ENCINITAS, CA — (February 1, 2010) — Lux Art Institute announces the third event in its “Studio Series,” taking place on Thursday, February 25. The public is invited to join the museum for an evening of art and conversation with Los Angeles Times arts contributor Leah Ollman and Lux resident artist, Bulgarian-born Iva Gueorguieva who will both lead an interactive discussion and Q & A about Gueorguieva’s work as an abstract painter. A wine reception will welcome guests at 5:30 p.m. before the presentation begins at 6 p.m.

“All of us are looking forward to sitting in on the lively discussion between acclaimed writer Leah Ollman and Iva Gueorguieva,” said Lux Director Reesey Shaw. “Among other things, they will talk about the trajectory of Iva’s work as represented by the major paintings installed at Lux, including one of the largest painting Iva’s ever done, which was completed during her residency here.”

Hosted by Lux’s Education Committee and introduced this past summer, “Studio Series” is designed to bring new light to exhibitions in the Lux studio by inviting artists, scholars and professionals to share their perspectives through commentary and discussion.

A resident of San Diego, Leah Ollman has been writing reviews and features on the visual arts for the Los Angeles Times for over 20 years. She is a corresponding editor for Art in America and the author of numerous catalogue essays. Her publications include Strangely Familiar (Aperture, 2008), The Photography of John Brill (Kent, 2002) and William Kentridge: Weighing ... and Wanting (Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, 2001). Her writings have also appeared in Art on Paper, Sculpture and ARTnews. She earned her B.A. in art history and philosophy from Scripps College and her M.A. in art history from the Institute of Fine Arts, New York University. She is currently working on a project exploring the affinities between poetry and photography.

Ollman interviewed Gueorguieva for an article in the Los Angeles Times on December 27, 2009.

Gueorguieva’s exhibit at Lux features tumultuous, acrylic-laden canvases with dizzying brushstrokes, loud colors, complex spatial configurations and frenetic energy abound. Vaguely recognizable objects, dismembered body parts, hints of architecture and obscure characters – grotesque, comic, even tragic in their tattered states – are barely revealed and even seem poised to disintegrate. Yet they all come together, curiously juxtaposed, on canvases heaving with lurid hues, swirling spaces and sharp-edged images to depict seemingly futuristic worlds where an underlying sense of menace lurks.

It is the process of painting that the Los Angeles-based Gueorguieva makes evident in these chaotic, dynamic works. But as she bleeds abstraction into narrative, despite the absence of any static image, themes of beauty, violence, isolation, sex and death are exposed.

Gueorguieva is in-studio at Lux through February 6. Her exhibit, as well as the 100 in. by 150 in. painting she created during her residency, will be on view at Lux through March 17.

Tickets to the “Studio Series” with Ollman and Gueorguieva are $10 for non-members and $5 for members (includes studio admission). Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis, and space is limited. Advanced reservations are required. To reserve your spot, please e-mail education@luxartinstitute.org, or call 760-436-6611.

About Lux Art Institute

Lux Art Institute, located in Encinitas, Calif., is redefining the museum experience with the region’s only artist-in-residence program that invites artists to live and work on site, while producing a commissioned work of art – start to finish. This one-of-a-kind institution welcomes visitors to not only “see art,” but also to “see art happen.”

Throughout each year, Lux hosts several significant regional, national and international artists who participate in its residency program. Visitors from across the country are able to participate in exclusive liaison-led tours, providing intimate access to the artist-in-residence, the artist’s exhibition and the museum’s permanent collection of indoor and outdoor art. Lux also offers a wide range of innovative programming for all ages.

The recipient of the San Diego Architectural Foundation’s top design award, the Grand Orchid, and the first art museum in California awarded LEED certification for new construction, Lux is located alongside one of Southern California’s few remaining coastal wetlands. The five-acre site also overlooks the San Elijo Lagoon and is surrounded by a wildlife preserve that stretches to the Pacific Ocean.

Through its Phase II Capital Campaign, Lux plans to add more than 25,000 square feet of galleries and classrooms. Once completed, the new building will also feature a hilltop plaza and a series of gardens climbing between the galleries and the Artist Pavilion.

Lux Art Institute is located at 1550 South El Camino Real in Encinitas, Calif. Hours are Thursday and Friday, 1 to 5 p.m.; Saturday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and cost is $10 for two visits. For more information about donations, memberships, volunteer opportunities and more, visit http://www.luxartinstitute.org or call 760-436-6611.