CITY NEWS:Exhibition debuts on West Coast

Crated and shipped carefully cross country from the prestigious J. Russell Jinishian Gallery of Fairfield, Conn., to the Newport Harbor Nautical Museum in the Balboa Fun Zone, extraordinary paintings provide a rare opportunity to view “The Art of Angling” and the exacting artistry of portraying big-game angling fishes and other underwater creatures.

This is the first time any exhibit of this type, size and importance has traveled to the West Coast.

The exhibition at the Newport Harbor Nautical Museum will be on display one month only through Sept. 9 and features the works of Stanley Meltzoff (1917-2006) and Flick Ford, two modern masters creating scenes of saltwater fish with exceptional detail and realism.

Ford captures the perfection and iridescent coloring of each fish at the exact moment it was pulled from the water. His captivating and meticulously detailed paintings are said to be highly reminiscent of the 19th century avian works done by John J. Audubon.

Meltzoff, who passed away last year, created underwater art by searching, photographing and painting scenes that would not have been seen by persons on land if it had not been for his persistence in seeking saltwater fish in their natural environment.

The paintings in the exhibition are available for purchase, and a portion of the proceeds will benefit the Newport Harbor Nautical Museum’s expansion of education programs supporting a healthy ocean.

“The Art of Angling” exhibit is being featured on the city’s government TV channel as another debut occurs with the inaugural program of NBTV’s “Timeless Treasures.”

NBTV government TV programming airs on Time Warner channel 3 in the northwest part of the city and on Cox channel 30 in the southeast area.

Some NBTV programs are also available via the city’s website at www.city.newport-beach.ca.us under the NBTV 3/30 logo on its front page.