Viridian’s 27th Annual International Juried Exhibition
Juried by Tumelo Mosaka, Independent Curator
June 28 – July 16, 2016
Opening Reception: Thursday, June 30, 6-8 pm
* 1st prize Deb Flagel * 2nd prize Holly Wilson * 3rd prize Jeannette Cherry*
Emmanuel Monzon * Doohyun Yoon * Megan Klim * Devin Carrick * Feng Guo *
Andrea Barnes * Lauren Yandell * Marlene Siff * Lenore Mills * Deborah Druick *
Shawn Marshall * Nancy Brown * Beatrice Dauge Kaufmann * Naomi Christianson *
Puiyan Ma * Colette Standish * Petrea Noyes * Jeffrey Robinson * Cindy Avroch *
Nela Steric * Yama Barkaee * Kyoyoung Keum * Maria Belford * Cecilia Charlton
Chelsea: Viridian Artists Inc. is pleased to present our 27th International Juried Exhibition curated by , Tomelo Mosaka independent Curator, New York. The exhibition opens June 28th and continues through July 16th, 2016. In celebration, a special reception will be held on Thursday, June 30th, 6-8pm. We are especially pleased to present awards to the 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners of this important competition that brings the art of emerging and under-recognized artists to the attention of museum curators.
Over 300 artists submitted nearly 1500 submissions. The competition selection was especially difficult for there were so many outstanding submissions and the nature of art today encompasses an exceptionally wide variety of methods, materials and conceptualizations of what art is.
In his curatorial statement, Mosaka wrote “In 1966 singer Paul McCartney from The Beatles wrote the song Here, There and Everywhere, reflecting on the importance of living life to the fullest. Our every life seems to be overly committed and narrowly defined by histories, geographies and identities. When do we find time to reflect and appreciate things and people around us? How do we make our lives worthwhile in a rapidly transforming society? Artists’ in many instances have always responded to the time in which they live. They grasp and express ideas, sentiments, frustrations and desires evident in our society offering valuable insights into the social realities confronting our times.
Like the song Here, There and Everywhere, the artworks I selected for this exhibition constitute a broad exploration of themes informed by architecture and landscape. These works for the most part use non-linear and fragmented visual narratives that range in style from the literal to the imaginary calling into question facile distinctions between private and public, tradition and modernity, whilst emphasizing a myriad of similarities and differences. They deploy light, line, color and space to draw our attention towards imaginary landscapes that defy conventional definitions of community, place-hood, and self-identity. The works explore through symbols questions about being here, there and everywhere.”
As always, Viridian makes an effort to expand the opportunities of more artists’ being seen so the gallery Director’s Choices will also be viewable in digital form. We feel it important to tangibly demonstrate that curatorial choice is often as much about personal taste as it is about the “quality” of the art.
Director’s Choice to be presented digitally
Emmanuel Monzon * Andrea Barnes * Lauren Yandell * Cindy Avroch *
Holly Wilson *Nela Steric * Maria Belford * Deb Flagel * Nancy Brown *
Naomi Christianson * Petrea Noyes *Jeannette Cherry * Madeline Arnault *
Danielle Austen * Pamela Mooney * Robert Augstell *Max Neuman *
Marcella Hackbardt * Richard Hricko * Karen Gibbons * David Bartlett *
Jeannine Hunter Lazzaro * Tom Fleming * Jimmy Salmon * Maki Hajikano *
Josepha Gutelius * Barbara Hillerman Lieske * Ed Herman * Rosalind Tobias *
Alla Boldina * Len Rosenfeld * Craig Cheaply * Jeff Watts * Toto Takamori *
Jason McGroarty * Alex Woodhouse