Winston Wächter Fine Art is pleased to announce the opening of Nicole Charbonnet's new solo exhibition, "Enchanted Forest", on exhibit from September 11-October 11 2008. The superimposition of textures, images, words, loose, watery washes of paint and veils of translucent fabric or paper, creates a visual threshold in Charbonnet’s work which creates something to look at as well as to look through. The resulting surfaces retain or reveal a palimpsestic "memory" of preexisting stages or structures. Painting, for Charbonnet, serves as a metaphor for recollection, simulating the process of memory itself. The imagination, which is the substance of all thought, along with vision serve as both source and subject of her work.

For this show, Charbonnet incorporates images and textures associated with the forest. Some figurative elements are inspired by other artists like Manet, Audubon and Pollock. Other images come from stills from Film Noir, Westerns and other films such as "O Brother, Where Art Thou," and "The Wizard of Oz." Combining these with other images, textures, gestures, colors and words, attempts to encourage the viewer to make new connections and associations. The forest has been an archetypal symbol for centuries. From fairy tales to Dante to Calvino, artists have frequently explored being lost in a dark wood. Today this subject seems particularly pertinent if used metaphorically and extrapolated onto current political, economic, social and intellectual situations. Ideally, these juxtapositions facilitate further exploration into issues present in the original films and how they perhaps project onto contemporary landscape.

For further information, please contact Amanda Snyder at 212-255-2718.