Product Placement
Real Tinsel Gallery
Milwaukee, WI
December 13, 2019 - January 19, 2020
In this late stage of capitalism, we surround ourselves with primarily massed produced objects. Barbara Kruger’s declaration, “I shop therefore I am” remains as timely today as it was in 1987. We buy to make ourselves more comfortable, more productive, more attentive, more better — and yet, when we buy we are aligning ourselves with the identities and practices of the manufacturers of those products. Product Placement reminds us of the human element in works reference to beloved brands. There is a deep sincerity and devotion in the reproduction or re-presentation of these forms. Socially we are more immediately accepted when we brand identify with the others among our group. This exhibition seeks to highlight the good and the complicated in brand identification. When you wear the Packer's logo, you tell the world how much you love the team, the game, and who you are as a fan. Yet, adorned in green and gold, you also wear the association to brain damage that is caused by sustained impact on the field. But of course, we nonetheless chant, “Go! Pack Go!” The separation from brand and implication of purchase can be found in almost everything we buy from Amazon’s high cost of convenience to Nike’s sweat-shops and the medley of landmines that float in between our passion for products and the effects of producing them.
Curator-Mariah Tate Klemens
Welcome to Bliss Point
Shattuck Gallery & GNC Gallery
Trout Museum of Art
Appleton,WI
September 7, 2019 – November 11, 2019
Welcome to Bliss Point explores the relationships between the current sense of feel-good euphoria sweeping our culture and the food phenomenon known as bliss point.
Utilizing commonly consumed materials throughout my work, and infusing them with a sense of aggressive engagement, I expose concerns in our precarious culture and times. Structural forms, iconic symbols, commercial culture, and sociopolitical disconnections provoke the viewer to decode and react to my work. On view is an installation of sculptures, sound, and language, creating an exaggerated view of contemporary American life.
Welcome to Bliss Point
Gallery One
Phipps Center for the Arts
Hudson, WI
June 21, 2019 - July 28, 2019
Welcome to Bliss Point explores the relationships between the current sense of feel-good euphoria sweeping our culture and the food phenomenon known as bliss point.
Utilizing commonly consumed materials throughout my work, and infusing them with a sense of aggressive engagement, I expose concerns in our precarious culture and times. Structural forms, iconic symbols, commercial culture, and sociopolitical disconnections provoke the viewer to decode and react to my work. On view is an installation of sculptures, sound, and language, creating an exaggerated view of contemporary American life.
What We Eat and Wear
CICA Museum
Gimpo-si, South Korea
https://cicamuseum.com/what-we-eat-and-wear/
June 7, 2019 - June 23, 2019
What We Eat and Wear was an international exhibition held at the CICA Museum showcasing art that explores food culture, fashion, consumer culture, and life styles.
North of the 45th
11th Annual Upper Midwest Juried Exhibition
De Vos Art Museum
Marquette,MI
August 24 2018 - November 2018
The North of the 45th is an annual juried exhibition of artists living in the geographical area north of the 45th parallel in Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota. This line is known as the halfway point between the equator and the north pole, and crossing this line from the south is often associated with being "up north." This exhibition showcases the breadth and depth of artists living in this upper Midwest region from both rural and urban areas. Each year a different juror is asked to select pieces for the exhibition from an open call for entries.
Acre of Art
Sculpture Valley
Community Sponsored Public Sculpture
Appleton, WI
https://www.sculpturevalley.com/acreofart
June 2018 - June 2020
"ACRE of ART expands the visual enhancement of downtown districts and open public green spaces by showcasing works from nationally recognized artists. It is funded entirely through the generous sponsorship of area businesses and individual donors. At the close of each biennial season, these donors have first right of refusal to purchase their sponsored work and we truly hope that some will seize this unique opportunity to acquire and permanently install these great works of art somewhere in our community."
- Alex Schultz, Executive Director
Trace Art and Poetry Collaborative
Center for Visual Arts
Caroline S. Mark Gallery
Wausau, WI
September 21, 2018 - November 10, 2018
"The TRACE - Art and Poetry Collaborative exhibit features regional poets inspiring artists to create works illustrating their viewpoints of the poems. Artists produced work to directly represent the theme of the poems or drew upon their own life experiences for inspiration."
- Curator Statement, Rose DeHut
Menagerie: Animal as Symbol
Ground Floor Contemporary
Birmingham, AL
http://groundfloorcontemporary.com/
July 13, 2017 - July 30, 2017
"The form of the narrative has been used for centuries to entertain, to preserve culture and to instill morals. Stories can be used to bridge cultures, languages and age barriers. With such storytellers like Aesop, our narratives often begin with the animal realm and using specific animal attributes to explore how our emotions, our morals, and our relationships intersect."
- Curator Statement, Stacey Holloway