VISUAL ARTS + MUSEUMS

Hooks-Epstein Galleries, participating in ArtHouston 2009, will present a solo exhibition featuring emerging Houston artist, Mayuko Gray. The exhibition opens Saturday, July 11, 2009 at 11:00 a.m. A reception for the artist will follow from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.

In Midnight Skinny-Dipping, Gray's compositions are drawn intuitively in the middle of the night. She lets her pen move freely on the surface of the paper as her mind drifts off. Gray states, "My mind leaves my physical body and takes a big dip into a large body of water beneath which my thoughts and memories reside. A long cord connects my mind and the physical body safely during my exploration; however, it sometimes gets dangerously tangled up with obstacles and creatures that my mind encounters under the water."

Gray broke down her subjects into small parts and segments. She wanted to focus more on the physical act of drawing; the scratching of paper and pen, rather than constantly stopping to pay attention to the accuracy and proportion.

Mayuko Gray received her BFA in 2004 and MFA in 2007 from the University of Houston. She has been in group exhibitions at the Galveston Arts Center and the Blaffer Gallery. Mayuko is an Adjunct Professor at the College of the Mainland in Texas City, TX.

Midnight Skinny-Dipping will continue through August 15, 2009.

Pictured above:  Mayuko Gray, detail Summer Night, 2009, ink on paper, 5 3/4 x 5 1/2."   (full image, below)