Clothes Encounters with Rose Marie Strippoli
by Cate Murway
“A nation devoid of art and artists cannot have a full existence.” Kemal Ataturk [1881-1938]
Rose Marie [Field] Strippoli expresses her passion for art with verve.
She has a powerful ability to communicate that is truly inspiring.
Rose Marie is the Event Coordinator and Past President of the Artists of Bristol on the Delaware, promoting the legacy of arts and culture in the local community.
This Saturday's child works hard for a living. She is enjoying her energetic romp in her art career as she continues to create unique, appealing works.
Artists in this southern part of the county originally had to rely on temporary exhibit spaces. Rose Marie has worked extensively with the Grundy Foundation and Bucks County Community College to embrace more artists and galleries and have more of an art presence with accessible and affordable cultural opportunities.
BCCC unveiled The Gallery at the Lower Bucks Campus, located in the first-floor hallway overlooking the Student Commons area, which will rotate exhibitions by local artists, serving the community and continuing the mission of the college.
Art deserved a larger, appreciative audience.
“Bristol is unique and filled with memories for me. I appreciate the improvements and it is a beautiful town. Bristol is exciting.”
Rose Marie was born in the Dr. George T. Fox hospital on Radcliffe Street, the middle child of the late Pasquale “Pat” Field, a Fleetwings shop steward, and Theresa [Esposito] Field who worked in the Grundy’s Textile Mill. Her older brother, the late Pasquale “Pat”, BHS ’51[wife, Mary] was an Army veteran and a Welding Instructor at the Bucks County Technical School. Her younger brother, Fred [wife, Maria] is a retired Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission Purchasing Agent who still resides in historic Bristol on the Delaware. Her cousin was John "Junior" Field renowned for successfully influencing the athletics in this community.
No organized sports for Rose Marie but she did roller skate at the Croydon Rink and sometimes in Trenton as a student in the St. Ann School and Saint Hubert High School for Girls. She shared her recollections as a ‘lead on’ in the Veterans of Foreign Wars Chester W. Terchon Post marching band. “I carried a sabre taller than I was, and I tried the snare drum but that didn’t work”.
Her small stature presented a concern with clothing choices as well. “There were no “petites” then, or even a transition “junior miss”, and I didn’t like what I saw”. Her maternal Aunt Jenny, an excellent seamstress, played an important role in influencing her choice to sew. Her Aunt purchased a Singer sewing machine and “she didn’t need the lessons so I got the lessons”.
RM Design Bridal Clothing started in Bristol and moved to Penndel. Rose Marie decided to combine retail with her custom designed bridal and evening dresses, “after 5” clothing, and she operated her New Falls Road shop for almost twenty years.
She dabbled in Classified Advertising for the Courier and the Bucks County Times, moved to Ohio in the late 80’s and married Gino T. Strippoli, a metallurgical engineer, who retired as Division VP and general manager of TRW, a Fortune 500 company. Their children are National Guard veteran/electrical engineer Anthony D.; the late environmental engineer/ U.S. Coast Guard veteran and Captain in the New Jersey National Guard, Pasquale J. “Pat”; William D. “Bill” who manages Pasquale’s Bar on Mill Creek Road in Levittown; and Army National Guard veteran, Theresa Marie Cooper.
“You do what you have to do in life, and then what you want to do.”
Her every endeavor was artistic, but the thing about art is that one can never stop learning.
Rose Marie attended Bowling Green State University for art classes in copper enameling, plaster sculpture, and water colors. “I liked it all. That was part of the problem. Water color and acrylics are my favorite now.”
Fortunately, she took Watercolor Instructor, Fred Leach’s workshops that were filled to the brim. She had the opportunity to study with this Master Designer for American Greetings Corporation, who was also a Founding Member of the Ohio Watercolor Society and had taught at the Cleveland Institute of Art.
The Strippolis returned to Bristol in 2004.
“I was voted as the “flower artist” because I painted a lot of flowers. I was also known as the colorist. I do use a lot of bright color.”
Her favorite color has always been coral. “When I was in grammar school in a play, I got to choose that color for my costume.”
Whenever she gets “stuck” on a particular project, she goes to a different medium.
So, back to the “clothes encounters” of the best kind!
Rose Marie creates unique, one-of-a-kind items for Joanne Ryn at her Jo Marie’s Boutique on Mill Street
Her exceptionally different and creative soft structure jackets and tops are the perfect accent pieces, adorned with flowers and beads, or with some sparkle from her bridal shop days. A simple, basic dress with a personally designed original jacket or cardigan makes a fabulous statement piece.
Have a specific request? Stop in and see Joanne at her 205 Mill Street Boutique.
Rose Marie readily shares her artistic talents in her 2-hour adult watercolor classes in Saint James Episcopal Church on Tuesdays from noon- 2:00PM. Her fresh, energetic instructing approach demonstrates how the layers of artwork meaning may unfold for the viewer.
“Don’t tell the whole story; you have to give the viewer a bit to work on their own.”
She is all about providing exposure for artists to enhance their prominence in the trade.
BCCC is an art school, with a reputation for launching many accomplished painters, sculptors and glass artists and there are additional opportunities now in the Gallery at the Lower Bucks Campus located at 1304 Veterans Highway, Bristol, PA.
Proceeds from the most recent “Show Some heArt” art sales benefited scholarships, and the upcoming
“Tuxedo Exhibition” from August 28th- October 18th will also benefit the BCCC Foundation's student scholarship program. The pottery, water color and photography, “everything in the show will be black and white”. The artists will be wearing tuxedos and red carnations.
Rose Marie is always in the process of learning.
“What I produce as an artist, the uniqueness, is what I am saying, the story I am telling.”
She and her husband toured Italy in 1997, visiting Milan, Venice, Florence and Rome.
Most impactful for her was walking the worn marble steps of the House of Medici and seeing the extraordinary talent of the sculptor, architect, painter, draftsman, and poet, Michaelangelo, and especially his masterpiece of Renaissance sculpture, The Pietà.
“Seeing them not in photos, but for real, it made such a difference.”
Her husband Gino gave her the perfect Christmas gift, What Are You Looking At?, The Surprising, Shocking, and Sometimes Strange Story of 150 Years of Modern Art by Will Gompertz.
Rose Marie has always been most impressed with the late artist, Jackson Pollock [1912-1956], who turned the modern art world upside down with his abstract, splatter and drip 'action paintings.'
Rose Marie recently presented color and shape in an abstract way with her rendering of the most destructive Hurricane Sandy.
Her acrylics, hand-built pottery, enamels and watercolors have garnered a plethora of awards and ribbons.
The Ohio Watercolor Society has accepted her Mid-East Mystique into their highly competitive 36th Annual Juried exhibition. Only 120 selections were made from 500 entries for the Pennsylvania Watercolor Society’s 34th Juried Exhibition at the Crary Art gallery. Rose Marie received an “Accepted Painting Label.”
The Artists of Bristol on the Delaware meet monthly on the 2nd Wednesdays at 7:00PM at the Silver Lake Nature Center. Meetings are open to the public and visitors are welcome.
Rose Marie can be reached at 215.704.8208.
Recommend a “Spotlight”. E-mail vjmrun@yahoo.com
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Pasquale Field
Former Bristol Resident
Pasquale “Pat” Field, age 75, passed away Monday, February 18, 2008
in St. Anthony’s Hospital, St. Petersburg, Florida. Born in Bristol,
he resided there most of his life, moving to Florida 10 years ago. Mr. Field was a U.S. Army Veteran and was employed as a Welding Instructor at the Bucks County Technical School for 28 years. He was a longtime member and past governor of the Bristol Moose Lodge, No. 1169, a member of the Bristol Borough Youth Aid Panel and was an avid golfer.
Husband of the late Helen “Peanie” Field, and grandfather of the late Patrick Field, he is survived by his beloved wife, Mary (nee McGovern) Field. He will be sadly missed by his children, Pasquale Field, Michael Field and his wife, Bernadette, Stephen Field, and Michelle Tuthill and her husband, John. Also survived by his loving grandchildren, Christopher, Dominic, Kevin, and Ashley Field, Troy Long, and Jacob and Kyle Tuthill, and 1 great-grand-daughter, Alyssa Field. He is also survived by his stepchildren, Stanley Dylinski and his wife, Susan, Donna Nolan and her husband, Michael, Susan Sabbi and her husband, Edward and Diane Crowley and her husband, Timothy, his step-grandchildren, Danielle Dylinski, Keith and Sean Nolan, Timothy, Erin, Mary Kate, and Kerri Crowley. Devoted brother of Rosemarie Stripolli and her husband, Gino and Fred Field and his wife, Maria, along with many nieces, nephews and cousins.
Relatives and friend are invited to attend his Funeral Mass on Saturday, February 23, 2008, 10:00am at St. Mark Church, Interment, Resurrection Cemetery. Friends may call Friday evening 7-9:00pm and Saturday morning 9-9:45am at the Wade Funeral Home, 1002 Radcliffe Street, Bristol Boro. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to St. Anthony’s Hospital, 1200 7th Avenue North, Saint Petersburg, Florida 33710. www.wadefh.com
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Pasquale Joseph Radice, age 49, of Atlantic Beach, Florida, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, June 4,2008, surrounded by his family and friends. Born in Trenton, New Jersey and raised in Bristol, Pa., he has been a Florida resident for the past 14 years. Pat was a Veteran of the U.S. Coast Guard and a Captain in the New Jersey National Guard where he was a helicopter pilot. Pat was employed as an Environmental Engineer for United Water. He will be remembered as a very generous and giving person. He worked tirelessly for Water For People, an organization that improves the water system for Third World Countries. He always had time to help his family and friends or anyone in need and loved being with his family, especially his nieces and nephews and would travel from anywhere to spend time with them. Pat enjoyed traveling all over the world with his friends. He is survived by his mother, Rose Marie (nee Field) Strippoli and her husband, Gino of West Bristol, his father, Anthony D. Radice (Sue Barrowman) of Lawrenceville, NJ, 2 brothers, Anthony D. Radice and his wife, Donna and William D. Radice (Renee Cereby), both of Pa., 1 sister, Theresa Marie Cooper and her husband Malcolm of NJ, his uncle, Fred Field and his wife, Marie, of Bristol, many nieces and nephews, and his longtime companion, Norma Yarbrough of Jacksonville, Fla. Relatives and friends are invited to attend his Funeral Mass on Monday, June 9, 2008, 10:00am at St. Ann Church, Bristol Boro. Interment, private. Friends may call Sunday evening 7-9:00pm and Monday morning 8:30-9:30am at the Wade Funeral Home, 1002 Radcliffe St., Bristol Boro. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Water For People, 6666 West Quincy Ave., Denver Colo 80235. www.wadefh.com Please Sign the Guestbook @ Jacksonville.com
"World News"
By GEMA MARIA DUARTE Staff writer
6.15.15
Rose Marie Strippoli will have another place to showcase her nonobjective or abstract art work.
Come Thursday, the Bristol Township resident will be able to display her work at the new Centre for the Arts on Mill Street in Bristol.
“It’s like a dream come true to have (an art center) in the area,” said Strippoli, who shows her work at other places, too. “It’s a cultural jump.”
Strippoli’s display will include a few pieces on acrylic paper and some with alcohol ink on yupo paper.
The art center is the brainchild of Raising the Bar, Bristol’s local economic development group.
For the past six months, volunteers have transformed the former Ballow’s Shoe store in the heart of the business district into an art gallery building, which will also have studio space for artists, as well as a reception area.
The grand opening is at 7 p.m. Thursday at 308 Mill St. One of the evening’s highlights will be the posthumous induction of well-known Bristol artist Joseph E. Pavone into the Centre for the Arts Hall of Fame, said Bill Pezza, president of Raising the Bar.
“Pavone will be the first recipient of what RTB envisions as an annual award,” he said. “The ribbon will be cut by Pavone’s wife, Phyllis, and will mark the beginning of a monthlong exhibit of Pavone’s work in the visiting artist section of the gallery.”
Pavone is best known in town for his sculpture of former Sen. Joseph Grundy that rests on the grounds of the Grundy Library and the bust of Christopher Columbus adjacent to the wharf at Bristol’s Riverfront Park.
“Bristol Borough has and has had a wealth of highly talented artists from which to draw for this award,” Pezza said. “But we’ve started with Joe because for years he was a singular voice and effective advocate for the arts. Many of us remember the original gallery he opened on Franklin Street. As his wife, Phyllis, said recently, ‘Joe would be so pleased, not just with the award, but with the fact that we have opened a first-class center to celebrate the arts in the borough.’”
Twelve artists have placed deposits on space and will occupy the bulk of the building — some from the Artists of Bristol on the Delaware, others from the Artists of Yardley and some independents.
Along with Strippoli, Jennifer Renshaw will rent space at the new center to exhibit her oil paintings and drawings.
“It’s a really exciting time for the Bristol community to have an art center,” said Renshaw, who works on figurative art, adding that she’s overwhelmed with the support the community is giving to the arts and bringing culture into the area.
Raising the Bar acquired the building with private financing, which also was used for renovations. The building cost $103,000.
“We’re completing the final touches over the next few days, and we’re pleased to say that we’ve rented virtually all of the available space, which is encouraging, because we secured private financing and we have a mortgage to pay,” JoAnna Schneyder, vice president of Raising the Bar, said. “We decided to take a risk and make an investment, and the response has been tremendous.”
Raising the Bar encourages investment in the borough, so the group thought it was time to lead by example and make an investment of its own.
“It wasn’t hard to market the space,” Schneyder said. “I think we’re learning that there is a real and growing interest in the arts in Bristol Borough.”
The art center will be staffed with help from volunteers who will gallery sit. An artist will also be on hand.
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Centre for the Arts in Historic Bristol Borough to induct Rose Marie Stripolli into its Hall of Fame
Saturday, March 26, 2016
By Jeff Werner
advance@buckslocalnews.com
BRISTOL BOROUGH >> Accomplished Bucks County artist Rose Marie Stripolli, known throughout the region for her abstract works in watercolor, will be inducted into the Hall of Fame at the Centre for the Arts in Historic Bristol Borough during a gala celebration scheduled for April 9.
“There was an impressive list of highly accomplished nominees whose cultural roots extend to Bristol Borough, but in the end the board was overwhelmed by the breadth of Rose Marie’s work to advance the arts in the region,” said Bill Pezza, president of the centre, in announcing Stripolli’s induction.
The honor is extended to artists with ties to Bristol Borough who have made “an extraordinary and enduring impact” upon the advancement of the arts in the borough and the region.
“We recognize people not only for their artistic accomplishment, but for what they’ve done to help other artists and promote the arts in general,” said Pezza.
Stripolli, one of the charter artists at the Centre for the Arts on Mill Street, is the second artist selected for induction into the Hall of Fame. Last June, well-known area artist, Joseph Pavone, was the first, inducted posthumously during the centre’s grand opening celebration.
“Joe was a wonderful man who was a teacher and an artist,” said Pezza. “He was an advocate for the arts in the region and at times he was the lone voice in the wilderness.”
Pavone is the creator of a number of prominent sculptures in Bristol, including the Christopher Columbus statute in the borough’s riverfront park, a bust of the late Senator Joseph Grundy at the Grundy Memorial Library and Museum complex on Radcliffe Street and the Pennsylvania War Dog statute at the Bristol Township Municipal Building on Bath Road.
Centre for the Arts board member Ron McGuckin, who will have the honor of presenting this year’s award to Stripolli, pointed to Rose Marie not just as an accomplished artist, but as an advocate for the arts in the community.
The Bristol native has been actively involved in the promotion of the arts through organizations like the Grundy Foundation, the Arts & Cultural Council of Bucks County, Artsbridge and the Artists of Yardley and the Artists of Bristol on the Delaware where she served terms as president while promoting the legacy of arts and culture in the community.
She also was one of two artists who were instrumental in establishing the Gallery at the Lower Bucks County Community College campus in Bristol Township, which now features rotating exhibits by local artists, serving the community and continuing the mission of the college.
“Rose Marie's tireless dedication to the gallery at the Lower Bucks campus has helped to make our exhibitions extremely successful. In fact, if it wasn't for Rose Marie along with fellow artist Rodney Miller, it's safe to say the gallery would not exist,” said James Sell, executive director of the Lower Bucks Campus of the Bucks County Community College.
“Rose Marie's passion for the arts is evident in all that she does as a volunteer, a leader in her role with the Arts & Cultural Council of Bucks County board of directors and in her work as one of the finest artists in Lower Bucks County.”
Strippoli, whose art has caught the attention of art lovers throughout the region, was among the first artists to lease space at the Centre of the Arts when it opened last June. And she is the centre’s highest-selling artists to date, according to Pezza.
Deborah Eater, another accomplished artist showing at the Centre for the Arts and a member of the Artists of Bristol on the Delaware, credits Strippoli for her mentorship.
“Her acceptance helped me find the confidence to define myself an artist; her example inspires me to develop my art career; her advice always comes to the rescue when I'm stuck,” Eater said. “I'm thrilled to exhibit alongside her at the Centre for the Arts.”
Fellow artist and long-time friend, Rodney Miller, adds, “I have said to Rose Marie many times jokingly that she had to come home to become a name. I’m glad she did.”
Rose Marie, who was born on Radcliffe Street at the Dr. George T. Fox Hospital, dabbled in classified advertising before moving to Ohio in the late 1980s where she followed her artistic calling by taking art classes at Bowling Green State University. In 2004, she returned to Bristol where she has taken an active role in the arts community both as an artist and as an advocate.
Her acrylics, hand-built pottery, enamels and watercolors have garnered numerous awards and ribbons.
“Rising Star” was the recipient of the Ohio Watercolor Society (OWS) “Doug Pasek Memorial Award” in 2004. In 2005, she placed third in the Best of Pennsylvania promotion in both pottery and acrylic. In 2007, “Castles and Moonbeams” placed first in mixed media at Artsbridge. “Interaction” received the “Artists Magazine” award at the 2010 OWS show. In 2012, she received the award for abstract painting at the Philips' Mill annual exhibition. And again in 2012, she placed second overall in the Artists of Yardley-sponsored juried show at the Trenton City Museum.
Strippoli also received special recognition from the OWS for having 10 paintings accepted into their juried shows. In the 2013 Pennsylvania Watercolor show, she received an award for “Creative Expression” by well-known artist and judge Frank Webb.
And in 2013, Rose Marie was selected by the Advisory and Oversight Committee of the 21st Century Learning Center of Bristol as one its “Persons of the Year” for her contributions to Bristol Borough and the art community.
“Rose Marie’s enthusiasm for spreading the importance and power of art in the every-day life of Bristol Borough students is infectious and unwavering,” said Amy McIlvaine of the Advisory and Oversight Committee. “She is inspired to choreograph art into the mainstream on a daily basis, in spite of challenges like time and materials.”
Stripolli has exhibited extensively in numerous juried shows including the OWS, the Pennsylvania Watercolor Society, West Virginia Watercolor Society, Jacksonville Watercolor Society, Artsbridge “Works on Paper,” Artsbridge Annual Show, Philadelphia Sketch Club, the Trenton City Museum, Phillips Mill Annual Exhibition, Byers Bucks Fever Exhibition, Smithville Mansion, the Friends of the Delaware Canal and the New Hope Arts Members Show.
In addition, Stripolli has had individual shows at Bowling Green University in Huron, Ohio, Riverside Theater and First Federal Bank in Bristol, Key Bank in Vermilion, Ohio, and the library at Avon Lake, Ohio.
She also has exhibited at the Zanesville Arts Center, the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio, the Bucks County Conference and Visitors Center and the Lower Bucks Campus of Bucks County Community College.
And she was part of the OWS travel exhibitions from 2004 through 2013 and a signature member of the OWS and the Pennsylvania Watercolor Society.
IF YOU GO: The April 9 awards dinner, “A Celebration of the Visual and Culinary Arts ,” will be held at the Centre for the Arts on Mill Street and will feature food prepared by four chefs, including Fabian Quiros of the King George II Inn and Michael Ratini of the Culinary Institute of America. Tickets are $100 and seating is limited. For more information, contact the CFA at 267-251-2538.
Centre for the Arts in Historic Bristol Borough to induct Rose Marie Stripolli into its Hall of Fame
Gino T. Strippoli passed away Sunday, Aug. 27, 2017 at his home with his loving wife by his side. He was 82.
Born in Trenton, N.J., son of the late Cataldo and Pierina Strippoli he was a resident of Lorain, Ohio for 18 years and has lived in West Bristol for the past 13 years. He was a graduate of Trenton Catholic High School and received his Bachelor of Metallurgical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnical Institute. Mr. Strippoli retired as CEO from TRW in Lorain., Ohio. He was a member of the Bristol Rotary Club.
He is survived by his wife, Rose Marie (Field) Strippoli; two daughters, Lisa Strippoli of Lawrence, Kan., and Bernadette Krumreich of Colo.; four grandchildren, Matthew and Alannah Vazquez, Hannah Krumreich and Christine Thayer. He also is survived by one sister, Vera Iorio and her husband, Lou of Trenton, N.J. along with his step-children and their families and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his son, Gino Strippoli.
Relatives and friends are invited to attend his Mass of Christian Burial 10 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 31, at St. Ann Church, Bristol Borough. Friends may call from 7 to 9 p.m. Wednesday at the Wade Funeral Home, 1002 Radcliffe Street, Bristol Borough. Interment will be held privately.
In lieu of flowers, donations to the charity of one's choice, in Gino's name, would be appreciated.Wade Funeral Home,
Bristol Borough
