Alter Egos and the Magical Other: John Bankston, Amy Cutler, Jeremiah Johnson, Fred Stonehouse
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Taubman Museum of Art 110 Salem Avenue Southeast, Roanoke, Virginia
For the last two decades, a number of leading-edge artists have pursued figurative work as a way to explore alter egos - ambiguous imaginary selves that express alternate personalities, drives, fears, and desires. Often placed in surreal or magical narratives, these "others" are rendered in hybrid styles that in part are informed by the figural traditions of folk artists, a strategy that uses the authentic or "real" to heighten the fantastic scenarios.
This exhibition features paintings, works on paper, and sculpture by four contemporary artists from across the country who interpret the notion of projected selves in varying ways.