7/14/2014

Upper West Hosts Opening Sunday July 20, Featuring Artist Stephanie Trachtenberg!


This Sunday, July 20, Upper West presents the art of Stephanie Trachtenberg in a solo exhibition entitled "L'Homme." Come meet the artist at an opening reception at the Santa Monica restaurant from 4-7 pm.

Trachtenberg has been painting since she was in her teens. “My art teacher in high school submitted me for a scholarship for classes at Art Center and I was accepted. The 1st day when I went to the drawing class the male model disrobed, I blushed and began to draw. That was the beginning of my art studies and soon after I began painting the figure.” She attended Hollywood Art Center School and studied sculpting and painting with Mona Lovins (a friend with Robert Henri). After taking more classes with Jan Stussy at UCLA, Trachtenberg enrolled in the Venice Sculpting and Painting Studio and studied Old Master painting with Jan Saether…”All of these seminal teachers were inspirational for me,” reflects the painter, “Two teachers who were instrumental in my sculpting life were Martine Vaugel and Robert Cunningham.”

See Below, one of the featured works entitled "Killing Time." Trachtenberg explains the work, “In this age of constant, almost unlimited communication, ultimately we are all still alone and singular. That realization can be a source of reflection and insight. The human condition has an inherent sense of rejuvenation. Sometimes when we have a few drinks, it releases our anxieties and gives us hope. This painting reveals empathy in us for our own fragile humanity.”
"Killing Time" 24"x30" oil on canvas

Gino Paino has collaborated on many of the art exhibitions at Upper West. He talks about the upcoming show. “What impressed me the most when I met Stephanie, was her classical training, seen how she managed to presented traditional compositions in a Modern Contemporary way. When I walk in to her studio for the first time, I was confronted by a large collection, portrait after portrait, beautiful paintings, it was an endless array of characters, faces of people I couldn’t recognize but we can easily find in the streets of LA. Stephanie’s pieces evoke her rich and profound life experience, these little details, make me realize that she was someone special.”

Stop by this Sunday, July 20 from 4-7pm to enjoy an artist reception at Upper West  (3321 Pico Blvd. in Santa Monica). The exhibit runs through mid November. See
http://www.passionaterealist.com/ for additional info about the artist or see http://www.theupperwest.com/ to find out more about Upper West.


                                                                                                                        

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