Opening reception for ¡°Second Act¡± by Peter Xiao

Quad City Arts will hold an opening reception for ¡°Second Act¡± by Peter Xiao and ¡°Saw You in Russia¡± by Karen Cooper. Complimentary food and beverages will be served.

The two artists will display their work from Feb. 17-March 24 at the downtown Rock Island gallery. Xiao¡¯s work is influenced by his Chinese ancestry and Cooper¡¯s work is based on visions from Russia.

Xiao is professor of art and graphic design at Å·ÖÞ±­ÍøͶ_Å·ÖÞ±­ÍâΧapp-Ͷע¹ÙÍø. In his exhibition, he presents recent works that ¡°dwell on time, and awareness of its passing as we age ¡ª looking backward and forward simultaneously.¡± 

Some of the work eulogizes friends who passed on or recalls past experiences of lasting importance while growing up; while others, in a more abstract language, focus on time, space and the body. Xiao utilizes easel paintings, shaped wood constructions and unstretched paintings on linen to depict his ideas.

Cooper has always been a people watcher. ¡°People out there in the world are just SO interesting. It seems only natural to me to translate people watching events into paintings on canvas.¡± She feels that while a photo can capture a person¡¯s image, a painting can tell the person¡¯s story. Cooper has spent most of the past year living in Lipetsk, Russia, where she created her current body of work.