GRACE Archives

SPRING 2011 FOCUS EXHBITIONS

featuring three regional artists whose work addresses contemporary social themes.
April 28 - June 10, 2011
Reception: Saturday, April 30, 5 - 7pm, Gallery Talk 5:30pm

CAROLINA MAYORGA Delights From South America

Carolina Mayorga Untitled from the series Jungle Boost digital print 20" x 30" 2011

In Delights From South America, Carolina Mayorga explores political and social upheaval through a multimedia project combining video, faux travel posters, a fruit stand, and performance art. The video and posters juxtapose images of a breezy, stereotypically dressed woman (the artist) provocatively offering fruits. Underneath are quotes from Colombian writer Alfredo Molano's interviews with displaced persons such as: "That's Why I Never Went Back," "I Preferred Not to Ask," and other charged phrases. Mayorga seduces the viewer into consuming her tropical paradise while suggesting that the real price of cheap food and cultural illusions is far more costly. During the opening reception, the artist will appear in costume selling fruit from her stand. Astute buyers will notice that the fruits bear unusual labels - Mayorga has replaced the ubiquitous fruit sticker with her own brand "Delights from South America." Carolina Mayorga was born in Colombia, became a naturalized American citizen, and currently lives in Washington, D.C. She has exhibited her work nationally and internationally and is represented in important collections in the United States, Colombia, and Sweden. www.carolinamayorga.com. Watch a video of Carolina Mayorga.

HEIDI NEFF Fire and Ice

Heidi Neff Fire and Ice, ceiling C (Triumph of Fire) oil on canvas 72" x 96" 2011

Heidi Neff describes her installation, Fire and Ice, inspired by Robert Frost's poem of the same title, as "an apocalyptic vision of the present state of political divisiveness in the United States." The artist created ninety-eight individual panels and separated them into two rooms, each roofed with an elaborate ceiling panel. The "Fire" room is devoted to "liberal" issues and the "Ice" room relates to conservative viewpoints. Neff deftly employs a variety of painting techniques including trompe l'oeil, expressionism, and "bad painting" to illuminate a range of ideas without advocating one particular viewpoint. In juxtaposing complex visual art with political discord, Neff's search for meaning in an era of oversaturated, endless news and opinion appears tentatively hopeful. The visual impact of her painting and the massive scale of her project encourage viewers to step inside and explore slowly. By inviting the audience into her work, Neff offers an alternative paradigm- a thoughtful, respectful dialogue about one of today's most important issues. Heidi Neff was raised in the Chicago area and earned a BFA in painting from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and an MFA in painting from the University of Iowa. She has exhibited in alternative spaces in New York City and throughout the U.S. She currently teaches painting and drawing at Harford Community College in Bel Air, Maryland. www.heidineff.com Watch a video of Heidi Neff

ANDREW ZIMMERMANN Common Place

Andrew Zimmermann Common Place no.22 silver gelatin photograph 8" x 10" 2011

Andrew Zimmermann's Common Place, like Delights from South America and Fire and Ice, is an invitation to examine one's assumptions about the contemporary American experience. Common Place upends the usual view of suburban landscapes as nondescript, monotonous tracts by documenting their quiet surprises. Using a large format view camera, Zimmermann photographs scenes from his Arlington, Virginia neighborhood that most of its residents would probably overlook - petals on the windshield of a car, tomato plants growing in a front yard, an overgrown sidewalk, and other nondescript sights. Each image is a finely crafted puzzle leaving the viewer to uncover its hidden meaning. Zimmermann painstakingly develops his photographs beginning with a contact print, followed by extensive darkroom manipulation, and then hours of handwork with chemicals and brushes. The results are understated but intensely compelling. Through the power of observation, Zimmermann makes a strong argument for "the beauty and sheer strangeness of the suburban landscape." Andrew Zimmermann, born in Washington, D.C., received a BA from Bennington College, Vermont. He has exhibited his photography in solo and group exhibitions throughout the U.S. www.AndrewZphotographs.com Watch a video of Andrew Zimmermann.