DJ Hall

August 2011 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

D.J. Hall: Kodak Moments, Portrait of a Los Angeles Artist in the 1950's
Exhibition Dates: September 10 – October 14, 2011
Reception for the Artist: Saturday, September 10, 6-8pm
Gallery Hours: Tuesday-Friday: 10:00 am – 5:30 pm; Saturday: 11:00 am – 5:30 pm
Public Contact: 310-836-9055

Koplin Del Rio is pleased to present an exhibition of new works by Southern California artist D.J. Hall. This will be the gallery’s sixth solo show with Ms. Hall.

After a yearlong hiatus from painting following her 35-year retrospective at the Palm Springs Museum of Art in 2008, D.J. Hall re-emerged with a fresh perspective in her work and a significantly different approach to painting. The sun drenched Southern California backdrop remains central in her color saturated realist paintings, though with a gestural touch and a shift in subject matter. Still intrigued with narrative and social undercurrents, Hall has turned her attention to growing up in Southern California in the 1950’s. Such a mythic time in American history is reflected in the sunny, all too perfect post-war imagery. Our contemporary yearning for better days, a time of solidarity and community, can lead us to wish to embrace a more perfect yesterday, whether real or imagined is immaterial. Hall astutely re-creates that idealized era, calling attention to its cracked reality through ‘Kodak moments’ caught in time, such as a backyard poolside birthday party complete with a fancy butter cream frosted cake and crepe paper leis as seen in the large scale, two-scene painting titled Birthday Wish. It could be a scene from any ‘50’s TV show backyard party – Leave It To Beaver, Ozzy and Harriet – sunny, happy post-war perfection. Also, a new conceptual element has emerged through Hall’s incorporation of text and characters reminiscent of the early “Dick and Jane” children’s readers, which serves as another layer of thematic reinforcement. In a painting titled “Little Girl Go” a young girl is propelled across the picture plane in a retro-red pedal car, joined by more youngsters, one of whom bares a striking resemblance to the “Jane” of ‘Dick and Jane’ fiction. Under the image in classic font is written, “Look! Look and See! See Debra Jane in the little red car. See that little girl go!”. While Hall is clearly mining her own childhood memories, she is presenting them as highly recognizable Americana, the kind that has come to represent a moment in American history at the peak of prosperity – and a moment in high contrast to today’s reality.
D.J. Hall was born in Los Angeles, California. A third-generation Californian, she brings a unique perspective to her portrayals of California life. Since earning her BFA from USC in 1973, she has devoted herself to painting full-time ever since. Her work is in numerous public collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She has exhibited in group shows around the world, and has held solo shows in New York and Los Angeles almost every year since graduation from USC. She is currently teaching at Otis College of Art and Design. Kodak Moments, Portrait of a Los Angeles Artist in the 1950's is her sixth solo exhibition with Koplin Del Rio Gallery.

For further information or photos, please contact Ronald De Angelis at (310) 836-9055.