It has been 14 years since Leslie Bender last exhibited her art at the James Cox Gallery. A new exhibit, White Magic, which opens Friday, June 24 at the Woodstock, NY showroom, will feature the latest in an ongoing series of highly personal depictions of Bender’s spiritual and psychological journey. In commenting on this most recent presentation, Cox observed that “Ms. Bender never ceases to amaze”.
In 1986, the artist moved from Brooklyn to the Catskill Mountains where she took a summer job at the Appalachian Hiking Lodge, near the small village of Oliveria. It was here that a guest at the lodge suggested she explore the nearby artist colony of Woodstock, NY. “It turned out to be a great idea,” the artist recalled, “because I found my place in a vibrant art community”.
It was in Woodstock that Bender launched her professional career. She was accepted as an artist in residence at the Woodstock School of Art, her work began to sell and she met James Cox, a gallerist from New York who had recently opened a two story exhibition space in the Red Barn on Elwyn Lane in Woodstock.
During this time, Bender was plagued by the disturbing circumstances of her childhood and this angst was reflected in the many prints and paintings she created at the time. Her abusive parents were known as the “fighting Benders” in the suburban New Jersey neighborhood where Bender grew up; she and her twin brother Sanford were often caught in the path of their parents’ fury. While continuing to portray violent incidents from her childhood, the artist also painted the natural environment of the Catskills, creating what she described as “the glowering darkness of my own emotional landscape”.
It was at this time that Cox was first introduced to Leslie Bender’s art. “I was astounded,” he remarked, recalling his first time he visited the artist’s studio. “I showed Jim the cache of artwork about family violence,” Bender recalled. “And he loved it.” The encounter resulted in a 1991 exhibit at the James Cox Gallery entitled Metaphors and Marginalia. Bender describes the show as “A hit at the box office….It was covered extensively by the regional press and established my reputation for years to come.”
Cox has represented Bender for three decades. In 2008 the two collaborated on another exhibit titled Tongue ‘n Chic, which opened at Cox’s location in Willow, a few miles from the Woodstock village green. In the intervening years Bender had joined the Gurdjieff spiritual community, hoping that “after many years of darkness, perhaps the esoteric approach of the Gurdjieff teaching could heal my broken spirit”.
The effect of this experience was reflected in the work Bender produced. Though she still made prints and paintings that reflected the angst she was experiencing in her personal life, this second exhibit at the Cox Gallery was also filled with more fanciful, lighthearted themes of
night life, beach scenes and, one of the artist’s favorite subject, the circus.
Now, 14 years later, Bender will offer her latest perspective on the world around her. “This new work is her best ever,” Cox observed. Much of the trauma in her earlier work has been replaced with a sense of joy, as evidenced in a swimming pool series. This group of eight small canvases features an eclectic array of bathers enjoying a neighborhood pool. The artfully composed figures are swimming, floating and relaxing in an expanse of vibrant blue. “Each one is a unique gem,” Cox observed.
Another series features mystical woodland motifs artfully studded with dragon flies, sparkling light reflections, twinkling stars and what Bender describes as a “Gold Island” shimmering in the distance. The artist carries the theme further in two large canvases The Woods and The Gloaming-Fireflies. The Woods enhances the charming woodland setting with depictions of Bender’s two beloved pet cats, Nemo and Bunny, peering at the viewer while a group of nude figures frolics beneath the trees, and a circus horse leaps above the entire scene.
Circuses still intrigue the artist. As she remarked in her recent memoir, “Circus figures can enjoy flying through dangerous space, amidst passionate emotional colors, taking hairy maneuvers to connect with their acrobatic partners.” Flying Girl I and Flying Girl II, each rendered in charcoal and pastel, depict trapeze artists gracefully soaring through the air and are among the newest works in the show.
Leslie Bender graduated from the Pratt Institute with a BFA and from SUNY New Paltz with an MFA in printmaking. Her work is included in many public and private collections, including the Museum of Modern Art, Dutchess County (NY) Community College and the Woodstock (NY) Historical Society. Major commissioned works include a mural for the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY. The artist has also been featured in exhibits at the Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, VA; the New York State Museum, Albany, NY; and the Samuel Dorsky Museum at SUNY New Paltz.
The public is invited to attend a reception for the artist Friday, June 24, from 5 to 8 p.m. The gallery is located at 4666 State Route 212, Willow, NY. The exhibit may be viewed on the gallery website: jamescoxgallery.com. For more information email info@jamescoxgallery.com or call 845-679-7608.