Courtesy of Lori Cowherd Lori Cowherd debuts her show, "Investigate," with cariacactures such as this one of Janet Napolitano.
Cave Creek graphic artist Lori Cowherd wanted to return to her fine-art endeavors, but time eluded her with a job and two young sons. And, then too, it was just hard to get going on anything.
"I realized I needed something to say. Some people paint beautiful landscapes or whatever, but I needed some kind of problem to solve."
The result is "Investigate," a collection of 12 satirical oil portraits that highlight the scandals and personalities of politicians and executives, including former Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano.
The opening reception is from 6 to 9 tonight at Level 9 Gallery, 6047 E. Cave Creek Road, Cave Creek. The exhibit runs through May 15.
Details: www.level9gallery.com or 480-329-6118.
FAMOUS NAMES
Failed financier Bernie Madoff launched the project for Cowherd as her artist's eye saw him in prison stripes and a monogrammed ball and chain. That led to researching other scandals and more caricature depictions, including Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein and Napolitano's less-than-flattering body being pawed by airport security blue gloves.
"I just dove into this circle of names and thought we are so manipulated in what we're told and how it's presented and what the agenda behind it is," she said.
AN ARTIST'S PROCESS
Cowherd, who holds a master of arts from California State University, said the idea to do caricatures came out of nowhere. "I don't know why. Is it some kind of subconscious thing because they're acting like children? But it's kind of amusing and it puts them in a light that wasn't so grand," she said.
by Sonja Haller The Arizona Republic Apr. 15, 2011 04:25 PM
'Investigate' opens Saturday at Level 9 Gallery
