MiniMAX
Juried by Susan Ashworth
November 8–December 4 Opening reception: December 10, 6:30–8:00 pm
This month’s group exhibit is really two in one: very small works and very large works. “MiniMAX” asks viewers to consider scale, and how large works differ from small works in ways other than size.
Martyr and Hero by Julia Dzikiewicz and other artwork in “MiniMAX.” Top of post: Desert Night by Sylvia Browne and Chain Lightning by M M Panas.
Are small works necessarily cute? Do large works have to be monumental? We have both, but also much more, in “MiniMAX.”
Artwork by Peter Ulrich, Cindi Lewis, Pattee Hipschen, and Min Park.
This exhibit also marks the first time we’ve invited a juror from overseas. Susan Ashworth, the celebrated UK-based painter, juried both the large and small works.
Dark Shadows by Gloria Spellman, winner of the Eleanor Boudreau Jordan Award for Best in Show for small works.Answer Web by Beverly Ryan, winner of the Cora J. Rupp Memorial Award for Large Works.
Power by Robyn Straub and Answer Web by Beverly Ryan.Number 888 by Tory Cowles and Embodiment by Catherine Toulsaly
24 photos from the “Frozen Moment” series by Soomin Ham.
Sound of Butterfly
by Soomin Ham
November 9–December 4, 2016 Opening reception: November 10, 6:30–8:00 pm
(Read the DCist review: “The Art League is an intimate space for this affecting, gut-wrenching work, and I highly recommend making the trip to Alexandria to see it.”)
When you’re in a reflective mood, an art exhibit can be the perfect place to find some peace and quiet.
This month, the solo room in our gallery is hosting a deeply personal exhibit of photography, video, and sound pieces that tell the story of the artist’s mother’s life, depression, and death. Soomin Ham’s “Sound of Butterfly” is composed of four series:
Frozen Moment: This photography series, pictured at the top of the post, started with photographs of objects and places related to Ham’s mother. Those original photographs were frozen under ice and re-photographed on a lightbox, resulting in the prints you see in the exhibit.
Back to Heaven: This photography series, including The Shy Girl, below, follows a similar progression, tying together process, memory, and subject matter. Family photos were printed onto rice paper, repeatedly washed and dried, and finally placed outside and rephotographed during snowfall. These soft, faded images are the result.
The Shy Girl by Soomin Ham
Sound of Butterfly: In this titular video and sound piece, Ham combines her happiest childhood memories — in the form of family movies and ancestral Korean rituals — with music, for a dreamlike, contemplative piece.
Silent Echo: This counterpart to the happy memories of Sound of Butterfly focuses on Ham’s mother’s depression and how it affected her family. It centers around the voices of Ham and her family, both in narration and in recordings from Ham’s mother’s answering machine.
Still from Sound of Butterfly by Soomin HamStill from Silent Echo by Soomin Ham
