HARRISBURG – Walk into the next exhibit at the Rose Lehrman Art Gallery at HACC, Central Pennsylvania’s Community College, and you will be captivated by the expressive, almost life-sized paintings of Casey Lard. Her exhibit, “Desirable Objects,” runs July 7-Aug. 12.
An artist’s reception will be held 5-7 p.m. Thursday, July 15, in the gallery at HACC’s Harrisburg Campus.
Lard’s subjects are mostly female figures often coupled with accessories such as handbags and hats. The work explores the objectification of women and is based on the artist’s experience of growing up and what it is like to make the transition from girl to woman in this society. Some are playful; many have a darker tone.
“My paintings then become a simulation of the transition into womanhood, of my discovery that sexuality and objectification are inextricably intertwined, of the ways we simultaneously resist and embrace our own objectification, and how our relationships to people and to objects change as a result,” Lard said.
Lard recently graduated from Tulane University in New Orleans, receiving her master’s degree in fine arts. She also has a bachelor’s degree in fine arts from Louisiana Tech University. She has taught at Tulane and, in 2007, received the Best in Studio award from the Juried Art Exhibition at Louisiana Tech University. Lard returns to central Pennsylvania this summer and will be teaching in the art department at HACC’s Lancaster Campus this fall.
Summer gallery hours are 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday-Thursday, or by appointment. For more information, call 780-2435 or e-mail Kim Banister, gallery curator, at kebanist@hacc.edu. Visit the gallery on the HACC website: www.hacc.edu under the Rose Lehrman Arts Center and on Facebook.
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