My current work earnestly and humorously reflects on the emotional and physical aspects of the human condition and its twisted ironies. I combine an array of traditional and non-traditional printmaking processes with drawing techniques to create print and mixed media hybrids that are inspired by personal experiences and everyday interactions. My artistic practice is driven by a love for the physical act of drawing, and a desire to discover content through the process of making. Although my work is most often rooted in printmaking and drawing, I strive to push the boundaries of traditional media while maintaining an emphasis on the validity of the very human impulse to create images.

The images and objects I create are born of a fascination with the most “unmentionable” yet ubiquitous human experiences and the absurdity of traditional gender expectations. I consider my recent works as introspective self-portraits that aim to shed light on the untold internal monologues with which we are so often preoccupied. My work has long been influenced by a wide range of art, music, TV, movies, etcetera emerging from the 1920s to 1960s, despite being born in the late 80s.

Through an earnest, rather than ironic, use of the vernacular my work acts as a humorous unifier, and stresses the importance of inclusion and personal expression in a world where so many feel voiceless. I possess a keen desire to connect with human beings of all kinds, and a distinct affinity for the absurd and scatological that manifests as self-directed satire and invites the viewer to relate. The imagery is fueled by humor and spontaneity and is filled with an inventiveness and ambiguity of subject that ranges from cheekily adolescent to darkly absurd. Through my work I aim to create sensorial and emotionally peculiar experiences that mimic the humorous lens through which I look at life and underscore the power of empathy. — Jolynn Reigeluth

At the Heart of the Matter is a solo exhibition of new work by artist Judith G. Levy. Throughout the exhibit, she wrestles with the heaviness of contemporary life, saturated by gender-based violence, racism, antisemitism, xenophobia, ecological disaster, and the global pandemic. In the midst of seemingly ceaseless emergency, this exhibition stakes its claims on empathy, care, and a shared humanity. Like all forms of representation in her practice, the individual works are both real and metaphorical, playful and sincere. Using still and moving images and found objects, she moves across mediums, gently nudging visual and material cultures toward more compassionate horizons.

Levy depicts everyday objects as agents that reveal a shared human vulnerability. The front door acts as a threshold into the sanctity of home, while doubling as protection from the potential perils of the world beyond. The exhibit also reflects on the fluidity of global and local identities in a series of portraits photographed in simple, natural light. All of the participants are connected to the artist through trusted, word-of-mouth networks. Often dressed to reference their countries of origin, they cradle vegetables and fruits that are common, though not native to the United States. The series is a complex expression of immigration provoking viewers to consider their assumptions behind feelings of familiarity and difference. Old travel postcards are overpainted to reconstruct their locations, transformed by drought and flooding in present times and our not too distant futures. Through worn away landscapes and monuments, this work turns ironically on the souvenir’s inherent nostalgia for a lost world that was always predicated on the devaluation of lives and ecologies.

Come and go as you please, have a drink, learn a little bit about what’s to come at The Bird and LAUGH, DAMMIT!

Featuring comedy from:

• The Hil & I (Improv)
• Stacy Cay (Stand-Up)
• The Bird Comedy Theater Players (Improv)

No registration required! Donations Appreciated!

The Bird Comedy Theater is Kansas City’s newest comedy theater, located in the historic Hemingway Building in The Crossroad’s Arts District. Featuring improv, sketch and stand-up, every Thursday through Saturday!

www.TheBirdKC.com

Abundance is an examination of the concept of wealth through the lens of social stratification.

Subject matter includes a seated portrait of a “houseless” man (Shawn Smith), an aerial view of the camp he calls home, as well as symbols of wealth in the form of an overstocked refrigerator interior and spoiling groceries.

The works are large scale (approximately 60″ x 42″) and executed utilizing drawing, painting, and printmaking on archival paper mounted on birch panels.

Tj Templeton is an interdisciplinary artist and Kansas City native. His work has been collected for over 30 years and has been featured in such outlets as The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, ArtMove Magazine, and the Martin Scorsese screening room at the Tribeca Film festival. He is currently the artist-in-residence at the Bunker Center for the Arts, where he maintains his studio and curates the gallery’s inventory of numerous local, regional, and international artists.