Presents: Sarah Joncas
Opening Reception: Saturday, April 30th, 7pm-11pm
Last Rites Gallery presents Lilith, new works by Sarah Joncas. Using powerful and sexually charged energy, "Lilith" takes on a darker context with Joncas painting in full-force celebration of the original femme fatale. Combining explicit imagery with more subtle anthropomorphic iconography, she leads us into a world of seduction and mystery.
"My show Lilith is not necessarily as a direct allegorical reference, but more so for what she represents. According to Jewish Mythology, Lilith is considered to be the true 1st wife of Adam, her unwillingness to submit caused her to rebel from Eden in search of her own dark path. As such, she’s been written as the temptress, the mysterious and the devil. Taking from fairytale and folklore inspirations, much of the work borders on the fantastical, indulging and sometimes turning other mythological females into similar demoniac beings. Though working with a relatively more aggressive theme than usual, I’ve kept the melancholic and pensive tone that my work is most well known for. In general, I’ve always focused on the alienated female subject as well, making a theme on the legendary archetype a natural course for me to take. In a sense, I see this body of work as a bit of a return for me. Though the women I’m portraying in these pieces are bolder, more sexual and more mature than those of my previous work, I’ve decidedly brought back some of the whimsy that I’d abandoned after years of schooling. In effect, this body of work has been especially fun for me to create, which is more or less the reason I got into painting in the first place."
Sarah Joncas was born in 1986 and grew up within both Hamilton and Niagara Falls, Ontario. She currently resides and works out of Toronto, Canada. Her interest in the visual arts developed at an early age, starting with the dedicated drawings of dinosaurs and lizards. Eventually the study and enjoyment of working from existing images stirred up the need in Sarah to create images of her own; ones that could reflect the world, yet also appease the personal feelings/ideas that she herself maintained. With this, her direction changed gradually from the world of animation, towards a path in fine art.
About Last Rites Gallery:
Established in 2008, Last Rites has become a premiere gallery for the Dark Art movement and a haven for artists who prefer to explore the ominous, uncomfortable, and eccentric in their work. Striving to showcase some of the most thought-provoking art in contemporary surrealism, Last Rites creates an atmosphere where the artist can harness limitless expression and the observer can reflect inward, inspired to understand that which resides in us all. Since it’s inception, media accolades now include Juxtapoz, Inked Magazine, Tattoo Society, Hi Fructose, NY Post, and the Channel 11 News. Paul Booth, featured by Rolling Stone as “King of Rock Tattoos”, opened Last Rites after 20 years of contributions to the tattoo and art community. Networks including Discovery, TLC, MSNBC, and MTV, continue to share Last Rites' reputation with the world.
On display April 30th to June 5th, 2011.
( Installation Shots Coming Soon )
CONTACT:
Celeste Fuechsel
Assistant Director
1-212-560-0666
info@lastritesgallery.com
Last Rites Gallery, 511 W. 33rd street, 3fl New York, NY 10001
Sources
La Sumisa
Last Rites Gallery
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