SHERRY MARKOVITZ
THE TRUE STORY:
Sculpture, paintings on silk, and works on paper
May 15 - June 28
Opening: Thursday, May 15, 6:00 - 8:00 pm
SHERRY MARKOVITZ
ALL-WAYS, 2007
Gouache, velvet and beads on silk
45 x 69 inches
Greg Kucera gallery is very pleased to announce our second one-person exhibition of sculpture and paintings by Seattle artist, Sherry Markovitz. The show's title, THE TRUE STORY, refers to the artist's ongoing pursuit of truth and emotional
honesty in her work.
"In some ways I want to suggest as much as I reveal.
In my work there is a quality of peeling away the layers
and each layer reveals more than the last. It is about
exposing one's vulnerability." -Sherry Markovitz
The imagery in Markovitz's beaded sculpture and work on
silk or paper is derived from the artist's own ongoing
collection of dolls, dummies, masks, figurines and stuffed
animals. Most of these are personal symbols for Markovitz,
but their familiar iconography help make the work
accessible to most viewers while still resisting specific
meaning. This body of work exhibits Markovitz's prescient
ability for tapping into archetypal images of memory, as
well as childhood dreams, fears and desires that may still
be manifest in our adult lives.
For this exhibition, Markovitz has begun painting with gouache
on silk. The soft, draping silk is used as a counterpoint to the
solidity of the sculptures, particularly when the silk waves and
blows when caught by a breeze.
"Silk is the material of intimacy. Silk underwear. Silk
dresses. Femininity. There was a designer of ballet
costumes who was asked why she used silk underneath
the ballerinas costumes. She replied that she wanted
them to feel wonderful on the inside as well as the outside.
Silk is very tactile. It also holds the color in a different way
than paper." -Sherry Markovitz
SHERRY MARKOVITZ
MY MULE, 2003-2006
Glass beads, papier machê, and mixed media
23 x 18 x 30 inches
In addition to the silk paintings, Markovitz has created paintings on paper that incorporate foil,
both as an element of color and as a sculptural elaboration of the painting's surface. These
paintings act as transitions between the more elusive, ghostly qualities of the silk paintings
and the elaborately detailed, very present, beaded sculptures.
BIOGRAPHY
Sherry Markovitz was born in 1947 in Chicago, Illinois. She received her BA in Ceramics and Art Education from the
University of Wisconsin, and her MFA in Printmaking from the University of Washington. Her work is in the permanent
collections of The American Craft Museum, New York; The Corning Museum of Glass, New York; Dow Jones Collection,
New York; Mint Museum, Charlotte, North Carolina; and The Seattle Art Museum, Seattle.
See more: Sherry Markovitz Sculpture
VIDEO KITCHEN:
Homemade Moving Images
May 15 - June 28
Opening: Thursday, May 15, 6:00 - 8:00 pm
JHORDAN DAHL
Still from DREAMGIRLS
Greg Kucera Gallery is also excited to announce the opening of VIDEO KITCHEN. This exhibition brings
together a small group of artists who have made their own
movies from start to finish. By referencing the word
"kitchen" in the title of our show, we mean to suggest the
kinds of videos made in the privacy of the home or studio,
without the aid of post-production editors, camera crew,
sound engineers or special effects artists.
TIM RODA
Still from UNTITLED (#9404), 2007
Among the artists who will not be in the show are such
technically polished artists as Matthew Barney, Isaac
Julien, Pipilotti Rist, Bill Viola, Gary Hill, Shirin Neshat,
Rodney Graham, Doug Aitken, and Marina Abramovic.
Those that are in the show are artists who embrace a lowtech,
very intimate form of image making in flat work as well
as moving pictures. These are humble gestures and
personal stories, appropriate for the small screen.
Mark Newport knits super hero costumes and has made a
video of himself sitting in a rocking chair, knitting while
wearing one of his own cable-knit creations. Tim Roda's
videos are similar to his photographs in his use of his son
and himself acting out small, personal dramas of a tragiccomic
nature. These are originally filmed in Super-8 format
and then digitally mastered. Portland artist, Jhordan Dahl's
video DREAMGIRLS casts herself as various heroines from
movies such as Chinatown, Belle du Jour and Valley of the
Dolls, making reference to how she saw her mother as a
strong, daring woman. Daniela Libertad's videos involve
her own body and various props to exploit the receptivity
and defensiveness of the flesh. A bar of soap or a balloon
provide her with some curious allusions to bodily reactions.
Reuben Lorch-Miller's videos are filmed in his own studio,
performing mundane activities such as chopping wood or
running laps around the studio.
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