| on 10-02-2006 02:35
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Published in : , Art |
by James Tressler Russian-American relations are getting a new spin – hell, a whole new orbit. That’s the way husband-wife artist team Stephen Evonuk and Tatiana Tumenseva see their upcoming joint exhibition, opening Feb. 10 at 6 pm at Gallery Nora. Think of the USA-Soviet Apollo space missions of the 70s, Stephen says, in a recent interview at the couple’s home-studio a few blocks from Letenski Namesti. Yeah, yeah, the two Goliaths are often at odds in the political realm, but both have achieved great heights in the arts and sciences, and can soar to new heights.
“Our theme for the exhibition is, ‘Together Again – in a different orbit, “Evonuk says. “Tania and I are living proof that love can bring together our different countries. And I think we have common problems, like air pollution, mind rape by TV, etc. We can fix these things if we work together.”  The couple’s work couldn’t be more different in style and content. Stephen, a third-generation almond farmer from Oregon, USA, sees himself as a “samok,” Czech for “self-taught.” He paints big anonymous-looking cityscapes, or prostrate figures lying on the floor, a television circuit extending from their heads, or else big canvases filled with myriad beady eyes. Tatiana, who received years of more traditional schooling in Russia, has developed a highly sophisticated yet intimate style. Her lines have that hard-won fluid grace that you feel in the work of Matisse. “I like to deal with personal themes like isolation and love,” Tatiana says, in contrast to her more issue-conscious husband. I must say the prospect is intriguing. It’s like imagining Fyodor Doestoyevsky hanging out for an afternoon on the Mississippi with Mark Twain, or haunted visionary Edgar Allen Poe trading visions (and hallucinogens) with doomed futurist poet Vladamir Mayakovsky. On opening night there also will be music, poetry and – models. Yes. The couple’s works will be brought out, one at a time, by models who will prance down a runway with the paintings and … well, I suppose I should leave something for opening night. “It gets your attention,” Stephen says. “It’s original, it’s new. We thought we’d see what it’s like to present paintings this way. The Gallery Nora is at Trularska 24. Admission is free.
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