Tuesday, March 3, 2015

This Into That




Excited to be a part of the current exhibition at Nave Gallery Annex called This Into That. It is curated by Caleb Cole and opens Wednesday night with a reception from 6-8.

A trinket purchased at the thrift store, an old photo in a family album, a lost hat or scrap of paper picked up from the sidewalk–these items come with their own functions and meanings, but through artist intervention they can be transformed into something else entirely. This can mean giving items a new context, arranging them in unexpected combinations, adding to or subtracting from an object, or using something intended for one purpose as the content or material for a new work of art.

It is sure to be a blockbuster with a long list of very talented artists. Come join us or at least visit while it's up. I'll be gallery sitting on March  12  and 14.

Included are three of my embroidery studies from my residency in China. Click here to learn more.


While in China this past fall, I embroidered pages from a Mao propaganda magazine of the 1960s with a traditional Chinese pine needle stitch. 

I found the threads discarded as waste by a local factory and the magazines in my studio. Inspired by the craftsmanship of classical chinese embroidery, I chose this technique to impose an air of cultural form within the context of a nontraditional application. After completing these artworks, a colleague interpreted the writings as affirmations of Chairman Mao and his unification of China.

The masking of faces and political prose symbolizes the struggle of society vs. the individual in a country where top down communist rule combined with capitalism results in a confused sense of identity and direction. 

Depending on the viewer, the bright colors and designs invoked one of two reactions from the Chinese. Most smiled out of optimism and pride and a few snickered from cynicism.

OPENING RECEPTION: Wednesday, March 4, 2015; 6:00 pm-8:00 pm

EXHIBITION DATES:

March 4-28, 2015

LOCATION: Nave Gallery Annex, 53 Chester St, Somerville, MA

GALLERY HOURS:
Wednesday-Friday, 6:00-8:00 pm
Saturday, 2:00-8:00 pm
Sunday, 2:00 pm-6:00 pm