Address: Great Neck, New York

E-mail: jbcoop30@aol.com

2002 - Present International Center of Photography, New York, NY

2001 - M.F.A. C.W. Post College, Long Island University, Brookville, NY

1995-1998 - Nassau County Museum of Fine Arts, Roslyn, NY

1993 - Interior Design Certificate, Queens College, C.U.N.Y., Queens, NY

1978 - M.A. Washington University, St. Louis, MO

1975 - B.A. Queens College, C.U.N.Y., Queens, NY - (Magna Cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa)

2006 - Present
Instructor, St. John’s University, Queens, New York

2003 - 2006
Instructor, Hofstra University, Hempstead, New York

2002 - 2006
Instructor, Briarcliffe College, Bethpage, New York

2002 - Present
Instructor, The Victor D’Amico Institute of Art/The Art Barge Amagansett, New York

2001 - 2002
Instructor, Great Neck Center for the Visual and Performing Arts, Great Neck, New York

1999 - 2001
Teaching Assistant, C. W. Post College, Long Island University, Brookville, New York

1995 - 2001
Vice President, Membership; Management Consultant Great Neck Center for the Visual and Performing Arts, Great Neck, New York

1999
Interior Designer (Independent Consultant) Aron, Twomey, Hoppe & Gallanty, New York, NY

On a daily basis I found myself overwhelmingly confronted with images and prescriptions for “being beautiful.” I decided to address the illusions and the realities that exist for women faced with this fact of contemporary culture. I felt it important to explore the issue of why women, living in a “post-feminist” society, have such a premium placed upon their appearance, pushing many to the point of obsession and most to spend a great deal of time and money attempting to recreate themselves. This is seen in everything from the millions of dollars spent on cosmetics and fashions, to the millions spent on plastic surgery.

I began my study by photographing real women attempting to come to terms with these pressures. They are not posed but caught in what is usually a private activity. My first series of photographs, “Altered Women,” examines women who have changed their appearance either by temporary and minor adjustments of their appearance or more radically through plastic surgery. In my next series of photographs I looked at women in their senior years who, although living in a restricted and confined manner, nevertheless also continue to succumb to images of beauty.

My photographs are in color and enlarged to force the viewer to confront the images directly. In this way the photographs have a sense of immediacy, capturing a moment in time and the reality of the experience for these women. The process is no longer seen as an entity where the focus is on the final product. Rather, we truly see what women do to alter and reconstruct themselves.

I am currently working on a number of projects that continue to explore these issues.

2007
Venus of Willendorf-Redefining the Goddess, Feminist Art Project/ University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (Juried Exhibition)
Intersectionalities: The Feminist in Art, Feminist Art Project/Women’s Studies Consortium, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI
Women’s Works 2007, Northwest Area Arts Council, Crystal Lake, IL (Juried Exhibition)

2006
Photography Now, South Shore Art Center, Cohasset, MA (Juried Exhibition)
Visions of Beauty, Woman Made Gallery, Chicago, IL (Solo Exhibition)

2005
Visions of Beauty: Still Searching, Graphic Eye Gallery, Port Washington, NY (Two-Person Show)
14th Annual Judged Membership Exhibition, Artists Network of Great Neck, Great Neck, NY (Juried Exhibition: Honorable Mention)
Cornucopia, Hera Gallery, Wakefield, RI (Juried Exhibition)

2004
47th Annual International Exhibition, San Diego Art Institute, San Diego, CA
Herstory, New York, Manhattan Arts International, NY (Artist Showcase Award Winner)
Works on Paper, Graphic Eye Gallery, Port Washington, NY
Annual National Juried Art Exhibition, Boise State Univ. Women’s Center, Boise, Idaho Juried Exhibition)
4th National Juried Photography Exhibition, Steppingstone Gallery, Huntington, NY (Juried Exhibition: Honorable Mention)
Masquerade: Roles Women Play, Smithtown Township Arts Council, St. James, NY

2003
6th International Open Juried Exhibition, Woman Made Gallery, Chicago, IL
The Ties That Bind: Women and Collaboration in Art & Life, Smithtown Township Arts Council, St. James, NY
Visions of Beauty: Necessities, Graphic Eye Gallery, Port Washington, New York

2002
Her Mark, Woman Made Gallery, Chicago, IL
The Victor D’Amico Institute of Art, Amagansett, New York
Graphic Eye Gallery, Port Washington, New York
Small Works, Artists Network of Great Neck, Great Neck, NY

2001
Visions of Beauty: Altered Women, M.F.A. Thesis Exhibition, C.W. Post College, Long Island University, Brookville, NY

1999
Artists on Artists, Great Neck Center for the Visual and Performing Arts, Great Neck, NY
The Healing Quilt, Great Neck Center for the Visual and Performing Arts, Great Neck, NY

1997
Small Works, Artists Network of Great Neck, Great Neck, NY

1994
Retrospective and Preview Art Exhibit, Artists Network of Great Neck, Great Neck, NY
3rd Annual Judged Membership Exhibition, Artists Network of Great Neck, Great Neck, NY

2006
Art of Survival: Women, Healing, and the Arts, Published 2006, Elka Books, Carbondale, IL

2005
Reflections Artists Journal Vol. 1, Published 2005, Hibbing, MN

2002
Her Mark Calendar 2003, published October 2002, Woman Made Gallery, Chicago, IL

2006 - Present Women’s Caucus for Art

2005 - Present National Association of Women Artists

2005 - Present Women in Photography International

2004 - Present National Association of Photoshop Professionals

2002 - 2006 Graphic Eye Gallery, Port Washington, New York

2002 - Present College Art Association

2001 - Present Art League of Long Island, Huntington, New York

2000 - Present Colored Pencil Society of America

1997 - 2001 Vice President, Membership, Great Neck Center for the Visual and Performing Arts, Great Neck, New York

1994 - 1997 and 2001 - Present Artists Network of Great Neck, Great Neck, New York