Living with Art Salon unveiled its summer exhibition with the installation ‘It’s Only Natural: The Summer Salon at Living with Art,’ True to its title, the exhibition explores how nature informs the artists practice.
Six women artists were invited to install their artwork, inhabiting a space within the Living with Art Salon Harlem brownstone. Their works are informed by trees, plants and the discoveries of nature’s communication network that thrives underground and outside of our view. Each artist takes a different approach to make the connection between the natural world and how human’s shelter and survive in the urban landscape.
Participating artists include Michele Brody, Stacy Bogdonoff, Alison Cuomo, Cinzia Meneghello, Priscilla Stadler, Susan Stair.
“If you asked an interior designer to bring the outdoors in,, they might choose colors found in nature, incorporate plants,, and artworks that reference the natural environment. This exhibition takes that design principle to a whole other level. One that the artist has creative license to interpret.” ~ Connie Lee
About the curator ~ Connie Lee is an independent curator, public art leader, advocate for artists and cultural equity. During her six-year term, 2015 – 2021, as President of the Marcus Garvey Park Alliance, she developed a prolific public art initiative focused in the neighborhoods of Harlem and East Harlem. Lee facilitated dozens of public art installations in Marcus Garvey Park, Harlem Art Park, White Park, Eugene McCabe Field, Morningside Park, A Philip Randolph Square and public plazas.
About Living with Art ~ Since 2020 Lee has curated Living with Art, a salon style exhibition space in a Harlem brownstone, connecting emerging and mid-career artists to each other and arts professionals. The salon provides a creative space for collectors to have a comprehensive experience with the artwork, artists and curator.
Art Lives Here, Inc. is a non-profit arts organization that creates opportunities for under-recognized artists and provides access to art in communities that are often excluded by bringing meaningful public art installations, exhibitions, performances and educational programming to people where they live, work and gather with friends and family. Founded by Connie Lee with encouragement from the artists that she collaborates with.
Related programming:
Clay Casting Workshop: Saturday July 16, 2022 – 10:00 am ~ Artist Susan Stair will show participants how to take clay impressions of live tree bark on the beautiful brownstone block where Living with Art is. Stair will walk us through the process for preparing the clay for firing. This is an excellent workshop for artists who don’t usually work with clay and non-artists too.
Stories of Migration: Saturday July 30, 2022 – Noon ~ Participants will be asked to write briefly about their family stories of migrating to the U.S. on handmade milkweed/mugwort paper. The artist, Michele Brody, will give a workshop using the Origami technique to fold the paper into the shape of a butterfly that will be part of a future installation focusing on the annual migrations of the Monarch Butterfly and what we can do to save their habitats.
It’s Only Natural: The Summer Salon at Living with Art will be on view from July 1, 2022 to September 21, 2022, with a Member Preview throughout the 4th of July weekend and an Opening Reception on Saturday, July 9 from 3-6pm by Invitation Only.