Valeri Larko, 2007, Oil on Linen
Valeri Larko
"Paintings from the Edge of the City"
November 6 - December 8Opening Reception: Friday, November 9, 7 - 9 P.M.
domogallery is pleased to announce Valeri Larko: Paintings from the Edge of the City as the next exhibition at domogallery at 447 Springfield Avenue, Summit, NJ. This will be the artist’s first show with domogallery.
Valeri Larko’s painted landscapes examine the merger of nature and urban culture so often found in the periphery of American cities. Finding inspiration in these marginalized landscapes, Larko extracts “beauty & pathos, bizarre juxtapositions that reflect how we, as a society, have altered and continue to alter the environment.” All of her works are created on location, an approach that enables her to form relationships with both the environment and its inhabitants. Informed by the encounters with people she meets while on location, Larko cites the process of painting to be as important as the final work. Sometimes taking months to complete, Larko eloquently captures the strange beauty of these often overlooked urban landscapes.
Valeri Larko was educated at the duCret School of the Arts in Plainfield, New Jersey and the Art Students League in New York City. She has participated in numerous solo and group shows. Notable solo exhibitions include The New Jersey State Museum, Trenton, Safe-T Gallery, Brooklyn, and Johnson and Johnson Corporate Headquarters Gallery, New Brunswick. She has also exhibited at The Jersey City Museum, The Morris Museum, Aljira, and Bruton Street Gallery, London. In 2000, Larko was commissioned by New Jersey Transit and the New Jersey State Council on the Arts to paint a major mural in the Secaucus Transfer Station. Larko is currently the Gallery Director of the Tomasulo Gallery at Union County College, a position she has held since 1996.
Valeri Larko: Paintings from the Edge of the City will be on view at domogallery, 447 Springfield Avenue, Summit, New Jersey 07901, 908-608-0079, November 6 through December 8, 2007. Hours: By Appointment Only.