Valentina Battler
Form & Fancy
fordPROJECT New York
April 17 – June 1, 2012
Form and Fancy explores the extent of human emotion through artistic representation of figure and form. Combining traditional and contemporary Chinese Ink Painting techniques, Battler’s new works on Yupo paper reflect an impressionistic style. Her additional works on Xuan paper are rooted in the Yin Yang philosophy’s principle of complementary contradiction.
Contrasting figure and fantasy with abstraction, Battler invites the viewer to experience the world reinterpreted through her own perspective as seen through the metaphorical “looking glass.” Forms and subjects are employed as representations of emotional expression from contemplation, passion and aggression to expectation and disappointment. While subjects vary from dueling beasts and Samurai warriors to tranquil landscapes and delicate figures, these stylized and skillfully executed compositions radiate a dynamic energy through deliberate brush strokes and the softer abstract backgrounds into which the forms melt.
Russian-born, Valentina Battler is a classically trained concert pianist and graduate of the St. Petersburg Conservatory. A self-taught artist, Battler applied the same dedication and focus that her musical training afforded her to the study and practice of the Chinese Ink Painting tradition. Internationally recognized for her skill and mastery of technique, Battler has had solo exhibitions in Paris, Moscow and Shanghai and her paintings can be found in public and private collections around the world.
fordPROJECT first presented Battler’s work in 2011 as part of the gallery’s inaugural exhibition. Form and Fancy is the first exhibition for which fordPROJECT will dedicate its bi-level penthouse space entirely to the presentation and exploration of a single artist’s work.
