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Patricia Ridenour, Erin Spencer and Christine Burgoyne
From November 29th to January 15th,
Benham Gallery is privileged to feature works by
Patricia Ridenour, Erin Spencer and Christine Burgoyne.
Local and resident artist, Patricia Ridenour, will show black and white,
hand-colored new work
in a show titled, Odalisque's. Webster's dictionary's definition of
Odalisque is a female slave or concubine in a harem. Patricia interprets
the Odalisque theme that repeats itself throughout art history, exploring
contemporary views and cultural standards on sexuality and beauty.
Titian's Venus of Urbino, Manet's Olympia, and Ingres' La Grand Odalisque,
are examples of the material Patricia studies and borrows from. Ridenour
is an award winning, internationally published photographer. Recent
projects have included the 1998/99 Seattle Opera poster series, a book on
altar's by Random House, and work in the National Museum for Women in the
Arts in Washingtion D.C.
Local artist and director of Benham Gallery, Erin Spencer, will show a new
body of black and white self-portraiture titled, Alone. Emotionally
charged and very personal, her work continues
to discover and expose new facets of her personality and emotions. This
continuation of her
photographic dialogue with herself, exhibited first in 1998 , explores the
darker side of the human
experience as she relates to it. This will be Erin's second show at Benham
Gallery.
Local artist, Christine Burgoyne, will have her first show at Benham
Gallery. A discussion of her exhibition follows:
A visual aspect in my work is the layering of substance between the viewer
and the subject. Pattern pieces covering people, water, film, smoke, light,
double exposure, transparent/translucent to look through seeing the altered
human being on the other side or inside. Bold lines, words, symbols, paint,
give direction to the surgeon, the tattooist, the physician, the critic.
An Exhibition in three parts
MASKS AND ALTERATIONS, a continuing project
Fascinating to me are the concepts of Mask and Alteration. Masks -- we all
wear them as barrier for protection and vehicle of transformation and
healing. Masks are often transparent to the viewer but very real to the
wearer. Alterations, we choose to do to our bodies or possibly, they are
done to us not by choice. Surgery, elective or for survival or for both as
disease enters our lives. We alter our body state temporarily in pregnancy
with rebirth and permanently as we age and eventually die. We alter our
bodies to fit in or to stand out. We women seem to think we need to alter
ourselves to be another size or shape, to be more acceptable to others or to
ourselves.
BODIES AND BONES, new work
Intriguing are the Body and Bones that create the inner structure, that
holds up the mask of our body. Iām exploring species about to become
extinct, man devouring resources, bodies framing and cradling bones.
ARTISTS IN THEIR WORK, a work in mid stream
Are we our art or is our art us? Do we show who we are each time we draw or
paint or sculpt? Maybe. What I am showing is the artist as an integral part
of her work, inside the artwork, this then becomes the art.
Opening reception for the artists
First Thursday, 2 December 1999, 6pm - 8pm
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