Artist
It was thrilling to be in conversation with Joe Davich, Executive Director of the Georgia Center for the Book, supported by Ally Wright, Ph.D., Program Assistant, in concert with fellow artists Julie Fordham, Nicole Polonsky (all the way from London), Chris Revelle and Christian Feneck.
Watch and listen here:
The exhibition Building Networks of Empathy is the second of a two-part show that asks us to consider the ways in which art empowers not only the artist, but its viewers to transform their most difficult experiences into enlightened outcomes. The first part of the show is an ongoing online-only exhibition entitled Facing Darkness, which encouraged artists in our community to reflect internally on our current moment of pandemic, isolation, and structural inequity laid bare.
For this second part, which will be physically installed in 18th Street Arts Center’s spacious Airport campus hangar galleries, artists were asked to respond to how they have changed as a result of their inner reflections on darkness, and to imagine new futures and societal structures as we see our way out of crisis. Each artist grapples as well with the role that art can play in social reflection, expression, and cultural paradigm shifts as a result of a deeper understanding of each other, and the empathy that follows. The exhibition sees empathy not only as a way to share and understand what others are going through, but also as a natural and endless resource that we can all rely on when crisis and emergency hit, with hopes that we can turn this moment of collective fear into a sublime experience.
“I was commissioned to create an interactive book for Craft Contemporary’s 2017 exhibition, Chapters: Book Arts in Southern California, which opened shortly after the 2016 presidential election. Visitors could choose file cards in an array of colors, draw and write on them, and insert them into the pocketed pages of the book. A range of feelings, responses, and concerns were expressed through the cards, which the Museum Staff saved and gave to me at the end of the show. I stitched them together grouped loosely by theme, to express the network of empathy they depicted, held together by golden thread.”
This exhibition may be viewed by appointment only. Please visit here to sign up to visit the exhibition!
The exhibition will be accompanied by a live Zoom panel featuring Alma Ruiz and Karen Sherman, moderated by Paul Bonin-Rodriguez, on November 12, 2020 at 12pm. For this panel discussion, curators, artists, activists, advocates, and scholars are invited to meet virtually to reflect on the public opening of Facing Darkness, and consider how the show renders a public crisis and artists’ circumstances evident and knowable. Moderated by artist-scholar Paul Bonin-Rodriguez, with talks by curator Alma Ruiz and dancemaker Karen Sherman, (Inter)facing Darkness will frame a dialogue on how artists are operating as second responders, as thought leaders, and resource gatherers at this time. Participants will be invited to speak on their experience of the show at this moment. Register here.
“I like the ‘openness’ of the California Open concept,” said juror Kate Mothes, “so in my selections I tried to maintain a diversity of ideas and themes, and to the best of ability with the information at hand, include artists of diverse backgrounds. With this in mind, I also considered the craftsmanship of each work, and included a range of media types. It was a pleasure to review all of the submissions to this year’s open call, and I thank TAG Gallery for inviting me to participate as juror this year!”
“Falling“, 2019, 7″ x 24.5″ x 10.5”, mixed media (book board, mulberry paper, hemp cord, paperboard)
It sold.
“I like the ‘openness’ of the California Open concept,” said juror Kate Mothes, “so in my selections I tried to maintain a diversity of ideas and themes, and to the best of ability with the information at hand, include artists of diverse backgrounds. With this in mind, I also considered the craftsmanship of each work, and included a range of media types. It was a pleasure to review all of the submissions to this year’s open call, and I thank TAG Gallery for inviting me to participate as juror this year!”
I was in good company, and documented a few of my favorite pieces…it takes all kinds…of art.
Enjoy.
Photograph
Sculpture
Mixed Media Relief
Documentary Photography
Altered Book
Collage
Like I said…it takes all kinds.
It takes, All Of Us.
Cheers.
I was thrilled to be part of the exhibition “TRANSITION“, presented by Tarfest 2020, produced by Launch LA, and juried by the wonderful Holly Jerger, curator for Craft Contemporary.
Tour the show with Founder/Executive Director of Launch LA James Panozzo here.
I showed “Torrent and Tangle: Keep your House in Order“, 2019, 10.5 x 25 x 18”, made of book board, hemp cord, ribbon, lace, mulberry paper, acrylic paint, and neutral PH adhesive.
The piece was created in a bottomless box format,
with two accordion folded joins, or back corners,
and two “front doors” hinged with cloth and surfaced with strips of ribbon, that can be opened,
or kept closed,
with any amount of the hanging internal strings kept in, or emerging, flowing or falling out of the structure,
depending on how the those designing the show wish it to appear.
Hemp cords knotted on one end were threaded through awl-punched holes on three sides,
after the inside surfaces were lined with lace,
tumbling down in a torrent into a tangled heap onto the surface where the piece is placed.
How will we get this all sorted out?
Nobody really knows, but this much is clear, we are in this together. Endemic of contemporary life, torrent and tangle is taken to the extreme by the current pandemic. We will get through this. We have to.
It is an honor to be participating in the 2020 CALIFORNIA OPEN Exhibition at TAG Gallery.
You can visit the show live and in-person by appointment:
TAG Gallery 5458 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036
310.829.9556 | [email protected] | 11am -5pm, Tue-Sat
TAG Gallery is thrilled to share the 15th Annual 2020 CALIFORNIA OPEN Exhibition, featuring unique art pieces from 99 artists from around the United States.
Juror Kate Mothes , accomplished founder of Young Space @yngspc and Dovetail Magazine @dovetail.mag thoughtfully selected nearly 1000 works submitted from our national call for art to assemble what is a uniquely incredible show.
She says,
“Much has already been written about the unprecedented time we find ourselves in,” explains juror Kate Mothes. “As I reviewed the submissions for the California Open, I had a raised awareness of the circumstances and time period during which much of the work had been made.”
“I like the ‘openness’ of the California Open concept,” continues Mothes, “so in my selections I tried to maintain a diversity of ideas and themes, and to the best of ability with the information at hand, include artists of diverse backgrounds. With this in mind, I also considered the craftsmanship of each work, and included a range of media types. It was a pleasure to review all of the submissions to this year’s open call, and I thank TAG Gallery for inviting me to participate as juror this year!”
Troy Aiken, Norman Aragones, Sarah Arnold, Louis Balicki, Jenny Balisle, Michele Benzamin-Miki, Reiko Berg, Allegra Bick-Maurischat, Raydel Blanco, Alessia Bothorel, Nancy Byrnes, Julie Carcione Cavaz, Chung-Ping Cheng, Michael Chesler, Jonathan Crow, Laurie Curran, Jaren Dahlstrom, Debra Disman, Lee Dollison, Laurence Elias, Mims Ellis, Robert Esau, Mumtaz Essa, Astrid Francis, Rinaldo Frattolillo, Gail Glikmann, Aspen Golann, Leslie Goldenberg, Bart Goldman, Emily Gomez, Keri Haarhoff, Andy Hann, Debra Hintz, Gary Hong, Cathy Immordino, Federico Imperiale, Marta Jaremko, Joan Karp, Sassoon Kosian, Faina Kumpan, Esther Kwan, JJ L’Heureux, Julie La Rue, Bonnie Lambert, John Langdon, Michelene Laski, Tom Lasley, Nancy Goodman Lawrence, Nakyung Lee, Andrew Leventis, Roberta Levitow, Whitman Lindstrom, Janet Manalo, Don Manderson, Carmen Mardonez, Andrew Martin, Melissa McClellan, Janet Milhomme, Zachary Miller, Eliza Ann Mitchell, Joseph Moreno, Nelson Munares, Perola Navarro, Bryan Northup, Joe A. Oakes, Cara Park, James Parlin, Nora Pineda, Sherry Pollack Walker, Justin Prough, Manaz Raiszadeh, Michael Roy, Gigi Salij, David Shannon, Ashley Shellhause, Sam Shokati, Jen Solomon, Tianyi Sun, Emily Sunez, Pam Sutherland, Viviana Svidler, Ariel Swartley, Robin Tripaldi, Michael Usher, Paul Valadez, Crystal Vicars, Amy Vidra, Catherine Walker, Sheldon Walker, Emily Wallerstein, Eric Welch, Mira White, Debbie Wolf, Wendy Widell Wolff, Travis Worden, Miss Art World, Amy Wright, Shingo Yamazaki, Jim Zver