Domesticity Revisited October 2015

Domesticity Revisited (October 8th – December 30th, 2015) curated by Rick Kinsel, marked the opening of Pen + Brush’s new gallery space in the Flatiron District, featuring artists Jee Hee Kang, Michela Martello, Tricia Wright, and Yun Koung Shin.

“The four artists included in this inaugural exhibition at Pen + Brush come from very different social and professional backgrounds, and prior to this show, they had not met or seen each other’s work. Two are originally from South Korea, one is from the United Kingdom, and one is from central Italy. Hosting these artists together in a group show seemed like a convenient but forced melding of four unrelated artists, but in the end, it turned out to be just the opposite: an exhibition in which the artists, however different, all concern themselves with objects, ideas, and sensations relating to the domestic scene and explore the theme of home.

Considered together, these four artists seem to me an explosion of talent, imagination, and diversity. They demonstrate the multiplicity of ideas and approaches that women artists are taking as they respond and react to art they have experienced—art that is not only within the dialogue of contemporary art, but also out there in the larger world of all art, including handicraft, decorative arts, folk art, and illustration. While these artists are practicing in disparate media and movements, it is nonetheless worthwhile to note their shared interests: spirituality, home, handicraft, and the steady transition of women out of the domestic roles previously dictated by societal norms, even while they recognize the importance of domesticity to the soul. They seem to be pointing us, in visual terms, toward a new world, one more generous in its allowance of all artists—male and female—to enjoy greater freedom, flexibility, and opportunities in the practice of their art.” – Rick Kinsel

Click on the link below to view the catalogue (courtesy of Pen + Brush):

Domesticity Revisited