Carl Holzman ~ Hyperreal at Gallery 180

"Antique Iron", oil on canvas, 25" x 25" framed (stained walnut) 2012

Carl Holzman is one of four artists participating is "Hyperreal", an exhibition of photo-realistic paintings, currently on exhibit at Gallery 180 of The Illinois Institute of Art-Chicago. His imagery is composed of weathered objects from the past, lit and tightly rendered with the focused-intent of a contemporary realist painter. The work conveys nostalgia–a longing for a simpler time. Holzman explains...

The paintings in this series reflect my continuing preoccupations with compositional austerity, textural variety (here conveyed through vintage objects rusted, chipped, patinated or otherwise distressed over time), and dramatic contrasts of light and shadow. The mid-century imagery, with its utilitarian shapes and weathered, plain-spoken character, undergoes an arresting transformation–a kind of abstraction or sublimation–under the influence of arrangement and lighting. Allusions to the recent past (objects) and the deep past (lighting, technique) are filtered through the sensibility of a contemporary painter, suggesting whispered dialog amid the suspended calm.

"Masking Tape", oil on canvas, 25" x 25" framed (stained walnut) 2012

Carl Holzman's paintings are presented with the work of K. Henderson, Allan Gorman, and Roland Kulla. Hyperreal will be on exhibition at Gallery 180 of The Illinois Institute of Art-Chicago through February 28, 2013. All works are available for purchase. Gallery 180 is located at 180 N. Wabash—at the corner of Lake and Wabash—in Chicago’s Loop. The gallery is open Monday through Thursday from 8am-8pm, Friday 8am-5:30pm and Saturday 9am-5pm. Additional information can be found at gallery180.com.

"Calumet", oil on canvas, 25" x 25" framed (stained walnut) 2012

Born and raised in Topeka, Kansas, I received a BA in English and French Literatures from Swarthmore College and an MA in English Literature from The University of Chicago, before earning an MBA from the University of Chicago in 1982. For over two decades I worked in corporate finance in the publishing and healthcare industries.

Although I have drawn and painted avidly since early childhood, I did not pursue art seriously until 10 years ago, when I began studying drawing and painting at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and later with portrait painter Richard Halstead. As my interest in painting grew, I found ways to scale back my day job until several years ago, when I took early retirement and dedicated myself full time to painting.

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K. Henderson ~ Gallery 180

K. Henderson, Blue Skies, oil on canvas, 18" x 24"

Tonight, Gallery 180 of The Illinois Institute of Art-Chicago will hold a catered reception for "Hyperreal" an exhibition of photorealistic paintings by K. Henderson, Carl Holzman, Allan Gorman, and Roland Kulla.

K. Henderson is known for her detailed oil paintings of contemporary still life. Hyperreal includes four of these pieces, which highlight pattern and reflection... and the reflection of pattern. Henderson uses these elements to create a complexity that intrigues the viewer into stepping closer—exploring each brushstroke. In discussing her work, Henderson explains:

Black and white striped fabric is simple. Yet when it is folded and draped the result is Complex Patterns. Add a reflective surface and you can get lost in the endless intricacies. Even the simpilest round globe or silver spoon refl ects a Looking Glass world as it distorts the uncomplicated into flamboyant and mysterious. A humble transparant goblet twists the world through which it is viewed and further alters the reflected shapes.

Hyperreal will be presented at Gallery 180 of The Illinois Institute of Art-Chicago through February 28, 2013. An Opening Reception will take place tonight from 5:30-7:30 pm. All works are available for purchase. Gallery 180 is located at 180 N. Wabash—at the corner of Lake and Wabash—in Chicago’s Loop. The gallery is open Monday through Thursday from 8am-8pm, Friday 8am-5:30pm and Saturday 9am-5pm. Additional information can be found at gallery180.com. 

Born and raised in Oklahoma, K. Henderson now calls rural New Mexico home. Both locations have provided her with inspiration for her paintings. She is known for her detailed oil painting of contemporary still lifes as well as Western figures. Recent accomplishments include Purchase Award at the Art Renewal Center Salon, being awarded Best of Trompe L’Oeil by the International Guild of Realism, Top 50 in Salon International, inclusion in Scottsdale Salon of Fine Art, Settlers West American Miniature show,The Hubbard Museum of Western Art Biennale Grande winning 2nd place, and being featured in Southwest Art Magazine March 2008 issue and Sept 2008. Henderson won Peoples choice award Richeson 75 International exhibit, and Juror’s Choice Award Breckenridge Fine Art Center. She has gained Signature Membership status with the National Oil and Acrylic Painters Society. She has attained national recognition with her work, has attracted a growing audience of collectors and has received numerous awards including over 100 Best of Show and First place awards in national juried art shows. Her work has been in several solo museum and gallery shows and numerous group exhibitions including International Guild of Realism, Salon International, Western Spirit Art Show & Sale, Cowgirl Up! Show and Sale, C.M. Russell Museum Benefit Auction, Pastel Society of the Southwest, Pastel Society of America, Mt. Oyster Club, American Academy of Equine Art, Museum of the Cherokee, the Five Civilized Tribes Museum, The Bosque Conservatory, Oil Painters of America National and Regional, and National Oil and Acrylic Painters Society, Richeson75 figurative and small works exhibits among many others.

Henderson has been featured in Southwest Art Magazine and Oklahoma Today. She has been included in articles in Southwest Art, Art of the West, American Cowboy, Western Art Collector, American Art Collector, Art Talk, Santa Fe Circle, Cowboys and Indians and Art of the Hills. Her work has been in several books including “The American Indians: An Illustrated History” - Turner Publishing, “The Biographical Directory of Native American Painters” - Dr. Patrick Lester, SIR Publications, “Talking Leaves” - Eric Veitch, Verner Bendtsen, “Cherokee Art: Historical Precedents”, University of Georgia Press. She is a member of Oil Painters of America, National Oil and Acrylic Painter Society (NOAPS)
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Allan Gorman ~ Hyperreal at Gallery 180

Allan Gorman, Blue Button, Oil on Panel, 18" x 18", 2012

The work of Allan Gorman was the inspiration and starting point for the creation of the "Hyperreal" exhibition currently on display at Gallery 180 of The Illinois Institute of Art-Chicago. Gorman's work scrutinizes the beauty found in mechanical objects. Gorman explains…

“I look for interesting shapes to explore form, composition, color, texture and emotion. And, although the subject matter demands to be rendered with an increasing degree of precision, my goal is not so much to faithfully replicate objects as it is to distill what I’ve seen into visual stories that resonate and stir memories. I'm looking to abstract, and present a powerful design - whether the viewer chooses to interpret them as representational paintings or not.”

Gorman's work is joined by that of K. Henderson, Carl Holzman and Roland Kulla in an exhibition that is sure to impress viewers through technical excitation and unique compositional presentation. It's worth a visit...

Hyperreal will be presented at Gallery 180 of The Illinois Institute of Art-Chicago through February 28, 2013 with previews beginning on Monday, January 14th. An Opening Reception will take place on Friday, January 18 from 5:30-7:30 pm. All works are available for purchase. Gallery 180 is located at 180 N. Wabash—at the corner of Lake and Wabash—in Chicago’s Loop. The gallery is open Monday through Thursday from 8am-8pm, Friday 8am-5:30pm and Saturday 9am-5pm. Additional information can be found at gallery180.com

Brooklyn-born, Allan Gorman (1947) is a self-taught painter who brings his strengths as an internationally decorated graphic designer to artworks that certainly reflect his own unique and distinctive brand. Soaring chrome exhaust pipes set on a stark blue sky, mirrors that reflect the geometries of industry, a macro trip inside clockworks – hard angles, strong colors and carefully thought through compositions permeate his work which has been seen in dozens of gallery and museum shows and private collections in both the US and Europe. In 2011, Gorman was awarded a resident fellowship to Vermont Studio Center, and work has been featured in International New Painting Annual 2, America Art Collector, Transportation Today and Poets & Artists Magazine. Gorman currently resides in Montclair, NJ.
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Roland Kulla ~ Hyperreal at Gallery 180

Roland Kulla, C&O Canal II, Oil on Canvas, 36" x 48", 2012

Roland Kulla is one of four painters included in "Hyperreal" at Gallery 180 of The Illinois Institute of Art-Chicago. The exhibition presents imagery of objects, selectively-composed and realistically-rendered to intensify their visual impact.

Kulla, a Chicago resident, has been painting bridges—or segments of bridges—for more than two decades. His paintings have been presented on the main stage art scene with recent solo exhibitions in Berlin and New York. Created in the last few months, three new Roland Kulla paintings are included in Hyperreal at Gallery 180 of The Illinois Institute of Art-Chicago. In discussing his work, Kulla elaborates… 

“I’ve used bridges as my primary inspiration for the last twenty years. Based in Chicago, I began my exploration with the world’s largest collection of bascule bridges. In 2006, I began to branch out to other “bridge cities” including Boston, New York City, and Pittsburgh. In 2011, I explored the bridges in Berlin, Germany.

I select certain design elements and eliminate background context in order to emphasize form. The details of massive structures reveal the many individual components. What may appear to be a random arrangement of bolts and rivets has, on close inspection, a rigidly patterned logic. Abstracted from their surroundings, the bridges take on new aspects. Some look dangerous, others elegant. The forms are presented in “natural” bridge colors in bold contrast to the voids that they span. They float in light that plays across the surface details. The variations can be simple or elaborate, ranging from limited themes of a few notes to grand, fugal extravaganzas.

The subjects are painted to look “real”, but this is a deliberate illusion. I paint an idealized version of reality on a scale that allows the viewer to enter into the structure and appreciate the monumentality of the form.”

Hyperreal will be presented at Gallery 180 of The Illinois Institute of Art-Chicago through February 28, 2013 with previews beginning on Monday, January 14th. An Opening Reception will take place on Friday, January 18 from 5:30-7:30 pm. All works are available for purchase. Gallery 180 is located at 180 N. Wabash—at the corner of Lake and Wabash—in Chicago’s Loop. The gallery is open Monday through Thursday from 8am-8pm, Friday 8am-5:30pm and Saturday 9am-5pm. Additional information can be found at gallery180.com

Roland Kulla lives and paints in Chicago. Recent exhibitions include “Berlinier Liste” ARTexhibitionLink, Berlin, Germany, “Urban Patterns” at George Billis Gallery, New York, and inclusion in the Rockford Art Museum Biennial. Kulla is represented by George Billis Gallery in New York, ZIA Gallery in Winnetka, IL, and James Gallery in Pittsburgh, PA.

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HYPERREAL: Reception this Friday

On Friday, January 18^th, Gallery 180 of The Illinois Institute of Art-Chicago will host a catered reception for Hyperreal, an exhibition of paintings created by four nationally recognized artists, selectively-composing and realistically-rendering objects to intensify their impact. The exhibiting artists are K. Henderson, Carl Holzman, Allan Gorman, and Roland Kulla.

Hyperreal will be presented at Gallery 180 of The Illinois Institute of Art-Chicago through February 28, 2013 with previews beginning on Monday, January 14th. An Opening Reception will take place on Friday, January 18 from 5:30-7:30 pm. All works are available for purchase. Gallery 180 is located at 180 N. Wabash—at the corner of Lake and Wabash—in Chicago’s Loop. The gallery is open Monday through Thursday from 8am-8pm, Friday 8am-5:30pm and Saturday 9am-5pm. Additional information can be found at gallery180.com
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Zahra Nazari ~ Worldview at Gallery 180 ...in its Final Days

"Mapping" acrylic on canvas, 48” x 30” 

There are just a few more days to visit the Worldview Exhibition at Gallery 180 of The Illinois Institute of Art-Chicago. The exhibition includes work by nine artists from around the country... all defining their individual perceptions of the world in which we share. "Mapping" is one of two paintings by Zahra Nazari, included in the exhibition to benefit Worldview Education and Care. Her rich painterly style presents an abstract composition of man-made cityscapes as seen from above. Nazari explains...

The visual richness found in the structural patterns of architecture, both ancient and modern, especially in its relationship with the surrounding landscape, is the starting point of all my work.

I paint abstract urbanscapes that resemble city maps; they contain aerial views, distorted perspectives, and combinations of different architectural time periods containing both observed and imaginary disjointed places. Sometimes the images baffle even me. I am attracted to this since of ambiguity because it draws the viewer deeper into my imagery.

My mind aims for inventiveness in the painting process, passing time, worn surfaces, surprising shapes, and the mechanics of memory. I aspire to an underlying feeling of complexity and exploration in all of my work.

The Worldview exhibition will close on Friday, January 11th. It's an excellent collection of pieces and  all works are available for purchase with a portion of the proceeds donated to Worldview Education and Care. Gallery 180 is located at 180 N. Wabash... the corner of Lake and Wabash in Chicago's Loop.

Zahra Nazari received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting from the School of Art & Architecture, Tabriz, Iran in July 2007. She is currently an MFA candidate in Painting/Drawing at SUNY New Paltz, New Paltz, NY and was a recipient of both a graduate scholarship and a teaching assistantship from the Memphis College of Art. Her recent exhibitions include the “6th Annual Master Pieces” at Manifest Gallery and “Reroot” at the Clifton Cultural Arts Center, both in Cincinnati, Ohio; “Twenty in Their Twenties” at Woman Made Gallery and “Wet Paint” at Zhou B Art Center, both in Chicago, Illinois, USA. She was an artist in resident at The International School of Painting, Drawing & Sculpture, Umbria, Italy. In addition she is the recipient of a grant from the Vermont Studio School in Johnson, Vermont.
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