Philadelphia, PA - August 27, 2007 - Dalet Gallery is pleased to present the metaphoric works of New York painter Lucien Dulfan, Pennsylvania photographer Ilya Genin, Pennsylvania painter/mixed media artist Dolores Poacelli and New Jersey photographer Sandra Johanson in the new exhibition, METAMORPHOSES, which will be on view Sept 1-27.

Sandra Johanson presents two series of photographs, which, although very different in style and technique as well as in their philosophical content, reflect a common theme: transformation and memory. The series Gloves is her artistic attempt to restore the life of objects found on the street by challenging the viewer to imagine the people to whom they originally belonged.

In the Pentimento series, Sandra combines images of paintings found in art history books, making them transparent and showing how the old conceptions of the painter are replaced by later choices. Paintings from different time periods live together in one photograph, interacting, talking to each other and creating a feeling of the past and present in a contemporary relationship.

The paintings and metallic boards by Dolores Poacelli create energized fragments wrapped in ambiguity and metaphor. They invite the viewer to discover their meaning through symbolism infused with sexual satire. Dolores uses earth-bound color and aluminum as well as intense color, creating a tension in each piece. The use of organic shapes references the human form and nature, and offers a way of seeing our existence from both a microcosmic and a macrocosmic point of view.

The works presented here by Ilya Genin are inspired by his feeling that dolls and mannequins have a life of their own—that they have mysteries and secrets waiting to be solved and uncovered. When the dolls are weathered and show the clear patina of time and wear, their expressions begin to speak and they move closer toward that mysterious line separating them from humans. By photographing these dolls, Ilya strives to evoke a series of psychologically complex narratives that invite the viewer to contemplate his or her own relationship to life and its impermanence.

The paintings of Lucien Dulfan are full of caustic satire. Space aliens and toy-being in straw suits fill the Earth, parodying and rendering absurd our habits, feelings, and desires.

The exhibition will be on view at the Dalet Gallery, 141 North 2nd Street, Old City, Philadelphia, PA 19106.

Opening Reception: Friday, Sept 4, 6-9 pm.

For further information on Dalet Gallery, or to set up media interview with the gallery artists, contact Irena Gobernik at 215-923-2424 or irena@daletart.com or visit www.daletart.com

Above images:
Lucien Dulfan, Coca smoker, oil on canvas, D 34"
Ilya Genin, Life of Dolls, digital print, 27" x 18"
Sandra Johanson, Blue glove, Archival Pigment Prints, 13.5" x 10.5"
Dolores Poacelli, Recycle 3, aluminum & rust on panel, 24" x 18"