BY TRACEY O’SHAUGHNESSY REPUBLICAN-AMERICAN
December 20, 2021
Plunged into the turmoil of adolescence, girls can turn alternately tender, compassionate and devoted; and vicious, vindictive and vengeful. Zoe Hawk’s blisteringly vivid paintings, at the Jennifer Terzian Gallery.
Opening Reception: December 4 from 5-7pm
Jennifer Terzian Gallery is pleased to announce Curiouser and Curiouser, a solo exhibition of new work by Missouri based artist Zoe Hawk.
Hawk’s work deals with the complex experience of girlhood, exploring adolescent anxiety, feminine identity, and belonging. These themes are tackled within scenes of play, group interactions, and discovery, often stylistically referencing children’s storybook illustrations.
In her new body of work, Hawk draws influence from traditional folk murder ballads of the British Isles and Appalachia; the Radium Girls (women factory workers in the early 20th century who literally glowed, to their eventual detriment); and the Florida mermaid shows of the 1960s. Also included in the exhibition are paintings from Hawk’s Tarot series. In creating this series, Hawk researched traditional tarot symbolism and meaning and translated it through the lens of her own work. Hawk’s main point of reference for the project was the Rider-Waite set, the most iconic and quintessential deck, which dates from 1910. Most of the designs in her series played on the Rider-Waite poses and symbolism, such as the Hermit carrying a lantern, or the Hierophant’s raised hand gesture. However, all of Hawk’s cards reflect upon the experience of girlhood—sometimes depicting its traditional cultural signifiers (the Page of Wands as a bridesmaid, Temperance at a tea party) while others are more contemporary representations. Read Full Article
