Art and Activism | SVA ContinuEd Newsletter Fall 2023

continu ed

DIVISION OF CONTINUING EDUCATION · SCHOOL OF VISUAL ARTS

CREATE/CONNECT/COMMUNITY

GEORGIA LALE:

Art with an Impact

by Stephanie McGovern

The function of art plays a deeply complex and subjective role in the lives of artists and viewers alike. In some cases art may stand firm in its aesthetics alone, while in others, it can be used as a catalyst to disrupt, protest and initiate a larger conversation about the world around us. Performance and visual artist Georgia Lale embodies this concept in their work and does not separate the intrinsic nature of art making from political and social causes. There is no boundary between art and activism in their interdisciplinary practice, which spans the mediums of performance, sculpture, video and installation. Using their body as a main source of material, Georgia creates visual dialogues around topics including the refugee crisis, gender equality, the healthcare system and immigration.

Georgia has been a longtime member of the SVA community since enrolling

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EVERYDAY ARTIST Exploring creative blocks and the everyday.

STEPHANIE GARON Multidisciplinary artist, environmentalist and writer.

GEORGIA LALE Interdisciplinary artist who initiates a larger conversation about the world around

INTERCONNECTION, EDUCATION AND ART

MONICA BECK

By Bianca Dunn

➧Here, artist and SVACE student Monica Beck shares the inspiration behind her art practice and community work. Beck is a cellist, writer, illustrator, designer, painter, teacher and community organizer based in Valle de Bravo, Mexico. She believes that “art is art”— whatever the form—and each discipline informs and nurtures the others. In all of her work, she aims to bring compassion, respect and honor to others.

Could you describe your art practice and your community work?

My personal practice and community practice are intertwined, but [they] are very different. What has taught me the most on how to approach a daily practice is [a] classical-music work ethic—in my case, cello practice. My cello practice translates into my writing and visual art because it has taught me discipline, dedication and routine. Community work is the social part of my art. Every artist has to do hours of personal development, but, eventually, we socialize our work through exhibi-

tion, performance and publishing. In this way, we build bridges of communication, and we create bonds that can guide others toward artistic expression. I believe that art is at the service of society, and the best way I can use my time is to help others grow and become the best versions of themselves.

Can you say more about your work as a volunteer art teacher?

I volunteer with a nonprofit called Fundación Valle La Paz that provides resources for schools to have art and music lessons. Every week, two music teachers and I drive to a town in the mountains near Valle de Bravo called Mesa Rica. We teach the children basic drawing and watercolor skills, and we provide a safe place for free expression, self-discovery and the construction of community values. My class is about finding silence to see inside, learning to respect others’ work, practicing the wonderful act of image making and finding pride in who we are.

To learn more about Fundación Valle La Paz, visit https://vallelapaz.org/.

CONTINU

editorial staff

Joseph Cipri, editorial director

Nika Lopez, managing editor Bianca Dunn, editor

visual arts press, ltd.

Anthony P. Rhodes, executive creative director

Gail Anderson, creative director

Brian E. Smith, design director

Mark Maltais, art director

Anthony Carhuayo, senior designer

Laura Valenza, editor

contributors

Rachel Gisela Cohen

Bianca Dunn

Nivia Herron Hernandez

Stephanie McGovern

©2023 Visual Arts Press, Ltd.

ContinuEd

school of visual arts

David Rhodes President

Anthony P. Rhodes

1. Artist Monica Beck.

2. Monica Beck, Self Portrait, 2013, Acrylic on canvas, 100 x 120 cm.

3. Monica Beck playing cello at Losar Concert, 2023.

4. Student shows his painting in watercolor class in Mesa Rica, Estado de México, 2023.

5. Students show their paintings in watercolor class in Mesa Rica, Estado de México, 2023.

in the MFA Fine Arts program in 2014. They have since become a student of Continuing Education (SVACE) and participated in our 2021 Photoville exhibition titled “These Years.”

Originally from Athens, Greece, Georgia first started working in performance through video during their undergraduate study. Once enrolled as a student at SVA, Georgia expanded their exploration in performance and used the medium as a platform to consider issues around gender equality, female sexuality and women's rights. “I did this performance where I was lying inside a plastic bag filled with feminine sanitary products that were painted in a way that looked used. Subsequently, the body was also used and thrown away,” Georgia said. “I related this ‘trash’ to human fluids, what those mean and how we have this taboo [around menstruation].”

Georgia’s current 2023 project is titled Family Portraits—a fundraising campaign to generate relief funds for

earthquake victims in Turkey and Syria. The Family Portraits are a series of elegant 17"x11" ink drawings of tulips on bristol board, ranging in color and gesture.

The series was inspired by Georgia’s performance #OrangeVest, a project that began in October 2015, which examined the refugee crisis in Europe During this period, refugees were crossing the Aegean Sea situated between Turkey and Greece. “I saw footage during the PBS news hour and immediately the images struck me,” said Georgia. “It was very personal.” Both of Georgia’s grandfathers were refugees from Turkey in Greece, who had also crossed the Aegean Sea under similar conditions. “Seeing these people arrive in Greece ... it felt like they were my family,” she explained. Georgia knew that their last name was Turkish and began doing research, leading Georgia to discover that it actually means “tulip.” Sixty percent of the proceeds raised through Family Portraits will go toward UNFPA—the lead United Nations sexual and reproductive health and rights agency. Currently, UNFPA is providing mobile health clinics, safe spaces, and dignity kits to girls and women impacted

by the earthquakes.

#OrangeVest was one of Georgia’s first public interventions, as another layer of their practice is stepping out of the studio and crossing into public space. Georgia’s first iteration was performed solo wearing all black and a bright orange life vest—a symbol of mourning those lost in the crossing of the Aegean Sea. The first performance took place unannounced at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, where Georgia walked from the Syrian art section to the Greek and Roman Art galleries, to symbolically recreate the refugees’ route. “I also wanted to create a commentary about the artifacts being refugees themselves—to question how [the objects] ended up in The Met.”

Over the course of a year, #OrangeVest grew into organized monthly performances in different locations with volunteer participants. The performances would consist of the group slowly walking together and wearing coordinated life vests. “We had a press person who would hand out stickers with #OrangeVest," said Georgia. “People could get more information about the performance and about the refugee crisis.” This series culminated with one final action at the European

Quarter in Brussels as part of the 14th annual Nuit Blanche Festival, covering the theme “Borders.” The piece was performed by Georgia, Brussels locals and recently arrived refugees who were also artists. Together, 30 performers walked around the Quarter and posed in front of the European Parliament, the Greek Embassy and the European Commission—all while interacting with one another and forming new bonds—bridging their differences in a newly shared space. After the festival, the refugees who participated in the action wrote to Georgia expressing that they were deeply moved by the performance, and that it reminded them to keep moving, to keep fighting for life and to keep reaching for their goals.

Georgia Lale’s artistic conviction exemplifies the substantial impact art can have. Through care and empathy, endurance and resolution, Georgia's work can create great shifts in the art world and in ourselves.

1. Cover image: SHELTER, a piece about domestic violence. Presented at A.Antonopoulou Gallery in Athens during a photography exhibition by Yannis Tzortzis. ©Georgia Lale Studio 2021. Documentation by Theodore Michopoulos.

2. #OrangeVest Times Square. ©Georgia Lale Studio 2015. Photo by George Xourafas.

3. #OrangeVest European Quarter, Brussels. ©Georgia Lale Studio 2016.

Photo by Petros Lales.

4. #OrangeVest at The MET. ©Georgia Lale Studio 2015. Photo by Isabel Gutierrez.

5. Georgia Lale on the Brooklyn Bridge during the #OrangeVest performance.

6. Georgia Lale, Family Portrait, 2018, ink on bristol board, 17”x11”.

THE EVERYDAY ARTIST

with Yam Chew Oh

by Nivia Herron Hernandez

Yam Chew Oh is a multidisciplinary artist, educator and storyteller whose work explores circumstance, time, and attention through history, relationships and the everyday. Here, Yam Chew discusses some of the things he does as an artist when feeling creatively blocked and why he is so drawn to a certain object that he uses in his work.

How would you describe your course?

The Everyday Artist was conceived from the belief that art is all around us in the everyday and that every one of us can make art out of it. The course asks the question: “Are life and art really separate from each other?”

Using the work of artists such as Marcel Duchamp, Rachel Perry, Richard Tuttle and El Anatsui as examples, we examine the various ways artists have engaged with the everyday and discuss topics like the blurring of the art/life dichotomy, everyday aesthetics, materials and materiality, meaning, content and process. The course includes a hands-on component where participants experiment with making art in a communal setting using everyday materials, and [they] receive critique from a guest artist.

What would you tell students who are feeling creatively blocked? And what are some of the things you do as an artist? I would tell them to be patient, as creative blocks are often temporary if one puts in effort to try and arrest the blockage. When I’m creatively blocked, I try not to “push it.” I “give it a rest” by doing mundane things like tidying up my studio or doing household chores. Or I do something other than make art—e.g. read, exercise, listen to music, have long showers and take my dog for

long walks. Insights and inspiration can appear in unexpected places and most of us know where that is; for me, it’s in the shower.

Is there a certain used/found item that you like to use in your work?

If so, what about the item makes it so meaningful to you?

I am especially drawn to copper as it reminds me of my late father, who was a karung guni man, the Singapore equivalent of the American junk man. I grew up helping him with his karung guni business, which had a deep impact on my love for humble, delicate and flawed materials. We reclaimed and recycled all kinds of stuff—from scrap metal and hardware to bakau wood from scaffolding, as well as old newspapers, books, magazines and clothing. Copper, which we collected from the electrical wiring of abandoned houses and dynamos, was among the most lucrative. As a material, I like that it bears witness to the passing of time through changing its color.

What do you hope your students take away from your course?

I hope my students take away some art historical knowledge of this “subgenre” of art and acquire the language to understand, discuss and think about it critically. More important, I hope the course provides them with a jumping off point—that they go away with an open mind, ready to explore and experiment further.

All artwork pictured by Yam Chew Oh.

1. Mother III, 2021, stainless steel food storage container; plastic pill bottle; plastic bag, vintage yarn and ribbon from mother; second-hand frame, 16" x 13 ½" x 4".

2. The relationshape (handwritten invitations), 2021, pen and marker on used envelopes, size varies.

3. A convenient matter, 2022, inkjet on vellum, used Christmas tree netting, found plastic cap, approx. 13'x 20"x20".

4. Floating on detritus 2018, used plastic bag and found metal hardware, approx. 21 ⅝" x 7" x 6 ½".

5. A gilded cage, 2021, charcoal, graphite, pen and colored pencil on quarantine food box cover, approx. 8 ²⁄₁₆" x 4 ¹³⁄₁₆" x ¹¹⁄₁₆".

6. The Ol’ Sniff Factory, 2021, used food packaging and clothing price tag fastener 9 ⅜" x 6 ⅞" x 4 ½".

AN ARTISTIC HUB

SoMad:

Located in the heart of the Flatiron District is a femme and queer-run artist space called SoMad— established with the vision of fostering a creative community for emerging and BIPOC artists. Beginning in 2018, SoMad was created by alumnus Sara Arno, Serichai Traipoom, Carla Maldonado and Paul Simon from SVA’s MFA Photography, Video and Related Media program. They have since been building a creative community that extends into the SVA and SVACE network.

“When Covid happened, as working artists who had lost any sort of income, there was a huge conversation about what

OF RADICAL

SELFEXPRESSION

by Stephanie McGovern

we could do to help, and we started extending the space itself as an opportunity,” says co-founder Serichai Traipoom. This expansion was also in response to the 2020 uprising, as Serichai was very active in photographing the protests and events for magazines: “We realized that supporting artists and giving them a place to show their work was something that we could do and that we had the resources to make available.”

SoMad began working on a series of three show installments, inviting independent curators to gather artists aligned with their vision to exhibit in the space. The installments included “Bathing in Blackness: A Necessary New Order,” curated by Kamra Hakim of Activation Residency; “Counterweight,” curated by past SVACE faculty member Patricia Voulgaris; and “FOGO!” curated by Carla Maldonado. With each show, SoMad invited participating artists to choose an organization that they could direct a percentage of their sales to.

In 2022, SoMad decided to put their production education into action by creating SoMad TV, a platform of independent media. The first in-house production, called Activation TV, was an arthouse-inspired approach to a series of three shows dreamt up and hosted by collaborator Kamra Hakim. One program, titled “Black Gaze,” featured

Kamra guiding an in-studio guest through an eye-gazing exercise—as a means to connect beyond words and to practice the power of looking. Executive Director Sara Arno noted, “It was a really meaningful project because Covid was running rampant and some of the interactions between Kam and the guests were the first time they had received a hug in months.”

SoMad also held their first open call for curators and artists, bringing in co-curators SVA MFA Fine Arts alumni Jay Elizondo and past SVACE faculty member Lorenzo Triburgo. Their show “(Un)Fixed” explored the expansiveness of gender and sought to challenge the notion of gender as a “fixed” dichotomy. In addition to the group show, SoMad hosted a performance night and a dinner for the artists. “We’re trying to build a space from a place of care, that’s human based and not just a commercial business,” said Serichai. “It’s really about the support, and that community building aspect is what we want to continue doing here.”

SVACE looks forward to watching SoMad as they continue to grow, expand and nurture their creative community.

*To get the extended and detailed story on SoMad, please visit our blog: sva.edu/blog/continuing-education

1. Lorenzo Triburgo & Sarah Van Dyck, Mars 2020, dye sublimation on aluminum panel, 48”x32”.

2. Installation by Gabrielle Randall from the group show “(UN)FIXED.”

3. Photo taken by Serichai Traipoom, 2020.

4. View of “Bathing in Blackness: A Necessary New Order,” curated by Kamra Hakim of Activation Residency.

5. Work by Daesha Devon Harris, from the Just Beyond the River: A FolkTale series.

STEPHANIE GARON ARTIST RESIDENCY SPOTLIGHT:

By Rachel Gisela Cohen

SVA Residency Alumnus Stephanie Garon is a multidisciplinary artist, environmentalist and writer. By exploring themes of claim, women’s labor and time, she focuses her work on humanity's interruption of land. When she’s not fabricating steel armatures or experimenting with natural materials, she is outside jumping through freshwater streams and exploring the natural world.

Garon creates artworks that stem from her own experiences in the outdoors and interactions with the people closely tied to the land she investigates. We spoke with her to learn more about her work and how her experiences in nature have served as a catalyst for her environmental activism.

How did you start making work about the environment?

When I was six years old, I'd explore the woods by carving trails, making stick and rock sculptures and running through rainstorms. I never stopped.

While other artists sketched or used oil paints, I continued making this type of work and didn’t recognize it as art until I turned 35. I quit my job, started applying my science background to research and attended art school.

Did your experience in SVA's Artist Residency Programs influence your work?

Art takes a snapshot of culture and translates ideas visually. While I have an intimate appreciation for nature, I recognized in galleries early on that not everyone did. The Residency Program met my specific needs for professional development in gallery spaces. The professors were precise, highly integrated into the arts community and incredibly responsive. The visiting artists and resource access inspired me to push formal boundaries and experiment more.

Do you consider yourself an environmental activist?

Since my work focuses on humanity’s power and influence over nature, I

want to amplify the voices of communities and the needs of the resources impacted by land claim issues and climate crisis politics. Extensive research, including scientific investigation and cultural collaborations, is integrated into each artwork. My focus is to draw attention to the materials themselves and invoke personal ecological consciousness.

Can art influence change?

Art educates. Provocative art inspires the viewer to consider their personal connection to it. I want to inspire consideration and possible change toward the environment. That action can translate to recycling more, planting trees, learning about land claim issues or contributing to campaigns to protect the land.

Maine

1. Void II as shown at The Kreeger Museum, Washington, D.C., 2022, extracted rock cores from Maine (Passamaquoddy land), 4'x10'x10'.

2. Brae, 2022, steel and cypress tree as shown at The Brentwood Arts Exchange, 8'x8'x8'.

3. Gold Rush as shown at Hamiltonian Gallery, rock cores extracted from

(Passamaquoddy land) and ticker tape displaying stock market prices for key U.S. metals, 14'x12'x12'.

4. Stephanie Garon working in her studio, 2022. Image courtesy of the artist.

5. Assembly, 2022, mined rock core pigment, tap water, soil, 12"x18".

DIVISION OF CONTINUING EDUCATION

ContinuEd Project Space

STATEMENT

Liang’s artistic style is heavily influenced by a variety of sources, from traditional Chinese painting techniques to the work of Hieronymus Bosch and the surrealists. Her current body of work looks to combine traditional Chinese art and Western art through painting, as a way to reinterpret the stories that affected her during childhood.

COURSE

Ceramics | FIC-2409-A

DIVISION

ARTIST Yingyao Liang

Left image: The Tear Pool, 2022, oil on canvas, paper clay, 15"x15".

Right image: The Queen's Croquet-Ground 2023, oil on canvas, acrylic, clay, 35 ¾" x 35 ¾".