Gwendolyn Magee

Opening Final Friday, February 23rd with a reception from 6-11 is "Gwendolyn Magee: New Work." The exhibition will run through March 25th, with regular gallery hours Tues- Sat 11-3.

Gwendolyn works in two media to create the pieces featured in the exhibition; acrylic on wood vs. ceramic tiles. Within both media she delivers nostalgia, visual and emotional intensity, color, and a sense of surface very directly and successfully.
The first medium, acrylic on wood, showcases portraits of women from another era in bright colors with high sheen. Their expressions are always intense, strained, excessive, and even ridiculous sometimes. They exist at once as both portraits of real people who live or had once lived, and as icons for a generation, a class, a gender, a race. The approachable uplifting pallettes mislead the viewer- hiding a dark story very near to the surface. See attached image.
The second medium, ceramic tile, is strikingly different in the handling of the medium, but easily related to the first. These hand crafted tiles have delicately painted images and textured patterns and shapes fused into the clay surface, not without the aid of creative glaze work. They tell a broader story than the faces of women in the paintings, referencing classical art, history, playful cartoons of wrestlers, american nostalgia, etc. As a viewer one is very impressed by Gwendolyn's versatility with different media, as well as her skill in each.
As always there's plenty of good food and great art when you come to 1305 for Final Friday!

Also, don't forget to stop back down to see "Associations: Ted Lind & Scott Boberg" before the 18th. This show has done very well, with lots of traffic and too many compliments. If you only saw it once, make sure you stop back down this week and sneak another peek! Closing Party Sunday, February 18th, 7-9pm.

Thanks Everyone!