The Simplicity of Life and Love in Maria Magdalena Oosthuizen ‘s Portraits at Agora Gallery

New York, NY, August 01, 2012 --(PR.com)-- South African artist Maria Magdalena Oosthuizen paints figurative portraits emanating innocence and hope that pay tribute both to her devotion to God and her belief in the intrinsic goodness of the people of this world. Using balanced, harmonic compositions and a dedication to detail, Maria focuses on the interplay of light and shadow in her works, with particular attention to how light impacts form, conveying the powerful message that underscores all her work: that light has the power to expel darkness and reveal the goodness and abundance in life. In the end, Maria wishes for her paintings to touch the lives of her viewers in profound ways — to remind them again of their greatest dreams and to give them hope despite the complexity and challenges of today’s world. As she explains, “I would love my art to lift the burden for a moment, to reflect peace and overflow, to bring focus again on the simplicity of live and love.”

Maria Magdalena Oosthuizen currently lives and works in Mossel Bay in the Southern Cape.

Exhibition Dates: August 24th, 2012 – September 13th, 2012
Reception: Thursday, August 30th, 2012
Gallery Location: 530 West 25th St, New York City
Gallery Hours: Tues – Sat, 11a.m. - 6 p.m.

About the Exhibition
Two exceptional exhibitions are coming to Agora Gallery, with art that will tantalize a variety of tastes and evoke memories in a wide ranging audience. The Chelsea International Fine Art Competition Exhibition presents the work of those artists who were selected by independent juror Ira Goldberg, Executive Director of the Art Students League of New York to take part in the show. Viewers will be touched by the sincerity and intelligence of these remarkable creations, and intrigued by the diversity they display. In The Kaleidoscope of Color the audience will be plunged into a fascinating world of powerful imagery and lively energy that combines broad scope with intricate detail. The exhibitions will begin on August 24, 2012 and the opening reception will take place on Thursday, August 30, 2012, 6-8pm. The Chelsea International Fine Art Competition Exhibition will end on September 12, 2012 and The Kaleidoscope of the Mind will end on September 13, 2012.

Featured Artists:
The Chelsea International Fine Art Competition Exhibition
Teymur Agalioglu | Arantxa Alvarez Fernandez | Bujar Babis Arizi | Mauricio Cadavid | Valerie Cordaro | Deborah Danelley | Doug DePice | Hilary Eddy | Juan Pablo Gayoso Mogrovejo | Giovanni Gelardi | Luis Guerrero | Kathleen Knauer | Robert Langstaff | Andrée LaRoche | Piero Manrique | Joel Mara | Juan Miguel Palacios | Shelley Powsner | Abby Rieser | Meredith Rose | Mary Sauer | Phil Saunier ("SO") | Susan Schmidt | Mark Van Crombrugge | John A. Varriano | Katerina Verguelis | Eric W. Shute | Ralph White | Elena Yevseyeva

The Kaleidoscope of the Mind
Joan Benjamin | Marat Kharisov | Fred Mou | Maria Magdalena Oosthuizen | Sharon Ross | Douglas The Boogie Man | Andy White

Interviews with the artists and high resolution images are available upon request.

About Agora Gallery
Agora Gallery is a fine art gallery, established in 1984 and located in the heart of New York City’s Chelsea art galleries district. It is famous for showcasing a spectacular array of talented artists from around the world and around the corner, while providing quality and original art to collectors. Gallery II, an elegant adjacent gallery space, gives artists the ideal area for a solo or group exhibition of their own, organized and publicized by Agora Gallery. The gallery publishes ARTisSpectrum Magazine, a bi-annual magazine that is distributed to museums, galleries, art institutions and art schools around the world. It provides artists, collectors, museums, galleries, art organizations and enthusiasts with access to the work of international talented artists as well as feature articles, reviews and interviews. Agora Gallery is the proud sponsor of ARTmine, one of the most comprehensive resources available worldwide to view and purchase fine art. The gallery also runs Agora Art Blog, a blog designed to provide helpful information and advice for artists while providing a forum for artists to help one another by sharing their experiences and thoughts.