SHEILA HECHT                                      www.sheilahecht.com                              sheilaht@optonline.net

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Sheila Hecht has always been an abstract painter. From the time she created her first painting, her natural response has been to convey the underlying feelings associated with objects rather than to picture them realistically. Born and raised in New York City, Hecht knew she was an artist from an early age. Her creative process began in childhood, developed in high school, and matured at Queens College where she studied with John Ferren and Louis Finkelstein and earned a B.A. in Fine Arts as well as a Master’s Degree. Throughout her career as a visual artist, Hecht has had an uncompromising commitment to explore and develop her own unique creative process. Over the years, her paintings have evolved from tighter, denser compositions to freer, more expanded works. During the past decade, Hecht’s abstract paintings and mixed-media constructions have been exhibited with increasing frequency in commercial galleries, museums, and non-profit and corporate spaces.

March 2010 marks her fifth solo exhibition entitled “Primary Spirit, No Short-cuts” at the Chelsea Noho Gallery.


ABOUT THE WORK

My paintings give evidence of my passionate approach to finding visual correlates to strongly felt experience. My painterly textures are intensely visceral and the compositions are dynamic. Yet I aim for a rhythmic flow, an equilibrium between tumult and composure. The act of painting is a sensual experience for me, and often produces surfaces that prominently display the actions of my hand. Procedures with brushes and palette knives include thick and thin strokes, layering hues and scraping some away to reveal underlying color. My method includes both drawing upon spontaneous intuition and deliberate reworking

Beyond the painterly voluptuousness of a composition, They reflect my desire to discover and communicate both visual and life experience.  I strive to convey a direct and pure response in a work that is at once stimulating and contemplative.

 

PAST NOHO EXHIBITS

TOO HOT (OR NOT) TO HANDLE, November 6  - 24, 2007: SheliaHecht_2007.pdf

Inside Out, November 15–December 3, 2005: SheliaHecht_2005.pdf

Through Thick and Thin, November 4–November 22, 2003: SheliaHecht_2003.pdf

The Thrill Of It All, 48 x 36 inches, acrylic on canvas

Stacked, 48 x 36 inches, acrylic on canvas