Bea Scaccia

When looking at Bea Scaccia's paintings, "grotesque" is hardly the first word that comes to mind. Everything is shiny, polished, elegant, pretty, and perfect---and in absurd abundance. But here lies the catch: the Italian, NYC-based artist pushes beautifying, embellishing, and masquerading so far that the concept comes full circle. It feels as if the long-sought beauty has caught its own tail in a wreck of exaggerated effort.

Just as the imagery suggests an impulsive, almost manic urge for "more and more," the painterly technique is also driven by an equally energetic, subconscious process. In an effort to "dumb things down," she works on lustreless, chalkboard-like surfaces that expose the artifice beneath the glow and sparkle. Surpassing the bounds of traditional beauty, societal expectations, or even good taste, her obscure yet suggestive nighttime boudoir scenes transcend time and space. Referencing everything from Renaissance hairdos and folk tales to pop-culture and Disney, Scaccia employs excessive lavishness to portray emptiness, non-presence, and detachment. And by doing so, she saves beauty from slipping into sentimentality.