Art Exhibit "Under Her Spell" - artwork by Lyubov Momot

Dear friends and Gallery supporters!

We are happy to announce our annual Event, dedicated to the International Women’s Day.

This year we are presenting two fabulous women of our community – artist - Lyubov Momot and Professor of the University of Illinois at Springfield - Rosina Neginsky.

The Art Exhibit “Under Her Spell…” will feature artwork by Lyubov Momot. Rosina Neginsky will be presenting her new book “Salome – The Image of a Woman Who Never Was ”, during the exhibit’s opening event.

Please join us for an Opening Reception on March 3rd at 6:00 PM at Center KRUG.

Book presentation by Rosina Neginsky will start at 7:00 PM.

Admission is Free

Donations are always welcome!

Address: Address: 1400 S Wolf Rd, Ste. 100, Wheeling, IL 60090

Phone: 224-423-5784

Rosina Neginsky is Professor of Interdisciplinary Studies at the University of Illinois at Springfield. She teaches comparative literature and art history. She is the president and founder of the international interdisciplinary organization Art, Literature, Music in Symbolism and Decadence (ALMSD), the author of the books Zinaida Vengerova: In Search of Beauty, of Salome: The Image of a Woman Who Never Was, of several books of poetry, of which the most recent is In the Garden of Luxembourg, and the editor of a number of books on Symbolist movement, of which the most recent is Mental Illnesses in Symbolism (2017). Neginsky is a 2008 recipient of the University Scholar Award, the most prestigious award which the University of Illinois gives to members of the faculty.

Although the root of the Hebrew name “Salome” is “peaceful”, the image spawned by the most famous woman to carry that name has been anything but peaceful. She and her story have long been linked to the beheading of John the Baptist, as described in the Gospels of Matthew and Mark, since Salome was the supposed catalyst for the prophet’s execution.

After setting forth the Biblical and historical origins of the Salome story, this book examines the major cultural, literary and artistic works, which developed and propagated it, including those by Filippo Lippi, Rogier van der Weyden, Titian, Moreau, Beardsley, Mallarmé, Wilde and Richard Strauss.

“Rosina Neginsky’s compelling study of Salome is an inquiry into how that figure, and the myth that has been created about her, has changed over time. Beginning with the history and myth in Biblical times, Neginsky follows Salome through Christian theology and myths of woman, the beautiful Salome of the Renaissance, and the seducer-destroyer she becomes in Oscar Wilde and in the nineteenth century generally. Neginsky looks at painting as well as literary texts to uncover the assumptions at work in the alluring princess we know as ‘Salome.’”

– Françoise Meltzer, Edward Carson Waller Distinguished Service Professor in the Humanities, Chair of Comparative Literature, University of Chicago, USA

“The high quality of the scholarship, the exceptionally broad chronological range and the truly international and multi-disciplinary nature of the subjects covered make the book a unique and valuable contribution to the study of Symbolism.”

– Peter Cooke, Senior Lecturer in French Studies, University of Manchester, UK

“The unique case of a martyrdom in the ancient world transformed into the myth of a femme fatale – the decapitation of John the Baptist at the dawn of Christianity – has inspired artists in all disciplines and exemplifies the evolution through time of the place of women in Western society. In this remarkable multidisciplinary study, which begins with the Bible and continues through the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, Rosina Neginsky unveils all the facets of the myth and leads us across the centuries in a subtle and insightful way, from sculpture and painting to literature and music. Gustave Flaubert, Gustave Moreau, Oscar Wilde or Richard Strauss, by choosing the theme of Salome, attain universal status.”

– Geneviève Lacambre, Honorary General Curator of the Patrimony, former Director of the Musée Gustave Moreau, Paris, France

Lyubov MOMOT

Born and educated as a fine artist in Ukraine: B.F.A. from National Art School, Kyiv, Ukraine, and M.F.A. from State Academy of Applied & Decorative Arts, Lviv, Ukraine. Lyubov now lives in Chicago, USA. Her artwork exhibited and acquired by galleries and private collectors in Ukraine, Germany, Czech Republic, Thailand, USA, Italy, Israel, and Croatia.

Selected publications: Important World Artists, Vol. I Juried Art Book, 2013; International Dictionary of Artists, USA, 2011; International Contemporary Masters, Vol. IV, USA, 2010. I have participated in many exhibitions.

Selected shows: Red Dot International Art Fair Miami, Miami, FL, 2012; Parallax International Art Fair, New York, NY, 2012; “Little Treasures”, Galleria De'Marchi, Bologna, Italy, 2012 (Album); Utopic Art Gallery, Chicago, IL, 2012, (Catalog); International Art Festival Inc, Juried Competition and Award Exhibition, Jersey City, NJ, 2012; “Temptation: Behind the Sin”, Visual Arts Hall, Harold Washington Library Center, Chicago, IL, 2011 (Posters); Chicago Art Open 2010 by Chicago Artists’ Coalition, River East Art Center, 2010 (Curator’s Choice Award). Solo Exhibition at the M.G. Nelson Gallery, Springfield, Illinois - September 1 to September 30, 2017.

Artist Statement:

“…I'm specializing in oil, acrylic, mixed-media painting; one-of-a-kind textiles: tapestry, batik, silk painting; collage, assemblage, graphics, murals, trompe d’oeils, art objects. The majority of my artwork labeled as Magical Realism. My paintings are all about dreams and fantasy, love and serenity. "Art is the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings: it takes its origin from emotion recollected in tranquility”. This is a paraphrase of the William Wordsworth’s quote regarding a poetry, which gives us a clue in better understanding of art. While painting, I enter a meditative state, clear my mind and feel guided by intuition, led by emotion. Layer by layer, I am building a space of dream. Though I work in a style that involves painting techniques of the Old Masters, I like to explore various new media and techniques, oftentimes adding the found objects to my mixed media pieces, as visual metaphors. Incorporating signs and symbols, such as words, letters, magical and zodiac signs, as well as allegories and mythological iconography (the Phoenix, the Siren, the Biblical personages) helps create a specific visual language designed to establish a new spiritual relationship with the world of things. I hope that my artwork has brought peace, clarity and love to our stressful world…”