New York, NY January 22, 2015 – Forum Gallery presents an exhibition of ten characteristically unusual new drawings by Susan Hauptman, her sixth one-person exhibition at Forum since 1998.
Hauptman’s elegantly-accomplished and compelling works in charcoal and pastel are studies in contrast. In this exhibition, the Artist shows six lyrical still-lifes, all both nostalgic and contemporary; and four self-portraits that continue her career-long narrative of self-illusion and provocation. The combination, in each drawing, of otherwise incongruous elements, provides the underpinning for Susan Hauptman’s continuing revelation of the ironic reality she sees and depicts. In every work, she jump-starts the narrative with the power of illusion, and then devilishly throws it off course.
Throughout her career, spanning four decades, Susan Hauptman has worked with minimal color and only on paper; her technique is so deft that this choice becomes part of the narrative: the power of the line and the feeling of the hand combine to imbue each work with powerful, emotional drive.
In every shrine-like still life, Hauptman’s meticulous compositions push objects from another time onto today’s stage. The composition invites the eye to rest and gently explore the textures and surfaces of the arranged objects in a fixed fable.
Her self-portraits have long been Hauptman’s signature images; the juxtaposition of her ultra-feminine costumes and accessories with her tiny stature and mannish face and hair catches the viewer off guard and compels attention.
Susan Hauptman’s work is included in the permanent collections of the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC; Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery, Washington, DC; the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; and the Arkansas Arts Center, Little Rock, among others, and her drawings have been included in exhibitions at these and many other museums throughout the United States and in Europe. She is the recipient of many awards, including grants from the Pollock-Krasner, Adolph and Esther Gottlieb, and Elizabeth Foundations; and fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts. She held the Lamar Dodd professorial chair at the University of Georgia in Athens, and has taught at Harvard College, Skidmore College and the University of California (Davis).
Please visit http://forumgallery.com/exhibition/susan-hauptman-january-22-february-28-2015/to view the entire exhibition online. The exhibition begins on January 22, 2015 and will be on view through February 28, 2015. Forum Gallery is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 am to 5:30 pm. For further information, contact the gallery. A full-color catalogue is available from the gallery.
For more information, please contact Kevin Dao, 212-355-4545; kevin@forumgallery.com