Dive into “Life in this Ocean” at the Annenberg Community Beach House

Get ready to dive into Life in this Ocean, an exhibition of artists opening at the Annenberg Community Center this weekend. Co-curated by exhibiting artists Deirdre Sullivan-Beeman and Kathy Taslitz, the exhibition also features work by Donna Bates and Lena Rushing.

A hauntingly beautiful show, the images seem awash in the light and motion of the sea. The Annenberg makes the perfect setting for an exhibition that references the ocean, which addresses themes of female empowerment, community, and culture – as well as offering up a wide range of images and styles.

History, nature, daydreams all infuse the works, that feature women persevering, struggling, dreaming, and conquoring. Each of the artists offer their own take on the female experience, serving up work as diverse as it is rich. Figurative images range from seaside settings to urban environments; mediums are equally varied.

Sullivan-Beeman’s delightful modified oil and egg tempera works are infused with a golden aura, alight from within. Exuding both this inner light and a dream-like quality, Sullivan-Beeman’s work is both perfectly figurative and surreal; in her “Seahorse Girl,” the artist creates a lovely, classically clad young woman in conversation with an oversize seahorse opening a treasure chest. As fantastical as the image is, it’s grounded in realism – the treasure is ours for the taking if we believe in ourselves – and our own inner magical seahorse, perhaps. Mystical and alchemic, Sullivan-Beeman’s work is haunting and spiritual – and quintessentially, powerfully feminine.

The artist has expressed that the “qualities that girls possess” is an inspiration to her. Full of life and power, unafraid, “The era of the girl is now,” Sullivan-Beeman says. Perhaps this belief has never been more powerful than today, as the political and judicial battlefield erupts with #metoo stories. But putting external forces aside, the girls in Sullivan-Beeman’s works also represent the internal aspects of the artist herself, her subconscious, her dreams, demons, and angels. She describes her work as creating every aspect of herself, and painting images that depict each of these aspects or girls within herself.

“Selfie Esteem” by Kathy Taslitz provides a strong contrast. Here are firmly grounded images of a group of friends facing toward us as if in a selfie; the image is positioned on an aluminum smiley-face emoji on which is superimposed text of visual and character traits. Taslitz says she creates art that explores human interconnection with input from nature and technology. Hers are bold and humorous images, too.

With “War Paint and Curlers 02,”  Donna Bates gives viewers a look at a woman defiant, ready as is to fight and sustain herself. She can take on the universe if she has to, and win. With a golden crown suspended above her head, a lush heavenly sky behind her, and an apple with one bite in her hand, the image evokes female images from Eve to Snow White. Bates describes her work as speaking to women’s rights and struggles and depicting strong, sexy, powerful “bad-ass chicks.”

“There’s Always One” by Lena Rushing gives us a delicately rendered woman in pink and white, peering down into a sea in which some very strange pink and white sea creatures are seemingly snapping up at her, allowing her to tame them. Their somewhat phallic shape cannot be a coincidence. Rushing’s work is graceful, precise, and in this work evokes art deco style. 

In short: Sullivan-Beeman and Taslitz are terrific curators – and this is a richly pertinent show as well as a beautiful one.

The Annenberg Community Beach House is located at 415 Pacific Coast Highway, Santa Monica, CA 90402 on the west side of Pacific Coast Highway. For more information including parking details:  https://www.annenbergbeachhouse.com/ 

The exhibition opens Saturday the 29th with a reception from 2 to 4 p.m., the gallery itself stays open until 5:30. An artists talk is scheduled for November 1st.

– Genie Davis; photos provided by the artists