Abstraction and photography at the Gershman Y

The Gershman Y presents a pair of exhibitions opening on February 11, showcasing two emerging female artists. The venue’s executive director, Maxine Gaiber, says artists Alex Ebstein and Liz Donadio “reflect Jewish sensibilities and values in their work” through two very different shows.

Ebstein “updates the long tradition of Jewish abstract art,” and Donadio, a photographer, offers “close scrutiny and appreciation of landscapes continu[ing] the Jewish tradition of concern for the earth.”

The Baltimore-based Ebstein’s show is titled Puzzle Pieces (we go together just right). According to the Gershwin Y, the exhibition’s mixed media abstractions have diverse inspirations, including “a personal interest in the cult of the human figure and fitness” (or “yoga-mat based abstractions,” in Gaiber’s words). It’s coming to the Gershman Gallery.

The other show, Liz Donadio’s photo exhibition, is titled In Visible Light, and it’s running concurrently in the Open Lens Gallery. The show features images from the photographer’s travels from Texas to Turkey. It's “an archive of quiet moments where shape, space, and color connect the distances between," and
showcases "the small ordinary things that are usually passed by.” Both exhibitions are curated by J. Susan Isaac.

There’ll be an opening reception with Ebstein, Donadio, and Isaacs on Thursday, February 11 from 6-8pm. Admission is free, but advance registration is required online or by phone at 215-545-4400.

Puzzle Pieces (we go together just right) and In Visible Light are up at the Gershman Y at 401 S. Broad Street, Philadelphia on the Avenue of the Arts February 11 through April 3rd.

At right: photographs by Liz Donadio. Image courtesy of the Gershman Y.