ALTER EGO

Elliott Negin & Groover Cleveland
February 9 to April 5, 2008

Opening Reception
Saturday, February 9, 5 to 8 pm

District Fine Arts presents “Alter Ego,” featuring drawings by Elliott Negin and prints and paintings by Groover Cleveland.

Elliott Negin, an award-winning illustrator and graphic designer, is a former adjunct professor at the Art Institute of Boston and the University of Maryland, where he taught publication design. He has one published book of drawings, “Celebrities Sweepsteaks,” and his illustrations have appeared in the Atlantic Monthly, Boston Globe, New York Times, People, Sports Illustrated, Washington Post and other publications. He has a B.A. in art from Brown University, and studied at the Cleveland Institute of Art, Rhode Island School of Design, Art Institute of Boston and Corcoran College of Art and Design.

Negin’s drawings have been exhibited in numerous group shows, but he no longer works as an illustrator. “Illustration is out of fashion these days, largely because software programs like Photoshop killed it,” he said. “Most of my illustrator friends had to find something else to do for a living. They’re probably selling used cars.”

Groover Cleveland has exhibited his paintings at a number of group shows in Washington, including ones at DCAC, MOCA and the Corcoran College of Art and Design. He has a B.A. in art from Brown University, and studied at the Cleveland Institute of Art, Rhode Island School of Design, Art Institute of Boston and Corcoran College of Art and Design. This is the first time Cleveland has exhibited his work in more than 10 years. “Maybe I’m really a conceptual artist,” he said, “because I’ve been thinking about doing art for the last decade.”