Galeria de Arte AFK, Lisbon, Portugal is pleased to present “OF SMOKE AND GOLD”, a new exhibition by Christy Lee Rogers, opening on November 2, 2013.  Rogers’ latest work encompasses a fuse of symbolic characters; that through their delicate interrelationships and touch of life and death, form the basis of a deeper perspective into humanity.  In her signature underwater setting of fabric and light, Rogers presents these simple yet elaborate scenes to us that in many ways cross cultural, ethnic and class barriers.  The exhibition will also include a short film created by Rogers specifically for this collection.

 

“I had this realization one day about how connected we all were to each other.  We could either drag each other down or pull each other up.  And it gave birth to the title “Of Smoke and Gold.”

 

With titles like “Vanity and Vexation”, “Grip of the Undertow” and “Lady Mercy” her intermingling of a Native American Indian, clown, French soldier, cowboy, African tribesman, human skeleton and more, introduce a motley of ideas set in scenes outside of the bounds of history and geography, which, so released, unleash the sensation of endless humanity.  Each figure is one fragment of infinite references to a cultural framework it's trapped inside of, unable to exist outside of, incapable of being alone, nothing on it's own - a fragment of the whole.

 

In one of the pieces “Show me How to be Whole Again” a mysterious faceless matador seems to be animating a human skeleton swathed in red.  The visual conversation is enhanced by her choice of title and we are left to imagine who is asking the question and why. It’s in the shadows down below that one finds illumination from Rogers’ frieze of mankind’s most vulnerable points, bringing us back up to the surface with a message of strength.

 

Shot in Hawaii, during the night in local pools, Rogers’ work once again pushes the boundaries of what is possible with a photograph, while creating all of her effects in camera.

 

Rogers is a visual artist from Kailua, Hawaii.   She has exhibited throughout the US and Europe and her works are held in private and public collections throughout the world.  She has been featured in International Magazines, including Harper’s Bazaar Art China, Eyemazing, Photo Professional, Casa Vogue, The Independent and many others.  Rogers’ "Reckless Unbound" is currently housed at Longleat House in the UK; the stately home, which is the seat of the Marquesses of Bath is also home to Renaissance gems of the Italian masters, like Titan’s "Rest on the Flight into Egypt."