Monday, October 28, 2013

REVIEW - Sarah Awad “The Women” at Diane Rosenstein Fine Arts, Hollywood, California


When looking at contemporary painting, many artists combine and use various styles and approaches that may seem contradictory, and at times, challenges notions of a pure style or a visual language. Sarah Awad, in her first solo show at Diane Rosenstein Fine Arts, approaches painting and the structure of the nude figure using various modes from the modern past.

Sarah Awad masterfully is able to combine elements of both modernism and post modernist style. The figures and the composition allude to the early 20th Century painters such as Matisse and Picasso. The composition and pastel colors are reminiscent of Neo-Expressionist painters such as David Salle and Eric Fischel. The women in her paintings are cast in various poses. They’re at times sitting and standing, and the color insinuates both passion and intensity. The figures show both a strength and vulnerability with their poses. The area around the women is not recognizable as to any location. However, the structure points to an architectural place where these women exist as beings in an abstracted - imagined place. As I walk through the gallery, I am struck by the serenity and the confidence of the figures. These women are beautiful. They are figures of both desire and courage as they stand before the viewer. Awad loves these women as both structures and as symbols of nature that is both free and bold. 

Awad's painting are beautiful, and a show that is definitely worth a visit. A must see.

Sarah Awad (USA, b. 1981) received her BFA from Art Center College of Design, Pasadena, CA (2007), and an MFA from UCLA (2011). This year, her paintings were included in three important group shows: Rogue Wave '13 (15 Artists From Los Angeles) at L.A. Louver Gallery, Venice, CA; First Anniversary Exhibition of Paintings and Sculpture and Photographs at DRFA; and Paradox Maintenance Technicians at the Torrance Art Museum, Torrance, CA (2013). Sarah Awad lives and works in Los Angeles.

Sarah Awad
October 19, 2013 to November 30, 2013

Diane Rosenstein Fine Art
831 N. Highland Ave. 
Hollywood, CA 90038
(323) 397-9225














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