The origin of life, leading to the birth of Eve according to the Old Testament, is an enduring cultural touchstone, a moral tale with abiding socio-mythological influence. This salient biblical narrative forms the framework for Lannie Hart’s Birth of Eve installation, on view at SOHO20 Chelsea Gallery from April 28 – May 23, 2015. Hart’s exhibition considers how, through the ages, the story has continued to snake its way through cultural attitudes towards women—the byproduct of humanity’s split. Even in contemporary society guided by experience rather than sentiment, the belief in creationism, and woman’s culpability in the fall from grace endures. The infamous breach has become an inheritance. Eve’s identity has become the female identity; women are ignominious creatures, seductive, ravenous, and susceptible to temptation. The installation on view is animated by a steady flow of water, hydrating life; its stability emphasized by a bed of rocks and pebbles while airborne leaves represent the inevitability of change. The work grapples with the juxtaposition of nature and mythology in regards to the beginnings of humanity. The piece is at once evocative of the ecosystem, and a distant remnant of utopia, a balance of power and fragility.
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Lannie Hart began her career as a soft sculptor, which culminated in a two person show at Julie Artisan’s Gallery. She has shown her work at the Museum for Contemporary Crafts in NYC. Her more current work has been shown at the Katonah Museum, Katonah, NY, Richmond Museum of Art, Richmond VA, The Sculptors Guild, Brooklyn