“Portraits in Style” by Victoria Namkung, Feb. 21, 2010

Fashion stylists once worked behind the scenes, their faceless names relegated to the credit pages of magazines. But lately some have been stepping into the spotlight (hello, Rachel Zoe), gaining recognition for the important role they play when it comes to trends, the red carpet and popular culture.

Artist Kimberly Brooks became so enamored of stylists that she has dedicated an entire exhibition to the trade. “The Stylist Project” opens with a public reception from 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday at Taylor De Cordoba in Culver City, and the fashion world will be watching.

Featuring a dozen portraits of L.A.’s top stylists, costume designers and influential tastemakers, the exhibition includes subjects such as Zoe, Andrea Lieberman, Liz Goldwyn, Cameron Silver and Elizabeth Stewart, who styled themselves for individual photo shoots with Brooks. The artist then spent up to 80 hours creating each painting.

“Painting portraits of live people is a huge responsibility,” Brooks said in a recent interview. “You can’t help but to inhale their energy and the mood, and then you have to translate that on canvas with color and body language”…

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