Hello Summer

Happy Memorial Day from me! (and Nicolas de Stael)

Some more snapshots from the ASE

Here are a few shots I took in the MFA galleries of the student exhibition. There is a ton of other great work though so be sure to stop by if you're in Philly, its up until June 5th.

James Erickson's subtle oil paintings

Printmaker Matt Colaizzo's detailed woodblock prints

Wall-neighbor Sarah Burns' self-portraits

Sarah Weber's labor-intensive pencil drawings

J. Gordon's mixed media and installation(in background) works

Derrick Quevedo's beautiful watercolor book

Dganit Zaubermann's sculpture formed around her body

(my wall in the background)

Jason Maas's drawing (that's me, second from the left!), his painting pictured above

Ted Walsh's wall of ominousness

Lauren Garvey's wonky and wonderful creations

Eric Huckabee's investigations into color, line and all things formal

What an amazing two years it's been getting to work around such a variety of artists and their talents. I have gotten something from each and every one!

My Thesis Show

Here are some shots of my work exhibited for my thesis show. The first is a picture of me, as a friend put it, "looking like a wallflower-- just like in [my] paintings" during the defense.

Installation Shots:

Cheerios with White:

Night Party:

Detail:

Breakfast at Rodman:

Some detail shots of Breakfast at Rodman:

My statement required for defense:

On my favorite days, reality mixes freely with a little whimsy; patterns separate themselves from their fabric homes and no one questions the flowers when they levitate off the dinner table. Most times though, when I stay with those thoughts, it becomes unnerving. Things begin to change shape and anxiety pushes reverie to the periphery.

Painting scenes from my life and memory, I slowly uncover forms, shadows and relationships not initially remembered. The unsettling air in the paint begins to contradict the namable world of flowers, bowls and coffee cups. The paintings’ apparent delight quietly unravels into colored aberration, illusions into brushed marks.

To see more visit my artist website: www.aubreylevinthal.com

Great Trash Picks

I had to take a post just to say thank you to whoever throws out such great things in my neighborhood and also suggest to those looking for great stuff to find out what day Lombard Street has trash day and bring a shopping bag!

In the last two weeks, on separate occasions, I have rescued (below) two outdoor lanterns and a funky little candle holder that now exists in our bedroom. I have seen great chairs, stools, tables etc. which I couldn't use at the time or carry but will be keeping an eye out for as I look to relocate my studio in the fall!

Art Party

The art party was a great success! Overall, we raised about $1700 for Fresh Artists through tickets and art sales. A lot of people came out and supported the arts!

Here are a few shots from the night, you can see more at Reimagine Philly's Facebook Page.

The show was in a large warehouse space, MBN Studios, in Northern Liberties, with a ton of funky sofas, vintage lamps and brick walls with exposed pipes which set a good vibe for the night.

Some of the art, much of which sold and all of which was admired!

Local musicians generously played a few sets for us!

Founder of Fresh Artists, Barbara Allen talks about her organization

Maybe as a reward for all my hard work or maybe because I'm incredibly lucky (one as a graduation present from Alex's mom, one bought by Alex), I ended up going home with two works by two of my favorite artist/ friends:

This beauty by Amanda Bush

And this awesome thing by Lauren Garvey.

P.S. I can not wait to post some installation shots of our graduate exhibit, there is a lot of incredddible work to come. Stay posted.

ASE Opening Next Friday

110th Annual Student Exhibition

May 13 - June 5, 2011

Come to our graduate thesis exhibition! The opening is May 13th and after seeing everyone begin installation yesterday, looks like its going to be good!

Sheila Hicks at ICA

You must see this show at ICA. It is a career retrospective of fiber artist Sheila Hicks and it is stunning.

All images courtesy of the ICA

The large works are jaw dropping and all-consuming but the multitude of small works really provide insight into the artist wrestling with color and pushing herself, they have a power all their own.