New Online Art Exhibits from Artist Darlene Nguyen-Ely
Press Release
"Each of my sculptural works represent another step in my journey," says Darlene Nguyen-Ely. The artist's
journey started at an early age, and it has been an eventful one indeed. In 1975, when she was seven years old,
Nguyen-Ely fled her birthplace of Saigon, undertaking a long and arduous boat voyage to a refugee camp in
Hong Kong. She spent a year in this camp before immigrating to the United States with her uncle and two siblings.
Even after many years, this memorable boat voyage still pervades Nguyen-Ely's consciousness and impacts her
artwork. Forms that connote movement and travel predominate the artist's imagery. Many of the earlier pieces in
her Journey series consist of smooth, streamlined shapes that are reminiscent of boats or airplanes. A smoothly
sanded wooden vessel might bear a resemblance to the hull of a ship, giving the impression that it might glide
gracefully on water. Long, arching forms covered with a thin sheet of fiberglass might bring to mind a set of wings,
looking as though they could easily ascend into the air.
While Nguyen-Ely was mainly inspired by mechanical, aerodynamic forms in these earlier pieces of the Journey
series, her most recent work shows an increasing interest in approximating organic-looking shapes and textures.
The artist lives in Monroe, Washington, in a lush area that is surrounded by nature. She admits that she is
influenced by the animal and plant life that she encounters on a daily basis. These works, resembling cell-like
structures, double helixes and other simple organisms, look like they could be diagrams in a biochemistry lesson.
Yet through her painstaking craftsmanship, Nguyen-Ely continues to fashion her sculptures with smooth, sleek
surfaces that embody sense of dynamism and speed. These works can be seen as metaphors for movement and
traversal, both in regards to the artist's prolific career as well as the continuation of her life journey.
By Berin Golonu Editor in Chief - Artweek, San Jose, CA
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current exhibitions: http://www.geocities.com/paulely.geo/current.html
new work: http://darlenenguyen-ely.tripod.com/91.html
reviews: http://www.geocities.com/nguyenely/vegas.html http://www.geocities.com/ngoctrang.geo/horizon1.html
http://www.geocities.com/vaala.geo/TheLocalPlanet.html
homepages: http://www.geocities.com/nguyenely/ http://home.earthlink.net/~pely/
http://www.geocities.com/paulely.geo/
bio: http://www.geocities.com/paulely.geo/byesaigon.html http://www.geocities.com/paulely.geo/pageseven.html
public arts: http://www.geocities.com/paulely.geo/PublicArt.html