The Sam Francis Gallery at Crossroads School for Arts & Sciences Presents
The Reflection of Human Condition in Portraiture
A Student-Organized Exhibition
Exhibition: Feb. 7-March 1, 2024
Opening Reception: Wednesday, Feb. 7 // 4-6 p.m.
Click here to make a reservation to visit the exhibit. Reception does not require RSVP. Visitors must check in with security.
Featuring works by: Fatemeh Burnes, Siri Kaur, Tala Madani and Daniela Schweitzer
Organized by curatorial students: Grace Charles, Lauren Morris, Keilin Smith and Ada Yucel
The Reflection of Human Condition in Portraiture is a student-organized exhibition that aims to demonstrate the breadth of what portraiture can be. It explores contemporary conceptions of humanity that come to life through both established and unconventional mediums or techniques, breathing new life into the genre. The exhibition delves into the profound connection between each artist and their interpretation of the human experience. Whether a reflection of their own journey, a critical analysis or an insightful perspective on society, they aim to convey the complexity of human nature, spotlighting its intricacies by displaying the evolution of the portrait form in tandem with the evolution of how we perceive ourselves.
Fatemeh Burnes is a Los-Angeles based artist, educator, curator and activist. Her artistic journey includes both formal and informal training, leading to a BFA and MFA, alongside further graduate studies in art history and exhibition design. Since 1992, she has been actively showcasing her work nationally and internationally. Fatemeh has curated over 100 exhibitions and contributed to numerous publications. Her art, which includes painting and photography, explores themes of nature and human nature. She examines modern events and tragedies, focusing on their ecological and social impacts, and how they resonate in our current lives. Fatemeh’s recent works particularly highlight environmental and identity issues, drawing on her experiences as an immigrant and a woman. "The photographs reflect my sensitivity to the perception of light, movement, immediacy and the drama of the moment," says Fatemeh. "I employ physical manipulation to create surreal compositions that push beyond the realms of reality and visual perception."
Daniela Schweitzer is an Argentinian native who relocated to Los Angeles over 20 years ago. She paints at her home studio in Malibu and her studio at the Santa Monica Airport. In addition to her career as an artist, Daniela works in medicine, specializing in craniofacial genetics at UCLA. Her experience working with children born with congenital craniofacial malformations informs her artistic practice. "These experiences along with the real, and at times, imagined narratives bring me to an emotional process and technique that defines a familial pathway culminating in each of my paintings at a specific moment in time,” says Daniela. In her figurative works, she omits the detail of facial features in favor of uncovering beauty beyond appearances. Her pieces take the classical figure and reimagine the human portrait into a reflection of human existence, with a focus on movement and gestures and the complex emotions that one exhibits in ordinary, day-to-day settings.
Siri Kaur is originally from Maine, but currently resides and works in Los Angeles, where she received her MFA in photography from California Institute of the Arts. Siri’s practice is preoccupied with issues of personal representation and subjectivity, asking, “How can we understand what it is like to be another person in the world?” She is inspired by humans’ need to understand each other. She uses her camera as a tool to understand connection. In our postmodern moment, viewers are so sophisticated that whenever they contemplate an artwork, especially a photograph, they compare it to an enormous archive of previous images that already exist in their mind’s eye. Her hope is to tap into this medley of memories, both conscious and subconscious, while embracing referent layered-upon referent, encompassing the surreal, the cliche and the symbolic. By portraying subjects existing outside of the everyday—whether costumed impersonators, wrestlers, witches, dreamlike creatures from the natural world or her own family—her goal is to evoke curiosity in the viewer, and through this curiosity, empathy.
Tala Madani is an Iranian-born American artist who lives in Los Angeles. She received her BA in visual arts from Oregon State University and her BFA from the Yale School of Art. She has had 45 solo shows and has been part of 114 group exhibitions. Tala intermixes a satirical and representational contemporary style with humorous social and political commentary. In critiques of Western culture and gender division, Tala’s work disrupts conventional narratives and worldviews by using abstract caricatures. Many of her pieces include full-bellied men and inhuman-like characters. Tala says,“There is something about caricature that allows for perversity.” Her pieces depict somber yet powerful messages through ghoulish and minimalist paintings, drawings and animations. Her work challenges Western ideals of power, gender and societal expectations through subversive and satirical imagery. (Image credit Flying Studio)
