Nothing says IT’S FRIDAY like a porcelain eyeball floating in an Old Fashion! This is the most recent work of Brooklyn based artist Genesis Belanger. I wrote about her in late 2019, but when I realized her first major solo museum exhibition opens this weekend, clearly I had to write again. ‘Through the Eye of a Needle’  will be installed at The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum in Connecticut. Here’s their description:

“Anthropomorphizing common household objects–lipsticks with wagging tongues, lamps with ladies’ pearls, and tins with doey-eyed sardines–Belanger’s methodology blends Surrealism and Pop art with a self-possessed feminism informed by a career inside the fashion and advertising industries. Debuting an entirely new body of work specially conceived for The Aldrich, Belanger will create her largest and most elaborate mise-en-scène to date: dozens of animated objects arranged on ghostly furnishings that suggest narratives about our anxiety afflicted present. The artist’s first museum publication, featuring an essay by the exhibition’s curator, Amy Smith-Stewart, will accompany the show.

The show will be open for a Members-Only Preview Day on Saturday, September 19 and there will be a private opening on Sunday, September 20. The first day the exhibition will be open to the general public is Monday, September 21. To book your timed-ticket for September 21 onwards, click here. To register for the Members-Only Preview Day, click here. Not a member? No problem, you can join today and see the exhibition early!

Stopped. In. My. Tracks. That is exactly what happened when I caught a glimpse of these gorgeous paintings by California born, New Jersey based artist Grace Lynne Haynes… those flat fields of color and dizzying patterns? LOVE! I found Grace’s striking, beautifully composed, candy-hued work through this article in Elle Magazine, written by Rose Minutaglio. Here are a few excerpts from that interview:

Elle: How has your perspective on art and beauty changed in 2020?

GLH: Nina Simone once said: “It’s an artist’s duty to reflect the times in which we live.” I agree. It’s my job as an artist to reflect what is going on in our world right now, so I’m constantly thinking about what my work will mean years from now. I hope people will understand the era I was creating in. Black womanhood is constantly taking on new forms. We’re also in a period where, for the first time in history, women are empowered to pursue their passions and go after careers that weren’t available to us before. I want the Black woman’s perspective to be part of that conversation.

… It’s a whirlwind moment for Haynes, who has reservations about her meteoric rise to the top. “Black women in the art world can be tokenized,” she says. “Art has a habit of becoming trendy, whether that’s Black art or women’s art, and the industry likes to hop on bandwagons. Then, when the trend is over, the artist suffers.”

Sadly, she’s not wrong about bandwagons in the art world. Let’s make damn sure that doesn’t happen this time around, yes? Yes. {Read the full article here}.

Ah yes… politics and art have gone hand-in-hand since, well, forever. I’m Canadian, but it’s pretty much impossible not to watch what’s happening in the United States at the moment. Enter, “Not Normal: Art in the Age of Trump”. This book is a visual protest of the Trump administration featuring 147 artists with over 350 works. The creator of this project is American activist and curator Karen M. Gutfreund. Here is a description of this timely collection:

“Artists around the United States are raging against Donald Trump in visual protest. Not Normal: Art in the Age of Trump, Second Edition, documents this artistic movement in a curated collection. Their outrage is evidenced in full Technicolor on subjects ranging from racism, the Covid pandemic, xenophobia, immigration, promotion of hatred and violence, mistrust of science and facts, misogyny and of course, a narcissism that puts our entire country and world at great risk. While the subject matter is serious, the art is alive with color and detail and is delivered with an irreverent sense of humor.”

2020 will most certainly be one for the history books, and seeing what artists create during this time might be the only thing keeping me going. I’m bracing myself for angry Trump supporters, as everyone has their right to their opinion. That said, all of these artists also have the right to create artwork based on how they feel. I see this as a time capsule… a surreal, ‘this is so not normal’, time capsule.

{Artists show above: 1. India Tresselt; 2. Holly Ballard Martz; 3. Brenda Oelbaum; 4. Michele Pred; 5. Bryan Buckley; 6. Tm Gratkowski; 7. Cabell Molina + more pieces can be seen here}

Wait for it … quaranteens! So good. Clearly, my first thought when I saw the ‘Quaranteen Creeps Class Reunion 3020 Senior Class’, was to save this post for Halloween… but there is no way I could wait that long! These creepy weirdos are the latest work by Austin based artist Combs. As a mother of a boy who just started high school yesterday, in the middle of a global pandemic, yeah, these spoke to me. Wash your hands and wear your masks, kids!

It’s rare for me to begin a post by saying: this artist has a BS in Biochemistry, and an MS in Environmental Science… but in the case of Denver based artist Noelle Phares, that is exactly right. Suddenly her gorgeous architecture-meets-landscape paintings make even more sense, each of them exploring “the ever-encroaching presence of humanity into previously pristine open spaces.” Here is Noelle’s full artist statement:

“People often remark at seemingly unique marriage of abstract structure and landscape in my work. But in reality, that is what the world looks like these days: the stark break of a distant mountain view by the foreground shapes of the built environments we live in. I choose to paint places that have been altered, for better or for worse, either directly or indirectly by human development. I hope to both raise awareness of the fragile beauty of these places while also highlighting how beautiful and functional manmade design + nature can be if done with symbiosis, instead of nemesis, in mind.”

Well said. Happy Monday.

Gasp! All of it… I love all of it. This colorful, thoughtful, beautiful world is the work of Claudia Martínez Garay, a Peruvian artist who lives and works in both Amsterdam and Lima. This gorgeous show was exhibited earlier this year at GRIMM Gallery {Amsterdam}. It was titled, “A las revoluciones, como a los árboles, se les reconoce por sus frutos”, which translates to, “Revolutions, like trees, are recognized by their fruits”. Here is the description from the gallery’s site:

“Claudia Martínez Garay’s work dwells on Peruvian history through the life of cultural artifacts and visual archives, and the multiple voices and meanings which are ascribed to these. She combines graphic iconography and abstraction in her paintings and ceramic sculptures to reflect on the idea of memory, life and after-life, invoking a strong identification with native American cultures of South America.

With a focus on re-reading, remaking and interpreting the visual traditions, the artist presents installations that exists in a specific imaginary’s time and space. Underlying the arrangements, there is a drive to reanimate the existing fragments of lost and forgotten stories. Persistent and bittersweet, Martínez Garay’s work analyzes modernity as an inseparable component of colonialism.”

“Reanimating the existing fragments of lost and forgotten stories”… yes, I love that too.

The scale!!! This is the striking and powerful work of Ghana born, Detroit based artist Conrad Egyir. All of these pieces are paintings… and then some! Oil, acrylic, and mixed media on canvas and wood. In some cases that means glitter, synthetic flowers, crystals buttons, mounted plexiglass, and… is that “bookmark” a really big ribbon?! Most of this work is from his 2019 show, “Ameliorations”, at Jessica Silverman Gallery in San Francisco. Here is part of the description of this exhibition from the gallery’s site:

“Addressing contemporary American culture, biblical parables and Ashanti iconography from his native Ghana, Egyir’s work explores questions of ethics, honesty, identity and the social-psychology of community. Monumental, uncanny and often satirically grandiose, the paintings combine the graphic sensuality of Pop Art with the far-reaching narratives of history painting.”

Love.

Gasp! What are we looking at here? Well, for one, VINTAGE SARIS woven together to create stunning sculptural textile pieces… not to mention the neon lighting and hair rollers in that “rainbow”. See, the *gasp* was very necessary. This is the work of Guyana born, Denver based artist Suchitra Mattai, and I could not love it more! Here is part of her artist statement:

“I am interested in giving voice to people whose voices were historically quieted. Using both my own family’s ocean migrations and research on the period of colonial indentured labor during the 19^th Century, I seek to expand our sense of “history.” Re-writing this colonial history contributes to contemporary dialogue by making visible the struggles and perseverance of those who lived it. I often focus on women and employ practices and materials associated with the domestic sphere such as embroidery, weaving, etc. I re-imagine vintage and found materials that have a rich history as a way of creating dialogue with the original makers and the time periods in which they were cherished.”

So beautiful. ps. Suchitra’s latest solo show, at K Contemporary in Denver, just came down in mid August. Reach out to them re: her available work.

These paintings are the work of Seattle based artist Ko Kirk Yamahira. ‘Paintings’, you ask? Well, yes, that’s how they start out:

“… the finished painting is a beginning rather than an end. Painstakingly removing individual threads from the weave of the canvas, Yamahira deconstructs his paintings, turning surface into form.”

What? Yep! If you happen to be in Seattle, you can see his work as part of a two-person show {with Emily Counts} at Studio e until September 12th, 2020. Threads. WHAT.

Okay, hold the phone… a ceramic mural?! YEP! The hands, the fruit, the color palette… all of it!!! This beauty is the work of Seattle based artist Emily Counts, and is installed at Facebook HQ in Redmond, Washington. I seriously could have posted everything in her entire portfolio… like this piece, or this one, or even this one. Here is part of Emily’s artist statement, explaining why she does what she does:

“My ceramic and mixed media sculptures begin with an interest in connectivity, whether physical, social, or conceptual. Many pieces are comprised of objects attached to one another via tethers or chains while other works connect vertically, consisting of shapes stacked high on top of each other. Each element is paired, sequenced, grouped or assembled. With all of these physical couplings I am considering how associations are formed in our minds, and also how similar connections occur within our bodies, in nature, and through technology. Chain reactions, associative memories, and social networks are all examples of the types of connections that influence my work. I especially look for pathways and relationships between things that may seem unrelated on the surface.”

Beautiful. Emily is currently part of a two-person show, with Ko Kirk Yamahira, at Studio e in Seattle. The show runs until Sept 12, 2020. ps. I’ll be writing about Kirk tomorrow, because his work is gorgeous too!