 Chuck, Marlene - March 26, 1975, 2003 Graphite and ballpoint pen on paper Diptych: 10 x 14 feet overall 6 of 6 murals from the series: "Marlene Olive - 353 Hibiscus Way - Marin County California - June 21, 1975" Marlene McCarty Brent Sikkema is pleased to present an exhibition of work by Marlene McCarty. McCarty came to prominence in the early 1990s through her explorations of sexuality and obscenity via textual renderings on canvas. In recent years, McCarty has assembled portraits of teenaged girls who have killed: usually members of their families, and usually their mothers. In her first show with Brent Sikkema, McCarty will present six large-scale "murals," which were exhibited in the 2003 Istanbul Biennale. These latest works - completed in 2003 - continue McCarty's exploration of female adolescent violence as a conflicted site of sexuality and identity. The drawings, painstakingly completed in graphite and ballpoint pen, are composed from an assemblage of sources. The faces are taken from actual images of the girls found in the media, while the bodies are composites from fashion-magazine ads and other photographs. McCarty often draws the girls' clothing as partially transparent, revealing their blossoming sexuality in her surprisingly de-eroticized rendering of breasts, nipples, and genitalia. The new body of work, "Marlene Olive - 33 Hibiscus Way - Marin County California - June 21, 1975" depicts the subject, Marlene Olive, in various stages of her life - at times with her mother, father or boyfriend. The restrained portraits belie the complexity of her relationships with her family members, and the unspeakable violence she committed against them. The resulting works are remarkable portraits of the psychic turmoil of adolescence. Exhibition: January 17 - February 21, 2004 Gallery hours: Tue-Sat 10am - 6pm Brent Sikkema 530 W 22nd St USA-New York, NY 10011 Telephone + 1 212 929 2262 Fax + 1 212 929 2340 Email gallery@brentsikkema.com www.brentsikkema.com |
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