1989 begin collaboration as art students at the Moscow Surikov State Academic Art Insitute
1991 Pavel immigrates to America, Scherer & Ouporov move to New York City
EDUCATION
SUZANNE SCHERER
1989-91 Moscow Surikov State Academic Art Insitute, Moscow
1989 MFA, Summa Cum Laude, Brooklyn College, Brooklyn, NY
1986 BFA, Magna Cum Laude, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL
PAVEL OUPOROV
1993 MFA, Moscow Surikov State Academic Art Insitute, Moscow
1978-84 Moscow Academic Art Lyceum of the Russian Art Academy, Moscow
SELECTED COLLECTIONS
Arnot Art Museum, Elmira, NY
Binghamton University Art Museum, NY
Broward County Cultural Division Public Art Collection
Ekaterinburg Museum of Fine Art, Russia
Equitable Life Assurance Society, NY
Evansville Museum, Evansville, IN
Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport
Harvard University Fogg Art Museum, Cambridge, MA
Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art, Auburn University, Auburn, AL
Lancaster Museum of Art, PA
Library of Congress, Washington, DC
Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY
Ministry of Culture, Moscow
New Mexico Museum of Fine Arts, Santa Fe, NM
New York Public Library
Russian Academy of Art Foundation, Moscow
State Russian Museum, St. Petersburg
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2010 “As Above, So Below, Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art, Auburn University, Auburn, AL
2007 “One Voice,” The Coral Springs Museum of Art, FL
“Scherer & Ouporov,” University of Mary Washington Galleries, Fredericksburg, VA
2006 “Tree of Life,” Jenkins Johnson Gallery, NY
2004 “Celestial Alphabet,” Turner Carroll Gallery, Santa Fe, NM
2000 “New Egg Tempera Painting,” Turner Carroll Gallery, Santa Fe, NM
1999 “Scherer & Ouporov,” Ekaterinburg State Museum of Fine Art, Russia
1998 “Dream Ikons,” Mimi Ferzt Gallery, NY
1997 “Scherer & Ouporov,” Penn State Harrisburg, Middletown, PA
1996 “Scherer & Ouporov,” Lancaster Museum of Art, PA
1994 “Icones Bestiarius,” Mimi Ferzt Gallery, NY
1991 “Scherer & Ouporov,” Central House of Artists/New Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow
Spaso House Gallery, The Residence of the American Ambassador, Moscow
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2012 “Re-Presenting the Nude II”, Evoke Contemporary, Santa Fe, NM
“61st Annual All Florida Juried Competition and Exhibition”, Boca Raton Musem of Art, FL
“PBC: ART”, Cultural Council of Palm Beach County, Lake Worth, FL
2011 “Duo: International Artist Couples”, Künstlerforum, Bonn, Germany
2009 “Layered Luminescence: The Art of Egg Tempera”, ACA Galleries, New York, NY
“The Luster of Silver”, Evansville Museum, Evansville, IN
2008 “EARth: Anima & Terra, Chelsea Galleria, Miami, FL
2007 “Art and Psyche: The Freudian Legacy,” CDS Gallery, New York, NY
“New Art South Florida 2007,” Museum of Contemporary Art, MOCA, Miami, FL
“2007 Biennial Art Faculty Exhibition,” Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL
“Global Warning”, Chelsea Galleria Wynwood, Miami, FL
“Representation 2007,” Jenkins Johnson Gallery, San Francisco & New York
“Tempera 10,” Westfield State College, Westfield, MA
2005-6 “Dreamscapes,” John Michael Kohler Arts Center, Sheboygan, WI
2005, 1999 “Re-presenting Representation VII and IV, Arnot Art Museum, Elmira, NY
2005 “Seventh Annual Realism Invitational”, Jenkins Johnson Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2004 “Contemporary Works On Paper From the Collection,” Museum of Fine Arts, Santa Fe
2003 “Creative Space: Fifty Years of Robert Blackburn’s Printmaking Workshop,” Library of Congress, Washington, DC, International Print Center of New York
“Magic Realism,” Sangre De Christo Arts Center, Pueblo, CO
“Genetic Expressions: Art after DNA,” Heckscher Museum of Art, Long Island, NY
2002-3 “Word, Text, and Story,” Sangre De Christo Arts Center, Pueblo, CO
“Tempera/New Temperaments,” Evansville Museum of Arts and Science, IN, Frye Art Museum, Seattle, WA
“Things to Come,” Claire Oliver, NY
2001-2 “Egg Tempera: An Enduring Tradition,” Anna Maria College, Paxton, MA, Miami-Dade College, FL, University of Mary Washington Galleries, Fredericksburg,VA, Wisteriahurst Museum, Holyoke, MA
2001 “Re-presenting Representation,” The Corning Gallery, NY
2000 “Art from the Sciences,” New York Academy of Sciences
“Alternative Processes in Photography,” Williamsburg Art & Historical Center, NY
“Thinking Outside the Box,” Claire Oliver, Philadelphia
1999-2000 “Dreams 1900-2000: Science, Art, and the Unconscious Mind,” The Equitable Gallery, New York, Historisches Museum der Stadt Wein, Vienna, Binghamton University Art Museum, NY, Passage de Retz, Paris
1999 “Animals in Art,” The Cyclorama, Boston Center for the Arts, MA
“In the Spirit of Compassion,” Auction for the Jacques Marchais Museum of Tibetan Art, White Box Gallery, NY
“End of An Era: Eastern European Paintings from the Fall of Communism to the Year 2000,” Turner Carroll Gallery, Santa Fe, NM
“Graphica,” Turner Carroll Gallery, Santa Fe, NM
1998 “Points of the Compass”, Museum of Fine Arts, Florida State University, Tallahassee
“Center for Book Arts Benefit Auction,” Swann Galleries, NY
“A Diverse Gathering: Highlights From Local Collections,” Susquehanna Art Museum, Harrisburg, PA
“Lebanon Valley College Collects: Highlights from the Permanent Collection,” Annville, PA
1997 “American Gothic,” Lebanon Valley College, Annville, PA
1996 “The Sciences: A Cultural Context,” New York Academy of Sciences, Binghamton University Art Museum, NY
1995 “Peep Show,” Schmidt Bingham Gallery, NY
“Printmakers Biennale,” Dalarnas Museum, Falun, Sweden
“Works from the Printmaking Workshop,” British Consulate, NY
1994 “The Apartment Store,” Exit Art, NY
“The Ideal Landscape,” De Saisset Museum, Santa Clara, CA
“Eros and Identity,” Stuart Levy Gallery, NY
“Universalism and Particularism: The Russian World in Transition,” Krasdale Gallery, White Plains, NY
“Swimming-Pool Moscow,” Center of Contemporary Art, Moscow
1993-96 “Monumental Propaganda,” World Financial Center, Courtyard Gallery, NY,
Helsinki City Art Museum, Uppsala Konstmuseum, Helsinki, Muckenthaler Art Center, Fullerton, CA, Bass Museum of Art, Miami Beach, Kemper Museum of Contempory Art and Design, Kansas City, Smithsonian Institution, International Gallery, S. Dillon Ripley Center, Washington, DC, Dunlop Art Gallery, Regina Public Library, Saskatchewan, Canada, Institute of Contemporary Art, Moscow
1993 “Old Symbols, New Icons in Russian Contemporary Art,” Stuart Levy Gallery, NY
“Contemporary Russian Artists,” China Club, Hong Kong
“Lituraturnaya Gazyeta Benefit Auction,” Moscow
“Moscow Book Fair,” Papugai Publishers, Exhibition of Economic and Cultural Achievement, Moscow
“Art MIF,” Manege, Moscow
“Works from the Printmaking Workshop,” Fordham University, Lincoln Center, NY
1992 “Glasnost Under Glass: Gorbachev through the Eyes of Contemporary Artists,” Ohio State University, Columbus. OH
AWARDS
2011 Award of Excellence, Solo Exhibition, Southeastern Museums Conference Exhibition Competition
2008 Artist’s Fellowship, New York, NY
2007 South Florida Cultural Consortium Fellowship for Visual and Media Artists
Broward Cultural Council Individual Artist Mini-Grant
1996 Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation Visual Arts Residency Grant
1991 IREX Visual Arts Grant with the USSR Ministry of Culture and the Russian Academy of Art
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY
2011 D.Harper,"As Above, So Below: Recent Work by Scherer & Ouporov." Jules Collins Smith Museum of Fine at Auburn University
J.Sjostrom,“Master Strokes.” Palm Beach Daily News, Oct.
J. O’Hern, “The Art of the Nude.” American Art Collector, October.
2009 “Layered Luminescence.” American Art Collector, March.
R.Meyer, “Scherer and Ouporov.” Artist’s Magazine, September.
2008 G. Leggio, “Scherer and Ouporov.” American Arts Quarterly, Winter.
B. Barcena, “In the Beginning There Was the Word.” Wynwood The Art Magazine, March. J.O’Hern, “Shades of Love.” American Art Collector, February.
2007 Neue Galerie, Museum for German and Austrian Art, “Gustav Klimt-The Ronald S. Lauder and Serge Sabarsky Collections”
R.C Baker, “Best in Show”, New York Village Voice, 17-23, October
R. Wolff, “Critics Pick: Art and Psyche: The Freudian Legacy, New York Magazine, 10 Sept.
C. Russell, “An Artists Union: Suzanne Scherer & Pavel Ouporov, CitySmart, March.
A.Herrera, “MOCA and Its’ Journey to the Depths of Art.” El Nuevo Herald, 16 September.
J. O’Hern, “What’s Old is New Again.” American Art Collector, October.
S. Krulik, “Suzanne Scherer & Pavel Ouporov: Two Artists Who Are One.” Cultural Quarterly,
Spring, Volume XX, Number 2
C. Russell, “Speaking in ‘One Voice’”, South Florida Sun Sentinel, 17 October
2005 S. King, “Suzanne Scherer and Pavel Ouporov at Turner Carroll.” Art in America, April.
2004 D. Indyke, “Two For One, Husband and Wife Blend Western and Russian Influences.” Albuquerque Journal, 23 July.
2003 H. Harrison, “Genetic Expressions, Heckscher Museum of Art.” The New York Times, 27 July.
P. Goodman, “The Art of DNA.” New York Newsday, 27 June: Cover.
2000 Gamwell, Hartmann, Kuspit, “Dreams 1900-2000: Science, Art and the Unconscious Mind.” Cornell University Press, NY.
V.G. Roth, “Dreams 1900-2000,” Die Welt, Berlin, July 19, 2000
1999 The News Hour with Jim Lehrer, “Dream World.” PBS, 4 November.
M. Koster, “Grafica.” Art News, June
1998 J. Klein. “American Gothic.” New Art Examiner, March
1997 T. Zaza, “Devil Was A Woman?” NY Arts Magazine, March
“Bataille’s Eye.” The Institute of Cultural Inquiry, DAP.
1996 “New York Pros,” WHTM-TV 27, Prime Time News, Harrisburg, PA.
“Genesis: A Living Conversation,” with Bill Moyers, Public Affairs Television, October.
1994 “Art Breaking.” WBAI FM Radio, Interview with Charles Finch, New York Public Radio, August.
“Universalism and Particularism in Transition,” Flash Art, Jan-Feb
1993 L. Weschler, “The Great Lenin Garage Sale: Recycling Your Old Soviet Art.” The New Yorker, 12 July.
1991 J.Heit, “Glasnost Art: Two Artists Find Common Creative Ground.” Fort Lauderdale News/Sun Sentinel, 4 Sept.
J.Alexander, “Local Figures in Artistic ‘First.’” Courier Journal, Palm Beach, 28 Jul.
SCHERER & OUPOROV: Artist Statement
Since meeting at the Surikov Moscow State Academic Art Institute, we have worked together as an artist team. Raised on opposing sides of the Cold War divide, we combine our diverse personal histories and cultural identities to form a bridge of opposites--East/West, male/female, self/other, sacred/profane, microcosm/macrocosm. Our collaborative work explores the interconnected nature of the world we inhabit and the unlimited duality within. We draw influences from Medieval and Early Renaissance art, Russian Symbolism, Magic Realism, contemporary figurative art, animation, cinema, and dreams. We work in a wide range of mediums including drawing, printmaking, photography, video, and installation, and--foremost--egg tempera paintings. The latter are carefully planned, minutely detailed compositions, often embellished with gold leaf, gemstones, and most recently beadwork.
An ongoing investigation of archetypal iconography, universal mythologies, and fairytales, our latest series illuminates the quest to understand animal language and natural phenomena. In Russian and in other world folktales, the gift of interpreting animal language is granted to the initiate by a magical transformation. In our paintings, the use of gold leaf and gems is used sparingly to symbolize such a transformative process. Both the animal and the child hold gems---signifying the child’s gift of insight and their mutual understanding and bond.
Our painting process can be understood metaphorically as a pyramid where each step has symbolic significance. In the beginning we use a clay border, to remind us of our primordial source; that we come from the earth. At the start, or base of the pyramid, earth colors are used to represent our cosmic nature or "chaos." Our goal is to reach the center of the painting, or top of the pyramid, where the colors are the brightest. The colors become brighter as we meditate and find a balance within ourselves and in the painting. The gold application is the last part of the process, or tip of the pyramid, because it represents the soul, divine energy or light, and the manifestation of the spirit. The act of gilding symbolizes the "breath of life" because when we apply the gold, we must breathe deeply from within onto the clay bole for it to adhere. The moisture from one's breath wets and creates a tacky surface, allowing a perfect bond. The clay and the gold together represent humanity's dual cosmic and earthly nature, material and spiritual sides.
In the aftermath of September 11th, we relocated from New York City to South Florida with our newborn child amidst a slew of devastating hurricanes. As a result, we began to focus on humanity’s frailty in the presence of nature. Isolated figures, oftentimes children, set in an archetypal Garden of Eden, refer to both our separation from nature and an unfulfilled desire for a paradisiacal state. The depiction of children and adolescents signify fragility and innocence, and simultaneously embody pure creative potential and hope for the future. This series--and the body of our work-- reflects our endless search for the mysterious, timeless qualities manifested to us in nature, in humankind, in our daily experiences, and in our life together.