Sunday opening at Kehler Liddell Gallery in New Haven

Kehler Liddell Gallery
873 Whalley Ave., New Haven, (203) 389-9555
I…and Love…and You
Jan. 27—Mar. 6, 2011
Opening reception: Sun., Jan. 30, 3—6 p.m., with Artists’ Talk at 3 p.m.

Press release

Kehler Liddell Gallery is pleased to present I…and Love…and You, a group exhibition of paintings, photographs, sculpture and works on paper that examine the contemporary complexities of honest communication in exchanges related to love. Artists include: Joseph Adolphe, Edith Borax-Morrison, Amy Browning, Frank Bruckmann, Jason Buening, Susan Clinard, Rod Cook, Emilia Dubicki, Matthew Garrett, John Harris, Lisa Hesselgrave, Gigi Horr Liverant, Blinn Jacobs, Keith Johnson, Kristina Kuester-Witt, Lawrence Morelli, Hank Paper, Joseph Saccio, Gerald Saladyga, Deirdre Schiffer, Alan Shulik, Gar Waterman and Marjorie Wolfe.

The title of the exhibition references an indie-folk song by the Avett Brothers that tells the story of a man who cannot utter the simple phrase “I love you.” He is plagued by the radical differences between speaking and acting on feelings of love and hate. He fights with words, preferring verbal attacks to physical attacks, and loves with action, preferring courtship to intimate profession.

The show will illuminate the great love dysfunctions of our time, place and culture by addressing the quiet underpinnings of love and its converse aspects, such as: romance and sex, ambiguity and directness, polygamy and monogamy, naiveté and maturity, honesty and deceit, and madness and betrothal.

A selection of works will investigate the psychological dimensions of love that arise in Harold Pinter’s 1963 play, “The Lover.” The 50-minute play follows the erotic escapades of a long-married British couple that engage in an afternoon of fantasy role-playing. The husband makes 3 visits to his house as an illicit “lover,” assuming the role of a young park keep, an aggressive mugger and a kidnapper. The couple forces each other into and out of jealousy in a series of small actions that raise the drama to uncomfortable boiling points.

During the run of “I and Love and You”, Elm Shakespeare Company will perform eight nights of “The Lover.” The theatrical stage will occupy the center of the gallery, and seating will take place in the round, so that the set and audience will be surrounded by the works. In this setting, the play will act out themes expressed in the images: power struggles, verbal dominance, game playing, moving beyond reason, and falling out of love.

Performances will take place February 3—6 & 10—13; Thursday-Friday: 8 p.m.; Saturday: 8 and 10 p.m.; Sunday 4 p.m. Tickets are $20 in advance, $25 at the door. The Special Benefit Performance will take place on Friday, February 11, 6:30 p.m., $75 per ticket; hors d'oeuvres and wine will be served. Please visit the Elm Shakespeare Company Web site for tickets.

Saturday opening at the Bruce Kershner Gallery in Fairfield Public Library

Bruce S. Kershner Gallery at Fairfield Public Library
1080 Old Post Rd., Fairfield, (203) 256-3155
Beauty Marks
Mar. 27—May 16, 2010.
Opening reception: Sat., Mar. 27, 5—7 p.m., Curator/Artists' Talk at 6 p.m.

Press release

Curated by Janine Brown, Beauty Marks, at the Fairfield Public Library's Bruce S. Kershner Gallery, is an exhibition of 10 Connecticut artists that use mark making in their art. The exhibition will run from Mar. 27 through May 16. The opening reception will take place on Sat., Mar. 27 from 5—7 pm with a brief talk by the curator and artists at 6 p.m. The Bruce S. Kershner Gallery is located at 1080 Old Post Road in Fairfield.

Ms. Brown states that "Beauty Marks was inspired by the history of the beauty mark." During 17th century France, high society women used faux "beauty" marks made of black taffeta to enhance their looks and communicate coquettish messages. For instance, a mark on the forehead suggested majesty, a mark close to the dimple was playful, and a mark at the corner of the lips was regarded as murderous. Similar to the French female aristocrats, the artists in this exhibition use their "beauty" marks to communicate a message to the viewer. The act of mark making for these and other artists is done by intentionally placing lines and symbols on paper or other supports to ultimately create the artist's unique message. In this exhibition, the humanity and the human form are the common threads, yet each artist in the exhibition communicates their reference to humanity in a different way.

Referencing the origins of man, Paul Kaiser's graphite drawings of hominid skulls on the worn pages from the first edition of The Tragical Historie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke combines the marks made by the artist with the marks of the typography of the book. The juxtaposition of the skulls and the story of Hamlet provide a subtle statement of man as beast.

Karen Sorensen also references early man with "Viking I" and "Viking II." Sorensen's life-size drawings of the Norse warriors provide an unsettling contrast to the tranquility of a library setting by showing the warriors in full armor with weapons drawn.

Likewise, Jak Kovatch has used the warrior as inspiration. Kovatch uses mixed media to create powerful graphic elements and linear shapes that wrap around or weave in and out of diffused forms. In the works selected for this exhibition, Kovatch starts with the skull and transforms it into various references of the warriors of yore.

Nomi Silverman comments on humanity with three of her works that deal with homelessness. The expressive use of lines and color characterize the sadness and despair that one imagines feeling if one was homeless.

Expression and use of line comes across in artist Peter Konsterlie's work, which fuses medical illustrations with linear marks and patterns to create his response to a loved one's medical treatment and illness.

Addressing the linear in a different way, Edith Borax-Morrison uses a woven sheath of free flowing strings and fibers to create references of women in her pen and ink pieces, "Ensnared" and "Wired Woman."

Noted for her works on ceramics and drawings, Judy Henderson was selected for this exhibit for her drawings executed on tea bags. Henderson's charming works are based on her interest in the human body and the head as a vessel holding information.

The other artists included in the show include Anne Doris-Eisner, M.G. Martin, and James Reed.