Bordellos and Boudoirs comes to Long Beach

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Free-Press-Release.com) October 2, 2003 -- The opening reception is Saturday October

18, 2003 from 6-10 PM and will feature special guest singer Connie Rouse.

The opening will also mark the debut screening of �The Making of Bordellos and

Boudoirs� by filmmaker Janae Dimick. The exhibition, which celebrates the

second anniversary of the gallery, runs from October 18, 2003 through December

13, 2003.

Long Beach artists Darrow-Stretz and Rubin have collaborated to create a series

of works that investigate and explore the lives of the women and men who inhabit

the world of bordellos and boudoirs. They were inspired by the French boudoir

postcards of the 1920s and 1930s. Darrow-Stretz combines elements of the vintage

�femmes� with contemporary aesthetics in a style reminiscent of art deco and

cubism. She works to retain the sensuality of the models while exploring the idea of

femininity and women�s role in society. Rubin has created a striking series of black

and white photographs that illustrate many aspects of the world�s oldest profession.

She looks at the relationships between seller and buyer, religion and commerce,

truth and illusion, and romance and sex. Rubin invited an audience to her photo

shoots turning the creative process into performance art. Her photos appear timeless

placing the viewer in settings more as a participant than an onlooker. The exhibition

also includes an installation piece. With the support of Elan Collection the artists

will present a boudoir constructed in the gallery.

Rubin and Darrow-Stretz have participated in solo and group exhibitions in the

past. This is their first two woman show. Their collaboration for Bordellos and

Boudoirs included Darrow-Stretz acting as a model for one of Rubin�s images.

Icaro Gallery is open Wednesday through Saturday from 1:00- 7:00 PM and by

appointment. Icaro Gallery is located at 4258 Atlantic Avenue and can be reached

by phone (562) 427-4258 or email: buyart@Icarogallery.com The gallery�s website

is www.Icarogallery.com.