Four Exhibitions Open during April First Thursday at The Studios of Key West

Small Works Show, 101 Key West portraits, and exhibitions by Lisa Esposito and Kerry Hoeppner open April 4 from 6-8pm

[Key West, FL] Four new shows open at The Studios of Key West during the First Thursday event on April 4 from 6-8pm. Exhibitions include 101 watercolor portraits of Key West community members painted by Artist-in-Residence Brenda Zlamany, Lemonade Stand Gallery’s ever-popular Small Works Show, mixed-media work by Lisa Esposito, and palm tree sculptures by Kerry Hoeppner.

In February, Artist-in-Residence Brenda Zlamany invited 101 Key Westers to pose for watercolor portraits as part of her ongoing “The Itinerant Portraitist” series, in which she travels the globe to explore the positive effects of painted portraiture. Previous chapters have included the Aboriginal population from Taiwan, girls from an orphanage in the United Arab Emirates, taxicab drivers in Cuba, artists in Brooklyn, and elderly and disabled people in a nursing home in the Bronx.

Zlamany uses the camera lucida, a device for drawing that dates back to the Renaissance and that promotes a two-way exchange between the artist and the subject. She aimed to capture a wide cross-section of the community, and her Key West subjects include drag queens, teachers, fishermen, MARC House residents, artists, and even Mayor Teri Johnston. All the portraits will be on view in the XOJ Gallery.

The Small Works Show, curated by Lemonade Stand Gallery, will take over the Sanger Gallery with over 170 works from artists across the US and around the world. Works shown do not exceed 10 inches in any direction, and this year’s entries include sculptures, paintings, drawings, photographs, and small hand-made books, at a wide range of price points.

Opening in the Zabar Project Gallery is “10,000 Memories Deep,” a series of mixed media images by Lisa Esposito. Like dreams, Esposito’s images are fragmented yet connected, familiar yet uncertain; past meets present, form and color traverse time, and personal narratives prevail.

Kerry Hoeppner’s “Art of the Palm,” opens in the Zabar Lobby Gallery. An Anne McKee Artist Fund grant recipient and true artist of the Keys, Hoeppner aims to “show people what can be made from nature’s debris.“  Known for his ability to turn palm fronds, coconuts and other natural bits into whimsical sculptural creations, his recent collection includes birds, bumblebees, and even a bust of Einstein.

All four exhibitions will remain on view at The Studios of Key West, 533 Eaton Street, through April 25. The Studios of Key West’s galleries are open Tuesday through Saturday, 10am – 4pm. More information can be found at www.tskw.org.

 

Brenda Zlamany’s “100 + 1: Portraits in Key West” is sponsored by Historic Key West Inns. “10,000 Memories Deep” by Lisa Esposito is sponsored by Key TV. Kerry Hoeppner’s “Art of the Palm” is supported by Anne McKee Artist Fund and is sponsored by Kilwin’s.

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