Coming to the Ellenville Public Library and Museum next weekend is an art show by acclaimed local artist Aleks Rosenberg. Titled Wall Sculptures Dioramas, over 100 of his recent works will be on display.

Each of the 100 pieces are wall dioramas tackling different issues, with five different series displayed focusing on issues like climate change, the art of storytelling, and more. The opening reception for the show is Saturday, Aug. 3, from 11 a.m.-2 p.m.

Rosenberg has been living in the area since 1982 and moved to Ellenville in 1987. He and his family immigrated from Russia in the ’60s; Rosenberg grew up in Brooklyn, but came up to the Catskills each summer to go to camp. As he began pursuing his career in the arts, earning an BFA from Pratt and an MFA from Yale, Rosenberg was immediately drawn to filmmaking. He shot his first feature film, Zelimo, inspired by his youth as a Russian immigrant coming up to the Catskills. The film was partially shot in Ellenville and won Best First Feature Film at the 2002 Worldfest International Film Festival and Best Production in Feature Film at 2002 First Annual Made-in-Miami Film Festival.

The dioramas on display at the Ellenville Public Library are all, Rosenberg said, an “offshoot of stuff I do in film, set designing,” and “based on material I’ve had on hand.” One of the first series displayed in the collection was created “like a chessboard, each one has a little story based on One Thousand and One Nights.” Rosenberg created stories through this series that were inspired by the folklores in the classic book of Middle Eastern tales, with each piece having its own story with some specks of relevance to each other. It is designed, Rosenberg said, “for the viewer to decide what the story is in itself.”

Using found and recycled materials was the driving force of Rosenberg’s installation, which draws a connection to his overarching theme of climate change — he focused on making use of what he has instead of purchasing more items superfluously. He calls the series focusing on climate change “The Water’s Rising”, which he created after living in Florida, where he currently has a home and lives part-time.

“In Florida we are so susceptible to water rising. There is a lot of flooding, sometimes two feet of water in streets, and that has been a concern,” Rosenberg said. “We get distracted by other world events like war, and climate change always takes a back seat because we need resources. It’s a continuous problem. I want to get attention towards that issue because it is in our daily existence and someday climate change will take over and the world will slowly dwindle.”

He emphasized that he’s not trying to “bang people over the head” with his message. He just wants the effect of his art to be “subtle so people are aware of these things.” He hopes that people have a pleasant experience viewing his art, while enabling them to reflect on the pertinent themes they contain.

The show will run from Saturday, Aug. 3-Thursday, Aug. 29. The Ellenville Public Library and Museum will be open to view the exhibit from 9:30 a.m.-8 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays, from 9:30 a.m.-6 p.m. on Thursdays and Fridays, and from 9:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturdays. It is free admission and free parking, with refreshments served at the opening reception. Please RSVP to ivmproductions@gmail.com if you are interested in attending the opening. To learn more about Aleks art, check out his website at https://www.aleksr.com/.