 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
SHARE
| The New York Optimist |
| © MMIX, The New York Optimist LLC. All Rights Reserved. The New York Optimist & www.thenewyorkoptimist.com is a registered trademark of The New York Optimist LLC. The New York Optimist is a registered service mark of Thenewyorkoptimist.com. The New York Optimist logo and original photos are a registered trademark of The New York Optimist LLC. All other photos are property of the advertiser. And are rightfully protected under their copywright protections. |
Grouping of Eight Figurative Works
11 Ole Blalid
| 514 Zeina Assaf |
Might As Well
| K R I S T E N C O P H A M |
Uncertain (portrait of Marty Ganser, scupltor)
My work has to do with stories, characters and individuals, how we interact with
each other, what we do, how we see ourselves. My current project captures
individual sitters on 10" square boards, which are later installed in a tiled grid.
Although each person has a story and I attempt to capture their character rather than
a realistic rendition, the effect of the whole installation is to depersonalize the
individual. The work is on view through January 15 2008 at the Next Gallery at the
Metropolitan College of New York, 75 Varick at Canal St.
The 2007 Exhibit, The UnNatural World, was an installation of ceramic and oil
works coupled with live performance, which reflected the show’s theme of
metaphysical anxiety in the physical modern world. The abstract works are
belligerent expressions of physicality- the sensual, sexual, violent, exuberant,
overwhelming, painful, inexplicable nature of living as a sentient (aware) being
trapped briefly in a physical body. During gallery hours Copham performed in and
interacted with the space. Copham made a video to explain her absence during one
performance weekend: http://www.youtube.com/v/fGusVyi784g)
In 2004 - 2005, I painted nude male artists, collaborating with each man to create a
work that represented their work and who they are. Instead of approaching each
artist as an object in the painting, I approached them as a subject and gave them a
voice. This body of work speaks to our preconceptions about male nudity as a
primarily homoerotic form and also challenges the history of gender in nude artwork,
i.e. the historical tradition of male artists painting nude women.
In 2001 - 2003 I painted myself nude in two different series, My Personal Gestalt,
which dealt with both negative and positive aspects of my self, and Fields of Being,
in which my figure represented in a semi-fetal-position is repeated using color, scale
and repetition to address issues of alienation, failure, empowerment and fear. Both
the male nude paintings and nude self portraits are large scale oil on canvas (36" x
60" and 30" x 40".)
each other, what we do, how we see ourselves. My current project captures
individual sitters on 10" square boards, which are later installed in a tiled grid.
Although each person has a story and I attempt to capture their character rather than
a realistic rendition, the effect of the whole installation is to depersonalize the
individual. The work is on view through January 15 2008 at the Next Gallery at the
Metropolitan College of New York, 75 Varick at Canal St.
The 2007 Exhibit, The UnNatural World, was an installation of ceramic and oil
works coupled with live performance, which reflected the show’s theme of
metaphysical anxiety in the physical modern world. The abstract works are
belligerent expressions of physicality- the sensual, sexual, violent, exuberant,
overwhelming, painful, inexplicable nature of living as a sentient (aware) being
trapped briefly in a physical body. During gallery hours Copham performed in and
interacted with the space. Copham made a video to explain her absence during one
performance weekend: http://www.youtube.com/v/fGusVyi784g)
In 2004 - 2005, I painted nude male artists, collaborating with each man to create a
work that represented their work and who they are. Instead of approaching each
artist as an object in the painting, I approached them as a subject and gave them a
voice. This body of work speaks to our preconceptions about male nudity as a
primarily homoerotic form and also challenges the history of gender in nude artwork,
i.e. the historical tradition of male artists painting nude women.
In 2001 - 2003 I painted myself nude in two different series, My Personal Gestalt,
which dealt with both negative and positive aspects of my self, and Fields of Being,
in which my figure represented in a semi-fetal-position is repeated using color, scale
and repetition to address issues of alienation, failure, empowerment and fear. Both
the male nude paintings and nude self portraits are large scale oil on canvas (36" x
60" and 30" x 40".)
400 Mi Kyung Kim
Mountain Man: Portrait of Mike Ryan,
painter & photographer
painter & photographer
301 Timothy D Kehr
506 Kenroy Lumsden
| Heidi Russell Presents: Artist "Kristen Copham" |
The idea of stillness and how I have to sit with my models for at least an hour. Often that time is spent focusing on the colors and shapes in their face or
bodies and how to express those. But also we are either talking or just sitting together. People tell me it's relaxing, an interesting aside in our hectic
culture and my own dizzying schedule. When I paint the male nudes, it's even more pronounced, since I spend many hours with them. I will agonize over
a hand or a specific line. It's pure torment. That's when I find myself asking "why am I doing this?" There's a contradiction in my portraiture: I want to
please the sitter but I want to please myself. There is no required sale. I'm trying to capture a moment, an hour of a person's life, an expression, a short
story, a feeling. And I can't escape what I am seeing - if I'm painting a little girl who was crying, or a man who is having a really bad day, it shows. It's not
about flattering them, it's about finding what's unique about that individual in those specific minutes.
bodies and how to express those. But also we are either talking or just sitting together. People tell me it's relaxing, an interesting aside in our hectic
culture and my own dizzying schedule. When I paint the male nudes, it's even more pronounced, since I spend many hours with them. I will agonize over
a hand or a specific line. It's pure torment. That's when I find myself asking "why am I doing this?" There's a contradiction in my portraiture: I want to
please the sitter but I want to please myself. There is no required sale. I'm trying to capture a moment, an hour of a person's life, an expression, a short
story, a feeling. And I can't escape what I am seeing - if I'm painting a little girl who was crying, or a man who is having a really bad day, it shows. It's not
about flattering them, it's about finding what's unique about that individual in those specific minutes.
