Ken Aptekar:

Angels? Rembrandt?
New York and Paris-based artist, Ken Aptekar takes paintings by artists of the past and reinterprets them. Bolted to the front of his re-appropriated paintings are glass panels that are sandblasted with text of his own creation. Aptekar means to encourage audiences to engage with his art historical deconstructions in order to provoke the viewer into a discussion. For this exhibition, Aptekar examines the theme of angels, which for theologians, mystics and poets, have been a source of discussion and debate through history. Aptekar is interested in how the contemporary viewer makes the idea of angels useful: whether they are agents of news that is comforting or upsetting. His images come from sources as varied as Rembrandt, Paul Klee, Durer and Fra Angelico.

Aptekar's paintings have been exhibited at the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, England, and the Kemper Museum in Kansas City, Missouri.

This exhibition is curated by Carla Hanzal and originated by the Contemporary Art Center of Virginia with the assistance of the Bernice Steinbaum Gallery, Miami, Florida.

Reinterpretations of Paintings by Artists of the Past by Ben Borman

12th Grade

Lesson 1: Reinterpretations of Paintings by Artists of the Past

Lesson 2

Ken Aptekar: Talking to Pictures by Theresa Stephens

9th - 12th Grade art level ll: intermediate and art level lll: advanced intermediate

Upon completion of this unit, the students will have a better understanding about the meaning of their roles as the viewer-"spectator"- of the visual arts, as well as a better understanding of the limitations-"censorship"- put on the artist. They will be able to express how they, the students, affect the meaning of a work of art. They will do this through short discussions using an expanded art vocabulary and studio projects utilizing the media of paint, colored pencils, and type. Selected works by Ken Aptekar and images by unknown artists will be viewed and used as stylistic guides.

Lesson 1: The Viewer Speaks

Lesson 2: The Artist Speaks

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