Ed Aulerich-Sugai Open Studio and Sale Preview
Please join us for an open studio and sale of work from the Collection and Archive of Ed Aulerich-Sugai (1950-1994). We are thrilled to share a selection of studies and works on paper from Aulerich-Sugai’s series Clouds, Cells, and Figures. To learn more about each series, there are links at left under “The Artwork” (or under “Menu” on mobile view).
Find us in the garden at Daniel Ostrow’s home, as we celebrate Ed’s life and work. Cocktails and nibbles will be served.
Address
Ed Aulerich-Sugai Collection & Archive
At the home of Daniel R. Ostrow
336 Texas Street, San Francisco
Date and time
Saturday, March 28 from 3:00 - 6:00pm
Pricing
All works are priced in the $100 – $250 range.
All proceeds will go toward future efforts to preserve the legacy of Ed Aulerich-Sugai.
RSVPs and enquiries
christopher@thekunstworks.com
Preview the sale
Clouds (Maui, West Virginia, and Kauai), 1975. Pastel on paper. 9 x 12 inches.
These small sketchbook studies of natural landscapes and clouded skies in Hawaii and West Virginia were made the year after Aulerich-Sugai’s graduation from the San Francisco Art Institute in 1974. In addition to maintaining a studio and exhibiting, Aulerich-Sugai was an award-winning gardener, working at the the San Francisco Conservatory of Flowers, and he used techniques of botanical illustration, focusing on natural forms in some of his artwork.
Cells, 1986-89. Water-based media on paper. Various dimensions.
In the autumn of 1987, Aulerich-Sugai was diagnosed with HIV-related illnesses and his painting became more urgent as he suddenly faced his own mortality. Many works display cells in mitosis and helper T cells, interrogating the HIV as it divided in his body and weakened his immune response. The series of over 100 paintings and drawings—oil on canvas and mixed media on paper—spans a period of four years and displays a broad range in the use of color, form, and texture. The composition of the paintings was influenced by his study of ukiyo-e woodblock prints.
Figures, 1990-93. Oil on canvas and mixed media on paper. 43 x 35 inches.
Painted during two periods near the end of Aulerich-Sugai’s life, the reverent imagery in the Figures series offer a pensive and introspective take on representation. While painted in groups, the figures are unaware of one another; large portions of their bodies are left unpainted, blending with the surrounding negative space. For the earlier body of work in 1990 and 1991, models would come twice a week for several months, and take quiet, inward, and contemplative poses. Aulerich-Sugai described the ascending figures as “bodies to grow into.” Other works show figures in repose. Painted following the death of three close friends, including a former lover, these works channel the artist’s grief. The later works, completed in 1993, use a more saturated palette to represent bodies suspended weightlessly in space.
