Lee E. Wright Urban Exposure

October 9 November 5 at SAMARA Gallery

Lee E. Wright Urban Exposure Opening Reception: October 9, 2015, 6-8pm October 9-November 5, 2015

SAMARA Gallery is pleased to present Urban Exposure, a solo exhibition of post-contemporary paintings by Lee E. Wright. This new body of work spans the high and low lights of the past 20 years of Wrights lifefrom being a homeless teenager to working for the largest financial institutions in the United States, and finally the feelings of freedom and success experienced when he realized his childhood dream of becoming an artist. Wrights describes his work as an anti-anti-aesthetic movement, valuing beauty and form. He specifically strives to record his own turbulent youth through a lens of beauty, using the paintbrush to conjure feelings and past experiences. Wright states, I strive to draw the viewer to my images with surface beauty or innocence, but I want the viewer to linger and see the hidden nuances and ponder the meaning behind the beauty, which is typically a much darker view. The eyes of my subjects reveal the pain and complexity of life that is hidden by the surface. Lee E. Wright has exhibited in the US and abroad including Tokyo, Bogota, Madrid, Rotterdam, Los Angeles, and many venues in Houston. His work is included in many public and private collections including the George H. W. Bush Library collection. He currently lives and works in Houston, Texas.

Captain of Industry, Oil and ink on paper, 31 x 43.5 This piece is meant to convey the feelings I had as a child. The feelings that told me anything is possible and that I

could be anything I want. This is a magical time for most children.

Smile at All Times, Oil on canvas, 52 x 31.5 This piece shows the dreams of my youth gone awry and depicts my late teen years as a

homeless addict. While my dreams may have been derailed by my own self destructive path I still tried to keep a positive disposition which is why the main model is holding the smile sign.

Dead End, Oil on canvas, 31.5 x 31.5 This piece depicts the realization that the life I was living was going down a street that would not lead where I wanted it to. The use of the nude female is to illustrate that while I realized that I was

on the wrong path I also recognized the beauty in that realization.

Nave, Oil on canvas, 38 x 38 This painting is to show the pride that I had when I started working for the largest financial

institutions in the world. The woman has her chin up and her chest out to illustrate that pride. The reason I choose the title Nave for this piece is because of the harsh realization that soon

followed.

Guarded, Oil and ink on paper, 32.75 x 24.5 The image of the woman closing her jacket is intended to symbolize the closing of an error of false pride in my life. After discovering the true intentions of the companies I worked for and the people I worked with I was no longer proud of how far I had come in life, instead I was ashamed and became very guarded. The black and white of the building and the dull color of the woman is intended to show

the viewer that the color had been sucked out of my world.

Success, Oil on canvas, 31.5 x 42 This painting is vibrant full of color and shows a model who is truly proud. This image shows my feelings of freedom. Freedom from the addictions that once ruled me and the corporations that tried to rule me. It also encompasses the

feelings of finally realizing the dream I had as a child, the dream to be a professional artist.

In the Clear, Ink on paper, 10 x 8

I Got Your Back, Ink on paper, 10 x 8

That Mean, Ink on paper, 10 x 8

Beauty Desired color study Oil on prepared paper, 14 x 12 The Beard Oil on prepared paper, 14 x 12

The Light Above Oil on prepared paper, 14 x 12 Nude IV Oil on prepared paper, 14 x 12

Beauty Desired study, Ink on paper, 28 x 22

Going to the Game study, Ink on paper, 16 x 24

The Look Out, Ink on paper, 28 x 22

Alone, Giclee print on canvas, ed. of 30, 36 x 36 This is one of my most acclaimed paintings. The child is alone in a big city and there is no one to look after her, the child is desperately wanting to grow up but as evidenced by the lollipop stick on the ground she is unfortunately still a child. As evidenced by the color palette the child is currently in a cold and harsh world where she currently stands, yet on the other side of the tracks in the distance you can see a warm color palette peeking through the support beams. The child

desperately wants to get to the other side of the tracks.

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