Statement from the exhibiting artists, Jean Gray Mohs, Natalia Torres del Valle and Kelly Sheppard Murray:

” They Can Be Both articulates the lineage of small acts over time. With each grouping of small objects, we hope the audience will walk away with an awareness of how small acts can have a significant impact when done with steady persistence, whether as a creative endeavor or a push for social change. As mothers, it can sometimes be perceived as a radical act to take time for ourselves and make space to pursue something of our own.

In our works, we have each embraced nuances and irregularities and recognize how this is a metaphor for life where one is continually reconstructing and embracing the unknown, uncontrollable, and often discarded or overlooked. Through our objects and mark-making, we break out of traditional painting or sculpture techniques to create both painting and sculpture works. This also seems an interesting parallel to how our life is also blurring the boundaries between our roles as artists and mothers. Our processes are a direct reaction to our lives as we work with circumstances, limitations, and opportunities that we are afforded. With the radical act of devoting time to the daily act of making but proceeding with persistence and a clarity of vision, over time the work becomes something more than the sum of its parts.”

Photos Credit: Chris Ciccone