2016-hirsch-it-did-not-ruin-her-detail
STEPHANIE HIRSCH
“Indestructible”
 
November 17 – December 17, 2016
 
Opening Reception
Thursday, November 17, 2016 (6-8pm)
 
Lyons Wier Gallery
542 West 24th Street
New York, NY 10011

Gallery Hours: Tues-Sat, 11am-6pm
Nearest subway: C.E @ 23rd St & 8th Ave

Stephanie Hirsch, “It Did Not Ruin Her, (detail), 2016, Beads and embroidery on canvas, 55 x 40 in / 140 x 102 cm

Using beads, sequins and embroidery to literally and figuratively illuminate her canvases, Stephanie Hirsch continues her themes of self-awareness and self-transformation.  Hirsch’s previous exhibition, “Awakening,” metaphorically used the butterfly to represent notions rebirth and renewal.  By means of garden imagery, “Indestructible” also draws upon nature to allegorically address and challenge her ideas of preparedness, perseverance and vision.  

Throughout history, artists and authors have mused endlessly about gardens.  Volumes have been written about how gardens can symbolize personal growth, renewed vigor, budding life and withering decay.  For Hirsch, “Indestructible” draws upon the history of the garden as a metaphor and is a cathartic hybrid of art-making and spiritual growth. 

Aligning herself with many contemporary text based conceptual artists, Hirsch incorporates the use of personal mantras to instantly conjure and contemplate the juxtaposition of text and imagery.  Hirsch’s musings have a feminine slant to them without being pigeonholed into a feminist camp.  Aesthetically, the work incorporates a conventional vision of a what one may think a garden resembles; blooming flowers, fluttering butterflies, entwined vines, etc., however lurking amid all this growth lies hints of peril and demise.  Serpents and skulls pepper the narratives, drawing attention to the fact that all that lives surely dies, and that time is only a momentary measure. 

Hirsch states, “My gardens symbolize the unseen realm of one’s spirit out of which comes the visible universe. Humans are here to grow and evolve into their highest and best self. There is a metaphorical garden planted inside each and every one of us. When darkness engulfs the spirit and one feels stuck, they are planted. Darkness along our journey is inevitable but how we choose to tend to our thoughts will create the environment in which we live. Life feeds us a whole host of emotions and regardless of how beautiful or dismal our physical reality looks. Time teaches us that nothing ever stays the same and patience allows us to experience and endure it.”

“Indestructible” is Stephanie Hirsch’s fourth solo exhibition at Lyons Wier Gallery. Hirsch has exhibited throughout New York, the Hamptons, Miami, San Francisco and Los Angeles. In 2015, she completed her artist residency at the P3 Studio at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, curated in partnership with the non-profit Art Production Fund, where she presented “#LightSeeker,” an aesthetically-charged interactive installation. Hirsch has been a featured artist in Miami Design District’s Art Walk and has showcased in the Mercedes Benz VIP lounge at Lincoln Center during New York Fashion Week. Hirsch was among 30 artists commissioned to create a unique commemorative crown for display in Harrods (London) in celebration of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. The artist lives and works in New York City.

Lyons Wier Gallery 
542 West 24th Street, New York, NY 10011
Tel: +1 (212) 242 6220 
Email: gallery@lyonswiergallery.com 
www.lyonswiergallery.com