Koo Schadler, Snowface Triptych; egg tempera on panel; h: 9 x w: 22 in / h: 22.9 x w: 55.9 cm. Courtesy J. Cacciola Gallery © Koo Schadler

Elizabeth Berdann
Elizabeth Berdann is fascinated with the plasticity of the human body and the topography that the physical shares with the psychological. Her work expands well beyond the tradition of classical portraiture by addressing self-representation and the dichotomy of our physical/psychological experience. Her works are as much portraiture of inner landscapes as they are a documentation of physical characteristics. Employing elements of humor, cropping, repetition, a fussy preciousness or formalist presentation, she creates a thoroughly contemporary context with which to mediate our experience of the work.

Carol Mothner, Armored Madonna, acrylic on panel; h: 12 x w: 12 in / h: 30.5 x w: 30.5 cm. Courtesy J. Cacciola Gallery © Carol Mothner

Carol Mothner
Caro Mothner’s most recent body of work takes the image of women in armor as a conceptual jumping off point. These pieces are based upon experiences that reach back to Mothner’s childhood – discovering images of Egyptian idols in a child’s bible, being one of the only Jewish children in a Catholic neighborhood of Brooklyn and, as an adult, a fascination with images of the Madonna as encountered in the Southwest. She began to think about armor as a metaphor for the relationship of the inner and outer life. The illness of a loved one served to further focus Mothner’s sense of the meaning of these works. The pieces in this exhibit are the current result of this ongoing process – a collection of images and objects, which are as beautiful as they are evocative.

Koo Schadler, Incipe Parue Puer  (Begin, Small Boy), egg tempera, on true gesso panel, with oil glazes, 7.5 diameter. Courtesy J. Cacciola Gallery © Koo Schadler

Koo Schadler
The work of Koo Schadler is a remarkable synthesis of the past and present. Her jewel-like egg tempera paintings merge ancient techniques with a contemporary sensibility. Both in her settings and in her materials Schadler rethinks the artist’s relationship to the work, the working method and to our relationship to representational imagery. A multitude of contrasting visual elements are at play in a Schadler piece. She uses representation as a vehicle for abstraction, ornamental elements freely interacting with three dimensionality. She explores a contemporary interpretation of light and dark, warm and cool colors, clearly delineated edges interacting with lost or fuzzy lines all contributing to a sense of a present that is touched by history; of a history that is alive in our present.

Jan 6 - Feb 12, 2011.