Skye Cleary "Who's Really In Charge?"
Skye Cleary "Who's Really In Charge?" 2019
Painting: Acrylic on canvas
Dimensions: 16 in x 20 in
Unique
Signed on verso, includes a certificate of authenticity
Skye Cleary artwork featured in "SKYE CLEARY NEVER GETS OLD" solo show at The Untitled Space, March 2024. The exhibition unveils the artist's introspective journey, drawing inspiration from her experiences as an exotic dancer and the exploration of her identity as a sex doll. Through her confrontational sense of humor, Cleary's artwork challenges societal norms and empowers viewers to confront preconceived notions. Her paintings, which seamlessly blend imagery with empowering narratives, serve as a testament to resilience and self-acceptance. Spanning various mediums including performance, text, illustration, and painting, Skye Cleary's artwork challenges conventional boundaries and celebrates the complexity of female identity. Her narrative resonates with audiences worldwide, sparking conversations about autonomy, representation, and societal expectations.
Skye Cleary, the sex doll artist, was conceived by Lisa Levy in 2018. While doing research on the human imagination, Levy was gifted a sex doll from a prominent therapist. She realized that this symbol of a beautiful young woman could be useful to give voice to the messages of self-empowerment she imparts to young women on her radio show and in person. She called on her close friend and painter, Sharilyn Neidhardt to work with her to give voice and artistic presence to Skye Clearly. Like the creative process used to create advertising, copywriter and art director working in teams, Sharilyn and Lisa began creating paintings and therefore a life for Skye.
Cleary’s previous solo shows include Arcade Projects, Satellite Art Fair, and SPRING/BREAK Art Fair. Her work has been featured in many publications such as The Untitled Magazine, Art Forum, Widewalls, and Artsy.
Lisa Levy:
Lisa Levy blurs the lines between art and comedy as a conceptual artist, stand-up comic and performer and host of a radio talk show, “Dr. Lisa Gives a Sh!t.” She had a “riotously funny” sold-out show at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. She’s challenged the seriousness of art by sitting naked on a toilet for two days mimicking Marina Abramović ’s famous MOMA performance: “The Artist is Present” with “The Artist is Humbly Present.” Her book of text paintings, “The Thoughts in My Head,” will be published later this year. She currently curates a gallery inside a comedy club of funny art by funny people. Levy’s work has been exhibited in numerous art fairs and galleries and has been covered with feature stories in publications such as the New York Times, The London Times, Time Out New York, The Daily News, The New York Post, Whitewall, Dazed—as well as many other publications such as Artnet, Hyperallergic, and ARTnews.
Sharilyn Neidhardt:
Sharilyn Neidhardt is a Brooklyn-based visual artist. She blends her experiences as a photojournalist and as a paintmaker into her work depicting experiences of urban life. Sharilyn is a co-founder of the artist community trans-cen-der, a founding member of the Drawing Club in Bushwick, and a member of Maggot Brain collective. Ms Neidhardt has exhibited widely in New York City and across the country, including solo shows in 2018 and 2022. She's currently collaborating with artist Lisa Levy on a project about female sexual identity, with painter Mark Albright on a series about the legacy of Playboy, and with Seth Ruggles Hiler on an immersive project about art and chess. Sharilyn is an avid cyclist, loves midnight movies, and speaks only a little Mandarin.