Opening Reception: June 11, 6-8pm; Gallery talk at 7pm – juror Shauna Lee Lange
Reception to meet the artist: July 9, 6-8pm; awards ceremony at 7pm
“A vital concept can have a way of refusing boundaries or denying context. It has boundlessness but remains fascinated by detail: feasts on its own intricate findings. It abhors closure; wants constant fussing, unfolding, potential escape routes, disguises, pretense. Art revels in fictions.” – CMDupré
The Torpedo Factory’s Target Gallery is proud to present the 2009 Torpedo Factory Artist of the Year, CMDupré and her solo exhibition titled “The Mysterious Other” from June 10 – July 12. Along with the honor of having a solo exhibition, the artist will also receive an award check of $1,000. The collection of visually lush oil paintings explores dark areas of human existence including the grasping horror of war. Through her use of a grid pattern, the artist retells historical narratives from different viewpoints while utilizing varied approaches to painting. Dupré’s visual weaving of stories leads the viewer through time, crossing boundaries to examine the commonalities of war and how they leave an inconsolable scar on the human spirit.
The Friends of the Torpedo Factory Art Center named CMDupré Torpedo Factory Artist of the Year in January of 2009. Dupré, who has had a studio at the Torpedo Factory for over eight and a half years, was praised by juror Shauna Lee Lange for creating paintings that “achieve visual ecstasy at its best and the work is far beyond the range of her counterparts. The work goes beyond normal convention of color, composition, context, contrast – it’s work that goes beyond talent.” The Friends have been sponsoring the Artist of the Year since 1992.
During the opening reception on June 11, Shauna Lee Lange will be here to discuss Dupré’s work and offer her own insight into the work on exhibit. Dupré will not be present for the June 11 opening because she will be in Italy where she has embarked on studies for the doctorate in visual arts. She was accepted into the graduate program at the Institute For Doctoral Studies in the Visual Arts. She will however be back for a closing reception and award ceremony on July 9 and will be available to answer any questions about her work.
The Target Gallery is the national exhibition space of the Torpedo Factory Art Center. The gallery hosts exhibitions that provide artists from all over the country and the world an opportunity to have their work seen in the DC area. The gallery has a schedule of challenging exhibitions that have far reaching themes that serve to highlight not just current trends in the art world but also reach out to diverse and neglected art groups. For more information about our exhibitions, programming or as artists interested in entering our exhibitions please visit our website and click on Target Gallery News, www.torpedofactory.org. The entire exhibition can be seen online by June 10.
The gallery hours are Monday through Friday 10-6pm; Thursday 10-8pm; and Saturday and Sunday 12-6pm. We are located on the ground floor of the Torpedo Factory Art Center at 105 North Union Street, Old Town Alexandria on the waterfront.
