Monday, May 6, 2019

A Renwick 'disruption'


Dustin Farnsworth (b. 1983), The Reconstruction of Saints, 2018, collection of the artist who stands in the background/Photo by Patricia Leslie, Nov. 8, 2018

And just when you think you've seen it all...you haven't.

If you missed the show at the Renwick Gallery, Disrupting Craft: Renwick Invitational 2018, you may see photos of it in the catalogue or catch glimpses of some of the artists and their works here which will erase any doubts you may have about today's artists.


Four of them exhibit an amazing diversity of talents and creativity in their handmade works which connect to the world around us.
 Dustin Farnsworth, The Reconstruction of Saints, 2018/Photo by Patricia Leslie, Nov. 8, 2018
 
Dustin Farnsworth with his The Reconstruction of Saints, 2018/Photo by Patricia Leslie, Nov. 8, 2018
Sharif Bey (b. 1974), Assimilation? Destruction, 2000, Juliet Art Museum, Charleston, WVA. The catalogue and wall label note this work is based on Mr. Bey's M.F.A. thesis and includes 1,000 ceramic heads dumped from a bucket into a heap of "collective souls, breaking into more pieces each time."/Photo by Patricia Leslie, Nov. 8, 2018.


Whether you like a particular style, no one can deny the uniqueness, complexity, and sharp edges this group, all born in 1974 or later, bring to the public arena

Continuing the biennial Renwick tradition competition which began in 2000, the selected craft artists who "deserve wider recognition" are Tanya Aguiñiga, Sharif Bey, Dustin Farnsworth, and Stephanie Syjuco. Their works were chosen by Abraham Thomas, curator, Renwick Gallery; Sarah Archer, independent curator; and Annie Carlano, curator, Mint Museum, Charlotte, N.C.

 Sharif Bey (b. 1974), 3 White Birds, 2017, collection of the artist/Photo by Patricia Leslie, Nov. 8, 2018
Tanya Aguiñiga (b. 1978) Hand-Felted Folding Chairs, 2006-present, collection of the artist/Photo by Patricia Leslie, Nov. 8, 2018
Tanya Aguiñiga, Nopal, 2017, detail, Volume Gallery, Chicago/ Made from clay, horse and human hair, alpaca, flax, iron and more/Photo by Patricia Leslie, Nov. 8, 2018.

Tanya Aguiñiga, Nopal,  2017, Volume Gallery, Chicago/Photo by Patricia Leslie, Nov. 8, 2018
Stephanie Syjuco (b. 1974) with her Neutral Calibration Studies (Ornament + Crime), 2016, which, according to the catalogue "questions notions of cultural and political identity." The objects "compete for attention" while modernism begins to overtake colonialism. Collection of the artist and Nion McEvoy/
Photo by Patricia Leslie, Nov. 8, 2018
Stephanie Syjuco, Neutral Calibration Studies (Ornament + Crime), 2016, detail/Photo by Patricia Leslie, Nov. 8, 2018
Stephanie Syjuco, Neutral Calibration Studies (Ornament + Crime), 2016, detail/Photo by Patricia Leslie, Nov. 8, 2018
Stephanie Syjuco, from left, The Visible Invisible: Plymouth Pilgrim (Simplicity), Antebellum South (Simplicity), and Colonial Revolution (McCall's), all 2018 and from the collection of the artist/Photo by Patricia Leslie, Nov. 8, 2018
Stephanie Syjuco with her, from left, The Visible Invisible: Antebellum South (Simplicity) and Colonial Revolution (McCall's), both  2018/Photo by Patricia Leslie, Nov. 8, 2018
Stephanie Syjuco with her Ungovernable (Hoist), 2017,  "which illuminates the rich craft history of protest banners ...[and] highlights the distortion of images and information in the Internet age," according to the catalogue. Collection of the artist and Ryan Lee Gallery, New York/Photo by Patricia Leslie, Nov. 8, 2018

Ms. Aguiñiga was born in San Diego but grew up in Tijuana. An activist who questions gender and nationality, she often relies upon her background as a Mexican American for inspiration. In college she studied furniture design.

Mr. Bey was born in Pittsburgh and focuses on African- American culture and Oceania. A Fulbright scholarship recipient, he has a Ph.D. in art education from Penn State and teaches at Syracuse University.


Mr. Farnsworth was born in Lansing, Michigan where the poor economy has influenced his life and work. His XLIII concerns the 43 persons under the age of 18 who were killed by U.S. police officers in 2015. He holds a B.F.A. in woodworking and functional art from Kendall College of Art and Design.


Ms. Syjuco was born in Manila and is based in California where she teaches at the University of California, Berkeley.  Her concentration is large-scale installations about political dissent and other societal issues. According to the catalogue, she is the only one included in the show without a connection to North Carolina, either as a student and/or artist.

More information about each participant and their works may be found in the softbound catalogue ($34.95) available online or in the shop.
 
In Disrupting press releases, the Renwick stressed the importance of choosing artists who challenge the commonplace while seeking to connect communities, and urge collective engagement, wisdom, and tolerance in the age of divisiveness.

Fifty ceramic, photographic, sculptural, woolen and fiber works were on display.

What: Disrupting Craft:  Renwick Invitational 2018

When: The Renwick is open from 10 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. every day, except Christmas Day. Disrupting Craft ended May 5, 2019.

Where: 1661 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, D.C. 20006, at the White House 17th St
reet block, adjacent to Blair House.


Admission: No charge

Metro stations: Farragut North or Farragut West

For more information: (202) 633-7970 (recorded) or
(202) 633-2850  
 

patricialesli@gmail.com

 












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