Redefining the Line: Art Nouveau & the Female Figure

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Art Nouveau taught us that it’s okay to be glamorous. Not in a gold-teeth, Cristal-poppin’, rollin’-on-dubz, MTV-cribs sort of way, but even classier than that. Since the movement peaked at the turn of the 20th century, Art Nouveau has become progressively more non-representational. Abandoned are the gingerly drawn lines and the prim portraits of pouty-lipped, gorgeous ladies inlaid with gold and silver. Women were portrayed as goddesses of nature, with voluptuous curves and seductive eyes, cracking an imaginary whip that brought forth wonderfully decorative and fascinating ornate patterns. It was a time of true class, status and sophistication. However, in this postmodern world, where wiping your own shit on a canvas is considered “fucking brilliant,” a handful of highly talented artists are re-drawing those lines of feminine beauty and grace—in all the high glory of the Art Nouveau tradition. Truly, this is bringing sexy back.
Tuesdays-Saturdays, noon. Starts: Sept. 1. Continues through Oct. 2, 2009