PRESS RELEASE
JRB ART AT THE ELMS Presents
“ORIENT SHIFT” by MARY ANN STRANDELL in MARCH
OKLAHOMA CITY, Oklahoma--- JRB Art at The Elms presents “Orient Shift” by Mary Ann Strandell. For this exhibit Strandell observes storied ancient and modern culture through the mediation of handmade paintings and through the lens of technology with lenticular prints. The exhibit opens with a reception from 6:00 to 10:00pm on Friday, March 1st during The Paseo’s First Friday Gallery walk and runs through March 31st, 2013.
In her second solo exhibition at the Joy Reed Belt gallery, Orient Shift, Strandell uses source material from fine art auction sites and architectural renderings in exploring the re-assertion of meaning through pictorial reflection. From blue and white Chinese dynastic vessels, Frank Lloyd Wright's architecture, and European Chinoiserie she presents an array of oil paintings, archival prints, and a large scaled installation made from sumi ink with lenticular print media.
The orientation of these works shift in meaning from original object through the veneer of photography and internet imaging into the public arena of museum and auction house, and often to the market place. Strandell's painting Ultra Blue (peaches) was sourced from Christies Hong Kong auction site, documenting the Ming Dynasty vase which sold for over $71 million in 2006. Several oil paintings are derived from documentation of the 15th and 16th century Chinese Dynastic vessels, and from European Chinoiserie porcelains. Strandell's paintings of this sourced subject matter suspend the image in a dislocated space, reframing one's experience of the work. This dislocation flattens and distends the image to draw an aesthetic observation reconfigured somewhat as the elemental character of the vase becomes distorted in the market.
In the painting “Usonian,” Strandell uses the image of another canon in the market of art. She combines two worlds, that of architecture and images from nature. A view of Frank Lloyd Wright's Kaufman house partially built, dominates the figure ground as a portal surrounded by birds and butterflies, derived from field guide handbooks. This combination conflates the tendencies and effects of modernism with intimate nature of a much smaller scale. Wrights concept of the 1930's Usonian home garnered a scale of living that was affordable and "free of previous architectural conventions" (Wikipedia).
Strandell's first solo show at JRB, Indexes of Mediated Space, curated by Shannon Fitzgerald, was reviewed in five publications, including the blog Might Be Good, by Sarah Jesse, and Review Magazine by Heather Read. Strandell lives and works in New York City. She has exhibited her work in the United States as well as Japan, Mexico, Germany, and France. She is the recipient of various awards and residencies, some include the National Endowment for the Arts in Painting, The Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation Fellowship Award, The Art Omi International Residency, and Artist in Residency at The Bemis Center for Contemporary Art.
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JRB Art at The Elms presents a diverse roster of emerging, established, and internationally exhibited artists who create in a wide range of media including: paintings, drawings, sculpture, ceramics, glass, fine crafts, functional objects, fiber art and photographs. This 8,000 square foot award-winning gallery in Oklahoma City’s Paseo Arts District changes its exhibits monthly in a gracious environment that fosters a dialogue between the arts and the larger community while providing quality art for first time buyers as well as individual, corporate and museum collections.
JRB Art at The Elms, the former studio residence of Nan Sheets which was built in 1920, is located at 2810 North Walker and is open Monday through Saturday, 10-6, and Sunday 1-5.
Phone: (405) 528-6336 Website: www.jrbartgallery.com Email: info@jrbartgallery.com