Reimagined Realism, an exhibition exploring three unexpected approaches to defining contemporary realism, opens Friday, May 24th with a reception from 4:30 to 6:30 pm. The event is free and open to the public. Artists’ Walk-through, free and open to the public, will be held Saturday, June 8th, 2:00-4:00 pm.
Curated by Darcie Fohrman, the three distinct artistic perspectives utilize fine art’s established traditions to fissure and reconstitute social narratives. The individual artists adapt and layer popular subject matter into contemporary social narratives that both celebrate and critique our assumptions about natural forces and cultural environments. The integration of past and present, the inclusion of extraordinary objects and the juxtaposition of unlike elements, are just a few of the ways the three Monterey County painters conjure the mysteriousness of everyday reality. Often using exquisite detail and unusual perspective, the artists convey the wonder of observable reality.
The exhibit can be seen Monday through Friday, from noon to 4 pm. or by appointment through June 22nd.
Exhibition sponsored by Chris and Robin Sawyer
About the Artists:
Kirstine Reiner Hansen’s work focuses on the growing dysconnectivity in contemporary life. She describes it as follows: “The ceaseless barrage of stimuli and our struggle to process life lived between tangible and digital worlds is undermining our sense of self. The fragmented universe of figures and spaces featured in my paintings is a contemplation on this conundrum.”
Don Hughes’ work incorporates narratives about our dystopian world also being helplessly ironic and humorous. Our politics, climate, religion, morality and anything remotely sexual have been fertile ground for the social commentary, symbolism, and humor of his two- and three-dimensional artworks.
Chris Leib continues his “examination of our precarious evolving pathway, which started long ago, through an ever-growing cast of wise, tolerant Bonobos and rambunctious astronaut children.” While seemingly whimsical, his paintings are laden with hidden meaning and explore themes of heroism, Western folklore, and the schism of instinct and control.
