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Opening for "Connections "Juried Exhibition at ARC Gallery Presented by FUSEDChicago; 12/1/23 5-8 pm
FUSEDChicago, an organization of artists based in the Midwest who share an interest in encaustic, a method of making art using pigmented wax fused to a surface by heat, is pleased to announce Connections, a juried group exhibition of works that will address contemporary relationships to nature. On view at the ARC Gallery in Chicago from November 23, 2023, through December 18, 2023, the exhibition is composed of 25 works of art by 13 artists.
Thirteen member artists will be featured in the exhibition: Carrie Baxter, Cat Crotchett, Helen Dannelly, Andrew DeWeerdt, Alicia Forestall-Boehm, Donna Kuo, Cindy Lesperance, Jane Michalski, Carol Myers, Denise Oehl, Karen Tichy, Neli Tzintzeva, and Robin VanHooser
The exhibition was juried by nationally known art curator and critic Barbara O’Brien. Barbara O’Brien is an independent curator and critic based in Milwaukee. She was
Executive Director of the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art in Kansas City,
Missouri, from 2012 to 2017 after serving as chief curator and director of
exhibitions since 2009. O’Brien has a longstanding interest in and commitment to
the community of artists who incorporate encaustic into their practice. She was the
Keynote Speaker at the International Encaustic Conference in both 2008 and 2013.
“I am delighted,” O’Brien recently shared, “to have been invited to select works of
art for “Connections,” which I anticipate will be both an opportunity for revelation
and an occasion for celebration. I hope that artists will explore the encaustic
medium - and wax in all its many iterations - to address both the poetic and prosaic
implications of the theme chosen by FUSEDChicago.”
O’Brien’s recent projects include serving as curator and catalog essayist for June
Ahrens: Reflecting Time (2022), and Close to the Line: Mari Rantanen and Kirsten
Reynolds (2019), both at the Housatonic Museum of Art in Bridgeport, CT. In 2022,
O’Brien served as a curatorial consultant and catalog essayist for solo exhibitions at
The Painting Center, NYC; Chris Nau: I’m Not Your Animal and Gerri Rachins: Almost
Everything is Going Well.
Exhibition Dates
November 23 - December 18, 2023
Artists’ Reception, Juror’s Remarks and Announcement of Commendations – December 1, 2023, 5-8 pm
ARC Gallery, 1463 W. Chicago Avenue, Chicago, IL
Exhibition Overview
The artwork in this exhibition will address contemporary relationships to nature. The connection between humans and
nature is a fascinating one. Nature is both all around us and deep within us. We exist in layers that range in depth and
complexity and it is often difficult yet necessary to look beyond the surface.
About FUSEDChicago
FUSEDChicago is an organization of artists based in the Midwest who share an interest in encaustic, a method of making
art using pigmented wax fused to a surface by heat. Their mission is to advance public awareness of encaustic medium
through workshops and thematic exhibitions of member work and to create professional opportunities for networking
and learning exchanges for members. All artist members of FUSEDChicago create art partly or entirely from encaustic.
Members are represented in art galleries locally and nationally, have been included in world-class expositions including
EXPO Chicago and SOFA (Sculpture Objects Functional Art and Design), and have work in collections throughout the
world. Website: fusedchicago.com
About Encaustic
Encaustic consists of natural beeswax and dammar resin (crystallized tree sap). The medium can be used alone for its
transparency or pigment can be added. The medium is applied to an absorbent surface and each layer of paint is heated
to fuse it to the previous layer. The word 'encaustic' comes from the Greek word enkaiein, meaning to burn in, referring
to the process of fusing the paint. The now famous Fayum portraits, painted on mummy casings by the Egyptians during
the Roman period, epitomize an early notable use of encaustic. After revivals of the medium during the 18th and 19th
centuries, Jasper Johns' paintings in the 1950s brought encaustic to the forefront of modern art. Contemporary artists
are drawn to this ancient medium for its dimensional quality and luminous color. The nature of encaustic paint allows
artists to manipulate the surface by building texture, carving into the beeswax, embedding various items, or maintaining
a glass-like finish.
About ARC Gallery
ARC Gallery and Educational Foundation is located at 1463 W. Chicago Avenue in Chicago, Illinois. It is a not-for-profit
gallery and foundation whose mission is to bring innovative, emerging, and/or experimental visual art to a wide range of
viewers, and to provide a nurturing atmosphere for the continued development of artistic potential and dialogue. As a non-profit cooperative operated by a collective of feminist artists since 1973, ARC works to empower women.
Press Contact Alicia Forestall-Boehm email: [email protected]
Event Links
Exhibitor: https://go.evvnt.com/2023857-0
