Lauren Gardiner – “Royalty Before Surgery”

May 1 - 31, 2009

Lauren Gardiner’s tiny acrylic paintings and ink drawings are intricate and intimate portraits -rendering each subject’s every lash, wrinkle and wart. She is fascinated with medical curiosities, physical deformities and survivors of disfiguring accidents. Combined with her love of history, Lauren’s newest series, "Royalty Before Surgery," is an intimate look at aristocracy afflicted with inoperable conditions and their attempts to conceal their various maladies. Every detailed piece presents each aristocrat as dignified, yet vulnerable; their only option is to play with the cards they've been dealt. Lauren considers herself a portrait painter, creating characters based on the quirks, differences and neuroses of us all. Born in the United States, but raised in Singapore, Australia and England, Gardner’s been exposed to many facets of human nature all over the world, lending more relatability to her work. After earning an Illustration degree in 1998 from the Rhode Island School of Design, she now lives in Los Angeles, a city that further provides Lauren with ample subject matter on which to speculate.

!!!ALERT!!! !!!TWO PIECES FROM THIS SHOW WERE STOLEN!!