including the Burchfield- Penny Art Center and the Albright Knox Art Gallery. His greatest impact on the local art scene, however, has undoubtedly been his thirty-five years he spent as an art teacher in the local school systems. According to Sally Bisher, Assistant Director of the art center, "it is a fairly common occurrence to have somebody come in here for the first time and immediately recognize Joe's work and delightfully exclaim, ‘he was my art teacher!' This is usually followed by stories of how fun his classes were and a declaration that he was their favorite teacher."

Whalen's impact on generations of Lockport students goes far beyond pleasant reminiscing. Many of the artists currently making a name for themselves in the Western New York art scene were students of his and cite him as a major influence, not just in teaching them how to be better artists, but by always encouraging them to keep at it and to keep learning more. "Several of the artists who belong to MSAC were students of his," says Bisher. "Douglas Michalski and Paul Martin to name just a couple."

There were receptions held at the Market Street Art Center on Friday, August 8th and Saturday August 9th with Joe Whalen on hand to meet with visitors and discuss his work.