This Must Be the Place showcases two bodies of work that celebrate the tranquil sanctuary of treasured and personal spaces. Each collection invites the viewer into places we long to be -- Stephanie Kantor’s paintings and ceramics transport us into a watery world of recovered treasures. With an exquisite palette and luscious brushstrokes, Ekaterina Popova’s works draw us into the sacred world of interior spaces. “The work in this show explores the mysterious and captivating site of the sea. There are several themes/bodies of work that run throughout the show, shipwreck ceramics, encrusted objects, men seeking the fountain of youth, treasure maps, flat pots, and more. I am fascinated with the idea that pots lay in the bottom of the sea, either being perfectly preserved as a time capsule or surrendered to encrustation and foreign life. In my work, I acknowledge the paradox of a turbulent event and their eventual discovery by creating pots that are now fused together with a false sense of history. Men Seeking the Fountain of Youth are a series of paintings of men of a certain age who believe in the blind faith that submerging oneself in water will make them young and beautiful again. The treasure maps and concrete tiles are inspired by the Mercer Museum in Doylestown, PA. Mercer made ceramics and embedded them into architectural concrete. Here, I use a similar language of simplified and brightly colored motifs that explore sea mythology stories such as sea monsters and boats lost at sea. Finally the large landscape is painted from the perspective of being at sea and the bliss of finding land...”—S. Kantor “For the past few years, I have been exploring interiors in my work. The interest started as a way for me to reflect on my upbringing in Russia, but eventually progressed to exploring the overall idea of “home” and what it means me now. The work has slowly evolved from being reflective and sentimental to being mindful and present in my current environment. I repeatedly paint my own bedroom, visit other people’s houses, and use reference photos submitted to me by others online. My paintings include messy rooms, intimate items, and objects that refer to human presence without including the figure. I pick up on the subtle tones, lighting, and mood of each location in order to capture the emotion I associate with the space and then exaggerate the color to create a dream-like image.” —E. Popova ******************************************************************* STEPHANIE KANTOR Stephanie Kantor is a visual artist whose practice focuses on ideas of culture, tradition, and artifice. She creates whimsical installations that include ceramic sculpture, furniture, papier-mâché, painting, and textiles. Kantor received her MFA from University of Colorado Boulder (2015) and BFA from Penn State University (2009). Kantor was a Black Cube Nomadic Museum Fellow in 2016 and has completed prestigious residencies at Belger Crane Yard Studios, RedLine Contemporary Arts Center, and Bunker Projects. She has exhibited nationally at Paragraph Gallery (MO), Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art (KS), Sala Diaz (TX), Bunker Projects (PA), Gildar Gallery (CO), and Calico Gallery (NY). Kantor currently lives in Philadelphia and is the Zeldin Fellow at The Clay Studio. EKATERINA POPOVA Ekaterina Popova was born in Vladimir, Russia. After moving to the United States, she fell in love with painting and received a BFA from Kutztown University of Pennsylvania. Her work has been exhibited nationally, including Art Miami Fairs, The Trenton City Museum, Delaware Contemporary, Uforge Gallery, The Painted Bride Center, The Boxheart Gallery, A.I.R. Gallery and more. She has been featured in multiple blogs and publications, including Aesthetica, The Jealous Curator, Artistic Moods, Art Reveal Magazine, Professional Artist Magazine, The Artist Catalogue, Studio Visit Magazine and the cover of Ivory Tower Journal, Delhi, India. Most recently her work was on view at The Painting Center, The Other Art Fair in New York City and published in The World of Interiors Magazine. ****************************************************************** *For a catalog of available works or for gallery hours, email us deepspacejc@gmail.com. WHERE: DEEP SPACE GALLERY, 77 Cornelison Ave., Jersey City, NJ 07304
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