an offering of gravity and grace
January – April have been busy months preparing for my solo exhibition at Super Secret Projects in Beacon, NY. The period was filled with a lot of firsts. From assessing all my bodies of work, to making a maquette, curating, and laying out a show, to designing a press release, learning mailchimp, and scheduling social media posts, to finding allies to soften the load of all these decisions and steps to a successful vision for the show.
I intentionally chose April for my opening, seeing as how Spring is the seasonal and spiritual marking of abundance and light following the cold, darkness of Winter. The morning of my opening, the weather said, “Hold my beer” when we woke up to snow on the ground, and a snowglobe of flakes coming down for the morning. We had a great opening despite the rain and being the first night of Passover, and I made sure to schedule various events and opportunities to bring people into the space and talk about the work.
From a ritual by the river on the dual day of easter, to 3 workshops that coordinated with the themes of transformation, care, and resilience: Ghost Prints, Painting with Dead Things, and Letting go of Perfect (co-led by guest artists Elizabeth Castagna and Tamalyn Miller).
I had some impromptu happenings in the space during the day, like painting on the floor on a body sized piece of mulberry paper with my leftover natural inks, and watching new friends Dan, Tamalyn and Nova (who met at my opening) gather in the space to jam in a response to the art on the wall.
Finally, the closing. I planned for a reception, and artist talk, and a performance, which I wanted to differ from the video version of the piece, where I alone, was processing the piece in its cycle of transformation. For the opening, I asked my sister-in-law to mirror me on the stage. It brought a different level of intensity, in which I was the caretaker of the paper bodies, but also her body, my body, and the energy that was passed between the two of us. It was a monumental experience. Her vulnerability was palpable.
All in all, it was an amazing month of learning, experiencing, and seeing how my work can place in the world. I have felt a little detached since the closing day, giving my body time to recover, and my mind time to clear before the next challenges is planned for.
