Saturday, June 7, 2008

Light & Sie Gallery presents: Art Exhibits by Howard Fonda and James Gilbert

By Pegasus News wire

Image provided by Light & Sie Gallery

Light & Sie, a contemporary fine art gallery, is proud to present two debut exhibits by two differing artists: Howard Fonda and James Gilbert. The exhibits will hang from June 12 – July 19. The complimentary opening reception on June 12 from 5pm – 8pm is open to the public, and both artists will be in attendance.

Howard Fonda: You Go Your Way & I'll Go Mine

Light & Sie is proud to present the first solo exhibition in Dallas by Chicago-based painter, Howard Fonda. Unlike many other artists working today, Howard is unabashedly devoted to painting and refuses to accept the contemporary notion that “painting is dead.” Working in one sitting, while the canvas is still wet, a technique referred to as alla prima, this process allows for one layer of paint without any under paintings. The result is incandescent colors, decisively visible brush strokes and any mistake is either incorporated into the composition or the painting is destroyed.

For “You Go Your Way & I’ll Go Mine,” Howard will present a series of new paintings that reflect his ongoing concerns with form versus content, depth versus flatness and representation versus abstraction. These largish, brightly colored works in warm tones walk the line deftly between realism and not – images that could be the richest of Native American rugs or meticulous geometric abstractions meet portraits of poets and philosophers rendered in pseudo-classical compositions. For good measure, there is always a self-portrait or two to demonstrate Fonda’s sincerity and his ongoing search for meaning and truth in painting as well as in life.

Howard Fonda received his MFA in Painting and Drawing from The School of The Art Institute of Chicago in 2001. His work is in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, among others.

James Gilbert: I Know Everything About You, And We Haven’t Met

Light & Sie is pleased to present the first solo exhibition of works by Los Angeles-based artist, James Gilbert. Working primarily in drawings and “soft sculptures,” James is interested in exploring the relationship between anonymity, identity and loneliness within a media saturated environment.

For “I Know Everything About You, And We Haven’t Met,” James will present a suite of black and white line drawings that are created in one sitting, with one continuous uninterrupted line that fills the page with environments, objects and face-less people but really underscore one’s individual alone-ness in the world. James will also execute a site-specific wall drawing in the Gallery based upon these themes. In addition, James has created an installation of “soft sculptures.” Rendered from industrial grade plastic, in a translucent white, these sculptures are representative of his “transparent” people – meticulously cut garments that could be haute couture, but more accurately serve to suggest the wearer and their possible identity or lack thereof. Do we care who they are? Do we really ever know another person beneath the surface?

“In a media saturated world one can learn everything they want to know about a person they have never met but is it possible to maintain anonymity?” James writes, “The people I depict share a sense of privacy. They are represented relative to their lifestyles – having history and biology but no easy form. Most often they are alone to their own philosophy, psychology, sense of humor and idiosyncrasies. Some want anonymity although some do not.”

Source: Light & Sie Gallery

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