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Carmella Jarvi
New Works: Women in Water
in the Stanback Hall Gallery
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| I am best known for my paintings of women in pools. This life-long fascination with water and the human form is seen in my ongoing series of figures in water. Water has always been integral to my artwork. I am simply obsessed with the environment of water. Water is ubiquitous & yet personal and most everyone can connect with the act of swimming.
I dont paint swimming in the traditional sense. Instead, most often, I paint a solitary woman moving through water, a private moment of introspection captured. These paintings of submerged female figures are powerful and sensual, not to mention vulnerable. Sometimes the women are viewed from outside of the pool and are totally faceless. Many times they seem to be unaware of anyone else.
My earlier oil paintings from 2010, like Rest, are more monochromatic and textured. In this one, I began by working from photos shot inside the pool, underneath the water (with underwater camera, weight belt & goggles). This show represents several directions for my women in water paintings, including abstract close up portraits as well as a more loose and painterly approach.
For years I have painted with pastel and oil. Whatever the material or color palette, my goal is to capture the depth and movement of water with layered marks
I want the viewer to feel the water.
When asked Why water? I usually explain my earliest memories involve water. There were beach trips, my grandparents house at Lake Norman, and time playing in swimming pools or escaping in a bathtub. For most of my life, I have been obsessed with water.
Carmella Jarvi
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Thank You to the Waterworks Advocates:
F&M Bank
The Late Katharine W. Osborne
James G. & The Late Christine P. Whitton
| Waterworks Visual Arts Center 123 East Liberty Street Salisbury, NC 28144 704.636.1882
| Gallery Hours Monday-Friday 10-5 Thursday until 7 pm Saturday 11-3 There is no charge to tour our galleries
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