Up Now  Other Exhibits      other 2007 exhibits Beverly McIver Pacini Lubel Gallery is honored to present new paintings by Beverly McIver. Ms. McIver's paintings unabashedly explore the emotional detritus manifest from a childhood of growing up poor and black in the south. Beverly fantasized about a future as a clown while in High School - going so far as to take clown lessons and performing in her native North Carolina. The concept of cloaking her "skin" in paint and dress to hide her natural skin, her black skin, helped ameliorate the inadequacies she felt as an "outsider" to the greater culture. Beverly paints true to her identity - the clarity of emotion is uncensored. Self portraits might engender a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction as she chronicles her stay at "Radcliffe" during a teaching stay at the famed institution. Her image might reflect a sense of unease and isolation when depicting a childhood wrought with racial and economic hardships. Other paintings might depict a tenderness between her mother and sister, Renee. Renee, an older sibling with profound mental retardation gained great emotional benefit by performing mundane daily chores with her mother. Consequently, an image of mother and daughter hanging clothes on a clothes line might be captured or an image of Beverly's mother and sister sitting on a chair in their living room might be depicted. The honesty of Beverly's paintings are absolute and the images are clear metaphors for emotional, psychological, familial and racial dynamics that we all must traverse in our daily lives. Beverly McIver has been the recipient of national and international attention. She has been afforded honors such as the John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship Award, the Louis Comfort Tiffany Award, The Research and Creative Activity Award, the Creative Capital Grant, and the Arizona Arts Commission Visual Arts Fellowship to name a few. Additionally, Beverly McIver has exhibited her work nationally in museums, galleries and arts institutions. In the West Gallery: Pacini Lubel will present the work of sculptor, Lanny Bergner. Lanny creates sculpture that incorporates wire, glass, silicone, mono-filaments and "other worldly" constructions. He coils, frays, twists, wraps and knots the elements to create beautiful constructions. "My aim is to bring the natural/artificial and man/nature together into an assemblage of forms that appear to have "grown into being. The work is shaped by my fears, quirks, and joys and ultimately celebrates the mystery and wonder of it all." Lanny's work is included in numerous public institutions like the Seattle Art Museum, the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Delaware Art Museum. Beverly McIver "Transitions" Oil on Canvas 30" x 40" Beverly McIver "Quiet Moments" Oil on Canvas 30" x 40" Beverly McIver "Renee's Cross" Oil on Canvas 24" x 30" Beverly McIver "Radcliff Girl 2" Oil on Canvas 30" x 40" Beverly McIver "Singing Off Key" Oil on Canvas 36" x 36" More works in this exhibit   © 2004 Pacini Lubel Gallery