Brooklyn, NY– Vicki Behm views fragments of daily life in detail, noting idiosyncrasies and ironies with warmth and gentle mirth. In her second solo exhibition at 440 Gallery, New Drawings: Mexico and New York City, Behm presents her latest set of lively black ink drawings on hand made paper and collages. Her works comprise images she encounters in her hometown of New York City and Oaxaca, Mexico, where she spends her summers: old bicycles, Volkswagen beetles, antique typewriters, denizens of Union Square Park, neighborhood cafés, plates of tarts, cheese displays, bottles of tequila, cowboy boots at a flea market. She incorporates labels from food packages and bottles, and 1920s postage stamps from Oaxaca. The drawings have a flattened and tilted perspective; the negative space competing for interest with the subject. Behm demonstrates an expressive line quality and lyrical style. The inclusion of incidental components reflects a meticulous attention to her surroundings, while keeping a light playfulness at the heart of each image.
New Drawings: Mexico and New York City opens on Thursday, January 16 and will run through February 23, 2014. The public is welcome to an Opening Reception on Saturday, January 18, 2:00 – 5:00 PM. Several events related to the exhibition are planned, including a hands-on workshop for children, a cooking demonstration and viewing of short films. More information will be available at www.440gallery.com.
In addition to the drawings and collages, available for sale will be: limited editions of two different hand-made books of drawings, “Keep Your Fork There’s Pie” and “I Always Wanted One;” Moleskine journals with hand-printed covers; and print reproductions and cards.
Vicki Behm grew up in St. Louis, Missouri. She received her bachelor and master degrees in Journalism and Design from the University of Missouri-Columbia. She studied painting at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Her work has been exhibited in Chicago and New York, and have been collected by architects, corporations and individuals. Two of her books were published on-line by Time, Inc., and were promoted on-line and television. Every summer Victoria Behm sets up a studio in Mexico. After many years she still finds fresh inspiration for her drawings and collages. She is attracted to the culture where the old and ancient are evident in a modern world: chocolate being crushed in giant grinders; typewriters being repaired and used; hand made pottery holding garlic peanuts. The rest of her year is spent at home in New York City where she draws daily.
The 440 Gallery is in Park Slope, convenient to the F, M, and R subways. The gallery is open Thursday and Friday, 4:00 – 7:00 PM, Saturday and Sunday, 11:00 AM – 7:00 PM, or by appointment. Check the gallery’s website, www.440gallery.com, for more information.
