Details:
① Artwork:
Dreaming of Serenity
This painting depicts a mythical lizard-woman enjoying a blissful sleep in a lush and magical garden. The figure is surrounded by imaginative plants and celestial beings. The artist's work frequently imagines domains free from prejudice and hierarchy. The creatures of the outside world lovingly tease the lizard-woman as she rests; they also serve as her protectors. An angel-like figure stretches its wings around this chosen family group, shielding them from harm. This dreamlike scene of creatures poking and playing evokes tenderness, safety and comfort.
Lydia Maria Pfeffer mines a cross section of psychological strategies, cultural symbolism, rites and rituals. The artist draws and paints worlds in which escapism is revelation and queerness is a healing journey. In Pfeffer's compositions, anthropomorphism, gender play, and eroticism abound—featuring a morphing cast of stylish characters inspired by the fables, folk tales, and mythologies of the artist's youth. At the core of each of Pfeffer's paintings is a basic desire for love and belonging. The artist creates safe spaces for figures pulled from the ether, allowing them to tell their tales, process their traumas and heal.
Specs:
③ Artist:
At the core of Lydia Maria Pfeffer’s paintings is a desire to be loved. The artist’s work depicts worlds where escapism is revelation and queerness is a healing journey, as they explore eroticism, gender play, rituals and cultural symbolism. Pfeffer’s paintings create a safe space where figures drawn from fables and myth can share their stories, process traumas and heal.
BIO:
Lydia Maria Pfeffer was born in Austria in 1976. The artist received a BFA from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City and an MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in Illinois.
Pfeffer’s work has been exhibited internationally, including at: Galerie Droste in Paris, France and Wuppertal, Germany; Brand Library & Art Center in Glendale, California; Club Pro in Los Angeles, California; New Image Art Gallery in Los Angeles, California; OCHI in Los Angeles, California; and Center on Halsted in Chicago, Illinois.
Pfeffer’s work has been featured in publications, including: AUTRE, Hyperallergic, Los Angeles Times, Flaunt Magazine, PaperCity Magazine, Amadeus, Full Blede, and Fabrik.
Pfeffer currently lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. The artist is represented by OCHI in Los Angeles, California and Sun Valley, Idaho.
