K E N I S E B AR N E S F I N E AR T
Contemplation and Practice Meg Hitchcock, Jill Parisi, Eleanor White March 3 – April 14, 2018
CONTEMPLATION AND PRACTICE Meg Hitchcock, Jill Parisi, Eleanor White Kenise Barnes Fine Art is pleased to present a three-person exhibition featuring artists who share a contemplative and obsessive art-making practice. Each of these artists builds their work through the accumulation of small components; inherently, the implication of time and devotion is an important concept in their art. Meg Hitchcock’s work begins with sacred texts; she cuts tiny individual letters from various scripture and uses the isolated typeset characters to create intricate designs. Letters are cut from a Bible and rearranged into a passage from the Koran, letters from the Koran are transformed into verses from the Torah, and so on. Her work addresses the limitations of language and interpretation and questions the exclusivity of fundamentalist belief systems. By deconstructing and recombining holy books of diverse religions, Hitchcock undermines their authority and animates the common thread that weaves through all scripture. A former evangelical Christian, Hitchcock is interested in the psychology of authority, surrender, and transcendence. The repetition of cutting and placing letters simulates the liturgical sacraments of the Church and alludes to the recitations of Eastern religions. The labor-intensive aspect of her work is a meditation practice as well as an exploration of the various forms of devotion. The work is a celebration of the diverse experiences of spirituality, as well as an acknowledgment of the desire for connection with something larger than oneself. By blurring the boundaries between religions, Hitchcock suggests that the holy word of God may be nothing more than a sublime expression of our shared humanity. Meg Hitchcock’s work is in the collections of Yale Collection of American Literature, Beinecke Library, Yale University, Nouf Al-Saud of the Royal Family of Saudi Arabia, Christopher Rothko, New York, NY, Crystal Bridges Museum, Bentonville, AR, Sonoma County Museum, Santa Rosa, CA, to name a few. Her work has been featured in Hyperallergic, The Boston Globe, The Huffington Post, The New Criterion, Art in America and many other publications. Hitchcock earned a BFA from San Francisco Art Institute, San Francisco, CA and studied at the Fortman and Cecil-Graves Studios, Florence, Italy. Jill Parisi is an innovative printmaker whose meticulous work alchemically changes tissue-weight paper into sculpture. Her processes include etching and digital printing on delicate and handmade papers. Her small and intricate prints are then hand-cut, hand-colored, sometimes marbleized or decorated with metallic paint and embellished with feathers and fur, wrapped around structural wire and secured with fine entomology pins into deep frames or cloches. Parisi’s fictional flora and fauna mimic botanical and entomological specimens but surpass even nature’s most whimsical blossoms. Her work gives the impression of supernatural and enchanted specimens captured under glass for our scrutiny and pleasure.
Jill Parisi’s work is in numerous private and public collections, including a permanent installation commissioned by Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Art for Transit Program, New York, NY. Parisi earned a MFA and BFA at State University of New York at New Paltz, New Paltz, NY, where she currently teaches. Working with a multiplicity of nontraditional media, Eleanor White strives to transform materials while honoring their innate associations. Crushed emu or chicken eggshell, wood ash, glass beads are some the familiar materials in her work. By her own admission, she creates “obsessively constructed objects and drawings” her passion for experimentation combined with her formal training manifest in meticulously crafted objects. White literally and metaphorically layers materials; object and meaning inform one another in her captivating work. Eleanor White has been awarded numerous professional honors including a Fellowship in Printmaking/Drawing/Artists’ Books from The New York Foundation for the Arts, the New Art Annual award from the Stamford Museum, CT, the William H. Rinehart Award from Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore, MD, the Jacob K. Javits National Graduate Fellowship from the U.S. Department of Education, and has earned residencies at Bemis Center for Contemporary Art, Omaha, NE, and Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, Sweet Briar, VA. White earned her MFA from Maryland Institute College of Art and BFA from Virginia Commonwealth University. The artist lives and works in Beacon, NY.
On the cover: Meg Hitchcock, Mundaka Upanishad, 2012 letters cut from the Koran, 28 x 22.25 inches, 33 x 27.5 inches (framed), $8200. (framed)
In-home or in-office consultations are complimentary. Artwork may be seen on approval. Delivery and installation available.
MEG HITCHCOCK
STATEMENT
I work with sacred texts, cutting letters and combining them to create intricate designs. My work addresses the limitations of language and interpretation, and questions the exclusivity of fundamentalist belief systems. Letters are cut from a Bible and rearranged into a passage from the Koran, letters from the Koran are transformed into verses from the Torah, and so on. By deconstructing and recombining the holy books of diverse religions, I undermine their authority and animate the common thread that weaves through all scripture. As a former evangelical Christian, I am interested in the psychology of authority, surrender, and transcendence. The repetition of cutting and placing letters simulates the liturgical sacraments of the Church, and alludes to the recitations of Eastern religions. The labor-intensive aspect of my work is a meditation practice as well as an exploration of the various forms of devotion. My work is a celebration of the diverse experiences of spirituality, as well as an acknowledgment of the desire for connection with something larger than oneself. By blurring the boundaries between religions, I suggest that the holy word of God may be nothing more than a sublime expression of our shared humanity.
Opposite page: installation view, Shoonya: Vijnana Bhairava Tantra (left) and Mundaka Upanishad (right)
detail: Shoonya: Vijnana Bhairava Tantra
Meg Hitchcock, Shoonya: Vijnana Bhairava Tantra, 2009 letters cut from the Torah (The Book of Deuteronomy) 30 x 22 inches, 34.5 x 27.25 inches (framed), $9500. (framed) Note from the artist: Shoonya is the Sanskrit word for emptiness.
detail: King of Prayers
Meg Hitchcock King of Prayers, 2017 letters cut from the Bible 17 x 45 inches, 22.5 x 50.5 inches (framed) $12,000. (framed) Note from the artist: in this work, letters cut from the Bible are used to form a very long Tibetan Buddhist prayer
detail: Life Eternal
Meg Hitchcock, Life Eternal, 2015, letters cut from Bibles, 24 x 18 inches, 28.25 x 22.25 inches (framed), $5800. (framed)
detail: The Cloud of Unknowing
Meg Hitchcock, The Cloud of Unknowing, 2015 letters cut from the Upanishads 24.5 x 22.5 inches, 28.25 x 26.25 inches (framed), $5800. (framed) Note from the artist: The Upanishads is an anonymous work of Christian mysticism.
ELEANOR WHITE
STATEMENT
I enjoy the challenge of working with materials that are non-traditional and at the same time familiar and relatable in some way. Often contrasting textures and using layering, I like to create obsessively constructed objects and drawings. Some of the more unusual materials I’ve used in my work include: straight pins, roses, crushed eggshells, wood ash, glass bottles, moldy bread, dandelion fuzz, cocoa powder, playing cards, hourglasses, zinfandel wine and artificial hair. I want the stuff I use to have a universal reference point for the viewer that leads them down their own paths of association. I collect some things for years and develop an almost obsessive interest in the ways I can use that material.
Opposite page: installation view, Grey Multi Dot (large), Blue Brown Dots, Eggshell / Ash Mandala
detail: Mandala Abstraction
Eleanor White, Mandala Abstraction, 2018 eggshell, emu eggshell, ash, acrylic, polymer medium on paper 48.625 x 34 inches, 51 x 36 inches (framed), $4000. (framed)
detail: Grey Multi Dot (large)
Eleanor White, Grey Multi Dot (large), 2018 eggshell, ash, glass bead, ink, emu eggshell, acrylic, polymer medium on paper 47 x 32 inches, 50.5 x 34.75 inches (framed), $3500. (framed)
detail: Eggshell / Ash Mandala
Eleanor White, Eggshell / Ash Mandala, 2018 eggshell, wood ash, acrylic, polymer medium on paper 33.5 x 29.88 inches (unframed), 36.75 x 33 inches (framed), $3000. (framed)
detail: Blue Brown Dots
Eleanor White Blue Brown Dots, 2018 wood ash, emu eggshell, acrylic, polymer medium on paper 57.5 x 17.75 inches (unframed) 61 x 21 inches (framed) $3000. (framed)
detail: Emu Ash Honeycomb Black Paper
Eleanor White, Emu Ash Honeycomb Black Paper, 2018 wood ash, emu eggshell, graphite, acrylic, polymer medium on paper 30 x 23 inches, 33.5 x 26.5 inches (framed), $2000. (framed)
JILL PARISI
STATEMENT
This new body of sculptural works expresses my intense love for color, detail, nature and the fanciful. Allure, beauty and the surreal all play together here with handmade paper and fly-tying materials. As a young artist, the imagery in my prints and drawings were very organic and sometimes even fetishlike in nature, and this bubbles up again and shines through in these pieces. A tip of the hat to Mother Nature and my early reverence for Meret Oppenheim’s Object. I am in awe of that which makes me wonder. What is that thing? How was a thing made, how is something done? By how refined something is — a smooth and rounded acorn, a leaf turned into lace by mold, a sheet of paper so thin and masterfully made you can nearly see through it, the flight of a hawk soaring by effortlessly. Often it is those things or acts that are beautiful, mysterious, wellcrafted or executed — the things that defy easy explanation, that arouse your curiosity about the world, about yourself, that lift your heart. The world can be a difficult and heavy place to navigate. While I admire and respect artwork of all kinds, beauty and joy have a very important place, and allow us to have a moment of peace and levity.
Opposite page: installation view, Day and Night / Night and Day Lily, Vanishing Girl Lily, Superfly, Sister Nancy's Picnic
detail: Greenwell's Glory
Jill Parisi, Greenwell's Glory, 2018 intaglio prints on lokta tissue weight paper, fiber reactive dye, acrylic inks on handmade overeaten abaca fiber, wire, faux fur, fur, feathers, entomology pins in glass cloche 15 inches x 9.75 inch diameter, $2000.
detail: Mallard and Claret
Jill Parisi, Mallard and Claret, 2017 relief prints on yukushi and kizukishi tissue weight papers, intaglio prints on tissue weight lokta paper, fiber reactive dye, acrylic inks on handmade overeaten abaca fiber, wire, fur, feathers, entomology pins in glass cloche 12 inches x 11.75 inch diameter, $2000.
detail: Rainbow Trout Lily
Jill Parisi, Rainbow Trout Lily, 2018 relief prints on yukushi and kizukishi tissue weight papers, fiber reactive dye, acrylic inks, wire, fur, feathers, entomology pins in glass cloche 8 inches x 8 inch diameter, $950.
details: Sister Nancy's Picnic
Jill Parisi, Sister Nancy's Picnic, 2018 intaglio prints on lokta tissue weight paper, digital prints on kozo paper, fiber reactive dye, acrylic inks on handmade overeaten abaca fiber, wire, fur, feathers 36.5 x 36.5 x 6.5 inches, $5500. (framed in acrylic shadowbox)
Jill Parisi, Sexy Sea Creature, 2018 fiber reactive dye on handmade overbeaten abaca fiber, wire, fur 12.5 x 12.5 x 6.25 inches, $1500. (framed in acrylic shadowbox) Individual sculpture is ~4 inches x ~7.5 inch diameter
Jill Parisi, Vanishing Girl Lily, 2017 acrylic inks on handmade overbeaten abaca fiber, wire, feathers 10.5 x 10.5 x 6.25 inches, $1300. (framed in acrylic shadowbox) Individual sculpture is ~4 inches x ~5 inch diameter
Jill Parisi, Day and Night / Night and Day Lily, 2017 acrylic inks on handmade overbeaten abaca fiber, wire, fur, feathers 10.5 x 10.5 x 6.25 inches, $1300. (framed in acrylic shadowbox) Individual sculpture is ~4 inches x ~5 inch diameter
Jill Parisi, Sunnyside, 2018 fiber reactive dye, acrylic inks on handmade overbeaten abaca fiber, wire, fur 12.5 x 12.5 x 6.25 inches, $1500. (framed in acrylic shadowbox) Individual sculpture is ~4 inches x ~7.5 inch diameter
Jill Parisi, Fishnet Fire Flower, 2018 fiber reactive dye, acrylic inks on handmade overeaten abaca fiber, wire, fur 12.5 x 12.5 x 6.25 inches, $1500. (framed) Individual sculpture is ~4 inches x ~7 inch diameter
Jill Parisi, Superfly, 2017 fiber reactive dye on handmade overbeaten abaca fiber, wire, fur, feathers, metallic threads 10.5 x 10.5 x 6.25 inches, $1300. (framed in acrylic shadowbox) Individual sculpture is ~4 inches x ~6 inch diameter
K E N I S E BAR N E S F I N E AR T was founded in 1994 on the belief that art is essential. We are a gallery and art consulting firm representing emerging and mid-career, investment-quality artists. Our program includes over fifty artists working in a variety of mediums. The gallery mounts more than a dozen exhibitions annually in our Larchmont, NY space and in addition, curates for outside venues. Kenise Barnes Fine Art is an experienced art consulting firm. We guide both residential and corporate collectors and work collaboratively with designers and architects to provide and source artwork for projects of all sizes. Our client list includes New York University Langone Medical Center, Montefiore Medical Center, Bank of America Art Program, Pfizer Corporation, Citibank Art Advisory, Vicente Wolf Associates, and numerous museums and private collectors. Kenise Barnes, director Kenise@kbfa.com Lani Holloway, gallery manager Lani@kbfa.com B. Avery Syrig, sales and administrative assistance Avery@kbfa.com
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