"Material Differences" opening Saturday at Amy Simon Fine Art in Westport

Amy Simon Fine Art
275 Post Road East, Playhouse Square, Westport, (203) 226-8232
Material Differences
Nov. 22, 2008—Jan. 3, 2009
Opening reception: Sat., Nov. 22, 5—7 p.m.

Press release

Amy Simon Fine Art, located at 275 Post Road East, Playhouse Square, Westport, is pleased to announce its latest exhibition Material Differences. The show features work by five artists who utilize nontraditional mediums in their work.

The artists in the show include: Meg Bloom, Barbara Harder, Nancy Lasar, Lauren Luloff and Robin Rapoport. These artists use a variety of unconventional materials, both from nature and manmade. Boundaries are broken and traditions are challenged.

Meg Bloom, primarily a sculptor, experiments with three-dimensional forms on two dimensional surfaces. She is concerned with space, color and texture in large and small scale work. Her imposing abstract forms, mounted on cardboard, are monumental reliefs that allude to organic forms in nature. They challenge the viewer to question what is being observed.

Barbara Harder is a process driven artist. She refers to her work as "excavations." Though she begins with pre-conceived notions of color and design, the process of making art transforms surfaces into surprising textures, shapes and tones. With the simplest of forms and materials, Harder creates extraordinary works of imposing stature. Surprises abound in her choices of medium, as well as the surfaces she works on.

Nancy Lasar's work incorporates abstraction and nature. Her calligraphic and gestural works are full of surprises. She paints, prints and even sews objects onto her open and fluid canvases.

Lauren Luloff, a young Brooklyn artist, creates explosive paintings on sheets which are cut, sewn and painted. They are awkward and emotional bursts of energy. Figurative forms are camouflaged by color, brushstrokes and patterns. Her works play an aesthetic game of hide and seek with the viewer.

Robin Rapoport incorporates wood, copper, rope, mesh and steel in her monumental works. As the founder of the Headless Whorse Dance Company, there is a natural flow of movement and rhythm in these unique and provocative pieces. In the tradition of Duchamp, they are both playful and complex. There is much beneath the surface of these works.

This is an exhibition for the curious minded. Preconceived notions of art mediums will be questioned. Visitors are invited to leave their traditions at the door and challenge themselves.

"Material Differences" is on view from Nov. 22—Jan. 3. There is an opening reception Saturday, Nov. 22, from 5 to 7 p.m.