Girlish Ways

photo from Amberhawkswanson.com

Girlish Ways:A selection of eleven artists under the age of 35 investigate how contemporary lifestyles effect and re-define the women of this generation.

Curated by Rachel Fick and Marissa Botelho

Sponsored by ArtCadeForum.com and The Pink Line Project

Artists: Satomi Shirai, Amy Misurelli Sorenson, Amber Hawk Swanson, Pierette Montone, Lauren Bender, Sara Hubbs, Trish Tillman, Meg Onli, Pamela Norrish, Zoe Blackwell, Lauren Rice

Opening Reception: Saturday, June 287 - 10 pm with live performance art and local music talent@ Bobby Fisher Memorial House1644 North Capitol Street, NW

Exhibition: June 28 - July 13 Open on Saturday and Sundays 12 pm - 5 pm, and by appointment.

Playthings: Trendiest Show On The Block

Playthings, a show whose advertised theme is that of whimsy and the spirit and function of toys, seems to include all the most popular trends in art within the past 10 years---video game imagery, crafting, low quality digital print outs, large-scale paper cut outs, fashion emblems and, of course, vaginas. This is not necessarily a criticism, but definitely a distracting aspect of the overall exhibition. Somewhere in all this trendiness, the theme gets a little lost.

Ryan Cecil Smith's paper sculptures

Looking like its straight out of Bedrock, a Prehistoric Jukebox

The Metro Gallery may have been a hard space in which to form a full vision of this show, it is a little unfriendly in its harsh divide of space and long, high walls. Perhaps if the walls were hung salon-style, the place filled, overwhelmingly with color and toys, it would have felt less disjointed and more like a toy store--more whimsy than trend.

Pam and Meghan Clay in front of Meghan's paper wall installation

Alex Worthington's fashionable, fake food...previously featured but we love it.

Much of the work appears to be that of the curator's friends and acquaintances, a larger pool of artists would have undoubtedly brought a freshness to the exhibition, where it felt some pieces were shoe-horned into the theme. None of this is to say, however, that the work included in not interesting or cool, because all of it is very "cool" and many of the pieces are very engaging. It just goes to show that if there is this much talent at arms length, why not reach farther? This was Levin's first time curating--a tremendous undertaking--her exhibition was a solid start from which she can only improve.

Dina Kelberman's digital print outs

Curator/Artist Stefani Levin in front of her sewn piece

Not Noteworthy

This is another review of the show that appeared on Bmore Art, apparently I'm not noteworthy:

"In Home: In Response" Review by Eileen T. Wold
The recent one night only exhibition of In Home: In Response, provided a unique opportunity to consider how many interesting works of art don’t make the cut for one reason or another in juried group exhibitions. Representing artists that were not selected for the original home themed exhibition at the Current Gallery, this exciting show was the brain child of Kerry Adams, a Baltimore artist, who was curious to see what other talented artists were not selected due to logistical issues and/or curatorial decisions. Adams saw this as a way to expand and continue the original show and give opportunity to those who could not be included in the Current Gallery version. Adams suspected that a strong show could come of the rejected work and the overall quality of the show this past Friday night, made a persuasive argument for her assumption.An ambitious endeavor, this group show not only investigated the limitations of the juried gallery show, but also commented on where art is viewed and why. Although much of the world's art is displayed inside private residences, it is still felt that a gallery or museum is the ideal place in which to view artwork. Adams' response to this idea is a great example of new trends we see among young artists, collectives and emerging curators. "As curator, I was forced to think about each piece and how it represented the artist's idea of home and how that would best be represented in my own home." Adams shares the living space with another Baltimore artist, Julie Benoit in Charles Village. It was a fun night and chance to see local and national art in an intimate setting, in the heart of Baltimore city. There were several examples of refreshing work within this eclectic show of personal experiences and intimate ideas of home and place. Eliza Lamb's two small photographs, Home Mirror and Home Vase, presented soft interior architectural snapshots that embodied the memories of a home but not the definition of a specific place. Similarly, Jenee Mateer, a photographer who recently moved to Baltimore from Providence, RI, observes how light plays within the walls of her space to present a soft interior of home. However, her photograph, Fish Tank, is not a frozen memory like Lamb's but rather a delightful discovery of light and space through layers of reflection, shadow and the passing of time.D.C. artist, Maria Mclean had 3 pieces in the show. Her poetic work reflects her own deep rooted personal experiences while still leaving points of entry for the viewers own reflection. The most successful of the three, How to make a star, reveals history in layers of paint that peel off an antique door sprinkled with unfinished origami stars of aged paper torn from books layered with dark colorful drawing. Four photographs that document a performance piece by Syracuse artist, Matthew Keeney, attracted as much attention as if he were performing live that night. In this entertaining and enlightening performance, Keeney wears a wooden house-like structure on his head during mundane tasks like filling his car with gas. His presentation questions how much of our home we carry around with us throughout the day, while confronting the boundaries of private and public space. Amanda Gogel's four photographs of what I assumed to be Baltimore project housing, were beautiful and symmetrical (emphasized by Adams curating) explorations of a modern political conflict. Can communal low income housing be beautiful AND necessary? She supplies a vision of these buildings that feels alive and on the verge of ideal socialism with a nod to the modernist grid aesthetic, however one walks away still aware of the reality of these institutional structures.Other notable works included two accomplished sculpture installations by Kerry Adams, a drawing by Jon MacNair, video work of Christine Dehne, an innovative wall piece by Jody Isaacson, and several interesting works exploring gender issues by Tara Campbell

Art About Homes In A House

In Home: In Response--photos from the opening of the "In Home" art show:

Paper House 1&2 by Alex Ebstein

Kerry Adams' Chair

Matthew Keeney's photo going through the motions: getting ink done

The limitations of a house show are obvious, few hours in which the show is open to the public, an unintentionally elite atmosphere etc., but for this one, it served its purpose of providing context to a theme. Although a little blatant in her self-promotion, Kerry Adams, the curator, house resident and participating artist (whose work appeared on the promotional postcard) pulled off a refreshingly different exhibition. And honestly, vaginas on coffee tables...yes please.