Review of Sheila Lichacz’s Art Exhibit at UC Irvine on Pre-Hispanic Themes

Cathy Curtis once again has demonstrated that she is far more skillful at the art of slash and burn than she is at writing balanced, meaningful critiques. Her latest diatribe, “Exhibition Proves that Simple Images Can Be Simply Simple-Minded” (March 13), is leveled at a visually stimulating exhibit of sensual forms portrayed by artist Sheila Lichacz at the University of California Irvine’s Fine Arts Gallery.

Lichacz’s inspiration derives from her Panamanian heritage. Pre-Hispanic themes such as the great fertile-fecund source of life-forms and birth as emergence from the dark underworld, are expressions of the pre-Hispanic Indian’s perception of the transformation of energy into the myriad forms seen in the material world.

Lichacz’s art deftly captures and gives expression to these themes. There is nothing simple-minded in her art; rather, there is evidence of a rare ability to make profound statements with condensed elegant metaphors.

SUSAN LERER

Newport Beach