Dylan Haviland – General Assignment Reporter
Anne Doris- Eisner’s self-portrait strayed from the norm audiences usually expect when exhibiting artwork. Doris- Eisner, an art education alumni from Southern Connecticut State University, featured pieces included the work titled ‘River of Time.’
‘River of Time’ requires a closer look to fully take in the work, the piece flows with bold black and white strokes to create a natural harmony of shading. The portrait strongly resembles the aquatic aspect of nature and its importance to the artist.
The unique portraitures from various artists is an exhibit hosted by The Arts Council of Greater New Haven. The gallery will run until Jan 2 for audiences to spectate.
Across from the ‘River of Time’ the curator of the event, Marissa Rozanski, had her statement amongst the art pieces.
“More Than a Face aims to reinterpret the ideas of self- portraiture by highlighting the symbols used in works of art that speak to the nature of the artist just as much as, if not more than the face of the event,” read off a piece of Rozanski’s statement.
The work featured by the artists represent a personal and humbling experience in which they expressed themselves through abstract art. The canvases each varied wildly from each other with vastly different sizes and drawing styles. ‘More Than a Face’s artwork stretched down a lobby with every picture changing texture and color, reflecting on the artist’s inner being.
“The work in this exhibit reflects the identity of each artist in some way. The theme of identity is much broader than self-portraiture,” said artist Jessica Cuni. “The work that I put in the show can be seen as a symbolic self-portrait, but it also represents my background, my interests, and the connections that I draw about the world around me. The connections that I explore in my work stem from my collective past experiences, which also obviously inform my identity.”
Her work featured the intriguing piece, ‘Untitled’ a black and white piece that slowly fades into gray. The image itself represented in the painting has the appearance of a brain scan mixed with a Rorschach.
The work serves to have visitors consider the artists life and what the drawing means to them, in addition to what one may find about themselves.
“There’s so many ways of knowing about a person rather than just saying what they look like on the surface,” said Doris- Eisner. “So I’m really excited about a show like this because it makes people slow down and look more closely at the clues, the symbolism and metaphors that are within every piece. The title itself makes you have to do a little work to figure out the theme, what is this artist trying to say.”
She mentioned that a large majority of her inspiration comes from nature, which she takes great joy in especially while working in the garden where everything is open.
“This work to me, using nature is overcoming challenges and how to grow and keep going despite the crazy things that come at you in life because there will always be that. How do you overcome and go on living and focusing on the beauty and goodness in life,” said Doris-Eisner. “It’s all right there in front of us with nature.”
Doris-Eisner encourages any art students that visit the exhibit to take in as much as possible.
“To trust in themselves and to look inside themselves to the things that really matter to them,” said Doris-Eisner. “Make that the source of their art and creative expression because then it would have more power and connect to the world, not being afraid to be themselves and find their own voice.”
Photo Credit: Dylan Haviland