Felicia 1424 by Artist Mark Webster will be showing at the 25th Annual QX.net Nude Show at the Loudoun House in Lexington, KY

Felicia 1424 by Artist Mark Webster will be showing at the 25th Annual QX.net Nude Show at the Lexington Art League @ Landoun House in Lexington, KY.

Felicia 1424 by Northern California Artist Mark Adam Webster. 36x36" Oil on Canvas.

25^th Annual QX.net Nude Explores Humanity thru Figurative Art

            Lexington, KY – QX.net Nude, an exhibition focused exclusively on the form, function and metaphoric potential of the human figure, returns to LAL @ Loudoun House in January. The exhibition, now in its 25^th year, is one of the Lexington Art League’s most highly anticipated shows of the year.
            “QX.net Nude explores issues of modern life, modern identity, and the social and sexual politics that impact us all,” said Becky Alley, LAL’s exhibitions and programs director. “Part of the appeal of this exhibition is the universality of the human vessel. Regardless of the context of the art, the themes inherit in it, or the history viewers may have with art in general, the nude figure triggers personal associations and forces us to look within ourselves.”
            Featuring 50 works of art by contemporary artists from 22 states and British Columbia, QX.net Nude includes painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, 3-D mixed media, illustration, installation, video and interactive digital art. More than 600 submissions were received for consideration, and of the artists juried into the exhibition, 12 are from Kentucky.
            “In reviewing the submissions to QX.net Nude, we were able to gain insight into the processes and themes being explored by contemporary artists through the use of the human figure,” said juror Karen Gillenwater, curator at the Carnegie Center for Art & History in New Albany, Ind. “Figurative art has been around for 10,000 years, and still, even after all these years, artists are using the human figure in art to inspire thought, reflection and appreciation in new and exciting ways.”
            Because of the popularity of this exhibition, LAL will host an opening preview party on Jan. 14 from 6-10pm at LAL @ Loudoun House. In addition to being the first to experience QX.net Nude, ticketholders will be treated to live jazz by Detour Ahead, heavy hors d’oeuvres by Bluegrass Catering and the Barrel House, drinks from Kentucky Ale, Kentucky Eagle, and Pepsi, and live body art demonstrations. Tickets, $40/non-members and $30/members, can be purchased at http://www.lexingtonartleague.org/ or 859-254-7024. The exhibition will open to the public Jan. 15-March 13, and Fifth Third 4^th Friday events will be held on Jan. 28 and Feb. 25, 6-9pm. QX.net Nude has been supported by Lexington-based internet service provider QX.net for nearly a decade and is presented by MD Update with support from the American Association for Nude Recreation. 
            Gillenwater, who juried the exhibition with University of Louisville Professor of Painting Mark Priest, will discuss the exhibition in greater detail at LAL’s ARTalk on Feb. 12, 3-4pm, at LAL @ Loudoun House. Audiences will also have a chance to explore the artwork from the artists’ perspective on March 8, 7-9pm, when ARTalk features artists from the exhibition. ARTalks are free and open to the public.
            LAL is also providing audiences the opportunity to engage in the creative process of figurative drawing and painting through workshops with esteemed artists Dong Feng Li and Sal Villagran. Nude figure drawing with Li, who is a professor of art at Morehead University, will be held on Wednesdays from 6-9pm, Jan. 19-Feb. 9, and on Saturdays from 10am-1pm, Feb. 19-March 12. Villagran, an American Artist Self-Portrait Competition winner, will lead figure painting workshops on Saturdays from 9am-12pm, Jan. 22-Feb. 12, and on Wednesdays from 6-9pm, Feb. 16-March 9. Workshops are $85 ($70 for LAL members) and will be held at LAL @ Loudoun House. To register, contact jcuriel@lexingtonartleague.org.
            “QX.net Nude challenges us to reflect on our personal identity and what it means to be human,” said Kurt Gohde, president of LAL’s Board of Directors. “Through this engaging and inclusive exhibition, visual art provides us an opportunity to learn and grow. It is a tool for understanding ourselves, each other, and our shared humanity.”