(New York, NY – Upper East Side) – Garvey|Simon is pleased to present Marjorie Van Cura: Out of Line opening November 6, 2024 at DFN Projects, 16 East 79 Street, New York, NY. The exhibition includes a selection of Van Cura’s abstracted drawings that depict scenes from recent political protests, rallies, and marches. Van Cura captures the tension, passion, and kinetic energy of these demonstrations with her densely packed linework and dynamic compositions, challenging the edges of representation. There will be an opening reception on Wednesday, November 6 from 5-7 PM at 16 East 79 Street, New York, NY 10075. The artist will be present. Gallery hours are Monday through Friday, 11 am - 4 pm, or by appointment at other times.

The murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, along with the overturning of Roe v. Wade, serve as powerful catalysts for Marjorie Van Cura's striking drawings, which are inspired by photographic images of the subsequent protests. Her process begins with a blind contour drawing of her subject.  This process teases out salient anchor points and compositional features of her source material. Her sketches distill the most poignant gestures, becoming highly concentrated versions of their predecessors. As a result, the movement and images in Van Cura’s work takes on their most elemental, almost iconic forms. Though abstracted, the energy of raised arms, the impact of text across banners, and the gravity of government landmarks emanates from her confusion of linework. By isolating and intensifying these motions, Van Cura’s drawings capture the needs, desires, and fortitude of her subjects in their most heightened states.

Because of the spontaneity of her blind contour technique, Van Cura’s lines range from deeply incised, to wobbly and almost fragmented. Layered and repeated in mixed mediums onto translucent film, they knit together to form complex networks of forms and cross-currents of energy. This array of media allows Van Cura to play with the character of her lines; marker and acrylic ink form thick, galvanic strands of color, while graphite lends itself to more frenetic hatch marks. This interplay of linework, occasionally offset by diaphanous watercolor, creates a sense of dimensionality and disorientation. These scenes are not flat or static, but ones of action and volume. 

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Marjorie Van Cura was born in Madison, Wisconsin, and grew up in central Massachusetts. She earned her BFA from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, and MFA from the University of Pennsylvania. She has had additional studies at the Worcester Art Museum and Boston Museum of Fine Arts. Since 2002, her works have been presented in several New York group exhibitions, including Atlantic Gallery, Blue Mountain Gallery, Calico Brooklyn, Dutch Kills Gallery, Factory Fresh, Madelyn Jordon Fine Art, Outlet Brooklyn, The Painting Center, Patchogue Art Gallery, Plaxall Gallery, Scope New York and Storefront Bushwick. Group exhibitions at museums and institutions include The Children’s Museum of Manhattan (2009), the Contemporary Art Center in Peoria (2008, 2020), New York Center for Art & Media, Bethel University (2012), NYPOP Gallery, University of Massachusetts (2018), and the University of Pennsylvania (2001, 2002, 2009). Previous solo exhibitions were presented in 2007 at Mohawk Valley College in Utica, NY, in 2010 at Yes! Gallery in Brooklyn, and in 2022 with Gibson Contemporary at DFN Projects in New York. 

High resolution images are available upon request. Please contact Liz Garvey at liz@garveysimon.com or 917-796-2146 for more information.