OUTSIDE THE LINES / ART ON THE EDGE in Atlanta
By JERRY CULLUM
For accessAtlanta
Published on: 05/10/2007
THE FOLK AND fairy tales of old are full of "cautionary tales" for young women, warnings of what could go wrong in their lives if they aren't careful.
Mimi Hashimoto and Beth McNair take a contemporary approach to that model in their show at House of Colors.
Beth McNair uses girls in pieces such as "Strangled by a Slipper" to demonstrate their powerlessness if they aren't careful.
Hashimoto's sculptures refer to dangerously ill-advised leaps, the temptations of forbidden fruit that the apple traditionally symbolizes and a psychological hunger symbolized by a literal hole in a figure where its stomach ought to be. Her paintings, likewise, use mythic gods as analogies for present-day challenges.
McNair's paintings also present new spins on old stories. Her girls, with identical pageboy haircuts, are often literally powerless because they have stubby bones where their hands ought to be.
In one piece, "Variation on a Repetition," they have brooms instead of arms or flowers that can only be watered by tipping the can balanced unsteadily atop them. Some of McNair's allegorical girls have arms that terminate in grafted-on children, while others have adoring rabbits adhering firmly to their arms like furry mittens.
"The Cupcake Reader," McNair's cartoon zine/artist's statement, explains the business about variation and repetition that's posited in the paintings of the handless girl and bunnies. If the argument escapes you, McNair's brilliant drawing substitutes beautifully for full understanding.
• THE 411: Through May 15. 10:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Mondays-Saturdays. House of Colors, 690 Miami Circle, Suite 700, Atlanta. 404-233-6738.
— Jerry Cullum
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VIZARTS: OUTSIDE THE LINES: Milestone worth dancing about
By Jerry Cullum
For the Journal-Constitution
Published on: 01/10/2008
House of Colors' 50th anniversary exhibition, "Something Old, Something New," features three generations of artists, beginning with portrait paintings by the late gallery founder Frances Piel and arriving at the present through new work by the well-known MB Andrews and the emerging young African-American collage artist Michael Jones.
These days Andrews is known as a tango performer as well as a visual artist, and her Saturday artist's talk about her figure studies will be more a dance performance than an explanation of her artwork.
The subtle lines of her Xerox transfers on Mylar contrast effectively with the vivid color range of Jones' mixed-media pieces that incorporate found objects. His pictures of city streets use torn-off sides of cardboard boxes, for example.
House of Colors has survived through a half-century by never abandoning the old-school concept of combining an exhibition space with a framing business. Present owner Woody Woodward took over when Piel retired 18 or so years ago.
Bringing in the expertise of outside curator and artist Kathleen Rapp, the space has found a new way to accomplish an old mission.
> THE 411: "Something Old, Something New: 50th Anniversary Exhibition, Francis Piel, Michael Jones, MB Andrews." Through Jan. 25. 10:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Mondays-Saturdays. MB Andrews tango performance 2 p.m. Saturday. Closing reception 6-9 p.m. Jan. 25. House of Colors Gallery, 690 Miami Circle, Suite 700. 404-233-6738.
