Fearless, independent and scandalous
Atlantic Center’s Harris House presents he extraordinary works of
John Westmark
Exhibition Dates:
January 7, 2012 – February 17, 2012
Opening Reception:
Saturday, January 7, 4 - 7 p.m.
With sewing patters and paint John Westmark depicts women of strength and courage. “I am interested in the metaphorical potential of unorthodox materials.” says Westmark. “The fragile paper pattern also presents a dichotomy between male and female stereotypes”.
Within his figurative works, the sewing patterns used are reinterpreted from their usual functional to present the female figure as “an agent of revolt in the form of resolute warriors or within the controlled setting of the formal society portrait”. In both instances the identity of the figure is denied by wraps, bonnets and bound faces. The denial of a specific identity suggests an ambiguity of viewpoint, an anonymous “everywoman,” not invisible, but fractious.
Westmark’s added textual narrative from contemporary feminist writing and criticism disrupts the nostalgic or stereotypical notion of “women’s work” and admits an aggressive feminist dialogue into the visual conversation. The viewer is asked to read both the material and the image, adding another layer to the conceptual narrative.
The women depicted in these paintings are no doubt fearless, independent and scandalous, and as the father of two young girls,” says Westmark, “I hope for nothing less.”
John Westmark’s work has been exhibited widely and is held in collections worldwide, including Collectors Contemporary, Singapore; the Council on Foreign Relations, Washington, DC; the Frederick R. Weisman Foundation in Los Angeles, and the Bemis Center for Contemporary Art, Omaha, NE.
John was recently featured in New American Paintings (Summer, 2010), and has been selected for the Vermont Studio Center Artist-in-Residence for the summer of 2011, and is a 2011 Pollock-Krasner Grantee. John received an MFA from the University of Florida and a BFA from the Kansas City Art Institute. He presently works and lives in Gainesville, Florida.
“John Westmark” will be on display at Atlantic Center’s Harris House Gallery located at 214 S. Riverside Drive in New Smyrna Beach from January 7, 2012 – February 17, 2012. The exhibition is free and open to the public. Gallery Hours: Tuesday-Friday, 10 am – 4 pm. For more information, please call 386-423-1753 or visit
Atlantic Center for the Arts’ Harris House
214 S. Riverside Drive
New Smyrna Beach, FL 32168
t. 386-423-1753
Gallery Hours: Tuesday - Friday, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Photo 1: “Fruitful Means” by John Westmark, acrylic & paper clothing patterns on canvas, 48” x 36”, 2010
Photo 2: “Hold the Line” by John Westmark, acrylic & paper clothing patterns on canvas, 60” x 72”
