Tobey Show Opening February 21 Features Live Violin & Electronic Cello Performance by Tobey and Von Cello, Cello-Fronted Rock Trio Founder

Following a successful one-man show in January at Berkeley Gallery in midtown Manhattan, artist David Tobey is augmenting his February 21st party for his February & March solo art show opening at Pleiades Gallery in Chelsea by performing in a violin and electronic cello duo with Voncello, the well-known electronic rock & pop innovator. The party will be from 3 to 6 p.m. and drinks and refreshments will be served. All are invited and there is no charge for admission.

New York, NY (PRWEB) January 15, 2009 -- The current exhibition of David Tobey's paintings at The Berkeley Gallery, 3 West 43rd Street in Manhattan, January 7-29, only has enough space for the display of five of his paintings. But Tobey's Berkeley solo show is only a sample of a more extensive one that has more of his recent paintings and also his welded steel sculpture, at Pleiades Gallery, 530 West 25th Street next month from February 17 through March 14.

The opening party and reception at Pleiades will be on Saturday afternoon, February 21st from 3 to 6 PM, and it has been expanded beyond what people attending a "normal" art gallery opening party usually might expect. There will be the traditional accoutrements of art, wine, cheese and snacks found at most gallery openings, but in addition to paintings, sculpture, food and drink, Tobey himself will be performing on violin with the well known pop/rock electronic cellist and composer, Aaron Minsky, whose name in the music business is "Von Cello".

Most of the paintings and some of Tobey's welded steel sculptures in this exhibition deal with musical themes. This is a departure, but not a radical one, from much of his previous work that was mostly abstract dating back to New York exhibitions since 2003. Then, his paintings dealt mostly with the science of physics and with cosmology. This new direction is particularly appropriate since Tobey, in addition to being a painter and sculptor, is a professional violinist and string instrument teacher, a graduate of the Juilliard School, a member of the Westchester Philharmonic and a violinist who has performed in the orchestras of Broadway shows and for (many celebrity) private events, concerts and parties. More information on David as a painter, sculptor and musician can be found on Tobey's Web site at http://www.davidtobey.com.

Minsky as Von Cello is the founder of the first cello fronted rock power trio in history. In addition to also being a string instrument teacher himself, Minsky's accomplishments as a musician include four CDs and the publication of over a dozen books of his music by Oxford University Press. A graduate of The Manhattan School of Music, he's also an award-winning member of ASCAP who has many other credentials as a composer and musician, that can be seen at http://www.voncello.com.

The alliance between the two string instrument musicians came about when Aaron connected with David's paintings and asked him if he could use one of them for the cover of his new book "Beyond Faith". One of Tobey's paintings had been the cover for an Oren Fader CD some years earlier, and this new painting for the cover of the book, was an acrylic that Tobey had created specifically for an American Cancer Society benefit in 2007. Ultimately, 25 more of Tobey's works wound up in "Beyond Faith", one at beginning of each of the chapters.

Over the next few months, the relationship between Minsky's writing and music and Tobey's paintings coalesced in both their minds. They decided then that a a joint musical performance would be of interest to collectors of Tobey's art; as might Tobey's paintings and sculptures resonate with Von Cello's many fans of both his music and of his literary work as the author of "Beyond Faith".

Guests are encouraged to arrive early to the reception, to audition the performances by both musicians that will begin around 4:00 p.m., and afterwards to enjoy refreshments with the artist/musician Tobey and the musician/author Minsky (Voncello).

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