SATURDAY SEPT. 8th 8-11pm

Lezley Saar’s latest exhibition Madwoman in the Attic: Madness and the Gaze. masterfully subverts the traditions of 19th Century Gothic literature and Colonial art through added drops of Surrealism and insurgent perspective.
Delving into the complexities of insanity, Saar peels the Victorian madwoman from yellowed texts and transplants her into the visual plane of portraiture. By these means these women acquire a degree individuality exceeding that of archetypes or supporting characters. Jane Eyre’s Bertha, the unnamed madwoman of Charlotte Perkins Gillman’s Yellow Wallpaper, Lucy Snow from Villete and other characters are reimagined and fleshed out: no longer simply blanketed with the term ‘madness’ and forgotten about. Their delusions and circumstances are personalized and given expression.

Saar’s works have been exhibited extensively in the United States and abroad. Her commitment to candid expression through art has earned her, among other awards, the J. Paul Getty Mid-Career Grant and the inclusion of her works in the California State Senate Contemporary Art Collection. She has been featured in the Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Artforum and many other publications.

View Exhibition @ Merry Karnowsky Gallery
Since 1997, Merry Karnowsky Gallery has been exhibiting challenging, innovative, and contemporary art.