Norns
Solo Exhibition

Opening reception - August 2nd, 7-9pm

August 2nd through August 16th, 2013


BROOKLYN, NY (RELEASE July 14th, 2013) — Bunnycutlet Gallery is pleased to present Norns, a series of new paintings by New York-based artist Jonny Ruzzo, in what will be his first solo exhibition at the gallery.

Ruzzo's nearly life-sized oil paintings employ an impressionistic "alla prima" painting technique, kinetically reproducing nude female forms for overt display, adoration, adornment, and humiliation. Ruzzo’s paint strokes are wide and opaque; acting like a staccato of vibrant color that, when applied side-by-side without blending, create dazzling optical vibrations. His genius as a painter is his ability to build form with these "broken" gestures and maintain fluid energy in the application of his paint.

Norns are mythological female beings that rule the destiny of men – giant, protective, and malevolent. As a young boy, Ruzzo’s early awareness of his own homosexuality inspired a vigilant scrutiny of acceptable behaviors and aesthetics associated with gender. His polar attraction to the female mystique was nearly religious; captivating his worship with bewildering awe, while conversely his sexual attraction to men was unmistakably secular; real, animal, vital, and human.

Reconciling these visceral seductions is Ruzzo’s aesthetic preoccupation. The artist describes, "I remember being fascinated watching my mother put on her make-up… or being mesmerized by the gold tinsel on the Christmas tree, and putting it on my head and pretending that it was long, flowing hair." As a child with profound questions about gender and beauty, Ruzzo mimicked and absorbed the importance of decorating what is natural and earthly with color, splendor, flair and shimmer.

In addition to using oil paint, Ruzzo employs materials like diamond-dust and metallic leaf. His female subjects are stripped naked, often lightly twisted in rope, their faces obscured by silken or chiffon semi-transparent head-covers. His figures are trapped, bound and agitated yet somehow deeply ambivalent – as if resigned to be on display. The combination of flamboyance, idolization, envy and scorn objectifies female beauty with a haunting glamour that is idiosyncratic to Ruzzo.

In the artist’s own words, "I sometimes obscure the subject of a painting, creating a veil between the subject and the viewer. Not always being able to see the subject completely… is a metaphor; it's like an instant attraction that leaves me wanting to know more."
 
 
ARTWORK ON VIEW
bunnycutlet(at)gmail(dot)com for availability
 
 
Jonny Ruzzo
Norn 1

Acrylic, Oil, Aluminum and Diamond Dust on Canvas
24 x 36 inches
$1,500
 
Jonny Ruzzo
Norn 2

Acrylic, Oil, Aluminum and Diamond Dust on Canvas
24 x 36 inches
$1,500
 
Jonny Ruzzo
Norn 3

Acrylic, Oil, Copper, and Diamond Dust on Canvas
24 x 36 inches
$1,500
 
 
Jonny Ruzzo
Norn 4

Acrylic, Oil, Copper, Gold Mica Flakes and Diamond Dust on Canvas
24 x 36 inches
$1,500
 
Jonny Ruzzo
Norn 5

Acrylic, Oil, Copper, Gold Mica Flakes and Diamond Dust on Canvas
24 x 36 inches
$1,500
 
Jonny Ruzzo
Norn 6

Acrylic, Oil, Copper, and Diamond Dust on Canvas
24 x 36 inches
$1,500
 
 
Jonny Ruzzo
Norn 7

Acrylic, Oil, Cooper, Aluminum and Glitter on Canvas
24 x 36 inches
$1,500
 
Jonny Ruzzo
Norn 8

Acrylic, Oil, Aluminum and Diamond Dust on Canvas
24 x 36 inches
$1,500
 
 
 
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Music/DJ Nithya Rajendran
 
Event Photography Brendan Adamson
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ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Jonny Ruzzo Jonny Ruzzo was born in 1990 in Coventry, Rhode Island, where he lived until moving to New York City in 2008. He received a BFA in illustration from the School of Visual Arts, where he also received a Visual Arts Appeal Grant, an Alumni Scholarship Award, and an Award for Outstanding Achievement.

 
 
 
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