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>>Posts about artists relevant to my work >>Posts about my works as they are made >>Commentary on issues in the art world >>posts reflecting on art events and activities |
1/15/2020 0 Comments Awareness: Cheryl Kelley Cheryl Kelley is a professional photorealistic artist, known specifically for her oil paintings of cars. She was born in Texas in 1968, and went to the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in Houston. She then continued on to the University of Houston and earned a B. A. in Fine Arts.
Kelley began her career as an abstract expressionist and also painted some portraits. But then she found cars, saying, "The first thing that I am drawn to is the beauty. I find myself getting lost in the reflections of beautiful cars when I stop at traffic lights'.' She paints the cars as objects of beauty and focuses strictly on their form, capturing entrancing highlights and curves. One critic said, "She brings a uniquely female perspective to these objects that are almost synonymous with youthful bad-boy hyper-masculinity." Similarly, I find myself entranced by the forms of muscle cars while flipping through books, and discovered a love for the same muse. While reading through Kelley's process, I found it interesting that she paints on aluminum, and was pleased to find that the medium fit the content. I remember considering painting on car hoods, and even painted on a trunk once, so I like the idea, and could see why that was her medium of choice. She also uses oil paint, and as I have worked with acrylic, I realize that oil would allow the user to perfect the highlights that have caused me to have to repeat color mixing more often than I would have liked. Maybe I'll use oil in the future, but if I do I think it will definitely be on metal or something that is not absorbent. Kelley describes her work saying, ''These big engine cars, seemingly fueled by raw testosterone, were ironically most definitely feminine in form. As a twentieth century American icon, the muscle car is remembered for its speed and power. My paintings are about the feminine sensuality of the surfaces, the Mel Ramos-like perfection of female form''. While I was definitely attracted to the concept of painting muscle cars because of their form and the concept of the "Golden Age", I hadn't really thought about describing it as a feminine aspect of a masculine item. Most importantly however, I agree with her idea of the memory of the car, and how now buyers focus on convenience and economy rather extravagance and aesthetics. With my work, I hope to call attention to this complacency, and I think in her paintings, Kelley has done an incredible job of doing so. Although her work does not focus on the functions of the parts of the system at all, I hope to learn from her photorealistic mark making to improve mine as well, especially in my NOVA piece. Overall, it was interesting to discover more about an artist who's work focused on cars like those I had been researching like the Nova and Chevelle, especially since it's the form I'm so interested in. She now lives in Northern California, where she continues to work. She shows permanent collections around the country, heavily in Texas. She also earned the 2012 Pollock Krasner Grant, which brought her to the front of the art scene. Named as one of the best photorealists by fellow artists, her work has appeared in several magazines and books. Also, she worked on several publications and reviews, and has spoken at the University of Houston. Find out more about her work at: https://www.cherylkelley.com/ http://www.bernarduccimeisel.com/artist/bio/index.php?aid=51 CV: Recent Solo Shows Although she has had solo shows since 1998, the following are from the past 10 years:2018 Bernarducci Gallery, NYC 2016 Scott Richards contemporary art, San Francisco, CA 2015 Seven Bridges Foundation, Greenwich, CT 2013 Samek Art Gallery, Bucknell University, Lewisburg, PA 2013 Bernarducci Meisel, New York, NY 2012 “Detailed” Scott Richards Contemporary Art, San Francisco, CA 2010 Bernarducci Meisel, New York, NY 2010 New Gallery, Houston, TX Group Shows from the past 10 years: 2019 Bernarducci gallery, NYC 2018 Art Museum of South Texas, Luster, Corpus Christie 2018 Museum of Arts and Sciences, Luster, Daytona Beach, FL 2017 Bernarducci Gallery, NYC 2013 Route 66, Skidmore Contemporary art, Malibu, CA 2013 Photorealism Revisited, Oklahoma City Museum of Art 2012 Photorealism, The Galerie de Bellefeuile, Cananda 2012 Beyond Reality. Hyper Realism and American culture Vero Beach Museum, Vero Beach, Florida 2011 Hunting Prize finalist gala, Houston, TX 2010 Grand Re-opening, Bernarducci Meisel, New York, NY 2010 “Four Women”, Bernarducci Meisel, New York, NY
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