HELLO MODERN ART-Leslie Holt May 8, 2010

“Hello Modern Art”
Leslie Holt
http://phdstl.com/hello_masterpiece2.html

Miniature Oil Paintings visited by Hello Kitty
who delivers satirical commentary about the awe inspiring and sometimes puzzling world of modern art.

Opening Reception is Saturday, May 15, 2010 - 7:00 - 10:00 p.m.

For her second exhibit at PHD gallery, Leslie Holt brings a new Hello Masterpiece series home to St. Louis. This time the legendary “Hello Kitty” gallivants through the “ism’s’ of the 19th and 20th centuries, landing on some inveterate favorites and controversial groundbreakers. Forty miniature oil on canvas masterpieces ranging in size from 4 x 6” to 8 x 10” are on view May 8 through June 12, 2010, with a free opening reception for the artist Saturday, May 15, 2010 from 7:00 – 10:00PM. (10% of ALL sales from “Hello Modern Art” will be donated to VSA arts of Missouri, an emerging statewide organization promoting access to the arts for people with disabilities.)

Throw away your art history textbook, and Hello Kitty will guide you through the sometimes challenging maze of modernity--from the beautiful to the profane, the pleasing to the controversial, leaping between representational narratives to abstract masterpieces. Nothing is sacred in this series as Hello Kitty eschews the ivory tower for her preferred universe of playful juxtaposition in these masterworks... Whether donning scuba gear in Monet’s atmospheric Water Lilies or carrying a tray of ice cream in Hopper’s Night Hawks, Hello Kitty’s friendly wave beckons you to behold the “genius” of the past 150 years.

Holt’s Hello Masterpiece returns to St. Louis after a national tour including stops in Washington DC, Memphis, New York, Oregon, Santa Fe, and Miami. Come find out what the Washington Post describes as a “charming, wallet friendly exhibition” in which Hello Kitty is a “trickster figure that plays us for laughs… sometimes intrusive and occasionally sacrilegious, Hello Kitty comes off as a precocious child, charming but eager to sass.”

Leslie Holt is from Bethesda, MD and has lived in St. Louis, MO for over15 years. She has a BFA in Painting from Washington University in St. Louis and an MFA in Painting from Washington State University. She has worked as an advocate and social worker for people with disabilities and people living in poverty. Currently she teaches art at Fontbonne University and Lewis and Clark Community College, and coordinates the Pediatricians in Community program at Washington University School of Medicine. In addition Holt is board president of VSA Arts of Missouri, an organization dedicated to access to the arts for people with disabilities. 10% of all sales of her work will be donated to VSA Arts of Missouri.

VSA arts of Missouri is an emerging statewide organization promoting access to the arts for people with disabilities. From assisting arts organizations to become more accessible, to providing mentorship and professional opportunities to artists, VSA Arts of Missouri is the statewide resource on arts and disability. We envision a truly inclusive community where people with disabilities participate in the same professional development, educational and leisure opportunities in the arts as people without disabilities. http://www.vsamissouri.org