LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA-The Paul Kopeikin Gallery is extremely proud to present a series of new paintings by New York based painter Julie Heffernan. Amazingly, this is the first West Coast solo exhibition for Ms. Heffernan, whose lush and sensuous large scale figurative paintings cross-reference centuries and issues, both political and private. This exhibition runs May 1st through May 29th, 2004. A reception with the artist will take place on Saturday, May 1st from 6:00 to 8:00pm. This is also the Paul Kopeikin Gallery’s 100th exhibition!!! The reception is free and open to the public. The gallery is located at 6150 Wilshire Blvd., just west of Fairfax. For information call 323-937-0765.

"If there is anything universal to speak of anymore it is in the urge we humans share to translate our experience meaningfully for each other."- Julie Heffernan

All of Heffernan’s painting titles are prefaced with the words "Self-Portrait." Like entries in a journal, the paintings are constructed from the accumulation of symbols around a central figure or figures. These scenes, dreams or dramas collide with the main figure and enable Heffernan to translate her own complex experiences into her paintings. Heffernan’s work and concerns are clearly of the late 20th century as her symbolism references a combination of psychological issues surrounding feminism, gender issues, class structure and motherhood. All of this while, at first glance, seeming like a grand manner landscape painting of the Italian or Spanish Renaissance.

This new series pushes the boundaries of her previous work, in some instances disposing of a recognizable figure all together. In the new paintings we find small buildings crumbling and bursting aflame, flocks of birds flying inside of mirrored Baroque-like interiors, and scenes of disasters in process. In others we see massive accumulations of flowers and gems threatening to overwhelm the recognizable central figure, Heffernan’s self portrait gazing at us with Mona Lisa’s ambiguous smile. Danger and wonder lurk everywhere in these meticulous and beautiful paintings.

"I’ve always been interested in work that looks hard at human nature. I want the kind of psychological space that feels seductive, or Baroque in the sense of a space that you enter into."- Julie Heffernan

Heffernan uses representation as a means of exploring the political and the personal, psychological states and questions of gender. She combines classical painting techniques with contemporary concepts to create a mysterious world of open symbols and ambiguous narratives that is strangely inviting.

Julie Heffernan was born in 1956 and graduated from Yale University and has been the recipient of numerous awards including a National Endowment for the Arts Grant and a Fulbright Fellowship. Her work has been featured in one-person and group exhibitions in galleries and museums around the world, and has been written about in the New York Times, Art in America, The New Yorker, and dozens of other publications.

She is currently a professor of art at Montclair State University, New Jersey.