Livia Stein

DATESJune 17 - September 19, 2010

RECEPTIONFriday, June 18 from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m.

Livia Stein, Pink Arms, 2010, oil on canvas, 60" x 50"

Bits and pieces of non-linear narratives join together in brilliant color to create fanciful tableaux ripe for open ended interpretation. Like puzzles which can be taken apart and reassembled in multiple ways, Stein's work invites the viewer to play, even when dealing with serious and heady themes. In conversation, she might let you in on her original inspirations, but she is also happy to let you wander, reflect, and come to your own understandings.
With a strong academic background in history and literature, and a lifelong appreciation for people and the diversity of their cultures, Stein's work embodies a unique blend of playfulness and sophistication. Her work is a hybrid form, as Stein freely juxtaposes seemingly random elements from her daily life, with collected items from multiple cultures, bits of history, mythology, and current events. Fascinated as she is with the pure wonder of paint, the tension between abstraction and representation is potentially ever-present.