hpgrp gallery New York - Upcoming Exhibition

Taking artistic cues from Celebration, Florida. Connected directly to Walt Disney parks, the town of Celebration allows residents to drive to Disney properties with no need to use streets busy with traffic. Celebration was built as a community to espouse a social inclusion reminiscent of the good old days with events catering to friends and family.

Celebration
Margaret Murphy

May 29 - June 30, 2009

Opening Reception: Friday, May 29, 6-8pm

A sweet nostalgia for (allegedly) better times.

hpgrp gallery New York is pleased to feature Margaret Murphy's newest works inspired by idyllic town Celebration, Florida. Built in the midst of Disney World’s charm, the town of Celebration offers visitors a modern take on a time when manners meant something and social traditions were cherished.

Margaret's colorful paintings speak of the enduring perceptions and misconceptions surrounding contemporary life. As pinned down by our trinkets, pastimes and values, these paintings express the simple yet complex ideologies surrounding social graces and expectations in tandem with the excesses of American consumption.

Previous Exhibitions

"Margaret Murphy is one of those artists who can really make you see the world differently. She finds her starting point in domestic objects and patterns, but brings a sensibility to bear that wrests a true poetry out of the accidental banalities of the everyday."

- Robert Ayers, Senior Editor, ArtInfo.com

Artist Statement:
Using the town of Celebration, Florida as my inspiration, I am exploring the nostalgic and contradictory nature of contemporary life as evidenced by mass-produced objects, documentary photography and decorative motifs.

As always, the contradictions of contemporary life are what interest me. Using the ubiquitous 99 cent store figurines as protagonists, I created a contemporary Altar painting that depicts a typical American family as the witnesses to the crucified Christ. This family consists of parents in their wedding attire, an oversized baby, adorable siblings and the family dog. The triptych format is a nod to Altar paintings of the past.

Love is explored through the two large paintings of couples looking dreamily into the distance wearing old-fashioned clothing but with a hint of contemporary life peeking through in their accessories.

The series of smaller mixed media works on paper (silk screen, digital print and acrylic paint on paper) take the idea of contradictions a step further by contrasting photographic images of urban life: a Katrina trailer park or the U.S./Mexican border against an idealized and sentimental painting of a figurine. Using the same decorative motif throughout the works in this show creates a dialogue between the works.

- Margaret Murphy

Bio

Born in Baltimore, MD, from an early age Margaret was surrounded by elements of kitsch, religious icons, and an appreciation for the peculiar. Murphy’s paintings are informed by material culture and its ability to reflect, influence, and mis-represent views of gender, culture, class and history. Rendered in a realistic style, Murphy’s paintings address these personal and societal concerns in a provocative way.

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