THE ORACLE
5 January – 5 April 2012
WE*DO Gallery
BANGKOK
9 Thonglor 8, Sukhumvit Soi 55, Klongtong-Nua
Wattana, 10110 Bangkok, Thailand
Curated by Predrag Pajdic with Errikos Andreou, Marco Brollo, Carolyn Cowan,
Alexandra Eldridge, Roberto Foddai, Nathan Hanford, Emiliano Lazzarotto,
J. L. Nash, Predrag Pajdic, Petra Reimann and Mustafa Sabbagh
In light of a world which now operates beyond its many cultural boundaries, what sacred symbols today deepen our understanding of the human condition? Is the human condition being ground underfoot, at its lowest point, even at rock-bottom as so many economists might present? Or, is it rising, pheonix-like, in full colour and majesty, with all the mystery of secrets yet to be revealed, out of the hopelessness of a near global recession?
Γνώθι σ ‘αυτόν – Know thyself*
As messages were received in the vapours of the Delphic Oracle, so does this international crucible of talent, united for the first time under the same roof, convey their symbols. Mysterious and enthralling, each artist offers a facet of hope, altered and strange; and yet familiar enough in its presentation to remind each one that the spark of life’s breath lives not in any visible organ but in the soul’s in
terpretation of the golden age inside each human being and a connection to each other. These transformative images and performances strip away the weight of mutal illusion leaving one to acquire empathy for each spark of the combination of soul material captured in this glamourous mix as they become the Oracle – the meta-paradigm of today’s cognisant revelation.
5 – 23 October 2011
SKUC Gallery
Ljubljana, Slovenia
17 INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL OF CONTEMPORARY ARTS
CITY OF WOMEN
Curated by Predrag Pajdic with Jo Andres, Milijana Babic, Maja Bajevic, Hrafnhildur Benediktsdóttir, Andreia Chaves, Carolyn Cowan, Alexandra Eldridge, Alicia Fantozzi, Rose-Gabriel De La Lyre, J. L. Nash, Nathália Mello, Nina Thilas-Mohs, and Lana Zdravkovic (Kitch).
Spellbound is a group exhibition of international artists whose work gazes into the understanding, experience and influences of the world through magic, the mysterious art of altering realities either by supernatural forces or through knowledge of occult laws unknown to mainstream science. The incantation of language through image brings to this viewing space a conjuring of perceptions. It offers the magical doctrine of cosmic sympathy between things visible and things invisible; each rendering is a glimpse into the now and the tomorrows of illusions of both the present and the future.
NATIONALLY ACCLAIMED ARTIST ALEXANDRA ELDRIDGE
REVEALS NEW WORK AT LAGUNA BEACH’S ART CUBE GALLERY
The work of internationally acclaimed artist Alexandra Eldridge has debuted at Laguna Beach’s Art Cube Gallery, where members of the public are invited to view her newest paintings that inspire, dazzle and celebrate self-discovery.
Art Cube gallery, 266 Forest Avenue, is among the first in Southern California to feature Alexandra’s work, which incorporates elements of surrealism and magic realism, as well as rich archetypal symbols, renderings and organic material.
The work is among her most ambitious to date, including “Remember the Moments,” which explores absence and memory and incorporates a map of Brooklyn from 1900, poetry and a ladder that speaks of rising to another level of consciousness. Another work, “The Red Book,” is inspired by the psychologist Carl Jung’s encounters with the unconscious with words from Jung’s book of the same title scratched into the painting.
“Alexandra is a gifted artist and we are delighted to represent her marvelous work,” said gallery owner Sonja Simidzija. “Her highly sought paintings add a new perspective to our gallery and offer an inspiring experience to visitors and collectors alike.”
Alexandra is the newest member of the gallery, which will open a second location on September 1 at 346 North Coast Highway.
The daughter of artist parents, Alexandra was born in New Jersey, studied art at Ohio University and settled into a community founded on the teachings of William Blake. She later moved to Santa Fe to raise her children and pursue her art with studies at the Santa Fe Institute of Fine Art and workshops in Florence, Cambridge, and New York.
Alexandra has shown in major galleries from New York to Paris to Belgrade and was recently part of a group show in London. Celebrity collectors include actors Steve Buscemi, Edie Falco and William Hurt who said, “there are two tides, one of light and another of muffling, suffocating… absence. Alexandra is clearly in the light.”
Eldridge works with Venetian plaster and creates images with pigment, pencil, and elements of collage. To create texture she scratches through layers of plaster with razor blades. She burnishes the final layer to make the work shine and reveal the colors beneath. The colorful surfaces are distressed and incised with symbols, incised words, phrases and collage.
“My paintings have a narrative, but without a beginning or end,” Alexandra said. “They reflect the language of interior experiences, the movement of my psyche, and a rupturing of time and space that might shift one’s perspective to the universal.”
Alexandra has participated in more than 40 solo and group shows both in the United States and abroad. Alexandra has been commissioned to paint murals in the Place de Vosges, Paris, and her work has been used for the cover of eight books of poetry. Gallery presence has been found in Paris, London, Belgrade, New York, and Santa Fe.