Art Jaz Gallery - Verna Hart

VH_1	VH_10	VH_11	VH_12
VH_13	VH_14	VH_15	VH_16
VH_2	VH_3	VH_4	VH_5
VH_6	VH_7	VH_8	VH_9

VERNA HART

STATEMENT . BIO . EDUCATION .

AWARDS . SELECTED EXHIBITIONS .
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VH_1. A Tree Grows In Harlem
VH_10. Monks Magic
VH_11. Najas Solo
VH_12. Piano Man
VH_13. Sunflowers
VH_14. They Loved Us
VH_15. Trombone Slide
VH_16. Live At The Lenox Lounge
VH_2. African Dancers
VH_3. And We Still March
VH_4. Brownstone
VH_5. Charlies Solo
VH_6. Harlem Sunday
VH_7. Harmonica and Tuba
VH_8. Hubert
VH_9. Lenox Lounge

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ARTIST STATEMENT

"My works are visual evidence of a painter’s deep reflection of the natural rhythms of jazz. One who looks at my work from the "outside in" is bound to only see. One who looks from the "inside out" is bound to also feel. Jazz is the medium of my work. My interpretation of jazz music into a pictorial structure lies in a change in my character and vision to a oneness with all the means of this medium, and with art itself. Tones of jazz emotionally carry a listener through a song like the tones in a painting move the viewer visually. When jazz improvisation is applied to my work, the colors like sound float through infinite space. I then improvise on my own musical visions. The incorporation of jazz rhythms and textures into visual art, that stimulate and arouse the human emotion, is what my work encompasses."

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ARTIST BIO

A native New Yorker, born in Harlem, Hart was exposed to jazz at an early age. She often takes her sketchpad to a jazz club to capture the mood live. Because of her persistence, the subjects themselves have acclaimed her work. Trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie suggested the title "Dizzy Swinging" for a piece she created during a session at Symphony Space. Saxophonist Branford Marsalis has used one of her pieces to illustrate the cover of his album, "I Heard You Twice the First Time." Hart’s works are also featured in Spike Lee's film, Mo Better Blues.

Hart is strongly influenced by other painters as well, especially Romare Bearden. She met Bearden when she lived near his studio and would go by to watch him paint. He gave her encouragement and purchased some of her work. After his death, Hart created two monoprints to honor him: "Blues for Bearden I" and II," depicting a jazz trio outlined in black.

A trained artist and arts educator, Hart holds two masters degrees that she earned simultaneously from Pratt Institute (Master of Fine Arts) and Bank Street College of Education (Master of Science in education/visual arts.) She has received several art awards, including the Absolut Vodka commission, WBGO Jazz logo award, and the Romare Bearden Memorial Scholarship.

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EDUCATION

1988-91 Pratt Institute, MFA Painting, 1988-91 Bank Street College of Education, Parsons School of Design, MS, Education Supervision and Administration with a Visual Arts Focus, 1985 University D'ell Art, Venice, Italy, Painting Undergraduate,

1982-84 School of Visual Arts, NY, BFA, Painting,

1979-81 Corcoran School of Art, Washington, DC, (Fine Arts),

1978-79 Cooper Union, NY, Painting

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AWARDS

ABBREVIATED AWARDS

Wilmington, Delaware, City Council, Proclamation Recognizing 30 years as Professional Artist, 2014,

WBGO Jazz Logo Award,

The Romare Bearden Memorial Scholarship,

The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture Award,

Anguilla International Arts Festival, First Place

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SELECTED EXHIBITIONS

ABBREVIATED EXHIBITIONS

Harlem Fine Arts Show, 2014

"From Cover To Cover, 20 Years of African Voices", Schomburg Center for Research In Black Culture, NYC, 2012

"By Special Request", Diggs Gallery, Winston State University, NC, 2012

National Black Fine Arts Show, NYC, 2009

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