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March Issue 2004
HoFP Gallery in Columbia, SC, Features Works by Yasharel
HoFP Gallery in Columbia, SC, is hosting a one-man show by Yasharel. The show will feature new original oils by celebrated artist, Yasharel Manzy, through Mar. 31, 2004.
Yasharel is a master of color. His hues and color combinations are striking and vivid. He creates lush tones of red, green and cobalt blue. Even without his signature you can discern his bold work. Yasharel paints from memory, preferring the controlled conditions of the studio to the variations of light and climate outdoors. He works entirely in oils to achieve his vivid juxtaposition of brilliant jewel tones.
Rather than creating preliminary sketches and blending pigments on the palette, Yasharel applies paint directly to the canvas to achieve his distinctive impasto. Favoring accident and inspiration over careful deliberation, he might begin with a vague idea of rendering a seascape or a landscape inspired by his travels or a dream, but admits that he has "very little idea what the outcome is going to be" when he starts.
When asked about his early interests in art Yasharel responds, "When I was six years old, I tried to copy one of Raphael's drawings. The result of the drawing gave me such exaltation that I could not sleep all night, and I could not wait until I showed it to my teacher. I was born in a Jewish ghetto in Isfahan, Iran, right about half a century ago. My very first experience in painting was at the age of eleven. During the three month school vacation, I would spend long afternoons doing watercolors. The subject matter was mostly scenes of the city. I attempted to paint again at the age of thirty-three. I painted about twenty canvases, mostly of snow scenes. Then to my dislike of the quality of the paintings and my lack of experience, I abandoned painting once again. I suppose due to lack of patience I always wanted to be able to paint without going through the pain of the learning."
When prompted about returning to art Yasharel responds, "Then came the winter of 1990, strolling through a gallery one painting with a French scene caught my attention. There I was glued to the floor, and then moments later this incredible, intense feeling overwhelmed me. I found myself in the crossroads of my life. Those days I was involved in selling Persian rugs, and I was a partner in Atlanta. To be able to change careers now and go where my heart was, I knew that I must learn how to paint. So the choice was very clear. That afternoon in the gallery, I decided to change my destiny, and I would become a painter."
"So within a few days I changed my business office into an atelier. So now for the first time in about twenty years I could not wait until I go to work, which was really going to paint. I did learn a lot through books. I painted at least eight hours a day for the next six years. During these six years I had numerous private lessons in portraiture with the prominent Marc Chatov."
For more info check our SC Commercial Gallery listings, call the gallery at 803/799-7405, or on the web at (www.hofpgallery.com).
Carolina Arts is published monthly by Shoestring Publishing Company, a subsidiary of PSMG, Inc. Copyright© 2004 by PSMG, Inc., which published Charleston Arts from July 1987 - Dec. 1994 and South Carolina Arts from Jan. 1995 - Dec. 1996. It also publishes Carolina Arts Online, Copyright© 2004 by PSMG, Inc. All rights reserved by PSMG, Inc. or by the authors of articles. Reproduction or use without written permission is strictly prohibited. Carolina Arts is available throughout North & South Carolina.