Natalie Westbrook
Mother of Pearl
October 15 - November 19, 2022
Keijsers Koning is pleased to present Mother of Pearl, an exhibition of new works by Natalie Westbrook. This is the artist’s first solo show with the gallery. The exhibition features seven new paintings, and Westbrook’s first voyage into sculpture. The work explores themes of progeny and pathos conjured through an imaginative world and variably integrated material techniques.
Conversations with the artist about the exhibition can be viewed here
Keijsers Koning is pleased to present Mother of Pearl, an exhibition of new works by Natalie Westbrook. This is the artist’s first solo show with the gallery. The exhibition features seven new paintings, and Westbrook’s first voyage into sculpture. The work explores themes of progeny and pathos conjured through an imaginative world and variably integrated material techniques.
The title Mother of Pearl refers to the iridescent interior of a mollusk, emerging from a living organism forming a protective shell. The shell is composed of the same material as the pearl. The latter is highly sought after; the shell, although vital, is usually a mere throwaway. It is this cultural value that becomes a consideration within the work, as questions of aesthetics and its values are tested.
The exhibition’s tone is set by a 12 foot painting titled The Hunt, a loose reference to Peter Paul Rubens’ painting The Hippopotamus and Crocodile Hunt. The Hunt is elaborate in its depictions, color and forms, and shares the theatrical extravagance of the Baroque masterpiece. The difference is set within Westbrook’s ability to depict and animate inner narration and allow the viewer into a psychological interior.
The exhibition space is divided by the interjection of the sculptures, resting on pedestals that vary in height and width. This aberration adds to the displacement of objects that feel familiar yet divergent in space, texture, and color. The sculptures are a physical manifestation and expansion of the dialogue that one finds in the canvas. Both slip between the natural world and cultural constructions, making the imaginative subconscious realm even more palpable.
Slithering through these constructs are two sculptures of snakes; symbolizing both good and evil, venom and medicine, death and regeneration. The duality allows for an awakening, as we look through each work at our own experience of youth— raw, unrefined yet taking form.
Natalie Westbrook received her BFA from The Cooper Union, her MA in Critical and Curatorial Studies from the University of Louisville, and her MFA in Painting and Printmaking from the Yale University School of Art where she received the Robert Schoelkopf Memorial Travel Grant, and the Carol Schlosberg Memorial Prize for Excellence in Painting.
Westbrook has exhibited internationally, including shows with the Hole Gallery, NY/LA; Rarity Gallery, Mykonos, Greece; Galleri Golsa, Oslo, Norway; Artformosa, Taipei City, Taiwan; Paris Contemporary Art Show, Paris, France; Robert Miller Gallery, New York, NY; Freight+Volume, New York, NY; Mindy Solomon, Miami, FL; and Wonzimer Gallery, Los Angeles, CA. The artist’s work is held in private and public collections, including Markel Corporation, Red Bank, NJ; Capital One, Richmond, VA; and Art Bank Program, US Department of State, Washington, DC; and Haleakala National Park, Maui, HI.
For more information or visuals, please contact info@keijserskoning.com or call: 469-961-5391
