MAIJA PEEPLES-BRIGHT & ROY DE FOREST

Venus Over Manhattan is pleased to present an exhibition about the works of Maija Peeples-Bright and Roy De Forest. Both artists were central figures in the Northern California Funk Art movement of the 1960s, a period known for its whimsical imagination, vibrant colors, and unique quirkiness.

June 20 - July 26, 2024

Adrianne Rubenstein has curated this exhibition to highlight the joyful surrealism and unfiltered eccentricity of Peeples-Bright and De Forest’s works. She views these pieces as essential images from our own everyday lives, providing a unique lens to explore and question creativity and perception.

Roy De Forest, with his creative and original approach to image-making, saw his paintings as “a hook to put your imagination on.” This sentiment is echoed throughout the exhibition, capturing one of the central tenets of the 1960s California art scene.

More than professional peers, Maija Peeples-Bright and Roy De Forest shared a deep friendship that influenced their artistic journeys. They were both founding members of the Nut Art movement, which embraced humor alongside the phantasmagorical.

They delighted in "alter-egos," fantastical and often anthropomorphic versions of themselves and their friends, which they painted into their work. Rubenstein's curation pays homage to the long friendship of these two figures, and their shared creative exuberance.

This exhibition follows recent solo shows for both artists, including Peeples-Bright’s recent presentations at Parker Gallery, Los Angeles, and Nicelle Beauchene, New York; and De Forest’s solo exhibition at the Jan Shrem and Maria Manetti Shrem Museum of Art in Davis, California.