Valeri Larko – Location, Location, Location

Lyons Wier Gallery is pleased to announce our representation of artist Valeri Larko and her upcoming solo exhibition, “Location, Location, Location”.

I first became aware of Valeri’s work a few years ago by way of gallerist John Cacciola. John had presented her work at several art fairs and I was always struck by the natural quality of the work. There is something wonderfully romantic about an artist that gathers their materials each day and trudges out into the world to capture the fleeting moments of atmosphere and light. The fact that Valeri is a plein air painter in the wilds of outer boroughs of New York City is a herculean feat in itself.

Valeri’s paintings oscillate between sheer artistic talent and urban documentation. Each painting encapsulates a particular zeitgeist illustrating the evolution of urban expansion and decay. The one thing that is certainly apparent in New York City is how neighborhoods and communities constantly change. Entire city blocks seem to transform overnight and Valeri is out there everyday providing an historical record of these communities through her artistic lens and the liberties it affords.

The artist states, “For most of my career I have been fascinated by the built world and in particular the jumble of rusting industrial sites, aging infrastructure and funky waterways that populated the outskirts of America’s urban centers and the stories these places tell about contemporary life and culture.

All of my landscapes are painted on location. I spend hours roaming around an area until I find something that resonates with me. Once I do, I set up my easel and return to a site many times. A large painting can take up to two and a half months to complete. The process of painting on location over a long period of time is crucial to my working method because it allows me to form a deeper connection to a particular place through careful observation and personal interaction with the people I meet there. While talking to people in the area, I learn a lot about the sites that I am painting.

Growing up and living in Northern New Jersey most of my life surrounded by endless miles of industrial parks, highways and shopping malls has contributed to my fascination with the built environment. In 2004, I moved from my long-time residence in New Jersey to New Rochelle, New York. Since then I have been painting in the outer boroughs of New York City, primarily in the Bronx but also in Brooklyn and Queens.”

Valeri Larko’s paintings have been exhibited in museums and galleries in the US and Europe, including The Bronx Museum, New York, Morris Museum, Morristown, NJ, Hunterdon Art Museum, Clinton, NJ, New Jersey State Museum, Trenton, NJ, Jersey City Museum, NJ, Katonah Museum of Art, Katonah, NY, The National Academy of Sciences, Washington, D.C, Barbara Frigerio Gallery, Milan, Italy and the American Embassy in Minsk, Belarus. The artist lives and works in New Rochelle, New York.

Gallery hours Tues-Sat 11 am – 6 pm

www.lyonswiergallery.com

Location:
Lyons Wier Gallery
542 West 24th Street
10011 New York, NY
United States