For centuries, our United States of America has provided sanctuary for a rich weave of creative spirits. These remarkable individuals arrive on all shores from around the world, bearing gifts of new cultural trends, groundbreaking ideas, pioneering innovation, unique perspectives, a deep spirit and a belief in life, family, community, work and art. For this exhibition, Lederer has profiled two renowned artists to honor the importance of immigration in the fabric of the U.S.
Kahlil Gibran in the Green, 2017, acrylic on wood panel, 8 x 8 inches
The exquisite poetry of Lebanese-American artist, poet, and writer Kahlil Gibran was included in Lederer’s vows when she married her husband some 30 years ago. With this portrait, she has surrounded the illustrious poet with a wreath of generous green and gold filigree—fitting for the wealth of words and ideas that Gibran shared not only with our country, but the world. Chiefly known in the English-‐speaking world for his 1923 book The Prophet, Gibran’s romantic style is at the heart of the renaissance in modern Arabic literature, and he is still celebrated as a literary hero. Gibran is the third best-‐selling poet of all time, behind Shakespeare and Laozi.
László Moholy-Nagy: Double Portrait, 2017, acrylic on wood panel, 8 x 8 inches
Hungarian born artist László Moholy-Nagy was a major influence on Lederer’s work while studying sculpture as a young artist in the 70s. This portrait is after Moholy-‐Nagy’s photogram Double Portrait, a process the artist helped develop and bring to the forefront. With Lederer’s Double Portrait she has enveloped the artist’s profile in a field of green; mysterious and tangled, yet lush and defined. A modernist and a restless experimentalist from the outset, Moholy-‐Nagy’s greatest legacy was the version of Bauhaus teaching he brought to the United States, establishing the highly influential Institute of Design in Chicago. Moholy-‐Nagy’s interest in qualities of space, time, and light endured throughout his career whether he was painting, sculpting, creating photograms or designing. He was, ultimately, interested in studying how all these basic elements interact.
