Saskia Leek

Saskia Leek 
Thick Air Method
May 10 – 31, 2008
Opening reception: Saturday, May 10th, 6-9pm

The Jack Hanley Gallery, San Francisco is pleased to present a solo exhibition by New Zealand-based painter Saskia Leek.

Saskia Leek began exhibiting her paintings in the early 1990s, her subject matter being drawn from real and imagined memories of growing up in Christchurch. Her naïve, almost childlike style established her reputation as an artist who was willing to question accepted principles of ‘good painting’. Initially the works appear crude and amateurish; her naïve style is often absent of scale and perspective. Leek’s choice of media, acrylic on board, as well as the flatness with which she depicts her subject matter evokes a second-hand quality. 
This exhibition introduces Leek’s most recent work. While the paintings abandon specific references to time and place, they convey an autobiographical dimension and suggest things from Leek’s past, both real and imaginary – drifting sailboats, perched cats, and crystallized landscapes; things left behind but not forgotten. Her bleached palette even recalls the faded colors of memory - pastel yellows, faint blues, washed out greens and hazy pinks.