“Cat Manolis takes a tough topic—questions about gun control and ownership rights—and spills it directly onto her brightly colored, ornately decorated canvases. Scenery and characters reminiscent of traditional English hunting portraits blend and blur into elements of our contemporary life, creating a fascinating whirlwind of imagery, excess, and political satire. We, as viewers, are drawn in by the startling and strange imagery—yet the bigger questions, ever more timely in light of the shootings at Newtown, Aurora, and elsewhere, leave us unsettled. Who is exempt from Manolis’s provocative sarcasm and wit? She keeps us guessing, talking—and, more importantly, keeps us looking.”
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Jennifer Dasal,
Associate Curator of Contemporary Art
North Carolina Museum of Art