Seven of these 1 1/2 x 2 inch smallest “Fortification” works are in Shared View, on view on Instagram @_collectiveview_

I made them to be an accessible and intimate size in these small glass and brass lockets with silver chain. These in particular are available through Collective_View on Instagram as part of the exhibition. Message to inquire.

Images: Untitled (Fortification series), 2021, Ink and glitter and metallic gel pen on paper, glass, brass and silver, 1 ¾ x 2 inches

GARDEN, LADIES’ ROOM - Los Angeles, CA,
curated by Annie Wharton
Jan 14 - Apr 30, 2021

In December, curator Annie Wharton contacted me about her idea for GARDEN and I felt instantly in kinship with her conceptual underpinning of the work she was gathering, LADIES’ ROOM’s guiding principles and her alignment with combating hunger in Los Angeles. To benefit LA Food Policy Council, Ron Finley Project, and Summaeverythang Community Center, 15% of all sales from GARDEN are dedicated to these organizations. I am thankful for such a welcoming conversation with Annie and Taryn Lee as we discussed my work to be included in the show at LADIES’ ROOM, as tender and new as these sparklers are, I was able to bring words to them in large part because of support of those that cultivate space in the ways that they do. 

Truly to be included in exhibitions with these new works is it’s own fortification, as they have themselves led with light through some dark days in this country and in my own life, as I’m sure is not an isolated story. 

Stirring Glows, Urban Glass - Brooklyn, NY
curated by Zeljka Himbele
Jan 20 - Mar 5, 2021

The exhibition Stirring Glows features recently made neon works by artists who frequently incorporate this medium in their respective multimedia practices. While addressing the rich history of street neon lights, as well as the historical neon art production, the works displayed speak about and call the attention to urgent topics of our times. Features artwork by Alejandro Diaz, Graciela Cassel, Hannah Kirkpatrick, Indira Cesarine, James Akers, Jan Tichy, Kate Harding, Lucy Gillis, Patrick Martinez and Soledad Arias.

In January of 2020, I was learning skills of fire, glass and gas to bend neon as a recipient of two Winter 2020 scholarships to UrbanGlass, and I am grateful to the curator, Zeljka Himbele for including me in Stirring Glows and UrbanGlass as well for supporting this development in my practice. Light gathers people together, especially light with color. It becomes something that people can agree on and move towards, whether it be sunsets, fireworks or a lightshow. I have been creating draped and sewn linen paintings and environments for some time, and integrating digital embroidery, the physical qualities of the thread and fabric shifting light in ways that add to the experience of the work as someone moves around it. With neon, my hope is to extend a piece’s physical reach, showing that space is not unoccupied, but agent and connecting. Light, or the space between things is of vital importance in my work as I attempt to facilitate spaces of shared reflection and exchange.

Hindsight being what it is, I can look back and say I was still excited by the reflection and absorption of light in my embroidered paintings when I gave in to my impulse to stock up on glitter and metallic gel pens. This was just before the New York Stay-at-Home Order, and I saw how the little shimmering drawings I was making could shift and change, destabilizing a single perspective, with not only what the drawings were, but by the materials’ dancing quality itself... so I started making very intimate sized “fortification” drawings that could be held in the hand (to me they feel like baseball cards)... with the idea of joy, color and sparkle as a sort of celebration and resistance.

Private View IRL, Paradise Palace - Brooklyn, NY
Curated by Sarah Crown, Naomi Lev, and Rebecca Pristoop. March 5-7, 2021

Aimée Burg, Sari Carel, Noa Charuvi, Sarah Crown, Tamar Ettun, Julia Goldman, Kate Harding, KB Jones, Dana Levy, Gabrielle Mertz, and Gabriela Salazar.

From August 3 - November 6, 2020, Private View travelled between the homes of seven artists and three curators. Conceived during the forced lockdown, the exhibition offered the collective a means of physical connection during a time of social distancing.

The presentation of Private View IRL at PARADICE PALASE gives the public an opportunity to experience these intimate works in person. Including the work of three additional collective members, builds upon the cumulative nature of the show: growing the composition, enhancing the collaboration, and expanding the breadth of connections at each new location.