Mary Jane Ansell: Premiere U.S. Exhibition

M A RY JAN E A N S E L L Pre mi e re U.S. E x hi bi ti on

M A RY JA NE A NS E L L

A RC A D I A CO N T EMPORARY

t: 2 1 2 . 9 6 5 . 1 3 8 7

5 1 G re e ne S tre et

e: i nfo@a rca di a contempora r y. com

N ew Yo r k , N Y 1 0 0 1 3

w w w. a rca di a contempora r y. com

M A RY JA N E AN S E L L Pre mi e re U.S. E x hi bi ti on

O PE NI NG R EC E PT ION T H URSDAY JUNE 18 6:00-8:00 PM

JUN E 1 8 - JU LY 1 0 , 2 0 1 5

M A RY JA NE A NS E L L

“ T he W hi te H a r t,” Oi l on Al umi num, 2 0 1 5 3 9 . 5 x 2 3 . 5 i nc hes

1

M A RY JA N E AN S E L L Pre mi e re U.S. E x hi bi ti on

A

rcadi a C ontem pora r y i s proud to host t he premiere U.S . exhibit ion o f p a i nti ng s by M a r y- Ja ne A nsell. A nsell is one of t he few female art ist s in t h e wor l d to be a f i na l i st in four different years of Britain’s prest igio u s , BP Po r t rai t Awa rd com peti ti on, held anually at London’s Nat ional Port rait G al l e r y. A nsel l ’s wor ks a re known for t heir abilit y to incorporate int riguin g n a r rat ives that tra nspor t the viewer into moment s t hat are bot h t ranscend e nt a n d m ed i tati ve.

Wh i l e Ms. Ansel l ha s rendered her et hereal subject s in a manner most d eli cate, the peopl e depi c ted are just t he opposite. “ These are all women o f t rem e ndous strength,” the art ist says. “ Though presented v ia soft colors a n d m o o d s,” she conti nues, “ I quite often have t he model look ing direct ly at t h e vi ewer. T hi s c reates a real presence, almost a dialogue bet ween t h e p ers o n looki ng at the pa i nti ng and t he subject who sat for it .” A nd alt hough t h e s en s ua l i ty a nd bea uty of the sitter are apparent in her oils, t hey are n o t t h e ma i n foc us of the pa i nti ng . “ When women paint ot her women,” A nsell s ays , “t h e sensua l i ty i s j ust the support ing rhy t hm of t he piece, rat her t han t h e ma i n m el ody.” For Ansel l , t he relat ionship bet ween art ist and her ch o s e n m o d e l s i s a rec i proca l bond. S ome models have ret urned to her st udio fo r ove r ten yea rs. T hei r g row th a s indiv iduals has impacted t he direct ion of A n s e ll ’s wor k, i l l ustrati ng the art ist ’s curiosit y for t he human spirit .

S i x te en n ew oi l on a l um i num panels (t he art ist ’s preferred medium on wh ich to p ai nt b eca use of the f l awl essly smoot h tex t ures she can achieve) will b e p re m iered at the Soho ga l l er y. In drawing from influences t hat range from c la s s i ca l por tra i ture, to roc k a nd roll, to t he world of haute cout ure, A nsell reve al s a n i nter pl ay of sol i d a nd diaphanous shapes combined wit h warm a n d co l d sur fa c es, exec uted th rough her masterful technique. The result s a re a sto undi ng na r rati ve pa i ntings of great dept h and beaut y. These works i n co r p o rate i m a ger y f rom two dist inct realms: t he Nat ural and t he Polit ical.

A n s e ll c h am pi ons a retur n to nat ure, reminding us to savor calm moments in t i m es o f ideol og i ca l str i fe.

A g ra d u ate of B r i g hton Uni versit y in 1994, Ms. A nsell has also exhibited w it h t h e Royal Soc i ety of Por tra i ts and has had shows in London and S ingapore.

H e r ex h ibi ti on at Arca di a , w hi ch opens on Thursday, J une 18t h and cont inu e s t h ro u g h J ul y 10th, m a r ks the art ist ’s first , major U.S . exhibit ion.

Fo r m o re i nfor m ati on conta c t: i nfo @a rca di a contem pora r y.com

M A RY JA NE A NS E L L

“L i be r ty ’s A rc ” O i l o n A l um i n um , 2 0 1 5 4 8 x 3 1 i nc he s

3

M A RY JA NE A NS E L L

“ H e ra l d” O il o n A l um i n um , 2 0 1 5 31. 5 x 4 7 i n c h e s

5

M A RY JA NE A NS E L L

“ H ope and Re c ko ni n g ” O il on Alum i n um , 2 0 1 4 28 x 40 inche s

7

M A RY JA NE A NS E L L

“ T he W hi te H a r t ” O i l o n A l um i n um , 2 0 1 5 3 9 .5 x 2 3 .5 i nc he s

9

M A RY JA NE A NS E L L

“ Wake fo r th e W h i te H a r t ” O il o n A l um i n um , 2 0 1 5 26 x 36 i nc he s

11

M A RY JA NE A NS E L L

“A ure l i a ’s Pr i ze ” O i l o n A l um i n um , 2 0 1 5 2 4 x 3 9 i nc he s

13

M A RY JA NE A NS E L L

“A ure li a ” O il on A l um i n um , 2 0 1 5 24. 5 x 3 1 .5 i nc he s

15

M A RY JA NE A NS E L L

“A Winge d C o ns o r t ” O il on A l um i n um , 2 0 1 5 20 x 20 i nc he s

17

M A RY JA NE A NS E L L

“Envoy ” O i l o n A l um i n um , 2 0 1 5 2 2 .5 x 1 5 i n c h e s

19

M A RY JA NE A NS E L L

“A Q ui et C o n s o r t ” O i l o n A l um i n um , 2 0 1 5 2 2 x 1 4 i nc he s

21

M A RY JA NE A NS E L L

“A Fe i g ne d Retre at ” O i l o n A l um i n um , 2 0 1 4 1 6 x 1 6 i nc he s

23

M A RY JA NE A NS E L L

“ L unette” O il on A l um i n um , 2 0 1 5 16 x 16 i nc he s

25

M A RY JA NE A NS E L L

“A W i nge d C o ns o r t I I ” O i l o n A l um i n um , 2 0 1 5 1 6 x 1 6 i nc he s

27

M A RY JA NE A NS E L L

“A dva nc e I I ” O i l o n A l um i n um , 2 0 1 5 1 4 x 1 4 i nc he s

29

M A RY JA NE A NS E L L

“Envoy ’s Retu r n” O i l o n A l um i n um , 2 0 1 5 1 4 x 1 4 i nc he s

31

M A RY JA NE A NS E L L

“S tud y fo r ‘H e ra l d’” O i l o n A l um i n um , 2 0 1 5 9 x 9 i nc h e s

33

M A RY JA NE A NS E L L

5 1 G re e ne Street New York , NY 1 0 0 1 3 2 1 2 • 9 6 5 • 1 3 8 7 i nfo@a rca di a contempora r y. com

#

w w w. a rca di a contempora r y. com