ANINA GERCHICK Thresholds and Guardians Chashama 461 Studio Gallery

Drawing from influences ranging from the art of the beautiful grotesque to Yogic philosophy and practice, these newest works present volatile landscapes attended by mythic escorts. Water, the key element, cycles through its three physical states, ignoring human expectation. Disparate elements of Seuss-like structures are combined with fractal patterning in icebergs, skies, and streams. Gerchick creates dialogues between the bizarre and the natural by painting symmetries, hybrids and contrasts. Her work combines tradition with experimentation to create new forms, incorporating a deep foundation in classical painting and the medium’s material physicality, while employing a contemporary vocabulary that reflects the precarious balance of the natural environment.

This is Anina Gerchick’s first exhibition with Chashama, and her first in Harlem, where she maintains her studio. During the exhibition, the gallery will also host a series of live music performances and film screenings curated by the artist; a schedule of these events will be forthcoming.

Born in New York City, Anina Gerchick attended Princeton University, apprenticed at the Art Students League, and received an MFA in Painting from Bard College. She was a visiting artist at the American Academy in Rome in 2010, and has taught painting at the New York Academy of Art, The University of Georgia, and Ohio University. Her work has been shown throughout the US, Brazil, and Italy, most recently as part of the exhibition, Undercurrents: Experimental Ecosystems in Recent Art, curated by the Whitney Independent Program at The Kitchen in New York City in 2010.

This exhibition is supported in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.