Fabulous Fakes Fool the Eye

Most of the time, being an artist is not about recreating what others have done before.

But that's not the case this month at the , where members were challenged by the Fabulous Fakes exhibit, which tasked them with reinventing well-known works of art and adding their own personal touch.

Some of the completed pieces have obvious tweaks, like modern technology in place of old-world objects, while others are more subtle—perhaps no obvious changes but if you look closely, you'll see that the work is recreated using a new medium.

The 43 finished products are now on display at the Naperville Fine Art Center and Gallery, 508 N. Center St., Naperville, and will be until early March.

"I'm always amazed by the creativity and the thought provoking twist these artists can put on a classic piece," said Laura Rivas, fine arts director for the Naperville Art League, who added that the show was installed on Monday.

The gallery is filled with recognizable Van Goghs, Monets and Picassos. And many of the added tweaks show the artist's sense of humor.

One duplicate of the 1948 painting, Christina's World by Andrew Wyeth, shows the same vacant, tawny field with the woman crawling. But instead of making her way toward a gray house, she's reaching for a Starbucks coffee shop in the far-off distance.

"A lot of it is like that," said Glen Hoffman, member of the art league whose work is featured in the show. "You have to find the joke, find the humor. The show really is all about whimsy."

Hoffman, a photographer, challenged himself to recreate Jasper Johns' pop art rendition of an American Flag. Making a photograph look a painting was an involved process, he said.

"I took one of those parade flags and laid it down on canvas," he said. "And then I had to overexpose the photo so that it fooled the eye."

Rivas admitted that Fabulous Fakes is a bit more challenging for 3-D artists and photographers, but said "that's just part of the fun."

This year is the fifth for the exhibit and coordinators said it may be the best yet.

"It's fun to be a part of," Hoffman said. "It's one of the most reviewed, advertised shows that we do."

Each month's show at the art league has a theme, but it's usually the artists' prerogatives to stick to them or not. However, everyone must adhere to the rules for Fabulous Fakes, Rivas said.

"Some like the direction and challenge of a theme but other's don't," she said. "For this, you look around the gallery and the works are familiar, but they are different. And I think that makes it fun. It's accessible but not in an intimidating way."

The exhibit opened Wednesday and is accessible during gallery hours. It will remain on display through March 4. The public is invited to meet the artists at a Feb. 20 reception that will be held from 1 to 4 p.m.