Ronna S. Harris is an Associate Professor and Head of Drawing and Painting in the Newcomb Art Department at Tulane University in New Orleans, LA. Harris was represented in the Turchin Center’s inaugural exhibition. While researching Harris’ work and choosing a painting for inclusion in their very first exhibition, the Turchin Center staff was drawn to the idea of curating an entire presentation that would establish an historical view of the artist’s work, and offer a lens through which to view the conceptual and artistic evolution of Harris’ life and work.
Harris’ paintings and drawings might seem, at first glance, to be traditional tributes to the human form, but she invites closer inspection, juxtaposing women posed in classical stances with contemporary settings as a means of exploring modern societal constraints. Of her work, Harris says, “My paintings speak to female attitudes, orientations, perspectives and emotions and embody the tension of women breaking with tradition while remaining within society’s structure; a tension that is underscored by the juxtaposition of the classic and the modern.
“My work is rooted in the American Realist tradition. However, my paintings communicate a state of controlled chaos as I combine two divergent forces and approaches into my art: realism and abstract expression. By a proficient handling of light, a mastery of images, and a skillful mark-making method, my paintings confer an illusion of reality to something that’s not real.”
Pieta by Ronna Harris. Oil on canvas.
American Realism by Ronna Harris. Oil on canvas. Photo courtesy of the artist.
Still Life with Oranges by Ronna Harris. Oil on canvas. Photo credit: Brook Bower.
