'The Man Show' comes to CLU art gallery

Lack of male subjects in previous show led to exhibit

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Steven DaLuz works on "Searching," which is in "The Man Show."

(THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – Feb. 14, 2013) A 2011 exhibit dedicated to romantic figures that featured a noticeable lack of male subjects led to the next display in California Lutheran University’s Kwan Fong Gallery of Art and Culture – “The Man Show.”

Works by leading figurative artists depicting 21st-century men will be exhibited from Thursday, March 7, through Thursday, April 18. An opening reception will be held at 7 p.m. Saturday, March 9.

Several female visitors to “The New Romantic Figure” exhibit two years ago commented on the fact that there were only two paintings of men. Wondering whether men were being neglected as artistic subjects today, curator Michael Pearce responded by organizing “The Man Show.” He invited fellow artists to join him in contributing works that explore the male figure and the character of men. The pieces, many of which were created especially for the exhibit, present men as introspective tough guys, musicians, lovers, explorers and dreamers.

In addition to Pearce, a painter, the featured artists are sculptor Béla Bácsi of Santa Barbara and painters Michael Lynn Adams of Woodland Hills, Steven DaLuz of San Antonio, Texas, Felicia Forte of San Francisco, Sean Ghobad of Los Angeles, Pam Hawkes of England, David Kassan of New York, Jeremy Lipking of Agoura Hills, Alexandra Manukyan of Glendale, Carolin Peters of Orange, Tony Pro of Thousand Oaks and Alexey Steele of Los Angeles.

Kassan, who along with Lipking was recently named among the Top 25 Great Artists of Tomorrow by American Artist magazine, is contributing the drawing of film and fine art model Mark Snyder that he produced at The Representational Art Conference in 2012.

DaLuz, Ghobad and Manukyan are among the artists being featured in the Kwan Fong Gallery for the first time. DaLuz uses mixed media to create primal, expressive paintings of transcendent figures and ethereal landscapes. A young, up-and-coming artist, Ghobad incorporates street style, keen observation and brisk technique in his vivid paintings and drawings. A former fashion designer, Manukyan’s paintings often show people whose identities are concealed by their “masks” of clothing.

The gallery is located in the Soiland Humanities Center on the south side of Memorial Parkway on the Thousand Oaks campus. Gallery hours are from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Parking is available in the lots on Mountclef Boulevard.

CLU’s Art Department is sponsoring the free exhibit. For more information, visit callutheran.edu/kwan_fong or call Michael Pearce at 805-444-7716.

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