"WHY ABSTRACT?" - Panel Discussion & Artist Talk

Diane Rosenstein Fine Art is pleased to announce "WHY ABSTRACT?” a panel discussion on Saturday, June 2nd, 2012 from 4pm - 6pm in Beverly Hills, CA. Panelists Kristina Newhouse (Curator, UAM/CSULB), Peter Frank (Writer), and artists Mara De Luca, Daniel Cummings, and Eben Goff will explore the evolving question and legacy of "Abstraction" in painting & sculpture. A new generation of artists revisits questions raised in the early1950's, and finds new answers. The panel's title refers to Hillaire Hiler's 1945 book, "Why Abstract?" - a discussion on the theory behind abstract painting.

Kristina Newhouse is the Curator of Exhibitions at the University Art Museum at Cal State Long Beach. In Fall 2012, she will present two new curated exhibitions at the UAM by painters working in abstraction, Patrick Wilson: Pull and Linda Day: Swimming in Paint. Peter Frank is art critic for the Huffington Post and Associate Editor for Fabrik Magazine. Frank, who recently served as Senior Curator at the Riverside Art Museum, has organized numerous theme and survey shows, including “Driven to Abstraction: Southern California and the Non-Objective World, 1950-1988,” for the Riverside Art Museum. Mara De Luca received her M.F.A. at California Institute of the Arts, Valencia, CA (2004). Her solo show of paintings, "saltus fidei/ Leap of Faith," was on view last fall at Luis De Jesus, Los Angeles. Eben Goff received his M.F.A. at UCLA (2009). In 2011, he exhibited "Batholith Etchings" at Ruth Bachofner Gallery in Santa Monica. Daniel Cummings received his M.F.A. from UCLA (2007). Recently, "Drawing, Painting, Sculpture" was on view at ACME Los Angeles. In 2011, he had a solo show of paintings at the Santa Monica Museum of Art.

Diane Rosenstein Fine Art is a new contemporary gallery in Beverly Hills. The Inaugural exhibition, "CLEVE GRAY: The Connecticut Paintings," is on view through June 10th. "The Washington School," a group show of paintings by Kenneth Noland, Morris Louis, Thomas Downing, Howard Mehring, Gene Davis, and Leon Berkowitz opens on Saturday, June 23rd, 2012.

Diane Rosenstein Fine Art is open Tues – Fri: 10am – 6pm; Sat: 11 am – 6pm.