Opening Saturday one of my favorite artists Joshua Petker.
For this exhibition, Petker expanded his interest in identity and celebrity, and focused on stars from Hollywood’s golden age.
“The first spark of inspiration came after a friend gave me a copy of Kenneth Anger’s Hollywood Babylon,” Petker says. “The book is filled with torrid tales of violence and sex, and it led me to my familiar pondering about how one’s image transcends reality; how it belongs to the culture as a whole, and is thus open for exploitation and interpretation by anyone who feels a relationship with a celebrity’s image.”
Using acrylic and ink, Petker re-imagined Joan Crawford, Audrey Hepburn and Frances Farmer, among others, in his dreamy if haunting aesthetic. In his painting “Ginger Rogers Without Makeup,” the subject is decorated with bursts of color and unsettling smeared lipstick, but the composition is softened by the careful use of textured negative space.
Opening Reception Saturday, June 11, 2011 from 7-10pm
On View June 11 – June 29, 2011
Corey Helford Gallery
8522 Washington Boulevard
Culver City, CA 90232
T: 310-287-2340
www.coreyhelfordgallery.com
Open Tuesday – Saturday, Noon to 6:00pm