Chicago Activist Art Initiative Selected to Present at 2016 United Nations

It is an honor to be involved in a compelling panel discussion: Change Artists - Using the Arts to Leverage Positive Change that will take place at the 2016 United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (UNCSW), Thursday, March 17, 2:30 PM, at the Thai Cultural Center, 310 E. 44th Street, Room 2 in New York City.

Panelists include: Breaking Criminal Traditions (BCT) executive producer/TED speaker Cheryl Jefferson, BCT curator/painter Professor Charles Gniech, Columbia College-Chicago art professor/BCT painter Richard Laurent and Andrea Harris.  The panel will teach participants how to translate the arts into social action, strategies for community engagement, engaging artists and more based on the BCT model. 

©2016 Andrea Harris, Cultural Mosaic, Oil & Cold wax on Canvas

©2016 Richard Laurent, Small Change, Oil on Canvas

Begun in 2013, BCT uses fine art to raise awareness of honor killing, child/forced marriage, female genital mutilation, acid violence, child military conscription, and other criminal traditions that harm millions of females each year, yet globally are not considered crimes.  "The beauty of fine art helps people access these difficult topics," says Jefferson, "and that consciousness is the first step toward changing these human rights violations worldwide." 

Under curator Gniech, BCT has exhibited in five major Chicago area venues including Chicago-Kent College of Law, the Beverly Arts Center, The Art Center - Highland Park, North Central College and the Bridgeport Art Center.  Each exhibit features new work and is accompanied by in-depth community and educational outreach including panels, artists' workshops, screenings, dance performances, high profile speakers and more.  "The UN CSW allows us to take this work to an international level," says Gniech.

©2016 Andrea Harris, Beyond Boundaries, Oil & Cold Wax on Canvas

Running from March 14 to March 24, 2016, the UN Commission on the Status of Women is attended by thousands of policy makers, legal influencers, educators, and activists from around the world. Panels are free and open to the public.

For more information please contact:

Cheryl Jefferson, Executive Producer, The Art of Influence: Breaking Criminal Traditions, Office 312.939.7130 • Mobile 312.953.8102

Salon International art3f Paris

And now, another fabulous exhibition...this time in Paris

The venue is the Salon International d'art3f February 12, 13 &14, 2016 at the Port of Versailles.

Salon international d'art 3f 

Rainforests & Ecosystems, by Andrea Harris

I am pleased to announce the Eco-Cool Globe, Rainforests & Ecosystems, will be on view during this exciting exhibition and is represented by Monteoliveto Gallery.

About Rainforests & Ecosystems Globe:

The world's tropical rainforests cover only a small part of the earth's surface- about 6%, yet they are home to over half the species of plants and animals in the world.

This globe highlights the seven very important everyday foods linked to the rainforests:

• Coffee

• Bananas

• Acai

• Cinnamon

• Black Pepper

• Cocoa

• Palm Oil

The twelve-inch diameter globe was also on view in October, 2015 at the House Space Museum Tadini Milan,  Feeding the Planet Energy for Life international exhibition from October 10-24, 2015. The artwork investigated concepts regarding food, nutrition and the environment which brought together 30 artists from international countries and was part of a larger, 6-month exhibition that was a global showcase for 140 countries.

About Cool Globes: Hot Ideas for a Cooler Climate:

Cool Globes: Hot Ideas for a Cooler Planet project & exhibition was conceived in 2006 by Chicago environmentalist Wendy Abrams. Wendy's tireless energy resulted in the most amazing "global" display of creative ideas to bring awareness to the public of climate change and our social responsibility.  

The original "Cool Globes" were five-feet in diameter and many have been on view throughout the United States and Europe. In addition to the five-foot diameter globes, the twelve- inch version was created for special indoor exhibitions and international environmental awards. I am honored to have been involved in the original Chicago exhibition and created the Eco-Heroes globe which highlighted individuals that have dedicated their lives to preserving the environment for future generations. 

Andrea Harris & Eco Heroes Globe at Chicago's Museum Campus

A second globe was a collaboration with two other artists, Sandie Bacon and Ann Bingham-Freeman, and it was first unveiled in Los Angeles by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Andrea Harris: Collector's Choice at Amsterdam Whitney Gallery

                                                     

                                       Illusion, Oil & Cold Wax on Canvas, 24 x 24 inches

Illusion, oil & cold wax on canvas, 24 x 24 inches, is currently on view at Amsterdam Whitney Gallery, 511 West 25th Street, Chelsea, New York City and has been chosen as "Collector's Choice." The group exhibition of artwork, created by esteemed international selected artists, continues until March 22, 2016.  

I am honored to share the recent review of my artwork that is represented by Amsterdam Whitney Gallery:

“If I were called upon to define briefly the word Art, I should call it the reproduction of what the senses perceive in nature, seen through the veil of the soul" stated Paul Cezanne.  Andrea Harris' elegantly soulful and evocative paintings of nature offer a unique and distinctive modern vision to the landscape genre. Conveying an alluring mystique combined with an air of the mystery and wonderment of the environment, her masterful compositions are identified by her enticing mastery of her technique.  By capturing the fleeting effect of natural phenomena, Ms. Harris immortalizes the transitory quality of nature and seduces the viewer into contemplating a myriad of emotions regarding their relationship with the natural terrain.  In our digital, technological universe, where changes are occurring at lightning speed, Ms. Harris shifts the visual dialogue inward by asking the viewer to put away their techno-devices; to slow down and take the time to view the world around them, and to think about their emotional relationship with nature.  

Creating a gentle aura of awe, Andrea Harris' lyrical landscapes result in an intense and sensuous experience with the natural terrain.  Hovering on the cusp between abstraction and representation, Andrea Harris's sublime compositions reveal a fresh perspective combined with a deep insight into the familiar. The artist contemplates the landscape and discovers a romantic elation as well as a note of melancholy as she searches for nature that is beyond the reality of our senses. Keenly attuned to the progressions of the seasons, her paintings assimilate the soul and spirit of the land and through this magical osmosis; her beautiful paintings are a tribute to the ever-fleeting flashes of time in our lives.

 The individual compositions are distinguished by a high level of painterly sophistication evidenced in disciplined compositions sparking a masterful use of color. Because color is so alluring, it captivates one's senses, as she employs a carefully selected palette to deliberately challenge the viewer’s imagination and emotions. A melodic and exceptional use of color along with the fluidity and energy of her technique enable her to underscore the light, the subtle tonal transitions, and constant play of warm hues against cool which provide astonishing richness and depth to the shadows and vibrant luminosity to the highlights. 

 Internationally recognized as a painter, an educator and an art lecturer, Andrea Harris's masterful landscapes have catapulted her to national and international recognition to become one of the most celebrated landscape artists. Brilliantly translating onto canvas with a syncopated beat the magnificence of nature, award-winning painter Andrea Harris has participated in a lifetime of immersion in the arts, culminating in an outstanding body of work. Ms. Harris has been honored to participate in prestigious residencies in Italy and in France, and this Chicago-based artist has enjoyed numerous successful exhibitions throughout Europe and the U.S. The presence of her works in prestigious collections across the world is affirmation of her continually expanding reputation.

Amsterdam Whitney Gallery, 511 W. 25th Street, Chelsea, NYC

Gallery Hours: Tuesday-Saturday • 11am - 5pm • phone: 212.255.9050