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Two Brothers - Two Profiles
Ira & Len Upin
November 4-26, 2011

Images from "Two Brothers"
Press from "Two Brothers"

            Two Brothers - Two Profiles features Ira and Len Upin. Ira, a Philadelphia-based artist, is known for his provocative figurative juxtapositions rendered with awe-inspiring skill and frequently challenging narratives. New to Philadelphians is Len Upin, an artist who was an educator in a suburban Chicago school system until a series of medical issues brought an early end to his teaching career. During the recuperation process, Len found himself returning to the studio, making a series of expressive and arresting images that, though based on a photographic reference, plunge the viewer into the torment and angst of the human spirit as the body and mind wrestle with sickness and a near-death experience. The force of these powerful works, in the simple language of black and white in the tradition of Rembrandt and Lucian Freud etchings, engages the viewer in the artist's unrelenting struggle with mortality. This confrontation brings the artist’s emotions into the empathetic core of his audience, allowing us all to ponder this mythic plane. His subjects are himself, family and friends; his results are arresting glimpses into our deepest felt desires. One does not feel pity for the struggling artist but rather anguish for mankind itself and the fleeting nature that is life and the torment of the unknown, which is its inevitable conclusion.

            Ira Upin’s contribution is a series of images based on the experience of a forceful, healthy and productive man coming to terms with the normal aging process. This process begins slowly but persistently over time, intensifying until the once powerful becomes increasingly less capable. In a series of complex, figurative compositions that conjure the work of Pieter Bruegel meets “The Big Lebowski”, Ira uses his considerable skills to craft images which increasingly lead the viewer to understand that it is the humans in these images that are merely characters on the stage of life, easily replaced by yet another character waiting in the wings just off stage. The strong narrative nature of these works and the cryptic scenarios they present confront the viewer in yet another way to contemplate the temporal nature of life.

            In Two Brothers - Two Profiles these siblings, who were reared in suburban Chicago but who have lived separate and very different lives, come together under the same roof to speak about one of life’s most compelling moments - its conclusion. These two brothers, who have lived full lives of work, marriage, parenthood, success and challenge, are asking similar questions in markedly different ways. It is no coincidence that each is fascinated with the portrait as an artistic device. Two Brothers - Two Profiles brings to the forefront two commanding perspectives on the nature of human existence and the artist’s need to discuss the uncomfortable in a frank and compelling manner. The Upin brothers engage, invigorate, enlighten and remind us that we all have an opportunity to give life meaning.