Katherine Bernhardt
Installation view of Pablo and Efrain, New York, Venus Over Manhattan, 2015
Installation view of Pablo and Efrain, New York, Venus Over Manhattan, 2015
Installation view of Pablo and Efrain, New York, Venus Over Manhattan, 2015
Installation view of Pablo and Efrain, New York, Venus Over Manhattan, 2015
Installation view of Pablo and Efrain, New York, Venus Over Manhattan, 2015
Installation view of Pablo and Efrain, New York, Venus Over Manhattan, 2015
Installation view of Pablo and Efrain, New York, Venus Over Manhattan, 2015
Installation view of Pablo and Efrain, New York, Venus Over Manhattan, 2015
Installation view of Pablo and Efrain, New York, Venus Over Manhattan, 2015
Installation view of Pablo and Efrain, New York, Venus Over Manhattan, 2015
Katherine Bernhardt: Pablo and Efrain
September 9 - October 24, 2015
Opening: Saturday, September 9th, 6:00 - 8:00 pm
VENUS
980 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10075
(New York, NY) – VENUS is pleased to present Pablo and Efrain, an exhibition of new work by painter Katherine Bernhardt, on view beginning September 9, 2015. The exhibition’s title is a nod to the twin artists behind the collective Poncili Creacion, whom the artist met during a recent residency in Puerto Rico. “It’s all about Puerto Rico, so it’s fruit, sharks, water, sea turtles, all tropical,” notes Bernhardt.
For Pablo and Efrain, Bernhardt depicts items both specific to the lush landscape of Puerto Rico and her personal affinity for novel and mundane commodities, such as cigarettes, headphones, sharpies and keyboards. In an outpouring of her own experience and imagination, Bernhardt embeds this hodgepodge of loosely rendered objects within a vibrant color field, creating an imprecise pattern. First sketched on the canvas in a stream of consciousness, the elements are then outlined with spray paint and filled-in with thinned acrylic in an all-in-one-shot technique. Self-aware of her mix of the classical and kitsch, Bernhardt exemplifies the quotidian in a whimsical, gestural style.
Alongside her fine art practice, Bernhardt and her husband Youssef Jdia co-founded Magic Flying Carpets, a website and pop-up supporting and maintaining the weaving traditions of the rural Berber women of Morocco, whose patterning often serve as inspiration for Bernhardt’s compositions. In a similar gesture, Bernhardt will cover the gallery floor with coffee bags sourced from Puerto Rico, fastened together to create a burlap rug over the concrete.
Bernhardt’s solo exhibition at the Manhattan gallery follows FRUIT SALAD, a mural covering the exterior wall of the newly opened Venus Over Los Angeles in DTLA. Unveiled on July 26, the massive colorful still-life is the artist’s first public work.
ABOUT KATHERINE BERNHARDT
Katherine Bernhardt (b. 1975, St Louis, MO) has exhibited her work internationally and throughout the United States, with recent exhibitions at China Art Objects, Los Angeles; CANADA, New York; Roberto Paradise, San Juan, Puerto Rico; Loyal Gallery, Malmo, Sweden; and Carbon12, Dubai, UAE. Forthcoming solo exhibitions include Carl Freedman Gallery, London, UK. Katherine Bernhardt holds an MFA from the School of Visual Arts, and BFA from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
For further information about the exhibition and availability, please contact the gallery at info@venusovermanhattan.com
For all press inquiries related to the exhibition, please email press@venusovermanhattan.com
Katherine Bernhardt
Cantaloupe and Toilet Paper, Café Mallorca, 2015
acrylic and spray paint on canvas
48 x 36 in
121.9 x 91.4 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
Jungle Office, 2015
acrylic and spray paint on canvas
96 x 120 in
243.8 x 304.8 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
Jungle Food, 2015
acrylic and spray paint on canvas
96 x 120 in
243.8 x 304.8 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
Jungle Snack, 2015
acrylic and spray paint on canvas
96 x 120 in
243.8 x 304.8 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
Mr. Coffee, Papaya, and Cigarettes, 2015
acrylic and spray paint on canvas
96 x 120 in
243.8 x 304.8 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
Plantains, Bananas, Doritos, and Sharpies, 2015
acrylic and spray paint on canvas
96 x 120 in
243.8 x 304.8 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
Reef, 2015
acrylic and spray paint on canvas
96 x 120 in
243.8 x 304.8 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
Sea Turtles, Sharpies, and Tostones, 2015
acrylic and spray paint on canvas
96 x 120 in
243.8 x 304.8 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
Sharks, Plantains, and Cigarettes, 2015
acrylic and spray paint on canvas
96 x 120 in
243.8 x 304.8 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
Sharks, Toilet Paper, and Plantains, 2015
acrylic and spray paint on canvas
78 x 72 in
198.1 x 182.9 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
Swimming with Sharks, 2015
acrylic and spray paint on canvas
96 x 120 in
243.8 x 304.8 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
The Gallery Inn, 2015
acrylic and spray paint on canvas
84 x 96 in
213.4 x 243.8 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
Tropical Unisex, 2015
acrylic and spray paint on canvas
78 x 76 in
198.1 x 193 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
Turtles and Socks, 2015
acrylic and spray paint on canvas
78 x 76 in
198.1 x 193 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
Cig on Purple. Purple Gorgeous, 2015
acrylic and spray paint on canvas
12 x 36 in
30.5 x 91.4 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
Cigarette on Green, 2015
acrylic and spray paint on canvas
12 x 36 in
30.5 x 91.4 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
Smoking Cigarette on Black, 2015
acrylic and spray paint on canvas
12 x 36 in
30.5 x 91.4 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
99 Cents, 2015
acrylic on burlap
40 x 26 in
101.6 x 66 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
Bananas, 2015
acrylic on burlap
40 x 26 in
101.6 x 66 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
Cigarette, 2015
acrylic on burlap
40 x 26 in
101.6 x 66 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
Bananas, 2015
acrylic on burlap
40 x 26 in
101.6 x 66 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
Great Whites, 2015
acrylic on burlap
40 x 26 in
101.6 x 66 cm
Katherine Bernhardt
Toucan, 2015
acrylic on burlap
40 x 26 in
101.6 x 66 cm