Every unit depends on every other unit. I have so much to say and an inadequate relationship with language. My work is an outlet for me to ask questions or hold ideas that I have no other place for.

The repeated circular units and repetitive processes that I build with are symbols of these repeated thoughts and unanswered questions. Eventually, these units come together to create other forms, define interior and exterior spaces, or create patterns and imagery. Adapted and adopted from other historical craft disciplines, the techniques of linking and looping or weaving units together are physical reminders of the power of many and the agency of one. Even with thousands of units, one broken link or one frayed thread reshapes the whole.

Unlike the mantras or the slogans we shout and post to align ourselves with social groups or ideologies, the questions that consume me are full of contradictions and confusion. They are powerful, present, quiet, persistent. In a Whisper, With a Word brings together works that embody seemingly dichotomous physical and emotional truths — that we can be both strong and fragile, simple and complicated, long-lasting and fleeting, vague and specific, concise and discursive.

In Arthurian legend, the Questing Beast was a monster born of a cursed woman. In the story, the woman strikes a deal with the devil to make someone fall in love with her, and thus ultimately brings a curse upon herself. Once born, her child becomes the Questing Beast, a fearsome, snake-headed chimera and the hunting target of many a knight. The beast, through the curse laid on its mother, is born into a world in which its role is cemented and its fate sealed.

I think often in my work about roles which are set out for us by others. As a young woman, I could not help but notice gendered expectations of how I should look and behave, and what skills and career paths I ought to be interested in. Frequently I felt that I did not quite fit in. I often turned to fantasy tales for solace, but there were gendered expectations there too. Female power was often depicted as entirely evil, as with powerful witches, or entirely good, as with angelic princesses. Cursed women, and figures such as the Questing Beast, tugged at my sympathy because of their tragic origins and seemingly incontrovertible fates. Generally, these women sinned by desiring things they should not. At times I wondered what the author was trying to say by including female characters with such unflattering, ill-conceived and petty motivations. What if these cursed women were allowed to step out of these roles? If they wrote their own stories, what would be the purpose of their quests?

In this show, I’ve included a number of works featuring young women and their animal companions on their own individual quests. I invite the viewer to consider what roles each might be playing and what is happening in each story.

Join Jones Gallery this August First Friday. We’re open from 10:00am – if you’d like an early viewing – to 9:00pm. Artists will be available from 5:00pm to 9:00pm.

Regular Dates. Wed., Aug. 4th to Thur., Aug. 26th
Open daily 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Closed Sun.

Jones Gallery 1717 Walnut, Crossroads Arts District, KCMO. 64108 816 – 421-2111

https://jonesgallerykc.com/

Goethe Pop Up Kansas City is excited to present the poster exhibition Shaping the Past. This exhibit will also highlight the many projects that we developed in 2020 as part of Shaping the Past (“Gestaltung der Vergangenheit”).

Shaping the Past builds connections and showcases patterns that constitute a transnational memory culture at work to address systemic racism and sexism, social and economic exclusion, and legacies of colonial and state violence. Featuring works by artists, activists, and collectives from North America and Germany — all part of the Monument Lab Fellows Program — this exhibition broadens understandings and illuminates ongoing memory interventions that reimagine civil society.

The spotlighted projects offer innovative and reparative models that highlight creative changemakers who are actively shaping the past and our paths forward.

At Goethe Pop Up Kansas City we took part in this project in 2020, inviting Monument Lab fellows Alisha B. Wormsley and Patrick Weems to collaborate with artists, activists, and intellectuals from Kansas City and beyond on themes that are relevant to our community and the process of (re-)connecting with the past. You can learn more about these various projects by visiting the Shaping the Past exhibition presented at the Goethe Pop Up as a concluding project.

Randy Bacon is a long-standing, acclaimed contemporary American photographer based in Springfield, Missouri. He has an extensive history in portrait and documentary photography, as well as, humanitarian work. At the core of his work is the ability to present emotive, authentic visual stories of the people he photographs.

Just As I Am, presents a series of large-scale black and white studio portraits and personal narratives told directly by the subjects Bacon photographed. Just As I Am invites us to view the world through the clear lends of someone living with Down syndrome; a lens of pure love, honesty and compassion. The exhibit’s aim is to create awareness and a better understanding of Down syndrome through intimate studio portraiture, raw, authentic narratives and short film series, as to change the way we see those with Down syndrome. These individuals are not deficient in any way; but are in fact “extra.” An extra chromosome gives those with Down syndrome an extraordinary ability to see the good, the joy and the beauty in this world that the rest of us often can’t see. This project challenges us to celebrate those with Down syndrome just as they are and to recognize the unbridled joy, genuine compassion and clarity in life they express every day of their lives.

Project in partnership with Down Syndrome Innovations and 7 Billion Ones.

ARTIST INTRODUCTION

ARTIST INFORMATION AND BIO