John Natsoulas Gallery

521 First Street, Davis, CA 95616

(530) 756-3938

The Art of Painting Conference to Feature Reinvention of Maria Reyes:

New works from once local artist to be exhibited at upcoming conference

Exhibition Dates: February 24, 2010-March 20, 2010

Opening Reception: March 5, 2010

The Art of Painting Conference welcomes back artist Maria Reyes with her paintings that
defy perceptions, fool the eye and mind. Reyes is a Mexico City resident who attended
UC Davis on a student exchange scholarship in 1986. During this time she worked with
artists Robert Arneson and David Hallowell and exhibited at the John Natsoulas Gallery.
Reyes has since lived and worked in her hometown, while still keeping in contact with
local artists and entrepreneurs. For her newest endeavor she wished to work with those
who helped her when she was first starting out in the art world, stating “[I] have
continued my correspondence with Mr. Natsoulas over the years. I am very honored to
have this opportunity to once again be asked to participate in an exhibition”.

Reyes’ recent paintings go beyond the concept of illusion and are created in such a way
as to transform the viewer’s previous ideas about painting. The fields on which these
pieces can be measured against are numerous, looking past the preconceived notions of
the art of painting and moving into the psychological aspects of insight. The perception
threshold is a term that psychologists use in order to determine how much stimulus, or
information, a person needs in order to be aware of a particular sensation. Information is
constantly filtering through the brain and preconceptions based on previous knowledge of
a subject can affect the way a person views new ideas. When viewing Reyes’ pieces one
must be aware of their perception threshold and be prepared to have it altered due to these
new images. These images are not sexual or overtly violent, as those have become the
“norm” in shock value, rather the subtlety with which these preconceptions are
challenged is the most shocking idea of all.

These paintings have been part of a study Reyes has been doing for many years. She has
been delving into the idea of the “Look of Painting”—what it means for someone to look
at a piece of work and decide whether it is good or bad. In addition, she is considering the
question: “what would it look like if I made a painting that when someone looked at it
they did not automatically register that it was a painting?”. These paintings are created in
such a way that viewer would not even register what they were seeing if they weren’t
presented in the context of an exhibition. Reyes wishes to challenge the preconceptions of
the idea of painting in the way she approaches her subject, creating the extraordinary out
of the ordinary. After studying Reyes’ pieces the viewer will reconsider his or her notions
of what the art of painting actually means.

Contact:
Alexess Van Dyke
alexess@natsoulas.com
(530) 756-3938