Tuesday, August 15, 2006

Wilmington, NC - University Union Exhibit Series hosts an exhibit featuring the paintings of Abby Spangel Perry Aug. 14 through Sept. 14 in the Warwick Center lobby gallery. The opening reception will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 17. Both the exhibit and reception are free and open to the public and is sponsored by UNCW Presents.

Perry's vibrantly hued paintings are inspired by the biological world, using subjects of birds, aquatic life and botanicals. She begins constructing the paintings in this collection by first drawing and then working into the surface of the canvas with layers of paint. Perry then crops her subject, emphasizing shape, pattern and line and in the process places it within the context of a man-made world. The artist explains, "I often focus on nature's fragile beauty and the tension between concepts such as hope through nurturing and creation, and fear through neglect and destruction. In weaving together these elements, I am attempting to portray subjects with vital intensity and desperate vulnerability."

In her second year as a MFA in painting candidate at East Carolina University, this marks Perry's UNCW debut. No stranger to the Wilmington fine arts community, local commissioned pieces can be found at Mayfaire Town Center and the Wilmington City Police Department. Her work has been shown at the Cameron Art Museum, the WHQR Gallery and most recently the Independent Art Company. She has served as the assistant gallery director at Fountainside Fine Art Gallery.

Perry is a 2004 recipient of the NC Arts Council Regional Emerging Artist Grant. She recently received the honor of 2006 Cover Art Award for "In Women's Hands," an annual juried exhibition of North Carolina female artists now in its 26th year. She is the secretary of the ECU College of Fine Art and Communication, Graduate Artist Forum. In the past she has served as the Vice-President of the ECU School of Art, Visual Arts Forum. Her community involvement has included volunteering during the early formation of Greater Wilmington Area Community Arts Association, and working as a volunteer art instructor for the Healing Arts Network and as a volunteer teaching assistant for the Dreams Outreach for at Risk Youths here in Wilmington.

To view samples of the artists' work, please visit www.uncw.edu/presents.

The Warwick Center is open Monday-Wednesday, 7a.m.-12a.m.; Thursday-Friday, 7a.m.-1a.m.; Saturdays, 10a.m.-1a.m.; and Sundays, 1p.m.-12a.m. For more information, please contact the UNCW Presents office at 910.962.7971. For directions to the Warwick Center, please visit http://www.uncw.edu/ba/campus_map.htm for a campus map.

Media Contact: Shane Fernando, 910.962.7972 or fernandol@uncw.edu

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