Scott Hunt


Scott Hunt

Death and the Maiden

Goff+Rosenthal is proud to present Death and the Maiden, a solo exhibition of new works on paper by New York- based artist Scott Hunt. Scott Hunt’s charcoal drawings are exquisitely- rendered anachronisms, recalling faded snapshots of seemingly simpler times through the artist’s black and white palette. Darkly comic and meticulously realized, these works focus on female subjects in ironic or absurd compositions, reminding the viewer of the tragedy and conflict that invariably lurk behind even the most innocent façade.

For this body of work, Hunt drew on influences as diverse as Edward Hopper, Charles Addams, Gabriel García Márquez, Andy Warhol, Andrea Mantegna and Joyce Carol Oates. In Death and the Maiden Hunt subtly juxtaposes iconic imagery of love and beauty with fatalist symbols of death and destruction. In Gilding the Lily, a young woman reminiscent of a 1950’s pin-up model hoses down a coffin in her suburban backyard. Pursuit shows a young, almost prepubescent bride, posing on the chapel steps. Shining in her white wedding dress before the shadows of the church’s interior, butterflies surround her head, inviting the comparison of moths to a light. In many ways absurdly grotesque, Hunt’s imagery is also hauntingly beautiful and enigmatic. By borrowing source material from discarded photographs found at flea markets, Hunt is able to create narratives that are at once horrific and humorous, melancholic and joyful.

Scott Hunt was a recipient of the prestigious Pollock-Krasner Grant in 2006. He has exhibited his drawings in numerous group shows in Brooklyn and New York. His work has been published in the New Yorker, Harpers, The New York Times Magazine, The Boston Globe and The Washington Post, among others. Hunt’s book, Twice Told– a collection of short stories inspired by his drawings- has been honored by the American Library Association as one of the 10 Best Art Books of 2006. This is his first solo exhibition in Europe.

  • Goff Rosenthal
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