VISUAL ARTS + MUSEUMS

Hooks-Epstein Galleries will present two solo exhibitions featuring James Michael Starr and Stephanie Trenchard. The exhibitions open Saturday, June 5, 2010, at 11:00 am. A reception for the artists will follow from 6:00 to 8:00 pm.

In Stranger in a Strange Land, James Michael Starr feels he is looking out on what appears to be a fractured world. Through his work, he attempts to "nail it, screw it and glue it back together again." Such as in Fluctuare, he ignores history and he is condemned to reassemble the broken pieces according to his distorted and romantic view of things.

James Michael Starr received his BA from Southern Nazarene University in Bethany, OK. Starr's collages and found-object sculptures have appeared in galleries and exhibitions in the U.S. and abroad, most recently in a solo show at the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts. His work has been selected for four consecutive Critic's Choice exhibitions at the Dallas Center for Contemporary Art and included by invitation in the 2001 International Exhibition of Contemporary Collage in Paris, France. His work has also been recently selected for reproduction in the 2006 French survey of contemporary collage, "L'art du Collage a L'aube du Vingt et Unieme Siecle (The Art of Collage at the Dawn of the Twenty-First Century)"

To quote Stephanie Trenchard, "The title of my show, Ensemble 2010, refers to the cast of characters, now iconized, that became efficient vignettes." Trenchard's narratives reflect a longing for continuity with the past and issues of motherhood, creative ambition, mental well-being and sexuality are revealed. She tells stories that include biographical details and actual or imagined physical objects. She refers to old photos and sketches found in biographies, newspapers or artists' monographs for reference and inspiration.

Stephanie Trenchard received a BFA in painting from Illinois State University. She and her husband, Jeremy Popelka, share their Door County, Wisconsin hot glass studio where they create work, teach and host guest artists. Trenchard was recently awarded the Jurors Award at the Annual Contemporary Crafts at the Mesa Art Center in Mesa, AZ. She taught at the University of Wisconsin in 2008 and the Pratt Fine Arts Center in 2010. Trenchard was also a visiting artist for Women in Glass in Louisville, KY in 2008.

We will have an artist talk for Stephanie Trenchard, Saturday, June 19, 2010. More details to follow!

Stranger in a Strange Land and Ensemble 2010 continue through July 3, 2010.

Pictured above:   James Michael Starr, Fluctuare, 2009, steel pipe, steel rods, book and rotogravure newspaper images.