ROADSIDE ATTRACTION Stephanie Schechter
186 State Street Binghamton NY, 13901
tel. +1 607 772 0485 www.anthonybrunelli.com
Roadside Attraction Paintings by Stephanie Schechter
A Virtual Exhibtion October 2 - November 28, 2020
CAFE PIZZA, 2020 oil on aluminum 12 x 12 in.
EAT, 2018 oil on aluminum 26 x 26 in.
Archie’s, 2015 oil on linen 24 x 36 in.
Wein-O-Rama, 2019 oil on canvas 20.5 x 50 in.
MART, 2015 oil on linen 24 x 36 in.
Archie’s Pizza, 2016 oil on aluminum 40 x 40 in.
State Police, 2019 oil on aluminum 22 x 24 in.
DINER, 8:31, 2020 oil on aluminum 12 x 12 in.
Luxury, 2020 oil on canvas 24 x 40 in.
DINER, 6:49, 2020 oil on aluminum 12 x 12 in.
Louise’s Liquor, 2016 oil on linen 30 x 30 in.
Carroll’s Typewritter, 20219 oil on aluminum 20 x 28 in.
Super, 2020 oil on canvas 29 x 32 in.
The Best, 2016 oil on canvas 24 x 24 in.
Apex, 2018 oil on canvas 23.5 x 40 in.
Fresh Cut Fries, 2018 oil on aluminum 24 x 24 in.
Signs, 2019 oil on aluminum 26 x 36 in.
Thrift, 2017 oil on aluminum 25.75 x 47.75 in.
Artist in studio with SUPER, 2020
Stephanie Schechter is a contemporary realist painter known for her bold, stylized depictions of commercial signs. Her paintings will be on view with Anthony Brunelli Fine Arts throughout October and November in an exhibition titled Roadside Attraction. Schechter finds inspiration for her work on road trips through the everyday, American landscape. Her idealized portraits of signs are an ode to the beauty she finds in the three-dimensional, human-made world. Schechter’s sign series grew out of a love of typography and design, as well as a desire to document history. She majored in Industrial Design at RISD and settled in Rhode Island after college. Soon after graduating, she noticed some of her favorite old buildings were being demolished for new development, which led to an interest in historic preservation. Schechter was also at the beginning of her design career, and soon realized she had more to express than is possible with design alone. She longed to make art and began to use painting as a medium to document the buildings that she loved. As her painting progressed, she started to hone in on the signs on those buildings. Her love of typography sparked an interest in vintage signs. As her interest in signs grew, she began to see commercial signs as symbolic of more than the words on their surfaces. She now sees these place-markers and advertisements as reminders of a community’s culture and history, the evolution of commerce, design and manufacturing trends, impermanence and obsolescence. Schechter’s creative process begins with photography. She says “Like everyone else, I’ve seen thousands of signs in my travels, but only certain signs ‘speak to me’. It could be any combination of the typography, the colors, the shadows it casts, the words, the iconic nature of the sign as a local landmark, or a personal connection that attracts me to a particular sign. When I’m back in my studio reviewing my photos, my intuition tells me when I have one that’s ‘asking’ to become the basis for a painting.” Though her work starts with photography, her paintings are highly edited from their original reference photos. She uses her “designer’s eye” to create powerful compositions that articulate what she finds compelling about her subjects. She removes details such as the rust, dents and peeling paint that occur in real life, and focuses her work on color, three dimensional forms and shadows. Elements are shifted in order to direct the eye. Her meticulous, smooth, hard-edge painting technique combines bold areas of solid color with delicately blended transitions. The resulting body of work is minimalistic and graphic, yet maintains the perception of hyperrealism. The pieces on view in Roadside Attraction embody Schechter’s love of her subjects and poignancy she sees in these often-overlooked treasures.
EDUCATION
PUBLICATIONS
1994 BFA, Rhode Island School of Design
International Artists Magazine #133, June/July 2020
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
Tapas Magazine Número 51, Marzo 2020 International Artist Magazine #128, August/September 2019
2018 Dryden Gallery, Providence, RI
Hyperrealism Magazine #7, Summer 2019
GROUP EXHIBITIONS
Hyperrealism Magazine #6, Spring 2019
2020 Herstory, Anthony Brunelli Fine Arts International Guild of Realism Spring Salon Online Exhibition Art Wynwood, Anthony Brunelli Fine Arts Art Palm Beach, Anthony Brunelli Fine Arts
Manifest International Painting Annual 8
2019 CONTEXT Art Miami, Anthony Brunelli Fine Arts Hyperrealism: Towards New Ways, Copro Gallery, Santa Monica, CA Spring Group Exhibition, Skidmore Contemporary Art, Santa Monica, CA
Average Art Issue 10, May 2017
Creative Quarterly Issue 48, Winter 2017 Artist Portfolio Magazine Q1 2017
Studio Visit Magazine Summer 2017 Issue Creative Quarterly Issue 46, Spring-Summer 2017
2017 61st Regional Exhibition, Mystic Museum of Art, Mystic, CT Line, Attleboro Arts Museum, Attleboro, MA ArtsWorcester Seventeenth Biennial, ArtsWorcester, Worcester, MA
AWARDS Finalist, International Artist Magazine, 2019 Favorite Subjects Competition
2016 On the Map, 3S Artspace, Portsmouth, NH 60th Regional Exhibition, Mystic Museum of Art, Mystic, CT Con|TEXT National Juried Exhibition, South Shore Art Center, Cohasset, MA Color National Juried Exhibition, Providence Art Club, Providence, RI
Winner, Fine Art Professional, Creative Quarterly, Winter 2017 Competition
2015 Artist’s Return, Zullo Gallery, Medfield, MA BLUE New England Biennial, Cambridge Art Association, Cambridge, MA 21st Annual Juried Exhibition, Zullo Gallery, Medfield, MA 59th Regional Exhibition, Mystic Museum of Art, Mystic, CT
Honorable Mention, “Color” National Juried Exhibition, Providence Art Club, Providence, RI
2008 Variations on a Theme, Warwick Museum of Art, Warwick, RI
Honorable Mention, 60th Regional Exhibition, Mystic Museum of Art, Mystic, CT
2007 Motivated, Warwick Museum of Art, Warwick, RI
Honorable Mention, Artist Portfolio Magazine, Q1 2017 Competition Finalist, Sedona Art Prize, April 2017
Award of Merit “Con|TEXT” National Juried Exhibition, South Shore Art Center, Cohasset, MA
Gallery : 186 State Street Binghamton NY, 13901 tel. +1 607 772 0485 www.anthonybrunelli.com
Cover: The Best, 2016