A symbol of education, a preventative antidote to every infirmity, and the forbidden fruit that tempted Eve and Adam to fall from grace, the apple- with its endless associations- is the inspiration and the focus of this valise by Astrid Preston. From green to red, from flower to fruit, from above and from below, Preston brings the apple to life with a series of miniature oil paintings that are attached to the inside cover of the very suitcase she emigrated with in 1952. A bowl of apples, nestled atop a velvet tablecloth sits in the bottom of the suitcase, creating an instant still life and referencing this popular genre throughout the history of Western painting.

About the artist: Astrid Preston emigrated from Stockholm, Sweden in 1952 and currently lives and works in Santa Monica, California. Her career as a landscape painter has spanned four decades, beginning with her first solo exhibit in 1975 at Gallery 707 in Los Angeles. Her work is intimately tied both to the natural environment of Southern California that surrounds her and the magical realm of her imagination.

Preston has been featured in exhibitions in California, North Dakota, Montana, Texas, and Michigan. Her paintings are in the collections of the Oakland Museum, Oakland, California; The McNay Art Museum, San Antonio, Texas; Kaufman and Broad, Paris, France; and Forest Inn Showakan, Tokyo, Japan, among many others.

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